100 Women From 28 Afghan Provinces Call For Boycott of Doha Meeting

The Organization For Policy and Development Studies has released a series of video messages from 100 women across 28 provinces of Afghanistan, calling for a boycott of the upcoming Doha meeting.

These women have launched a campaign seeking a boycott of the Doha meeting due to the absence of women’s rights in the agenda and at the negotiation table.

The third Doha meeting is scheduled to be held in the coming days without the presence of women in the main negotiations.

The exclusion of women and democratic forces from the Doha meeting has sparked widespread criticism from women activists and civil society. Critics argue that excluding women from the Doha meeting is against the values outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and assert that any meeting about Afghanistan without women lacks legitimacy.

Some international organisations, including Human Rights Watch, have criticised the exclusion of women from the Doha negotiations, calling it shocking.

Additionally, several Afghan activists and politicians have called for a boycott of the third Doha meeting.

Previously, Rahmatullah Nabil, former head of Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security, urged Afghan women and civil activists to suspend relations with the United Nations.

While women have not been invited to the third Doha meeting, a delegation representing the Taliban government will attend.

The Taliban did not participate in the second Doha meeting, citing the UN's refusal to accept the group's conditions. One of the Taliban's conditions was that they should be the sole representative of Afghanistan in the negotiations.

Earlier, sources confirmed to Afghanistan International that the third Doha meeting will be held under the supervision of Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Under-Secretary-General. Previous meetings were led by Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General.