Twelve prominent female leaders have stated that excluding women from the Doha meeting and yielding to the Taliban's conditions will legitimise the group and lead to further oppression of women in Afghanistan.
In an open letter to the international community, these leaders, participants at the 2024 Global Women Leaders Summit, called for the active and direct participation of Afghan women in the third Doha meeting.
The letter was signed by former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Presidents of Lithuania and Kosovo, former Prime Ministers of Finland, New Zealand, and Australia, former Foreign Minister of Mexico, and the former head of the Afghanistan Human Rights Commission, among others.
These women stated that the international community’s exclusion of Afghan women is "outrageous" and will marginalise their voices and undermine their rights.
The leaders stated, "Afghan women’s exclusion is inconsistent with the UN Charter, UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security, and nine subsequent related resolutions, and conventions including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)."
The prominent international figures emphasised that ignoring women at the upcoming Doha meeting contradicts the global stance on Afghan women's rights and undermines the credibility and effectiveness of the Doha meeting.
They declared that the international community should not pave the way for the broader legitimacy of the Taliban.
The female leaders stressed, "The status and rights of women are fundamentally relevant to all discussions. We must not open a pathway for the Taliban to gain broader legitimacy, including for its oppressive treatment of women. Allowing the Taliban to dictate the terms of the Doha dialogue legitimises their draconian abuses, which amount to gender apartheid."
They asserted that this is a decisive moment for the international community to show its unwavering commitment to Afghan women and girls by insisting on their presence at the negotiating table.
The Doha meeting will be held in a few days with the participation of special representatives from regional and international players.
A Taliban spokesperson will head the group's delegation at the Doha meeting, which will be chaired by the UN Deputy Secretary-General.