As the United Nations prepares for the third round of Doha talks with the Taliban on June 30 and July 1, the exclusion of Afghan women from these discussions has drawn global outcry. The talks will focus on counter-narcotics and the private sector, neglecting the crucial issue of holding the Taliban accountable for their ongoing women’s rights abuses, and they will proceed without the inclusion of women.

Human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have condemned the U.N.’s engagement with the Taliban under these terms. They argue that this approach compromises the U.N.’s responsibility to uphold human rights and effectively normalizes the Taliban's oppressive regime.

Since regaining power in August 2021, the Taliban has imposed severe restrictions on women's rights, including banning secondary education for girls and women working in most sectors and restrictions on women's mobility and access to public spaces. These measures have created a human rights crisis, with many activists, journalists, and Afghans calling for the inclusion of Afghan women in any meaningful discussions about the country's future.

“Do you know what it feels like not to go to university? Do you know what it feels like to lose your dreams?” Noor*, 24, who was in her freshman year of university when the Taliban returned to power, shared with More to Her Story.

Critics argue that the international community’s willingness to engage with the Taliban without women's representation risks accepting and even legitimizing the Taliban’s ongoing gender apartheid.

“Excluding women risks legitimizing the Taliban’s abuses and triggering irreparable harm to the U.N.'s credibility as an advocate for women's rights and women’s meaningful participation,” Tirana Hassan, executive director at Human Rights Watch, said.

Global human rights activists and journalists have argued the international community can and should take more drastic measures to pressure the Taliban. This could include implementing and enforcing targeted sanctions against Taliban leaders responsible for women’s rights abuses. This also means denying formal recognition of the Taliban government until they demonstrate progress for women’s rights. Humanitarian and development aid should be strictly conditional on women’s access to education and employment.

Another significant step the international community could take, activists say, is to codify gender apartheid under international law. The move to recognize gender apartheid has gained considerable momentum in recent months, including being endorsed by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the United Nations. The United States government has also referred to this form of oppression in official reports, as well as some national governments. Activists say that recognizing and legally defining the systematic oppression of women as gender apartheid would create a framework for international intervention and accountability. This legal codification would also send a strong message to the Taliban and similar regimes that the global community will not tolerate the institutionalized subjugation of women.