Women’s Political Participation Network: The Taliban Have Taken the Future of a Nation Hostage Through Repression

Social Media

The Women’s Political Participation Network of Afghanistan, in a statement, described four years of Taliban rule as a period of “systematic violation of the fundamental rights of the people and the taking hostage of the future of a nation.”

The statement said that during this time, by closing the doors of schools and universities to girls, enforcing misogynistic and repressive policies, and removing academic books – especially the works of women and Persian texts – the Taliban have not only eliminated women from the space of knowledge and thought, but are also pursuing “cultural cleansing.”

This network, referring to recent protests in Kabul and Mazar, called them a sign of severe social pressure on the people. In Kabul, retired women protested due to the non-payment of their pensions, and in Mazar, men affected by the economic crisis took to the streets. According to the network, instead of responding to these legitimate demands, the Taliban, with silence and repression, showed that they have no mechanism for addressing the problems of citizens.

The network also referred to the widespread internet shutdowns in various provinces, especially in the north of the country, calling it a “tool of repression and silencing the voices of the people.” The statement emphasized that digital blackout has deprived millions of people of online education, digital businesses, and family communication, plunging society into darkness.

The Women’s Political Participation Network of Afghanistan called on the international community to officially document the human rights violations committed by the Taliban and to apply serious political and legal pressure on this group.

The network also stated that internet shutdown must be recognized as a tool of repression and that alternative ways to access education and information should be provided. According to the network, the removal of books and scientific censorship must be exposed, and with the support of global academic institutions, access of Afghan youth to sources of knowledge must be guaranteed.

The network warned that over the past four years, the Taliban have shown that they have no belief in human rights or the future of Afghanistan. At the end of the statement, it emphasized: “Silence means complicity with repression. We call on all the people of Afghanistan and the international community to stand together and prevent the continuation of the Taliban’s misogynistic and inhumane policies.”