The United Nations said it will continue to engage with all parties in Afghanistan, including the Taliban, even after the hard-line rulers issued a “distressing” new morality law that severely bans women’s activities in public.
“We have been very vocal on the decision to further make women’s presence almost disappear in Afghanistan,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told a news conference in New York on August 31.
“In terms of the contacts with the de facto authorities...we will continue to engage with all stakeholders in Afghanistan, including the Taliban.”
"We have always done so following our mandate. And I would say impartially and in good faith, always upholding the norms of the UN, pushing the messages of human rights and equality. And we will continue our work as mandated by the Security Council,” he added.
Roza Otunbayeva, the head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), said on August 25 that the laws presented a “distressing vision” for Afghanistan’s future.
The laws expand the "already intolerable restrictions” on the rights of women and girls -- with “even the sound of a female voice” in public deemed a violation of morality laws.
SEE ALSO: Afghanistan Slides Into 'Ever More Hellish Conditions' After New Morality Law EnactedThe Taliban has attempted to police the public appearances and behavior of millions of Afghans, especially women, since seizing power in 2021.
Enforcement of the extremist group’s rules governing morality, including its strict Islamic dress code and gender segregation in society, was sporadic and uneven across the country.
But on August 21, the hard-line Islamist group formally codified into law its long set of draconian restrictions, triggering fear among Afghans of stricter enforcement.
The Law on the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice imposes severe restrictions on the appearances, behavior, and movement of women. The law also enforces constraints on men.
Taliban leaders say the laws are based on their interpretation of Shari'a law.
SEE ALSO: The Azadi Briefing: Afghan Clerics Are Opposing Taliban Bans On Female EducationSeveral leading Afghan clerics have come out publicly to oppose the latest restrictions.
Mawlawi Abdul Sami Ghaznavi, said it was the Taliban’s "responsibility to create favorable conditions for women's education."
On August 27, the UN Human Commission on Human Rights demanded that the "repressive law be immediately repealed."
"This is utterly intolerable," it said.
"We call on the de facto authorities to immediately repeal this legislation, which is in clear violation of Afghanistan’s obligations under international human rights law."