The Taliban government’s morality police have announced they will no longer cooperate with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, labeling it an “opposing side.” This comes after UNAMA criticized a newly enacted morality law further restricting women’s rights in the Central Asian state and warned such actions could damage the country’s relationship with the international community.
Taliban Refuse to Engage with UN
PVPV, a Taliban Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice issued a statement late Thursday, in which it said that “all the support and cooperation of relevant offices of this ministry with UNAMA is withdrawn”. The UN mission was called out for spreading “propaganda” on their policies, and it asked other international organisations to respect the religious values of Afghanistan.
A statement released by the ministry said: “We urge international organizations, countries, and individuals to avoid statements that insult Islamic values and sanctities.” This has taken the row between the Taliban and the international community over human rights and women’s freedoms to a new height.
The New Morality Law
This 35-article morality law, which was published in Afghanistan’s official gazette on July 31, calls for women to fully cover themselves and avoid raising their voices in public. Though these were informally required, putting them into a legal code could make the control and repression even tighter within the Afghan population, especially toward women.
This has come under severe criticism by various international agencies and human rights organizations, which claim the law is seriously depriving women of their rights in Afghanistan. UNAMA has been most vocal regarding this, warning of far-reaching impacts to further alienate Afghans from the international community.
The Taliban’s move to end cooperation with UNAMA suggests the increasing disintegration of the de facto government of Afghanistan from the international community. Long as the Taliban is going to maintain law and order based on strict religious precepts, the outlook for genuinely important engagement with international organizations appears very bleak. The international community must now take up the mantle by acting on human rights issues in Afghanistan against a presumably complex and rapidly deteriorating relationship with the Taliban.