Richard Bennett: Afghanistan’s future is bleak without the rights of women and minorities.
Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights, warned at a meeting in Geneva that Afghanistan’s future will be “dark” without ensuring the rights of women and ethnic and religious minorities.
He considered the Taliban and poverty to be two major obstacles facing Afghan society, and said that without addressing these problems, the country will not move towards sustainable development and stability.
The meeting was held at the UN headquarters at the initiative of a number of countries, and its main focus was to examine the Taliban’s accountability mechanisms.
Participants emphasized the need to create practical solutions to force this group to respect human rights.
The Deputy Head of Canada’s Mission to the UN also noted at the meeting that women and girls must be at the center of Afghanistan’s political decision-making.
He said that to ensure justice and accountability for the situation in Afghanistan, real political will is needed; something that has not existed so far.
