Ensuring Access to Justice for Afghan Women and Girls: Documentation, Accountability, Protection, and the Rule of Law (CSW70 Side Event)

Excellencies, distinguished colleagues, ladies and gentlemen, it's my pleasure to welcome you to this morning to this important site event on ensuring access to justice for Afghan women and girls. I thank all of you for joining us during this busy week of the Commission on the Status of Women. Let me begin by expressing sincere appreciation to our co organizers, partners, co sponsors, and all those who helped bring this event together. I also warmly welcome our distinguished speakers, panelists, representatives of member states, high level delegations, civil society leaders, and Afghan women human rights defenders who continue to raise their voices for justice despite extraordinary challenges. Distinguished colleagues, today's discussion addresses an urgent reality in Afghanistan.

The foundations of justice for women and girls have been systematically dismantled. Women judges, prosecutors, lawyers and police officers who once played a vital role in advancing the rule of law have been removed from their positions. Legal protection mechanisms have collapsed, and women and girls face an institutionalized system of discrimination that denies them access to basic rights and remedies. This is not simply setback in progress, it's a structural denial of justice. This event brings together Afghan women leaders, human rights defenders and partners to reflect on practical ways to safeguard evidence, support victims, and keep the pursuit of justice alive until meaningful accountability becomes possible.

Allow me to briefly outline our program. We will begin with opening remarks from our distinguished Member States partners. We are honored to have representatives from Greece, Ireland with us today. We will then hear a keynote address from Mr. Richard Bennett, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, whose work has been instrumental in documenting the ongoing human rights crisis. Following the keynote, we will move to a panel discussion featuring distinguished Afghan experts and advocates who continue to work on justice, documentation and the protection of women's rights.

After that. After the panel discussion, we will open the floor for interventions and questions from the Member States and participants before concluding with a brief closing remarks.

Excellencies, it's now my honor to invite.

It's now my honor to invite our first speaker, His Excellency, Her Excellency, Ms. Catriani Patiani, Secretary General for Equality and Human Rights, Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family of Greece, to deliver her remarks. Please.

Excellency, thank you very much. Thank you very much. Excellencies.

Dear colleagues, it is a profound honor to be here today as we pay tribute to the women of Afghanistan. I would like to thank the mission of Afghanistan for organizing this event, as well as all co sponsors. I especially want to recognize our Afghanistan panelists. Your courage is speaking out against the systematic and systemic violation of human rights of Afghan women is an inspiration for all of US Dear colleagues, on International Women's Day this year, we celebrated women's achievement. Yet for Afghanistan, it highlighted the harsh reality for women and girls.

The Taliban's governance is defined by an unprecedented assault on female autonomy. Codified through more than 80 directives and degrees, this institutionalized discrimination amounts to nothing less than gender persecution. The Taliban's Law on Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice aims to erase women from public life. The most recent addition to this oppression apparatus is the so called new penal code. By codifying moral crimes with archaic and

violent punishments, the Taliban have removed the remaining legal protection for women, turning the law to into a tool to punish them for their existence. The Taliban's December 2024 decision to ban women and girls from medical education, both public and private, is a death knell of the country's future. Furthermore, the restriction preventing Afghan women eun personnel from accessing offices, in effect since September, have had severe repercussions on the delivery of life saving aid to the most vulnerable groups. As a result, the entire system of health care and humanitarian assistance for women and girls is on the brink of collapse.

This is unacceptable. Greece strongly condemns these egregious practices. We demand the Taliban immediately cease the oppressions and honor Afghanistan's international commitments, particularly the Sadao Convention. We also expect that they restore access to education and employment for all women and girls and allow female UN personnel back to their offices. At the same time, we welcome all steps towards accountability, including the recent establishment of an independent investigative mechanism for Afghanistan which aims at advancing justice for international crimes and violations of international law committed to in the country their colleagues.

Greece believes in the stability and sustainable peace in Afghanistan and reiterates its solidarity with the Afghan people. The erasure of Afghan women will not be met with impunity. Thank you.

And your strong statement. It means a lot for the women of Afghanistan. And I should like to mention that Greece, as a member of Security Council, along with other international partners, Ireland and Finland and all co sponsors of this event, they issued strong statement on 9th March in support and solidarity with Afghan women. A very strong statement. Thank you.

We are so much grateful. And now it's my honor, I have the honor to invite His Excellency Ambassador Fergal, my very dear friend representative of Ireland, to deliver your remarks. Please.

Good morning everyone. Thank you Ambassador Nasir and it's a great honor to be on this platform with Ekaterini and Richard and to be co sponsoring this event with the missions of Australia, Finland, Greece and Spain.

And may I say I align myself and Ireland Align itself for every word you said, Ekaterina, you put it so well, setting out the reality for women and girls in Afghanistan today. We saw this when we were on the security council in 2021, 22, we saw fall of Kabul and we saw decree after decree. And I think since then, maybe, I think something like 200 plus decrees have been issued in a very systematic, structural assault on the rights of women and girls in the public and private space in Afghanistan. And the challenge for us in the un, the challenge for us as member states, is to keep shining a light on what's happening there. Because there's so much in our inboxes, there's so many issues on our agenda, particularly in the Security Council, that sometimes people look away and maybe just can't cope with all these issues and Afghanistan kind of falls down the order paper and we can't let that happen.

I think high level week, but also this week, CSW is so, so important for bringing the light back onto what's happening there. And that's why it's an honour for us to be speaking here today. We have to continue to stand in solidarity with Afghan women and girls. We have to shine a light on the grave human rights situation, the grave human rights abuses that are being committed in a structural, systematic way by the Taliban against women in our program for government. Our new government recently agreed a program for government and it has committed to working with international partners to keep attention in any way we can on the plight of women and girls in Afghanistan.

And we will continue to work through the European Union, through the un, to, you know, seek to apply pressure on the Taliban in every way we can to reverse their exclusionary decrees and policies. As Katharina has said, and Richard will also note, the enforcement of ever more severe draconian decrees is contributing to an abhorrent gender based system of discrimination and segregation, which severely limits women's access to justice as well as their physical safety and bodily autonomy. The Taliban's ban on women working for NGOs is absolutely reprehensible. And their practice of excluding women and girls from access to education, including medical education, is an egregious affront to basic human rights and fundamental freedoms. And so we believe the time for accountability is now.

And we, as the international community, have a duty to hold all those responsible for these human rights violations and abuses against Afghan women and girls to account. We must also not forget the other marginalized groups in Afghanistan, the disabled, the Hazara LBGTQI community, who are also suffering dreadful human rights abuses under the Taliban I will note and I think it's really important to acknowledge the bravery and tenacity and courage of women in Afghanistan, both inside Afghanistan and here at the UN and elsewhere. During the week my minister and I met with Malala and other advocates for women and girls in Afghanistan. So they are putting doing huge work in shining that light and keeping the attention on the situation. And I want to acknowledge them and honour them.

Today, as I said, it is essential we don't forget our commitments. And I think we in Ireland are a little bit worried. There seems to be discourse now around various global issues that maybe international law doesn't have to be abided by in all circumstances. And we absolutely reject that, that you know, international law, international human rights law, humanitarian law has to apply in all instances consistently across the board and absolutely in relation to the plight of women and girls in Afghanistan. So just to voice our support and to say that Ireland will work with all like minded partners and member states and with the, you know, with the UN to keep a light on the situation and do what we can in every sphere, in every forum to not forget the women and girls Afghanistan, but to work to ameliorate their situation.

Thank you. Thank you Ambassador, About Afghan women. And we do remember when Ireland was in Security Council during very difficult days that that these things happen and Afghan women's voices were always platforms were provided by Ireland and now that for keeping the Afghanistan issue and highlighting continued support is deeply appreciative. Thank you, thank you. And now it's my honor to invite Mr. Richard Bennett, a very dear friend and also a steadfast supporter of human rights and particularly the rights of Afghan women and girls and minorities.

So Mr. Richard, he has returned from Geneva after presenting his report in Human Rights Council and he's our keynote speaker and it's my honor to invite him to deliver your keynote speaker speech. Sir Richard Bent, please.

Thank you very much. Mr. Fyke. Many thanks to the mission of Afghanistan to all the co organizers and the many co sponsors, which is a very positive thing.

And I feel like I barely need to speak after the speakers from Greece and Ireland who have really set out in very stark clear terms the situation in Afghanistan. But since I'm keen up speaker, I better say something more understanding. Justice in Afghanistan today requires looking beyond the formal justice system. For many Afghans, justice and protection encompass even more than than court processes or perhaps even conventional transitional justice tools. Although these are all highly needed justice for many Afghans who I have consulted in particular for my mandated report on the issue of access to justice and protection for the Human Rights Council last June includes the ability to to access education, work, healthcare, freedom of movement and perhaps most fundamentally, the restoration of dignity to Afghan women and girls.

These perspectives highlight two important points. First, access to justice must be understood holistically in ways that reflect the lived realities and and needs of those affected. And second, functioning justice institutions are essential for the protection of other rights. When justice systems fail or are manipulated, the protection of all rights is placed at risk. Since taking retaking power in 2021, the Taliban has upended the justice system, abolishing laws and replacing or repurposing institutions.

To serve the group's ideological misogynistic model of governance. They've instituted their own system of discriminatory edicts, decrees and so called laws. They replaced judges with loyalist mullahs, all men. Of course. They abolished not only the institutions that act as breaks on on excesses of power, such as the Independent Human Rights Commission and the Ministry of Women's affairs, let alone the disbanding of Parliament and the Election Commission, as well as the restructuring of the Attorney General's office and abolishing prosecutors.

They've also established a specific institution to monitor so called moral crimes, much as they did in the 90s. While all Afghans are affected, women and girls have been particularly impacted. Today there are no women judges and no officially registered women lawyers in the country. There are no prosecutors at all. Institutions and laws that provided specific protection and support for women have been dismantled, including the evil elimination of violence against women law and institutions.

There are no shelters. The result is extremely limited legal or physical protection, fewer safe reporting channels and heightened risks of violations, abuse and exploitation. Women struggle to physically access justice institutions and must be accompanied by a maram. They're often prevented from speaking for themselves in legal proceedings. Courts often reject complaints made by women and cases that are accepted are rarely resolved.

Meanwhile, those who challenge or fail to comply with the Taliban's gender policies face arbitrary arrest and can be subjected to torture and ill treatment, including sexual violence and verbal abuse in detention. And there are few services available to support reintegration of former detainees. Other long standing barriers to justice, including safety and security, economic, social and cultural and language barriers, have been exacerbated. This situation is further compounded for women from remote and rural areas, as well as those from minority or marginalized backgrounds. The Taliban are increasingly entrenching their control through a growing body of so called laws and decrees that we've heard about already that formalize and institutionalize repression.

The August 24, Vice and Virtue Law consolidates many of the discriminatory policies imposed since the Taliban seized power again and added others. This January, the Taliban announced the new so called Rules for Courts. I don't call this a penal code. It's not a penal code. Further institutionalizing their system of control, the rules are framed in broad and vague terms, allowing for wide and discretionary interpretation by authorities.

They also allow violence against women, including domestic violence. The they also appear to establish a form of social hierarchy in the administration of justice, where punishments may vary according to the perceived status or class of individuals rather than the seriousness of the offence. The rules expand the use of corporal and capital punishment and in some cases appear to authorize punishments to be carried out by private individuals. As a result, the they're likely to have a disproportionate impact on at risk vulnerable and marginalized groups. They further intensify the Taliban's violence and discrimination against women and girls and deepen the criminalization of LGBT people.

Religious and ethnic minorities as well as other marginalized communities are also at greatly heightened risk of discriminatory enforcement.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Taliban's transformation of the legal and justice sectors is not a neutral restructuring. It actively weaponizes the legal, judicial and social order to oppress women and girls, their allies and LGBT people, denying them their rights, dignity, safety and agency. The result is the creation of a Taliban controlled legal and justice system and designed to enforce, entrench and sustain the group's repressive and misogynistic ideology. It forms part of an institutionalized system of discrimination, oppression and domination which amounts to crimes against humanity. While the international criminal legal framework prohibits certain gender based crimes, including gender persecution, I consider that it does not sufficiently prohibit institutionalized regimes such as that now holding power in Afghanistan, which is why I strongly support efforts to codify the crime of gender apartheid.

I note that Afghan women have since the 90s used the concept of gender apartheid to describe their lived realities under the Taliban. We should all stand in solidarity with them and encourage their campaign. It's also time we officially name, codify and prohibit the crime. Communities have increasingly turned to alternate justice mechanisms, long a feature of Afghan society. While they can offer faster resolution of disputes, they raise serious human rights concerns, including lack of procedural safeguards, transparency and independent oversight.

The they're typically male dominated and decisions often reflect patriarchal norms. Despite these concerns, many women are in fact resorting to alternate mechanisms, especially to resolve issues relating to domestic and intimate partner violence and disputes over property and inheritance, areas which especially impact Afghan women and where they've struggled historically to access remedies. However, for survivors, alternate mechanisms are often the only avenue to mitigate abuse. In some cases they have yielded positive outcomes. For example, civil society supported family mediation has persuaded some men to allow female relatives to access education, while Sharia based engagement with religious leaders has led to some to intervene in cases of forced and child marriage.

This suggests that in contexts like Afghanistan, where formal justice systems are being weaponized, alternate mechanisms can be an important tool for justice even if they're not the long term solution, nor should they be seen as a substitute for justice under a human rights respecting constitutional and legal framework.

Access to justice for women and girls has been further undermined by the Taliban's ongoing attack on civil society and civil society is playing an instrumental role in promoting access to justice and protection. Many NGOs have been forced to close or suspend operations. The situation is being exacerbated by funding cuts, particularly this year and last year, and I've received information from organizations being forced to close or scale down projects or or lay off staff, further compromising women's and girls already limited access to justice member States. I can hardly emphasize enough the harm that these funding cuts are causing. In conclusion, the situation in Afghanistan demonstrates that ensuring access to justice and protection for women and girls requires a comprehensive, what I call an all tools approach.

This is a range of interventions which together maximize the pathways for safe, stable, inclusive and rights respecting Afghanistan. It includes one Ensuring justice and accountability, including support for processes pursuing individual criminal responsibility such as at the ICC and the newly established independent investigative mechanism for Afghanistan, as well as universal jurisdiction and efforts to towards state accountability spearheaded by four States which come could under CEDAW which could come before the ICJ 2. Codifying apartheid as a crime against international law as I mentioned three sustained and principled international pressure, including the establishment of clear human rights benchmarks for engagement with the Taliban, making it clear that there will be no normalization of the de facto authorities unless and until there are demonstrable improvements in human rights, particularly for Women and Girls4strength and support for civil society, in particular increased funding for Afghan military and women led civil society organizations 5 fully funding the humanitarian response for Afghanistan 6 expanding educational and economic empowerment opportunities for women and Girls in Afghanistan 7 support for countries hosting Afghan refugees including protection support and creating further resettlement pathways and 8 finally and most critically, centering the rights, voices and agency of women, girls and Afghans in all their diversity, including ethnic and religious diversity. In all discussions and decision making processes about the future of Afghanistan, ladies and Gentlemen, will this, these all tools, if implemented, be enough to turn the tide? That's an open question.

But right now, lack of vision and lack of solidarity among the international community is emboldening the Taliban and their oppressive policies.

I welcome the statements of condemnation I've heard today and heard two weeks ago at the Human Rights Council. That's important, but more must be done. I think there needs to be some fresh thinking, perhaps using the independent assessment tabled in the Security Council two years ago as a starting point and moving forward from there.

The thinking needs to emerge into a plan followed by concerted and determined action coordinated with Afghans. It's surely needed. I look forward to listening to the panel of Afghans speakers, experts and I thank you.

Thank you, Richard, for a very comprehensive presentation of the current situation in Afghanistan and for the very strong messages, recognition of gender apartheid and particularly the continuation of a principal position and no recognition of the Taliban without any benchmarks. And we would like to also thank you for the report and welcome your report that you presented in, in the Human Rights Council. We are grateful for your wonderful work and also call for continued support to your work and to your team. And also this is a good place to mention about the independent investigative mechanism. We welcome it, we support it, and we also support your call for the using of all tools approach.

Thank you. And now we are going to the next part of our session, which is the panel discussion. And I really thank our distinguished speakers for the first, for the opening session. And now I take the floor and call our panelists to please come and take the floor. And thank you so much.

Thank you.

Yeah, you can stay. You can stay here. You can, you can stay. Maybe they will ask you some questions. That's why we wanted to keep you.

Sorry,

Mr. Lakosa, I think you should be here. Let's hear the car.

Okay. Well, to guide this conversation, it's my pleasure to introduce our moderator, Ms. Mitra Alakuzay, executive director of Sahar Education, a non profit organization advancing education and opportunities for Afghan women and girls. And Ms. Ale Kozai works at the intersection of education, human rights and conflict response, creating alternative learning pathways for those denied access to formal education. She's also a global advocate for gender justice and serves on the board of Simplify Global Education, supporting immigrant and refugees communities in the United States. So, Ms. Al Kozai, I'll hand over the floor and you can take it from here.

Thank you, Mr. Ambassador, for the kind introduction. It is my honor to be here and moderate this panel on women's access to justice in Afghanistan. Thank you so much for joining us today. We're also joined here by Ms. Mitra Mehran, co founder and Director of Afghanistan Justice Archives Ms. Zarqayeft Ali, founder of the Women and Children legal Research Foundation Ms. Hanifa Girawal, Vice President of Women's Rights First, Dr. Humayrazai, Human Rights defender and board member of Shamoma organization and Mr. Mahub Shahdarabi, writer, Afghan Civil society advocate and eyewitness speaker.

Ms. Yaftali, let me start with you actually. Based on your research, how would you describe the current state of women's access to justice in Afghanistan and what are the most significant barriers preventing women from seeking justice and legal protection?

Thank you so much. Mitrajan Good morning everyone. Excellencies, distinguished colleagues and dear friends, let me begin with the word of one woman in Afghanistan who participated in our recent research about women access to justice in Afghanistan. She said, for most women in Afghanistan today, seeking justice create more danger than protection. This sentence captured the painful reality facing millions of women right now in Afghanistan.

Access to justice is one of the most fundamental pillars of the rule of law. It is mechanisms through which individuals seek protections, accountability and dignity. Yet in Afghanistan today, this fundamental right has been systematically dismantled. Since the Taliban returned to power In I guess 2021, Afghanistan justice system has undergone a dramatic transformation. Courts and legal institutions still exist in name, but their function has fundamentally changed.

Instead of protecting rights and ensuring fairness, the justice system increasing operates as a mechanism of control. Women in Afghanistan are among those most severely affected. Female judges, prosecutors, lawyers, police women and legal aid providers have have been removed from the justice sector of Afghanistan. Women are often required to appear in court accompanied by a male guardian. In many cases, the guardian may be the person who is responsible for the implementing of violence against women in the family.

Cases involving domestic violence, forced marriage and other forms of gender based abuse frequently which is implementing on women in Afghanistan. These mechanisms often prioritize preserving family under rather than ensuring justice and protection for survivors in Afghanistan. To better understand the scale and this crisis, we in Women and Children Research and Advocacy Network conducted a research in the title of Women Access to justice in Afghanistan and we are going to launch the full findings of this research in early April in Canada and also maybe in some other countries. The findings reveal a deeply alarming situation in Afghanistan. Women describe facing widespread discrimination and serious barriers when attempting to pursue justice.

Many women explained that they abandoned their cases because there was not a female staff or a female judge, a female prosecutor or police and the and the Judicial system of Afghanistan. Women also describe being required to return to court with a male guardian. Even this male guardian is the implementer of violence against women upon the woman which is the victim and which is one to complain her case to the court. These barriers do not simply make justice difficult, they make justice nearly impossible. Participants also describe broader social consequence.

Many respondents reported that violence against women has increased since the Taliban takeover. Others describe growing forced marriage and atmosphere of disappear and hopelessness among women and girls across Afghanistan. Acts that were previously recognized as a crime under Afghanistan law, such as domestic violence or so forced marriage, are no longer consistently treated as criminal efforts. Survivors who report abuse may face blame in the court and justice system of Afghanistan. One of the participants explained, there is no longer such a thing as violence against women in the legal sense of Afghanistan.

These developments represent not only the collapse of women access to justice, but also a profound transformation of the justice system itself. Justice which should present fairness and protection has been replaced by a system that fairness, fear, silence and inequality. Let me sentence which I have received from one woman from inside of Afghanistan. She was one of the staff that work in the justice system of Afghanistan and the previous government. She said that today that you are celebrating the woman access to justice around the world.

Please remember that about 16 million women in Afghanistan right now, they deprived from all of their basic rights and they don't have access to their basic rights. So this is the time that all the international community should become behind the concerns and statements and show your sympathy and action and practical and real action with women of Afghanistan. Thank you so much. Mr. We'll come back to you with more practical steps. Dr. Riza, building up on that, how would you describe that the intersection of gender persecution and ethnic targeting specifically against Hazara women translate into the barriers that women face in seeking justice today?

Thank you so much. First of all, as a representation of Shah Mama, I would like to begin by thanking Finland, Luxembourg, Canada, Spain and others who have engaged with us and supported our work here in New York. But let me begin answering your question with the work that we're doing on Shah Mama Organization. Our team has documented around 800 cases of gender based persecution affecting women and girls across different provinces in Afghanistan. And our findings show that violations that women face to face today are not isolated incidents.

They form part of the systematic structure of gender persecution that operates across private, public and institutional spheres. I will not go into details of this report here, but I would be very happy to discuss our findings after this session if anyone would like to reach out. But one of the most important insight from our documentation is the role of intersectionality. Women in Afghanistan do not experience injustice in the same way. The barriers they face are shaped by intersection of gender with their ethnicity, religion, geography, poverty, social status, sexual orientation and other factors.

For example, women belonging to ethnic and religious minorities, including the Hazara women, face compounded vulnerabilities. Their marginalization is not only gender based, but also shaped by long histories of ethnic discrimination and and sectarian targeting. This means that when violence occurs, the obstacle to justice multiply. Hazara women face barriers not only from state repression, but also from the marginalization of their experiences within broader Afghan political narrative. Both inside of Afghanistan and within parts of the diaspora.

When Hazara women speak about their intersection of gender, persecution and ethnic targeting, their concerns are often dismissed as divisive. But recognizing these realities is not division. It's essential for justice. If intersectionality is ignored, the communities facing the greatest risk will remain invisible within international policy responses. As Khanoum Yaftali was talking about women who were from particular sectors and independent research reinforces this concern, a legal analysis published by the New Lions Institute concluded that there is a reasonable basis to believe that the targeting of the Hazara population may constitute as acts of genocide under international law.

At the same time, a recent report by World Organization Against Torture documents widespread use of arbitrary detention, intimidation and ill treatment of women under Taliban morality enforcement practices. Their report also notes that Hazara women face heightened vulnerability when within system of repression where gender discrimination intersects with ethnic and sectarian marginalization, further limiting their ability to seek protection or justice. And taken together, these findings highlights a very troubling reality. Women in Afghanistan are not only experiencing discrimination, they're living under system institutionalized exclusions and persecution. And for women who belong to these communities already facing identity based targets, the consequences are even severe.

And also it's important to recognize that these barriers to justice are not new. For many Hazara women. The denial to justice today exists within a much longer history of persecution that has never been properly acknowledged or addressed. For example, in the 1890s, during the reign of Abdurrahman Khan, an estimated of 62% of the Hazara population was massacred. And thousands of Hazara women and children were were sold as slaves not only in Afghanistan, but in the region as well.

The entire communities were displaced from their ancestral lands. Yet these crimes were never formally recognized, investigated or addressed through any meaningful justice processes. So the legacy of that violence continues to shape the history, to shape the experiences of women today. At present so, for example, forced displacement of Hazar communities has continued in different forms over decades, including land confiscation, attacks on civilian spaces, and the marginalization of Hazara voices and political structures. And this history matters when we talk about access to justice for Hazara women today, because intersectionality is not only about multiple identities, it's also about multiple layers of histories of injustice.

When a Hazara woman seeks justice today, she is not only confronting gender discrimination, she's confronting a system shaped by historical persecution, ethnic marginalization and political exclusion. And understanding this reality is essential if international response are to be effective. Because without acknowledging this intersection, intersecting histories of violence and exclusion policies aimed at protecting women in Afghanistan risks overlooking these who face the greatest barriers to justice. I'll end here. Thank you so much, doctor, for that very important context.

Mr. Darabi, this would be a great time as the eyewitness and with your personal experience of detention under the Taliban, to share what you witnessed and also what does the reality of justice look like for ordinary people in Afghanistan, mainly women.

First of all, I would like to thank from the United nations, especially Mr. Fayed, that inviting me here and it's very difficult for me to explain my situation that I have experienced during Taliban area that on those days that when I want to talk about it, I get emotional because it's very painful and hard for me. Torture, detention in the jail and some of. Okay, I try to explain it and read it for all of you. Thank you.

Thanks for the questions. I speak not only as a civil society advocate, but also as someone who personally experienced detention and torture under Taliban rule. After the fall of the Republic, I traveled aboard as Afghanistan reform representative in international sports and was unable to return home for nearly two years because of security threats. During that time, although my marriage had been legally registered Taliban outrage. Taliban outrage carried out what they called a Samir court and for civil married my wife to another man.

This decision violated basic human principles of gun law and international human rights standards. When I tried to challenge this injustice, I was threatened, detained and tortured. More than 200 Taliban soldiers and affiliate individuals were involved with in the intimidation and violence against me. I was subjected to several physical abuse and electric shocks which left me with permanent injuries and ended my ability to continue my sports career. My experiences reflects a broad early rating in Afghanistan today, many people, especially women, have no meaning access to justice.

Forced marriage, intimidation and abuse often take place without any independent legal system to protect victims or hold perpetrators accountable. Thank you.

It.

Mr. Darabi, thank you very much for sharing your experiences. Although Difficult. They bring light to what justice really looks like for ordinary people in Afghanistan. Ms. Girawal, to you. The international community recently established the independent International Investigative Mechanism for Afghanistan.

How can this mechanism operate more effectively in advancing accountability and improving access to justice for women in Afghanistan?

Thank you, Mitrajan. Hello everyone and good morning. Thank you everyone for joining us again today. I think the establishment of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Afghanistan is a very vital step in ending the culture of impunity.

As we all know, Afghanistan has historically struggled with impunity and the lack of accountability for the most severe human rights violations, war crimes and crimes against humanity that has happened in Afghanistan. And interestingly, the perpetrators have not only faced any accountability, but they also gained the power which have truly changed the perspective of Afghan people when it comes to justice and accountability. Afghan people, to be honest, when asking me and my other fellow Afghans, and particularly those inside Afghanistan, they don't even believe in this concept of delivering justice or having access to justice at some point because they have been so disappointed with this perspective, with this concept. And the establishment of this mechanism created a lot of hope. And I'm very much hopeful too, that this mechanism will not disappoint Afghan people, particularly Afghan women and girls.

And in order to ensure that this mechanism is really effective in delivering justice to women and girls, I think there are a few steps that are really vital to consider. The first and foremost one is that the mechanism should be led by a highly respected and professional figure with strong legal background and international experience in human rights and international law. Why is it essential? Credibility and trust is essential because Afghan women and girls who face severe restrictions, you heard from our fellow panelists, are more likely to engage with a mechanism led by a figure known for integrity, impartiality and commitment to human rights and women rights of all Afghan pupils. The international legitimacy is important because a globally respected leader can strengthen cooperation with international institutions, government and civil society organization working on Afghanistan protection and advocacy.

I think it's really critical because a prominent leader can amplify the voices of Afghan women at global forums such as the United Nations Human Rights Council General assembly, and also encourage strong political and diplomatic support for accountability efforts. I think special reporter Richard Bennis, sitting next to me, has played a very vital role in the last four years. He has made sure that all the victims support enough support, receive enough support, And I think it also goes to the skills he has in building more effective ties with international community. So I think it's also expected from the leadership of the mechanism that will come and they will be leading this mechanism. Afghan people are hoping that they will really, truly and honestly consider these points.

And one of the other challenges that we currently face in Afghanistan is unfortunately, there is no support system for women and girls inside Afghanistan. There are no organization, national or international, that are really working on documenting women rights violation. The only institute that is still active is the Human Rights Service of unama. Unfortunately, they also bought special rapport for visiting Afghanistan. So I think it will also remain a challenge for the accountability mechanism.

We will need to see if they will be able to establish a good relationship to ensure that they can also go inside Afghanistan, meet the victims and gather the evidence and the data that is required for the work of the mechanism. But it's also very much important and critical for the mechanism to build good relationship with Afghan civil society organization, I. E. Co Special Reporter that the mechanism should work in full coordination with Afghan civil society organizations, both inside Afghanistan and outside Afghanistan. And I think the mechanism should also be very inclusive. Afghanistan is a very complex solution society. What we are seeing of the violations that are being committed to women and girls recently is just tip of an iceberg.

Most of the cases that are happening inside Afghanistan are not being reported for several reasons. Because victims feel shame, they are afraid of.

They are afraid that they will face negative consequences for reporting these issues. The social stigmas, the culture of tying honor with women. I think these all issues make it so difficult and challenging for so many women, particularly in rural areas and in Pashtun areas. Most of the time the women in Pashtun areas, it's so difficult for them because of the cultural existing in these communities to come ahead and to report what's happening to them. And also the other challenge is that they do not have access to many international organizations that are providing support.

So I think in order to ensure access to women throughout Afghanistan, it's very important for the mechanism to work in full collaboration with Afghan civil society organizations that have access to women and girls. I think these points will be really critical to ensure the effectiveness of the mechanism. And we are very much hoping that this mechanism will deliver the long due justice to Afghan people at large and Afghan women and girls in particular. Thank you, Mitraja. Thank you so much.

Thank you so much for the analysis. Ms. Giro, while you mentioned documentation and lack of documented crimes, this would be a great time to bring in Ms. Mehran to the conversation. How does documenting initiatives like Afghanistan Justice Archive help preserve credible and meaningful evidence and strengthen the future accountability processes for Afghan women? Thank you. Thank you so Much Mitoja.

And it's interesting because we have the same name. And then to call my name back, my own name. So I'm really happy to be here. I know I'm the last speaker, so I will make sure to be brief. I think you heard from everyone that what's happening in Afghanistan is not any discrimination that you see anywhere else in the world.

So yes, as women globally, we are experiencing discrimination. But what makes it distinct in Afghanistan and unique, that everything is legal, it's policy, its law is the system of governance of the Taliban and their institutions are enforcing it unanimously across the country. So my colleagues spoke to put it in context, because I see everyone and almost everyone, 99% of the participants in this room are women. Why as global community and why CSW is not reached. To put it in context, when you woke up this morning, you had the option to travel to New York, to take a taxi, to put the dress you liked, to walk to the UN building, choose if you want to have a cafe, go to cafe and have coffee, look at someone.

And you talked. And a man or woman saw your voice. Everything that you did today as women, it's banned, it's illegal, it's criminalized in Afghanistan. So every single right that we as human beings are entitled to is criminalized and banned. Even our faces and even our voices.

And as we are observing in women of Afghanistan and Muslim women across the world are observing holy month of Ramadan, it's illegal for women in Afghanistan to recite Quran nikarim loudly because it's criminalized for an elder woman to hear even voice of another woman reciting Quran. There are guards, and from the documentation we do in some of the mosques in Kandahar and also Herat that do not allow women to go to the mosque. So it's not religion and it's not culture. It's an institutionalized and systematic governance of the Taliban regime that we need to put an end to. At the Afghanistan Justice Archive, we do document the atrocities of the Taliban.

And so far they have issued 200 decrees that ban every single right. These draconian atrocities in laws are accumulated then in frameworks like the promotion of prevention of vice and promotion of virtual law. It's published in our National Gazette and on the 1st of January, they also issued their penal code that as Richard said, he doesn't want to call it a penal code. It's maybe a discriminatory code or whatever you do. And then guess what, when you came to UN building, if your husband doesn't like that, you Come here and get your coffee and talk to your colleagues and do advocacy.

He can beat you. As long as your bone is not broken and your skin is not or your bruise is not open enough to bleed, it's not a crime. You cannot go to the Taliban and say that I am victim of domestic violence in the words I am saying it is written in the law of the Taliban. So here I'm coming with a plea and I didn't read or even brought my talking points with me is if as CSW Commission of Status of Women, if you're globally getting together, why CSW is not raged about what's happening in Afghanistan. Every.

Thank you. So every single thing that we fought together, if it was gender persecution, if it was gender equality, if it was slavery, or if it was, you know, for justice purposes, due process, everything that we taught as a global community, that it shakes the conscience of humanity and we need to create international laws to prevent it and punish it. Taliban are normalizing and legalizing all of them. So that's why it's not about us only, it's about by us, I mean it's not about women of Afghanistan only. It's about all of us as a global community to stand against that.

Thank you. And we are using to close my remarks, we are using all tools approach, but also what women of Afghanistan are calling is codification of gender apartheid because they see a gap in international law. We are using every other accountability mechanism in place. But also it's not about one single right being banned or one right being violated. It's a totalizing system of operation.

What we need is call it, name it and recognize it engender apartheid as a framework can encompass the totality of that crime. And if you are a politician, ask your government to support it its codification and the crimes against humanity. But if you are not, and if you are a woman and if you are advocate, help us by socializing the term. Talk about it in your universities, with your friend, with your daughter and with anyone you engage. Because as much as we need the legal and technicality of it, we need the global solidarity and we cannot do it without you.

So what's happening is gender apartheid. And we need all of you to stand with us to put an end to it. Thank you.

Ms. Mehran.

We have heard about the criminal procedure regulations recently published by the Taliban twice now. So I would love to go back to Ms. Girawal and ask her about what does the penal code that was newly published reveal about the systematic access to justice for women. In Afghanistan. And then we would come back to the steps, the practical steps that Ms. Mehran mentioned. Thank you, Mitrajan.

I think Ms. Mehran also talked about this. Could this recently Taliban procedure code. It's signaled a profound transformation in the legal system of Afghanistan.

Taliban, instead of establishing an independent judicial order or somehow trying to. And from what we see in this procedure specifically is that they are trying to institutionalize a system in which legal authority is organized around hierarchy and male dominance. Their legal system overall is, we cannot even call it a legal system. It's not even a Sharia system. It's mostly a decree based system.

The decrees that are being issued by their supreme leader and Amir and they are being implemented discriminatory. And these decrees does not have special specific regulations on central levels and also on the local levels. From what we are hearing from women inside Afghanistan and from the people at the large, is that there is a huge difference in implementation of these different decrees in central Afghanistan, in Kabul and in bigger cities, and also on the rural areas by the local government. Thank you. So their local governance have their own structure.

Some of them implement these decrees and regulations more strictly. And some of them don't even consider that. So this regulation at large creates a hierarchy, but the main thing is that it again creates male dominance in the society. One of the most disturbing parts of this code is that it divides society into different groups and pretty provide impunity to certain groups and categories in the society. For example, I will just make it

shorter in the interest of time. If you could please keep it brief.

Sure. For example, they have divided society into different groups and ulamas or Islamic scholars, which is mainly comprised of the Taliban members themselves, have impunity according to this regulations. If they commit a crime, the police and the courts should only tell them that you have committed this crime and not repeat this in the future, so they will not face any consequences for what it is.

The second group are the business people and the local leaders. Their treatment is kind of same. They will not face any accountability or any detention for the crime they are committed. The third group are the middle class in the society. They will be informed that they have committed a crime.

Police can arrest them and can detain them and they can go to the court. And after the court rule them, they should be treated very respectfully by all judicial sectors. But the last group, which is not even identified how they divide society into these groups, the last group, which are mainly normal people and most of them are of course women, they can be human humiliated. They can be detained by the police. They can go through the normal legal procedure that is there for any crime that is being committed.

But the most surprising part is that they can also been beaten by the police. So the police is allowed to beat the normal people if they commit a crime, whether it's like a large crime or a small crime.

Thank you, Ms. Girobal. Give me one more minute of time. We'll have to move on to other panelists.

And they, yeah, I will just end it in one, one minute. And I think Mitrajan mentioned earlier the other

parts of this code that are like, really surprise, not only surprising, but like very negative, is that if a woman is visiting her family without the permission of the men, both her family and the woman can be detained for three months according to this law. And if a husband beats her wife and the scars are not really visible, then there is no consequences for the man. But if the scar is really visible and the woman can prove that she has been bitten by the husband, the husband will be only punished for 15 days. So going to the family, visiting your family can be can have three months of detention, but beating the wife will have only 15 days of detention. And I think this procedure at the large, the decrees of the Taliban are very important for the mechanism as well to consider, because these laws, these regulations and these decrees create this system of discrimination which we believe is gender apartheid.

And we see strongly ask the member states present today and everyone joining us today, whether from civil society and from the member states, to support our cause and our call for the codification of gender apartheid, because this is the least we can do to help afghan women. Ms. Girawal, thank you so much.

I would request all the other panelists to please keep your final remarks at one minute sharp because we still have intervention that we need to address. Dr. Rezai, what mechanisms specifically are needed to break the cycle of impunity that you mentioned earlier when you address the history of Hazara discrimination? Excuse me. I think addressing this reality requires clear international action, which I would like to to make one minute recommendation. Actually, many of the echo the important recommendations already highlighted by Richard, but I strongly advocate for but in addition to that, a few further recommendations and that complements and builds on that.

In addition to recognition of gender apartheid, there must be a serious international investigation into the crimes committed against the Hazara community, including acts that may constitute genocide under international law and accountability process must reflect intersectionality, ensuring that women from minority communities, including Hazara women, are meaningfully represented in justice discussions and policy response but more importantly, I would like to echo Mitra John's points as well is to that we need everybody to join this Afghan woman and to join our campaign so we can bring justice to all of us around the world. Thank you so much.

You mentioned that you have preserved documentation from the torture in your experiences as well. What role do you think these documentations can provide in the general context of accountability and once the mechanisms that we are demanding are created and it is addressed.

Thanks for the questions. During these events, I preserve documents, videos and records related to my detention and the broader situation in Afghanistan. Today I process more than 3,000 documents and hundreds of videos involving Taliban officials and institutions.

Preserving this evidence is extremely important. Without documentation, these violations risk being forgotten or denied. Evidence collected today can help ensure that the suffering of victimis recorded and the future accountability mechanism have credible material to examine. The justice that I experience is not unique. Millions of people in Afghanistan face similar abuse.

Youth, particularly women and girls, whose rights to education, freedoms and dignity have been severely restricted. My hope is that the documentation being preserved today will one day help create a pathway toward justice, not only for individuals like me, but for all those whose rights have been violated. The pain, torture complete me to take the pen and write a book by the name of the day the sun cried. And I want to read a poem for all women around the world, especially Afghanistan. Thank you.

I understand it is very important, but for the interest of time, we'll have to sum up. Please. Agar Jahon Hamato, Rico Sartgardat.

Thank you so much. Thank you.

Well, this discussion reminds us that the access to justice for Afghan women is not only a legal issue, but a human one, which requires continued documentation, accountability and meaningful international engagement. Back to Mr. Ambassador. Thank you. Thank you so much, Mr. And thank you so much for our great panelists for very productive and illustrative presentations.

I appreciate that we are already running out of time. We have just three speakers from the floor. If I may just call that they should take the floor and then we will close because there is another event following this event. So the first speaker in our list is Her Excellency, Ms. Laura Reizanen, the State Secretary of Finland. Please.

Incredible panelists. I think anything said after this panel is going to sound very flat and very meaningless, but I'll try. Finland strongly condemns all human rights violations in Afghanistan. And and hearing from you has made us even stronger. The Taliban's actions against women and girls, gender based violence and the extreme discrimination that denies them education, work and the freedoms of movement expression they are unacceptable.

No society can be just as stable when half of its population is deprived of its basic rights. We also call for the protection of the rights of persons belonging to minorities, including ethnic and religious minorities such as the Hazara, and persons in vulnerable situations, as well as LGBTI persons. Over the past four and a half years, the human rights situation under the Taliban has continued to deteriorate to an intolerable level. As The Special Rapporteur, Mr. Bennett has noted, the systemic discrimination against women and girls in Afghanistan may amount to gender persecution, a crime against humanity. The Taliban must be held accountable.

The this requires strengthening existing accountability mechanisms, including through the International Court of Justice. We fully support the work of Mr. Bennett and look forward to the new Human Rights Council accountability mechanism for Afghanistan becoming operational as soon as possible. The exclusion of half of Afghanistan's population has detrimental consequences for the entire Afghan society. We support all Afghan women and girls in their immense resilience. Without them, Afghanistan will never achieve sustainable stability and prosperity.

And I once again want to thank all of you for speaking out loud because without these voices, we won't know what is happening. Thank you.

Thank you, Excellency. Thank you so much. And thank you.

We have another speaker from Australia, Ambassador for gender equality, Ms. Michelle O'. Brien. Please. Thank you and thank you all for your passionate storytelling and information today. Australia has long held that the full and equal participation and leadership of women and girls in society is critical for sustainable economic and political development, for social cohesion and stability and for lasting peace.

And we're gravely concerned with the continuing and systemic erosion of the rights of women and girls. Girls in Afghanistan chair since August 2021, the Taliban has demonstrated a pervasive disregard for the human rights of the Afghan people, especially women and girls. Restriction on women and girls, access to education, work, health care and legal protection violate international human rights obligations and deny dignity and self determination. The Taliban has weaponised Afghan's justice system, entrenching gender based discrimination in law, policy and in practice. It interferes in the delivery of humanitarian assistance to those most in need.

Taliban's edicts, enshrined in its so called morality laws and so called recent penal code, systematically erase women from public life. This deepening campaign of sustained oppression enables and normalises sexual and gender based violence, including abuse, harassment, arbitrary detention and coercion by authorities, as well as violence within homes and communities. The Australian Government is taking active steps to hold the Taliban to account and support the Afghan people. Complementing broader efforts, we have introduced the world's first autonomous sanctions regime on Afghanistan for its ongoing human rights abuses and systemic efforts to undermine good governance and the rule of law in Afghanistan. And together with Canada, Germany and the Netherlands, Australia is holding Afghanistan to account under international law for violations of the human rights amendment women and girls as enshrined in the Convention of the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against women.

Since 2021, the Australian government has provided over 310 million Australian dollars in humanitarian and basic human needs assistance to respond to the Afghanistan crisis with a specific focus on women and girls. Decades of experience show that justice systems too often fall short in delivering meaningful gender justice. Yet landmark legal advances and deep expertise are critical across national and international institutions demonstrate that gender responsive accountability is not only possible, but urgently needed. It's why we're proud to support the Gender Justice Practitioners Hub. Today we reaffirm our deep and enduring commitment to Afghan women and girls in our call for justice.

We fully support the inclusion and amplification of their voices and we urge their equal and meaningful participation and leadership in shaping Afghanistan future. Thank you.

We are running out of time. I'm so sorry. We know there are a lot of interest, but we have the last speaker. If I can request the last speaker to keep it short, it is Her Excellency Ambassador Anna Giganto, Ambassador at large for Feminist Foreign Policy of the the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Please,

thank you very much and all protocols observed. I just want to mention that Spain continues supporting Afghan women. As you know, many of you in this panel, you have been guests in the Hear US conferences that we hold every single year. We will have our Hear US conference this year yet again to give you the voice.

But I want to further insist on the old tools approach that has been presented here by Mr. Richard Bennett that you have been commenting. In that regards, we must make good use of the icc, the icj, the courts, the international courts. But also Spain now is supporting of a campaign to end gender upper height. And in the first coup this year around the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity, we have had a side event together with the Malala Fund to support this campaign. Furthermore, the President of the Government of Spain and the Minister of Foreign affairs of Spain have both met with the Malala Fund to lend their political support to the End gender Upper height campaign.

So I think that this mainly summarizes our support for the all tools approach that you have been talking about. And it's not only about Afghan girls and women accessing Justin within Afghanistan. It is also about about international accountability of their de facto authorities. So thank you very much for your testimonies today.

Thank you very much. And with that, we have come to our end of the session. I would like to once again thank all our co sponsors and panelists, particularly the missions of Australia, Ireland, Spain, Greece, Canada, Luxembourg, Finland, and all of you who took the time and participated. Thank you very much. And a special thanks to our panelists and our special keynote speaker.

Thank you very much. Have a wonderful rest of the day.