WASHINGTON: Human Rights Watch (HRW) has warned countries against normalising engagement with the Taliban without clear and measurable human rights benchmarks, as a UN expert highlighted the devastating consequences of five years of Taliban rule for Afghan children and young people.
“Countries should not normalise engagement with the Taliban without clear and measurable human rights benchmarks,” HRW said in a statement to the UN Human Rights Council on Monday.
It urged states to recognise gender apartheid as a crime against humanity and support International Criminal Court (ICC) efforts to prosecute those responsible for gender persecution and other grave international crimes in Afghanistan.
The warning came as Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in Afghanistan, issued a new report on the impact of Taliban policies on children.
Bennett said the Taliban’s institutionalised system of discrimination, repression and ideological control was depriving children of their rights to inclusive and quality education, freedom of expression and meaningful participation in social and public life.
