An Urgent Call to the United Nations and the International Community

Since the return of Taliban rule in Afghanistan, the country has witnessed the rise of the most extreme and institutionalized form of gender apartheid in the modern world. Women and girls have been erased from public life, stripped of their basic rights, and subjected to systematic violence simply for their gender.

We, the women of Afghanistan, human rights defenders, and global allies, issue this urgent call to the United Nations, the International Criminal Court, and all institutions that claim to stand for justice and human dignity:

Gender apartheid in Afghanistan must be recognized as a crime against humanity.

This is not a request. It is a global demand.

The world has seen apartheid before.

Racial apartheid in South Africa ended through international pressure, sanctions, and legal accountability. Today, gender is being used as a weapon to silence and subjugate half a nation’s population. This cannot be ignored.

The Taliban are not a legitimate government.

They are an armed group that seized control by force and continue to rule through fear and repression. For over three years, the inaction of the international community has enabled them to entrench a misogynistic, theocratic system.

This Is Gender Apartheid. These Are the Crimes:

Millions girls have been banned from secondary and higher education. Women have been systematically removed from public employment, the media, education, and healthcare. Women are forbidden from traveling without a male guardian (mahram). Public spaces such as parks, gyms, universities, bathhouses, and beauty salons are closed to women. Child and forced marriages are increasing across many provinces. Women activists face arrest, torture, and enforced disappearance. A rising number of teenage girls have died by suicide, overwhelmed by despair and social pressure.

This is not culture. This is not tradition.

This is state-engineered, institutionalized violence targeting women.

To the United Nations: Your Silence Is Betrayal

The UN Charter promises dignity and equal rights for all. But where is this promise for the women of Afghanistan?

Soft language and repeated statements of concern are not enough.

Silence means siding with oppression

History will judge where you stood.

Our Demands:

– Immediate recognition of the Taliban’s gender apartheid as a crime against humanity.

– Activation of international legal mechanisms, including through the International Criminal Court.

– A formal condemnation by both the UN General Assembly and the Security Council.

– Appointment of a UN Special Envoy on Gender Apartheid and creation of an accountability framework.

–Full inclusion of Afghanistan’s women in all political and peace processes.

– Emergency protection and safe relocation pathways for women human rights defenders at risk.

Afghanistan is the frontline of the global fight for women’s rights

What is happening to Afghanistan’s women is not an internal matter—it is a test of global resolve. If gender apartheid is tolerated here, it can be repeated anywhere.

To world leaders, media, human rights advocates, and all defenders of justice: the time for statements is over. The time for action is now.

Afghanistan’s women will not be silenced. And we will not rest until gender apartheid is dismantled, prosecuted, and remembered as a crime that must never be repeated.

Stop Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan!