UN rights chief rebukes Taliban over treatment of women
"Importantly, and in contradiction to assurances that the Taliban would uphold women's rights, over the past three weeks, women have instead been progressively excluded from the public sphere," Michelle Bachelet told the Human Rights Council in Geneva
FILE PHOTO: United Nations' High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet adjusts her mask during the opening of 45th session of the Human Rights Council, at the European UN headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland September 14, 2020. Martial Trezzini/Pool via REUTERS
The United Nations' human rights chief criticised on Monday the Taliban's human rights record since seizing power in Afghanistan, noting that stated commitments did not match realities on the ground such as the status of women.
"Importantly, and in contradiction to assurances that the Taliban would uphold women's rights, over the past three weeks, women have instead been progressively excluded from the public sphere," Michelle Bachelet told the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
She also expressed dismay at the composition of the Taliban's new government, noting the absence of women and its dominance by ethnic Pashtun.
