Mujahid at Doha Meeting: The West Should Engage with the Taliban Without Considering Women's Rights

On Sunday evening (June 30), Mujahid claimed at the meeting that the Taliban support certain "religious, cultural values, and public aspirations" which should be recognized by the international community.

He added that countries should facilitate bilateral relations with the group instead of confronting them. Mujahid stated, "I do not deny that some countries may have problems with certain actions of the Islamic Emirate [Taliban]. I believe political differences among states are natural, and it is the duty of experienced diplomats to find ways of engagement and understanding instead of confrontation."

Mujahid did not mention the "discriminatory" decrees issued by the Taliban leader against Afghan women and girls. However, he previously categorized women's rights issues as internal matters for the group.

The Taliban official claimed that political understanding between the group and countries is increasing. According to him, Kazakhstan has removed the Taliban from its list of "terrorist" groups, and Russia is expected to take similar action soon.

Nearly three years after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, no country has recognized their regime. Before the start of the third Doha meeting, UN officials stated that recognizing the Taliban is currently impossible.

It should be noted that despite the Taliban being accused of human rights violations, especially against women in Afghanistan, the UN, at the group's request, excluded representatives of women, civil society activists, and political opponents of the Taliban regime from the third Doha meeting. This decision by the UN has faced strong criticism from international human rights organizations and several countries.

The Canadian government criticized the exclusion of "anti-Taliban" Afghans from the third Doha meeting by the United Nations. Global Affairs Canada stated in a declaration, "Canada has clearly expressed its severe disappointment at the lack of civil society participation in the third Doha meeting, both privately and in coordination with other governments."

According to this declaration, the full, equal, and meaningful participation of women in the Doha meeting process is fundamental to achieving a peaceful, stable, and inclusive Afghanistan. The declaration stated, "None of the goals the people of Afghanistan seek to achieve are possible without the full participation of women."

Global Affairs Canada noted that their special envoy for Afghanistan would use their position in the main sessions of the third Doha meeting to amplify the messages of those who have "bravely" spoken out about human rights abuses by the Taliban.

The country reiterated the call for the Taliban to lift restrictions against women and urged the group to respect Afghanistan's international human rights obligations. Canada also supported the appointment of a special UN envoy for Afghanistan to implement the roadmap outlined in the 2023 report by the UN special coordinator and UN Security Council Resolution 2721.

Meanwhile, some Afghan women's rights activists invited to participate in "informal" sessions of the third Doha meeting have sanctioned the meeting.

On Sunday (June 30), the UN held the third Doha meeting without the presence of political opponents of the Taliban, women, and ethnic and religious minorities from Afghanistan, with representatives from about 25 countries, the Taliban, and international organizations participating in the Qatari capital.

Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Under-Secretary-General who leads the third Doha meeting on Afghanistan, described the first day of the meeting as "fruitful." She stated, "This is the first time such a cross-section of the international community and the Taliban have met each other. Look forward to principled engagement to assist the Afghan people in many areas, and we thank Qatar for its support."

The second day of this meeting is scheduled to be held today, Monday (July 1).