Senior U.S. Lawmaker Praises Afghan Women: We Do Not Recognize the Taliban

Michael McCaul, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, stated that the United States will never recognize the Taliban as long as they do not respect human rights and change their treatment of women. In an exclusive interview with the Dari section of Voice of America on Wednesday, McCaul said, "The message to the Taliban is that if they want to be recognized, they must treat women as equals, not as their property and assets." He added that both the Democratic and Republican parties will not accept any legitimacy of the Taliban until they address the human rights crisis and their treatment of Afghan women. Since regaining control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Taliban has continuously imposed restrictions on women and girls. This group has not only widely barred women and girls from working in government offices, NGOs, and even United Nations offices, but has also prevented girls above the sixth grade from receiving education. The Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee stated that Afghanistan is the only country where women and girls are deprived of their right to education and other rights. According to him, Afghan women are discriminated against because of their gender and are imprisoned within their homes. McCaul praised Afghan women who are fighting for their rights and emphasized that the U.S. stands with the women of Afghanistan. United Nations special rapporteurs, after their recent eight-day visit to Afghanistan, stated that the situation of gender discrimination in Afghanistan has become institutionalized and the Taliban governs with the most extreme forms of misogyny. The United Nations has called on the Taliban to stop punishments such as flogging, stoning, and execution. The UN condemned the Taliban's policies against media and journalists in Afghanistan. The Taliban's repeated response to the international community is that the ban on women's work is a "domestic social issue."