Is Khan Trying To Defend Taliban’s Action Against Women?

The comments made by Pakistan Prime Minister on defending the Taliban’s treatment of women in Afghanistan has invited a wave of criticism from across the world. He commented that world cannot force the Taliban to take steps on women’s rights that are against the Pashtun culture. These comments came at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Islamabad.

His comment has brought in angry comments from many Afghan women activists in particular who panned Khan for his “immaturity” and “boorish attempt to defend the Taliban”.

In a letter on behalf of the Afghan women’s to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation says that the Pakistan Prime Ministers’ comments has reconfirmed the Taliban mindset and justify the Taliban’s restrictions on women’s education and employment.

The letter to OIC reads “We specifically would like to draw your attention to the call of the Afghan women coalition that the statement made by Prime Minister Imran Khan on the Afghan traditions regarding girls’ education while addressing the OIC meeting. Unfortunately, the statement is a projection of the challenges of Pakistan’s society on to Afghanistan.” “Prime Minister’s statement on an international forum on why the current regressive policies of the Taliban in Afghanistan, especially towards girls and women, must not be accepted by OIC and the international community.

His comments show Pakistan’s strategic depth since the Cold War, and the mindset of dividing Afghans along ideology, ethnicity, or religion is at the core of Af-Pak relation.”

The women activist group has also brough out the topic of Pakistan’s Army’s constant interference in Afghanistan by displacing two million people from the tribal areas in the name of the “War on Terror”. They also said that there has been constant humiliation to the Elderly men, women, and children. They are regularly under the surveillance and frisking by the Pakistani Army, and the presence of non-Pashtun troops in FATA (who were unfamiliar with the society’s norms) subjected the community’s women and girls to humiliation daily. They further added that the same policy will not work for Afghanistan.

The women’s organization is urging the OIC to take note of such irresponsible statements from the Prime Minister with the hope that they do not become the basis of the OIC’s outlook on Afghanistan. They also fear that the government of Pakistan will portray the Af-Pak region as a security threat to monopolize the flow of international aid and diplomatic engagements according to its strategic and financial needs.”