03/31/2022 10:57 (act 03/31/2022 11:00)
Despite criticism of the radical Islamic Taliban in power, the United Nations is aiming for a record sum of nearly four billion euros in a virtual donor conference for Afghanistan. “Afghans need our help to boost their economy, maintain their agriculture and maintain the fundamentals of social security,” UN Vice President Martin Griffiths said at the conference hosted by Germany, Britain and Qatar on Thursday. .
Griffiths serves as the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Assistance Coordinator. The sum of four billion euros would be the largest amount paid by the United Nations for humanitarian causes. According to the UN, only 13% of this has been confirmed so far. Great Britain has announced that it will donate the equivalent of around 335 million euros. The money should go directly to aid organizations and not the Taliban, which took over the country again after US-led international troops withdrew in August 2021. Some 23 million people in Afghanistan are threatened by famine, and the country is experiencing the worst drought in 30 years.
Although the Taliban promised to respect fundamental rights after taking power, women’s rights in particular are being severely restricted again. Last week, the Taliban withdrew its earlier pledge to open secondary schools for girls. It is also forbidden for women to fly without a male escort. The Taliban also decided to separate park visits by gender. In the future, women will only have access three days a week and men the other four days, including weekends. This means that even couples and families cannot visit the parks together. Employees were also instructed to wear a beard and wear traditional clothing.
The United States therefore suspended negotiations with the Taliban in Qatar. Griffiths also emphasized: “We want these bans, these restrictions, to be lifted.” However, he hopes the donors’ conference will not be affected by political developments in Afghanistan. He called on the international community to cooperate with the Taliban. In his conversations with those in charge in Kabul, he got the impression that they wanted to follow “a constructive path” with the international community. The isolation of Afghanistan would only increase the suffering of the people.