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World leaders band together for Afghan women to have a voice

Published

5 years ago

September 12, 2020

Over 100 formidable leaders from around the world have joined together as signatories to an open letter calling for meaningful participation of Afghan women in the peace process that started in Doha Saturday.

They stated that substantive involvement of women in peace talks makes agreements more likely to be attained and upheld.

Among those who signed the letter, issued by Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, are Madeleine Albright, Former United States Secretary of State; Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates; Laura Bush, Former First Lady of the United States; Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees; Hillary Rodham Clinton, Former United States Secretary of State; Ban Ki-moon, Former Secretary-General of the United Nations; and John Kerry, Former United States Secretary of State among others.

In total, 104 leaders signed the letter that called on “all relevant national, regional and international actors to pursue a peaceful, stable Afghanistan by ensuring women’s full participation in the peace process.”

They stated that after 40 years of conflict, there may finally be an opportunity for peace but that the international community has an obligation to assist with ensuring that the peace forged is durable and this opportunity is not squandered.

“As global leaders and foreign policy experts, we have seen clear proof that women’s involvement is key to establishing a lasting and sustainable peace,” the letter read.

“The substantive involvement of women in peace talks makes agreements more likely to be attained and upheld. We have seen evidence of women’s powerful influence in peace processes in recent times, from Colombia to the Philippines.

“The direct impact women’s participation has on ensuring stability makes their inclusion an international security issue, which the UN Security Council recognized when it adopted the landmark resolution on Women, Peace and Security (UNSCR 1325) twenty years ago this fall.”

The letter went on to state that the international community should prioritize women’s meaningful inclusion in order to help obtain the long-term security goals the world has been working towards for decades.

The progress made in Afghanistan since women have begun to be integrated into society was also noted and the Taliban’s ban on girls being educated was raised.

“Women went from being virtually erased under Taliban rule to becoming policewomen, teachers, public officials, mayors and entrepreneurs,” they stated.

In 2019, women accounted for 28 percent of the Afghan parliament – a proportion higher than 67 percent of countries tracked by the World Bank.

“Guaranteeing the preservation of equality, democracy, and inclusivity will promote stability and help to protect future generations from the threat of extremism. Afghanistan, the region, and the world would all be safer as a result,” their letter stated.

Outlining what needs to be done, the group of leaders stated the following:

Given the key role of women in ensuring durable peace, the following measures are necessary:

Women need to be party to the negotiations, not just an issue to be discussed.
Women must be involved throughout every step of the process.
The perspective of women and youth must be reflected in any agreement.

To ensure these goals are met, we call on the international community to do the following:

Persuade negotiators to preserve equal rights for all its citizens as guaranteed by the Afghan constitution.
Condition international aid on the preservation of the rights and liberties currently enjoyed by Afghan citizens, especially women’s rights.
Implement legitimate and established monitoring mechanisms for ensuring the maintenance of rights. Ensure these mechanisms are outlined in the peace agreement and that women are part of the development, implementation and monitoring of such mechanisms.

The full list of signatories is as below:

Karen AbuZayd, Commissioner of the UN Inquiry on Syria and Former Commissioner-General of UNRWA

María Elena Agüero, Secretary-General of the Club de Madrid
Shamshad Akhtar, Former UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ESCAP
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates
Madeleine Albright, Former United States Secretary of State
Amat Al Alim Alsoswa, Yemen’s Former Minister for Human Rights, Former UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Assistant Administrator
Valerie Amos, Former UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator
Mayu Ávila, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of El Salvador
Lloyd Axworthy, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada
Ali Babacan, Former Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey
Jan Peter Balkenende, Former Prime Minister of The Netherlands
Carol Bellamy, Former Executive Director of UNICEF
Mohamed Benaissa, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Morocco
Catherine Bertini , Former Executive Director of the UN World Food Program
Carl Bildt, Former Prime Minister of Sweden
Julie Bishop, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Australia
Irina Bokova, Former Director-General of UNESCO
Lakhdar Brahimi, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Algeria and UN Special Envoy for Afghanistan
Gro Harlem Brundtland, Former Prime Minister of Norway
Laura Bush, Former First Lady of the United States
Margaret Chan, Former Director-General of the World Health Organization
Helen Clark, Former Prime Minister of New Zealand and Administrator of UNDP
Joe Clark, Former Prime Minister of Canada
Sean Cleary, Chief Director of the Office of the Administrator General of Namibia
Hillary Rodham Clinton, Former United States Secretary of State
Kathleen Cravero, Former UNDP Assistant Secretary-General for Conflict Prevention and Recovery
Staffan de Mistura, Former Under Secretary-General and UN Special Envoy to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria
Isabel de Saint Malo, Former Vice President of Panama
Erik Derycke, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belgium
Rut Diamint, Chief of Cabinet and Advisor to the Argentine Ministry of Defense
Lamberto Dini, Former Prime Minister of Italy
Paula J. Dobriansky, Former United States Under-Secretary of State for Global Affairs
Alexander Downer, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Australia
Mikuláš Dzurinda, Former Prime Minister of Slovakia
Jan Eliasson, Former Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden
María Fernanda Espinosa, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of National Defence of Ecuador
Christiana Figueres, Former Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
Joschka Fischer, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Vice-Chancellor of Germany
Louise Fréchette, Former Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations
Robert Gates, Former United States Secretary of Defense
Rose Gottemoeller, Former Deputy Secretary-General of NATO
Dalia Grybauskaitė, Former President of Lithuania
Rebeca Grynspan, Ibero-American Secretary-General and Former Vice President of Costa Rica
Geeta Rao Gupta, Former Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF
Stephen Hadley, Former United States National Security Advisor
Chuck Hagel, Former United States Secretary of Defense
Lord William Hague, Former Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom
Tarja Halonen, Former President of Finland
Ameerah Haq, Former UN Under-Secretary-General for the Department of Field Support
Stephen J. Harper, Former Prime Minister of Canada
Noeleen Heyzer, Former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations
John Howard, Former Prime Minister of Australia
Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Former President of Estonia
Igor Ivanov, Former Foreign Minister of Russia
Atifete Jahjaga , Former President of Kosovo
Angelina Jolie , Special Envoy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Medhi Jomaa, Former Prime Minister of Tunisia
Ivo Josipović , Former President of Croatia
Marina Kaljurand, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia
John Kerry, Former United States Secretary of State
Rima Khalaf, Former UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ESCWA
Ban Ki-moon, Former Secretary-General of the United Nations
Aleksander Kwaśniewski, Former President of Poland
Rachel Kyte, Former Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All
Zlatko Lagumdžija , Former Prime Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Tzipi Livni, Former Foreign Minister, Vice Prime Minister, and Minister of Justice of Israel
Jessie Rose Mabutas, Former Assistant President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development
Peter MacKay, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of National Defence of Canada
Susana Malcorra, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Argentina
Purnima Mane, Former UN Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of UNFPA
Mara Marinaki, EEAS Principal Advisor on Gender and on the Implementation of UNSCR 1325 on Women, Peace and Security
Cindy McCain, Chair of the McCain Institute Board of Trustees
Sir Donald McKinnon, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of New Zealand
Monica McWilliams, Former Chief Commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and Signatory to the Northern Ireland Good Friday Peace Agreement
David Miliband, Former Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom
Laura Chinchilla Miranda, Former President of Costa Rica
Amr Moussa, Former Secretary-General of the Arab League and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt
Marwan al-Muasher, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan
Roza Otunbayeva, Former President of Kyrgyzstan
Ana Palacio, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Spain
Leon Panetta, Former United States Secretary of Defense
George Papandreou, Former Prime Minister of Greece
Colin L. Powell, Former United States Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Former Prime Minister of Denmark and Secretary-General of NATO
Òscar Ribas Reig, Former Prime Minister of Andorra
Condoleezza Rice, Former United States Secretary of State
Malcolm Rifkind, Former Secretary of State for Scotland, Defence Secretary, and Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom
Lord George Robertson, Former NATO Secretary-General and UK Defense Secretary
Mary Robinson, Former President of Ireland
Fatiha Serour, UN Deputy Special Representative for Somalia
Karin Sham Poo, Former Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF
Natan Sharansky, Former Deputy Prime Minister of Israel and Political Prisoner of the Soviet Union
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Former President of Liberia
Gillian Sorensen, Former UN Assistant Secretary-General for External Relations
Cassam Uteem, Former President of Mauritius
Jozias van Aartsen, Former Mayor of Amsterdam and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands
Hubert Védrine, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of France
Ann Veneman, Former Executive Director of UNICEF
Melanne Verveer, Former United States Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues
Knut Vollebæk , Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway
Alexandr “Sasha” Vondra, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Defence of the Czech Republic
Margot Wallström, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Former Prime Minister of Spain
Miomir Žužul, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Croatia

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Three months on, Afghan women UN staff still barred from entering offices nationwide

The UN warns that the longer the restrictions persist, the greater the threat to life-saving services across the country.

Published

39 minutes ago

December 7, 2025

Ariana News

It has now been three months since Afghanistan’s authorities imposed a nationwide ban preventing Afghan women staff and contractors from entering United Nations premises — a restriction the UN says continues to endanger critical humanitarian operations.

Despite being unable to access UN offices for 91 days, Afghan women personnel have continued their work remotely and within communities, delivering essential assistance to millions of people. Their efforts have supported families affected by recent earthquakes in eastern and northern Afghanistan, helped thousands of returnees arriving from Pakistan and Iran, and ensured vulnerable communities continue to receive food, clean water, healthcare, shelter, livelihood support, and climate-resilience assistance.

The UN warns that the longer the restrictions persist, the greater the threat to life-saving services across the country.

“Afghan women are indispensable to the United Nations’ work in Afghanistan,” the statement said, noting that women staff are essential to safely reaching Afghan women and girls and providing culturally appropriate support. “Assistance must be delivered by women, to women.”

The UN reiterated its strong opposition to the ban, calling it a violation of the organisation’s founding principles on equality and human rights, and stressing that it undermines its ability to fulfil its mandate in Afghanistan.

In response to the ongoing restrictions, UN agencies, funds and programmes have implemented additional interim operational adjustments and continue to evaluate feasible ways to sustain their principled humanitarian activities.

The United Nations again urged the Islamic Emirate to reverse the ban and ensure the safe, unrestricted access of Afghan women staff and contractors to UN offices and field locations — a necessary step, it said, to ensure aid reaches the women and girls who need it most.

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ILT20: Nissanka fires Gulf Giants to four-wicket win over Dubai Capitals

Azmatullah Omarzai dented the innings at crucial moments, finishing with 3/46 and tightening his grip on the White Belt for leading wicket-taker.

Published

1 hour ago

December 7, 2025

Ariana News

Pathum Nissanka produced his second consecutive half-century of the season on Saturday to guide Gulf Giants to a convincing four-wicket victory over Dubai Capitals, taking them to the top of the DP World ILT20 Season 4 standings.

Nissanka smashed 67 off just 31 deliveries in a dominant display that included six fours and five sixes. His 97-run stand with James Vince (50* off 45) proved decisive in the Giants’ chase of 161, which they completed with seven balls to spare at Dubai International Stadium.

Earlier, the Capitals posted 160/6 thanks to useful contributions from Sediqullah Atal (35), David Willey (29) and Jordan Cox (31). Captain Dasun Shanaka added late impetus with an unbeaten 23 off 9 balls, including two sixes in the final over.

But Azmatullah Omarzai dented the innings at crucial moments, finishing with 3/46 and tightening his grip on the White Belt for leading wicket-taker.

The Giants’ reply wobbled briefly after the early loss of Rahmanullah Gurbaz (9) but Nissanka took charge, hammering James Neesham for three sixes in the fourth over as the Giants cruised to 60/1 by the end of the powerplay. He reached his half-century in just 23 balls.

Mustafizur Rahman and Shanaka struck in back-to-back overs to remove Nissanka and Moeen Ali, but Vince held the chase together with a composed knock. Cameos from Omarzai (14 off 12) and Tom Moores (13 off 8) ensured the required rate never spiralled out of reach, and Vince sealed victory with a well-paced fifty.

In the first innings, after Omarzai removed Shayan Jahangir early, Atal and Willey stabilised the Capitals with a 61-run partnership. But the middle overs proved costly, producing only 18 runs between the 10th and 14th overs as wickets fell to Moeen Ali, Liam Dawson and Aayan Afzal Khan. Cox and Neesham revived the innings before Omarzai returned to snuff out the momentum by dismissing Cox and Rovman Powell in the 18th over.

Speaking after the match, Giants captain Moeen Ali praised his side’s all-round display: “Getting the points while knowing we can still play better is a good sign. We squeezed them well in the middle with the ball. Nissanka is a brilliant player, and Vince controlled the chase perfectly.”

Dubai Capitals skipper Dasun Shanaka admitted his team lost control through the middle overs: “Nissanka is in the form of his life — small guy, massive hitting. We lacked intent in the middle period. We waited too long to rotate strike. Powell and I probably should have gone earlier.”

Brief Scores:

Gulf Giants beat Dubai Capitals by 4 wickets

Dubai Capitals 160/6 (20 overs): Sediqullah Atal 35, Jordan Cox 31, David Willey 29, Dasun Shanaka 23*; Azmatullah Omarzai 3/46, Aayan Afzal Khan 1/3, Moeen Ali 1/23

Gulf Giants 161/6 (18.5 overs): Pathum Nissanka 67, James Vince 50*, Azmatullah Omarzai 14; Dasun Shanaka 2/16, Mustafizur Rahman 2/26

Player of the Match: Pathum Nissanka

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Doha Forum spotlights Afghanistan’s emerging role in regional connectivity

The annual gathering, which has drawn around 5,000 participants from 160 countries, is once again positioning Doha as a key platform for global dialogue.

Published

1 hour ago

December 7, 2025

Ariana News

The second day of the Doha Forum 2025 has brought renewed global attention to Afghanistan’s evolving role in regional connectivity, as policymakers, diplomats, and experts discuss the country’s shifting place in international cooperation and development.

The annual gathering, which has drawn around 5,000 participants from 160 countries, is once again positioning Doha as a key platform for global dialogue.

Zakir Jalali, Director of the second Political Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate, said in a post on X that the forum’s opening day focused heavily on major global crises and on Qatar’s increasing influence as an international mediator — from the conflict in Gaza and the war in Ukraine to crises in Sudan, Syria, and other hotspots.

Jalali confirmed that a dedicated panel on Afghanistan’s role in regional connectivity is scheduled for today. The session will feature Dr. Abdulhai Qanit representing Afghanistan, along with Esmatullah Ergashev, the Special Representative of the President of Uzbekistan, and Faisal bin Abdullah, Qatar’s Special Envoy from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He noted that Qatar has established itself as a successful mediator in recent years, with Afghanistan being one of its prominent examples.

This year’s forum, he said, marks a shift in how the international community engages with Afghanistan: moving away from a security-dominated narrative toward one that increasingly recognizes the country’s potential as a hub for integration, trade, and economic development.

According to Jalali, this evolving perspective offers a new window of opportunity for Afghanistan and its neighbours — one that requires thoughtful engagement, strategic planning, and a deeper understanding of the region’s long-term connectivity ambitions.