The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, said this week the advancement of women’s and girls’ rights must be prioritized by all those working on and in Afghanistan.

Addressing the 55th session of the Human Rights Council on Monday, March 4, Türk criticized the widespread violations of women’s and girls’ rights.

Recently, Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, also underscored the “dire situation” of human rights in the country, particularly for women and girls.

He emphasized that engagement with the Islamic Emirate must be rooted in the respect for human rights, especially women’s rights.

“To do otherwise would send a concerning message about their commitment to women everywhere,” he said.

Bennett presented his latest report on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan at the UN Human Rights Council on February 29.

He said that two and a half years after the IEA took control of Afghanistan, human rights in the country are still in a deteriorating condition.

In his Monday address, Turk also voiced his concerns about the state of media and journalism. Such criticisms come at a time when the IEA are consistently limiting the information space. For example, the group recently banned photographing human beings in Kandahar and barred local radios in Khost from receiving calls from women listeners.

The IEA intelligence has warned of removing women completely from the media scene.

But the Islamic Emirate rejects human rights violations in the country. IEA spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid says the Islamic Emirate is committed to ensuring the rights of women in the country, and western countries and their allies use this issue as a way to put pressure on the government.