Afghanistan wins seat on UN Commission on the Status of Women

Women attending a college course in Afghanistan (Flickr)

Afghanistan won a coveted seat on the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) for the first time in history. The UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) held elections for two CSW seats in the Asia-Pacific region on September 15 for a four-year long term, ranging from 2021 to 2025. Afghanistan and India won the two seats, respectively receiving 39 votes and 38 votes of the 54 member committee. As a functional commission of ECOSOC, the CWS works to promote women’s rights, document women’s lives around the world, and set the global standard for gender equality and empowerment. Afghanistan’s UN ambassador Adela Raz noted that the election represents important progress in the fight for gender equality since the fall of the Taliban’s oppressive government. 

Afghanistan’s appointment to the CSW comes during a turbulent time for the country, as the Afghan government and the Taliban continue negotiations in Doha to end intra-Afghan conflict and create an integrated government. These negotiations resulted from a peace deal made between the United States government and the Taliban in February, which aimed at ending nearly two decades of conflict in Afghanistan. The United States committed to withdrawing all military personnel within 14 months, while the Taliban committed to preventing any individual or group from using Afghan land to threaten the United States’ security. 

The issue of women’s rights plays a significant role in the negotiations, given that the Afghan government and the Taliban differ significantly in ideology regarding politics and human rights. The Taliban imposed harsh restrictions on women’s rights during its control of Afghanistan (1996-2001), which included outlawing women’s employment and education. A senior Taliban official stated that the organization would be willing to compromise and adopt a more moderate stance on women’s rights. However, Afghan women fear that their rights will be compromised during the negotiations and that current efforts to secure more rights will be halted. 

Only four members of the Afghan government’s 21-person negotiating team are women, while the Taliban’s team are all men. Despite widespread fear and skepticism among Afghan women, Raz remains optimistic that the negotiations, albeit male-dominated, will protect women’s rights. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s spokesperson Sediq Sediqqi said that Afghanistan’s historic victory on the CSW not only demonstrates Afghan women’s role on a global scale, but also reiterates their importance in shaping the future of post-conflict Afghanistan.