{"id":991,"date":"2023-08-10T09:19:58","date_gmt":"2023-08-10T09:19:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/260web.com\/news\/taliban-repression-of-women-a-crime-against-humanity-says-gordon-brown\/"},"modified":"2023-08-10T09:19:58","modified_gmt":"2023-08-10T09:19:58","slug":"taliban-repression-of-women-a-crime-against-humanity-says-gordon-brown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/260web.com\/news\/taliban-repression-of-women-a-crime-against-humanity-says-gordon-brown\/","title":{"rendered":"Taliban repression of women a crime against humanity, says Gordon Brown"},"content":{"rendered":"

Taliban repression of women a crime against humanity, says Gordon Brown<\/p>\n

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\"Gordon<\/picture><\/span>Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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By Andre Rhoden-Paul<\/div>\n
BBC News<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The Taliban’s treatment of women and girls in Afghanistan is a “crime against humanity”, Gordon Brown has told the BBC. <\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The former prime minister is calling on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to prosecute those responsible for the “vicious” abuse of human rights. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The Taliban government has severely restricted the freedoms of women and girls since regaining power in 2021. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“This is the systematic brutalisation of women and girls,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Speaking to BBC Radio 4 Today’s Nick Robinson, Mr Brown, now the UN’s special envoy for global education, said: “They’ve been excluded from education, excluded from employment, excluded from visiting public places.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“All these bans are a form of discrimination. It’s probably the most heinous, most vicious, most comprehensive abuse of human rights in place around the world today.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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He said some described the system as a form “gender apartheid”, and that it should be considered a crime against humanity. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“It’s right then for the International Criminal Court, which has responsibility for dealing with crimes against humanity, to both investigate and prosecute those responsible.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The ex-Labour prime minister, who led the UK from 2007 to 2010, suggested the pressure of a potential prosecution could force the Taliban to reconsider, and said he was shocked by there was “so little international pressure on the regime”. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Mr Brown also called for UK sanctions against the Taliban leadership, and leaders and clerics from Muslim-majority countries to help persuade them that “Islam is a religion that values women and girls”. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The former prime minister’s intervention comes as the two-year anniversary approaches of the fall of the democratic government and Taliban takeover following the withdrawal of Western troops. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Taliban leaders promised a more moderate rule than during their previous period in power from 1996 to 2001. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Last month Afghan women held a rare protest against the Taliban’s decision to shut female beauty parlours and salons. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Girls have been banned from attending secondary school and women excluded from university. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Women and girls are also prohibited from entering amusement parks, gyms and working in non-governmental organisations, and must adhere to a strict dress code.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The UN has previously said women reported feeling “invisible, isolated, suffocated, living in prison-like conditions”, with many unable to meet and their basic needs without employment or aid.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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