OIC to Kabul: Lift curbs on female education, work

KABUL (Pajhwok): The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has called upon Afghanistan’s caretaker government to reopen schools and universities for girls and lift restrictions on women working for NGOs.

At an extraordinary meeting on the situation in Afghanistan, the OIC Executive Committee voiced its disappointment over the suspension of girls’ education and the ban on female aid workers until further notice.

The largest Islamic bloc asked the interim government to enable female students to enroll in all levels of education and all specialisations required by the Afghan people.

In a communiqué, the participants urged Afghan authorities to adhere to the principles of the UN and OIC Charters and abide by their obligations under international treaties and agreements.

The OIC called for Kabul to respect international human rights covenants, particularly regarding the rights of women, children, youth, the elderly and people with special needs.

In the communiqué, the influential Islamic organisation said that it:

1. Reaffirms solidarity with the people of Afghanistan, and the commitment to help them establish peace, security, stability and development;
2. Welcomes the efforts of the OIC General Secretariat, the Special Envoy of the OIC Secretary General to Afghanistan, and the International Islamic Fiqh Academy (IIFA) in engaging with the de facto Afghan authorities on issues of vital importance, in accordance with the noble Islamic principles and values and relevant OIC resolutions;
3. Reaffirms the commitment of the OIC to Afghanistan as enshrined in its latest resolutions adopted by the Extraordinary Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) held on 19 December 2021 in Islamabad, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and the 48th Session of the CFM held on 23 March 2022 in Islamabad, Islamic Republic of Pakistan;
4. Appreciates the visit to Afghanistan in June 2022 by the delegation of prominent religious scholars and jurists led by the International Islamic Fiqh Academy (IIFA) and the meetings it held with the de facto Afghan authorities ; calls for a second visit of the delegation of Muslim scholars to be arranged to engage with the highest officials of Afghanistan;
5. Emphasises that education is a fundamental human right which all individuals must enjoy on the basis of equal opportunity and in a non-discriminatory manner, and not be deprived of;
6. Expresses its disappointment over the suspension of female education in Afghanistan and the decision ordering all national and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to suspend female employees until further notice;
7. Urges the de facto Afghan authorities to adhere to the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations and the OIC Charter, and to abide by its obligations under international treaties and agreements, including their obligations under international human rights covenants, particularly regarding the rights of women, children, youth, the elderly and people with special needs;
8. Calls on the de facto Afghan authorities to strive towards reopening schools and universities for girls and enable them to enroll in all levels of education and all specializations required by the Afghan people;
9. Underscores the need to protect fundamental rights, including the right to life, security, dignity and the right to education for all Afghan women and girls in accordance with Islamic values and universal human rights standards;
10. Urges the de facto Afghan authorities to allow women and girls to exercise their rights and contribute to the social and economic development of the Afghan society in accordance with the rights and responsibilities as guaranteed to them by Islam and international human rights law;
11. Cautions against disruption of deliverance of humanitarian aid on the ground as well as the unimpeded flow of international humanitarian assistance, education, health and other social services to the people of Afghanistan due to shortage of female personnel;
12. Encourages national and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to continue humanitarian and relief operations despite practical difficulties on the ground;
13. Stresses the need to have support of the international community to ensure that Afghanistan is assisted in its endeavors to achieve socio-economic development without interference in its internal affairs;
14. Decides to coordinate with the de facto Afghan authorities in order to dispatch an OIC delegation and the relevant institutions with a view to assess the needs for technical and development assistance in particular for (small-scaled) income generating sectors and activities in the country;
15. Calls on the international and the OIC community to provide technical and development assistance in particular for (small-scaled) income generating sectors and activities in the country with a view to improving the lives and the livelihoods of the Afghan people, considering that the economic crisis is a major factor leading to the tragic humanitarian situation in Afghanistan today;
16. Calls for the dispatch of the Special Envoy of the Secretary General for Afghanistan to visit the country to deliver the OIC’s message on supporting Afghanistan and the importance of reconsidering the recent decisions taken by the de facto Afghan authorities on working women and girls’ education;
17. Commends in this regard the support provided by the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the budget of the Special Envoy for Afghanistan, enabling him to carry out his mission, as well as its generous donation to the Humanitarian Trust Fund for Afghanistan under the stewardship of the Islamic Development Bank; also commends the support provided by other Member States that have made contributions to the Fund;
18. Calls upon the Secretary-General to follow up and assess the situation in Afghanistan, and take any necessary measures in coordination with the members of the Executive Committee, and submit a report thereon to the next session of the Council of Foreign Ministers.

In response to a joint invitation from Saudi Arabia, the Republic of Türkiye and Gambia, the OIC Executive Committee convened the extraordinary meeting in Jeddah.

The participants reviewed the situation in Afghanistan following the closure of secondary schools and universities for female students and suspension of women workers of national and international NGOs.

pr/mud

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