Joint Statement on Afghanistan: Protect Women, Children, LGBTIQ & Other Vulnerable Persons
August 18, 2021
We, the undersigned organisations working to advance the human rights of persons of diverse sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC) call for the protection of women, children, LGBTIQ people and other vulnerable persons in Afghanistan.
Since 15 August, the Taliban-led takeover of Kabul’s Presidential Palace and the abrupt collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan’s government raises concerns over human rights and the safety of marginalised groups in the country. Besides LGBTIQ people and people of diverse SOGIESC, women, persecuted religious minorities, journalists and human rights defenders have come under threat, and many have gone into hiding out of fear.
We are concerned with alleged reports of the Taliban already implementing their strict version of the Sharia law, and it has been reported that many women and girls fear participating in public life and face the risk of being banned from going to school and university again. We are saddened to see the decades of progress made by women’s groups be potentially reversed suddenly and disastrously.
We also fear that LGBTIQ people will be further criminalised and persecuted, as authorities in the Taliban have made recent statements that death sentences will be reinstated for gay men. The Afghan LGBTIQ people have already been living in fear of violence and killings for a number of years, and we dread that this situation will escalate further.
In ILGA World’s latest State-Sponsored Homophobia (2020) report, Afghanistan is listed among countries for which there is no full legal certainty that the death penalty is the established punishment for consensual same-sex sexual acts (see here). The same report also updates on the explicit criminalising provisions of “same-sex conduct” under Section 646 of Afghanistan’s 2017 Penal Code and enforcement in recent years (see here).
While the Taliban has announced a “general amnesty” in Afghanistan and has called for women to join its government “according to Sharia law”, it is imperative that any form of governance that takes place, needs to empower women and minorities and be based on human rights and evidence-based practices. If the Taliban wants to include women, it needs to first stop preventing women from accessing public life and education and to not perpetuate any harm against women and minorities.
The crisis in Afghanistan is complex and difficult, but we remind the international community that it has a moral obligation—particularly those who have played a role in the development of the issue—to ensure that the political crisis is diffused via a solution that prioritises the self-determination of the Afghan people while protecting vulnerable persons from harm and violence.
We call for the following:
We urge the Taliban to respect the rights of all people granted by the Constitution of Afghanistan, the international covenants ratified by Afghanistan, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and international human rights norms, irrespective of their SOGIESC status.
We demand that any effort to quell this political crisis will be made with the consultation of vulnerable people in Afghanistan including LGBTIQ persons and women. Their human rights must not be compromised for a political peace deal.
We call on the international community to provide urgent humanitarian assistance and protection to all Afghans.
We urge that countries open their borders and accept refugees and asylum seekers from Afghanistan. We commend Canada’s commitment to accepting 20,000 vulnerable Afghans and prioritising LGBTIQ persons, women leaders and other groups, and look to other countries to follow suit.
We call on everyone to work together to provide support in their own capacity. We call on individuals and groups to make donations, donors to make emergency funding available, and for organisations to assist in coordinating the collection and distribution of funds, noting the lack of LGBTIQ organisations in Afghanistan.
Endorsed by the following groups:
6Rang (Iranian Lesbian and Transgender Network)
Access Planet Organization
African Trans Network
Aleph Melbourne
All Out
All Women's Action Society (AWAM)
Alouen
Amnesty International Taiwan Section
Antalya Feminist Kolektif
ASEAN Feminist LBQ Network
ASEAN SOGIE Caucus
Asia Pacific Transgender Network
Asia-Pacific Rainbow Catholics Network
Bangladesh Queer Partnership Platform- EQUAL
Beyond Borders Malaysia
Bisdak Pride, Inc.
Bisexual Alliance Victoria
Boys of Bangladesh (Formerly)
Campaign for Change
CAN-Myanmar
CEDAW Committee of Trinidad & Tobago
Centre for Civil and Political Rights
Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) Malaysia
COC Netherlands
Community Welfare and Development Fund
Covenants Watch
CPCD Studio
Dawei Probono Lawyer Network
Deaf Rainbow
Diversity and Solidarity Trust - Sri Lanka
Diversity Lounge Toyama
Doshisha University
Edge Effect
ELLY Fukui
Equal Asia Foundation
EQUAL GROUND, Sri Lanka
GAYa NUSANTARA Foundation
Gays Without Borders
Helem
Human Dignity Trust
Human Rights Defenders World Summit
ICS Center
ILGA Asia
ILGA World
Iloilo Pride Team
Inclusive Bangladesh
International Service for Human Rights
International Women's Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific
Intersex Asia
Intersex Philippines
isha lisha - Haifa feminist center
Ishikawa Conference for LGBT
Iwate Rainbow Network
J-ALL (Japan Alliance for LGBT Legislation)
JEJAKA
justice for sisters
Kampania Przeciw Homofobii | Campaign Against Homophobia (Poland)
Kanazawa Rainbow Pride
Kaos GL
Korean Sexual-minority Culture & Rights Center
LakanBini Advocates Pilipinas
Legal Dignity
Let's Breakthrough, Inc.
Lezpa
LGBT Centre
LOUD (Lesbians of Undeniable Drive)
LOVE4ONE
M-coalition
MANODIVERSA
Manushya Foundation
Marsa Sexual Health Center
Matimba
Metro Manila Pride
Midneunfemi
Monsoon Malaysia (MM)
MOSAIC Mena
Movimiento de Integración y Liberación Homosexual (MOVILH)
Mujer-LGBT Organization, Inc
Namibia Diverse Women Association
Nijiiro Diversity
Noboprobhaat
Nőkért Egyesület (Association for Women), Hungary
NPO Tokyo Rainbow Pride
Oogachaga
Organization Intersex International-Chinese (Oii-Chinese)
Outrage Magazine
Pacific Human Rights Initiative
Palestinian Working Woman for Development "PWWSD"
Pan Africa ILGA
PELANGI Campaign
Persatuan Sahabat Wanita, Selangor (Friends of Women Organisation, Selangor)
Pioneer Filipino Transgender men Movement
PLACE TOKYO
Planet Ally
PLUHO (People Like Us Hang Out!)
Pride House Tokyo
PROHAM
Proud Futures
PT Foundation
Queer Voices of Bhutan
Queers4Climate
Rainbow Action Against Sexual-Minority Discrimination
Rainbow Egypt
RainbowJesus (무지개예수)
RFSL (The Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Rights)
Sans Tabous
Sayoni
SEED Malaysia
Seoul Human Rights Film Festival in South Korea
SGRainbow
SHARE, center for Sexual rigHts And Reproductive justicE
Sisters in Islam, Malaysia
SOGILAW
SORANIJI HIMEJI
Success Capital Organisation
Swasti
Taiwan Association for Human Rights
Taiwan Equality Campaign
Taiwan Gender Equity Education Association
Taiwan LGBTQ Family Rights Advocacy
Taiwan Tongzhi (LGBTQ+) Hotline Association
The Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya (GALCK)
The Global Center for LGBTI+ Freedom and Education
The Institute for Studies on Society, Economy & Environment - iSEE
Thorne Harbour Health
Together4Change: DAWOOM
Transgender Equality Hong Kong
Transgender Victoria
Transpiration Power
Trikone Australasia Inc
Tufts University
UP Babaylan
Visayas LBTQ Network
Women Against Rape
Women for Women's Human Rights (WWHR)
Youth Voices Count
にじ♡はぐ 石川
ひだまりの会
ILGA Asia is the Asian Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, representing more than 170 LGBTI organizations in East, South, Southeast, and West Asia, with the administrative office in Bangkok, Thailand.
For inquiries, please email:
Henry Koh, ILGA Asia Executive Director
henry@ilgaasia.orgRyan Ong, ILGA Asia Communications Officer
ryan@ilgaasia.org
