Countries demanding rights for Afghan women while cutting aid is 'hypocrisy': Norwegian Refugee Council

KABUL: Jan Egeland, head of the Norwegian Refugee Council, denounced what he termed the "hypocrisy" of nations advocating for Afghan women's rights while slashing humanitarian aid. Following the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, international aid has plummeted, and the regime has enforced stringent regulations restricting women's access to education and public life.

In an interview with AFP, Egeland stated that it's the right of foreign countries to demand, as we do, education for Afghan girls and work rights for Afghan women. However, it's hypocrisy when such demands are made from abroad during seminars in European capitals while aid for food and primary education for Afghan girls is being cut, he said.

As the nation faces a humanitarian crisis, the United Nations reported that by late August, it had only 30 percent of the funds required to provide essential aid to those in need. Egeland, who is currently on-site to assess his organization's projects in Afghanistan, disclosed that the organization has been compelled to terminate the employment of female aid workers and primary school teachers for girls due to financial constraints.

The Taliban, which assumed power in 2021, has barred women and girls older than 12 from attending high schools and universities, alongside imposing numerous rules limiting women's participation in public life. It remains the sole country globally where education for girls is prohibited beyond primary school. Egeland emphasized that by denying girls education beyond primary school, the Taliban will face dire consequences, warning, "You will have a catastrophe on your hands."