EU statement on latest restrictions imposed by the Taliban on the people

The European Union is appalled by the decree recently issued by the Taliban, the so-called Law on Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. The decree confirms and extends severe restrictions on the life of Afghans imposed by the Taliban, including imposed dress codes, notably ordering women to cover their bodies and faces in public. The decree also imposes that the voices of women must not be heard in public, which effectively deprives Afghan women of their fundamental right to freedom of expression.

The decree further extends the power of the so-called Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice beyond an advisory role as it is now being given a clear mandate to enforce the decree. This, together with the restrictions imposed, punishable under Taliban law, violates legal obligations and Treaties to which Afghanistan is a State Party, including by undermining Afghan people’s right to due process.

This latest decision is another serious blow undermining the rights of Afghan women and girls, which we cannot tolerate. We urge the Taliban to put an end to these systematic and systemic abuses against Afghan women and girls, which may amount to gender persecution, which is a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, to which Afghanistan is a State Party.

The decree also creates yet another self-imposed obstacle to normalised relations and recognition by the international community, to which the Taliban publicly aspire. Such possible recognition, as stated in the UN’s independent assessment, of which the UNSC Resolution 2721 (2023) took positive note, would require the Taliban to fully respect both their obligations towards the citizens of Afghanistan and Afghanistan’s international obligations.

The EU continues to stand by the women and girls of Afghanistan, and by all those in Afghanistan threatened by the Taliban.