Talks have begun in Norway between the international community and the Taliban in an attempt to address the dire humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan. Issues at hand include human rights concerns over the treatment of Afghans, including women, girls, and minority groups. Women have been banned from most jobs and refused access to education – many minority groups and human rights activists have been targeted by the Taliban.
The three-day closed-door talks in Oslo are the Taliban’s first official meetings in Europe since the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban in August of last year. The Taliban delegation, led by acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, is expected to request the $10 billion of funds frozen by the international community to deal with the acute Afghan humanitarian crisis. With Taliban delegates also meeting women’s and human rights advocates, there is hope that these negotiations can also result in positive outcomes from a human rights perspective.
This comes after an economic collapse, drought, and famine crippled Afghanistan, causing widespread food insecurity and poverty in the already conflict-stricken nation. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has described the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan as one that is quickly becoming one of the worst in the world. Half the population is now facing acute food insecurity and hunger, and over nine million people have been displaced.
This hardship is largely a result of poor governance by the Taliban, international sanctions, the freezing of billions of dollars in government assets, and the withdrawal of humanitarian aid. Before the Taliban takeover, the United States paid over 75 percent of Afghanistan’s income, making the country heavily reliant on these funds in providing for its citizens on a day-to-day basis. These funds were frozen, with the United States holding most of the $10 billion in Afghan government reserves, following withdrawal from Afghanistan in August of last year.
In Oslo, Taliban delegate Shafuillah Azam stated that “we are requesting them to unfreeze Afghan assets and not punish ordinary Afghans because of the political discourse and that “because of the starvation, because of the deadly winter, I think it’s time for the international community to support Afghans, not punish them because of their political disputes.”
The Norwegian Foreign Minister, Anniken Huitfeldt, has said that the talks would “not represent a legitimisation or recognition of the Taliban” and that “we must talk to the de facto authorities in the country. We cannot allow the political situation to lead to an even worse humanitarian disaster.”
The international community has an opportunity to force the Taliban to negotiate to ensure that the Afghan human rights situation is improved. These negotiations could allow for billions of dollars of humanitarian aid to flow into the country to feed and provide vital services to an already suffering population. There is potential to find a solution that doesn’t punish the Afghan population for the actions of the Taliban and offers a realistic chance of improving human rights outcomes under one of the harshest regimes in the world.
