Justice for Women and Girls in Afghanistan

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The women and girls of Afghanistan have shown extraordinary courage in the face of unimaginable oppression, continuing to resist and advocate for their rights despite enormous personal risk. Now is the time for Australia and the international community to stand with them – sign our open letter today.

Five years after the Taliban’s return to power, Afghanistan remains one of the most severe women’s rights crises of our time. Women and girls have been systematically stripped of their most fundamental rights. They have been banned from secondary and tertiary education, excluded from most forms of employment, denied freedom of movement, and erased from public life through an expanding network of discriminatory decrees.

These abuses are not isolated incidents. They are deliberate, institutionalised policies designed to exclude women and girls from every aspect of society – what Afghan women human rights defenders have long described as ‘gender apartheid’.

Gender apartheid is an unacceptable attack on the rights of women and girls, and it cannot continue in Afghanistan or anywhere in the world.

By signing this open letter and sharing it with your networks, you’re helping to show that organisations and the community stand together to ensure the women and girls of Afghanistan are not forgotten and are calling on the Australian Government to take leadership.

We call on the Australian Government to use its diplomatic influence and demand accountability for Taliban's human rights violations.

Five years is far too long for Afghan women and girls to live without freedom, education, work, or hope.

Add your voice to our open letter demanding justice for the women and girls of Afghanistan.

Sign the Open Letter

Our Letter

Senator the Hon Penny Wong
Minister for Foreign Affairs
PO Box 6100
Senate
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600

Dear Minister,

As we marked the fifth anniversary of the Taliban's return to power on 15 August 2026, we call on the Australian Government to reaffirm its commitment to the people of Afghanistan by championing the rights of women and girls and strengthening international accountability for the Taliban's ongoing human rights violations.

Five years after the fall of Kabul, Afghanistan remains one of the world's most severe human rights crises. Nearly half of Afghanistan’s population now relies on humanitarian assistance just to survive. Women and girls have been systematically stripped of their most fundamental rights. They have been banned from secondary and tertiary education, excluded from most forms of employment, denied freedom of movement, and erased from public life through an expanding network of discriminatory decrees.

These abuses are not isolated incidents. They are deliberate, institutionalised policies designed to exclude women and girls from every aspect of society. At the same time, ethnic and religious minorities, including the Hazara community, continue to face persecution and discrimination. Journalists, human rights defenders, and civil society activists remain at constant risk of intimidation, arbitrary detention, and violence.

Australia has consistently demonstrated leadership by speaking out against these abuses and standing with the people of Afghanistan. As a country that worked alongside Afghans for more than two decades in support of democracy, human rights, and the rule of law, Australia has both a moral responsibility and an opportunity to continue leading the international response.

We call on the Australian Government to:

Continue publicly championing the rights of women and girls from Afghanistan in international forums, including the United Nations and other multilateral institutions, ensuring their voices remain at the centre of the global response to Afghanistan.
Support international efforts to hold the Taliban accountable for serious human rights violations against women and girls, including through mechanisms under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and other international accountability processes.
Advocate for the recognition of gender apartheid under international law, recognising that the Taliban's systematic oppression of women and girls requires a legal framework that reflects the gravity, scale, and institutional nature of these abuses.

Five years is far too long for Afghan women and girls to live without freedom, education, work, or hope. Australia has an opportunity to continue demonstrating principled leadership by ensuring that Afghanistan is not forgotten and that justice and accountability remain at the centre of the international response.

The women and girls of Afghanistan have shown extraordinary courage in the face of unimaginable oppression. They continue to resist, organise, and advocate for their rights despite enormous personal risk.

Now is the time for the international community and for Australia to stand with them. The people of Afghanistan deserve justice. The women and girls of Afghanistan deserve freedom. And those responsible for these grave human rights violations must be held accountable.