A group of Afghan women expressed concern about the health condition of Manizha Seddiqi, a human rights defender inside the Taliban’s prison, stating that she is being “tortured”.
These female activists who protested against the Taliban warned that the group might “stone” her on charges of burning a picture of the group’s leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada.
They also said that Seddiqi does not have access to a lawyer or family visitors in prison.
This women’s movement called the “Window of Hope,” based in Pakistan, criticised human rights activists for their indifference toward Seddiqi’s fate, and said that the Taliban leader recently emphasised “stoning and flogging women in public under the pretext of enforcing Sharia law”.
These women highlighted that the Taliban deprive Afghan citizens, especially women, of their rights, and actively suppress, detain, and torture women activists. They underscored that the group has effectively established “gender apartheid” in Afghanistan through systematic gender discrimination.
In a statement, they emphasised that the Taliban are unfamiliar with the human rights values and will not align with the people of Afghanistan and the international community.
These women said that the international community, including the United States, provides financial support to the Taliban. According to the movement, Afghan women have tragically become “victims of wrong policies of the international community and gender apartheid”.
This movement urged the international community and human rights organisations to exert pressure on the Taliban for the release of Manizha Seddiqi from their prison.
Taliban intelligence detained Seddiqi on October 9, 2023, and subsequently transferred her to Pul-e-Charkhi prison.
The Article originally appeared in https://www.afintl.com March 28, 2024 Original Link
