Afghan Diaspora in Paris Protest Against Detention of Women in Herat
A group of Afghan citizens residing in France held a protest in Paris condemning the detention of women and girls in Herat province, describing it as a continuation of the Taliban administration’s organized policies against women. They warned that the intensification of arrests reflects increasing pressure and a climate of fear imposed on women in Afghanistan.
The protesters, on Saturday, June 13, issued a statement stating that in today’s Afghanistan, girls are deprived of education simply because they are girls, and women are denied even their most basic rights such as work, unrestricted movement, and presence in public spaces solely because they are women.
According to them, recent reports of arrests and even kidnappings of women and girls in Herat are not isolated or sporadic incidents; rather, they are part of a deliberate process aimed at the systematic exclusion of women from society and the imposition of broad restrictions on their lives. The protesters stressed that what is happening in Afghanistan is not merely social restrictions but a structured system based on repression, intimidation, and denial of fundamental women’s rights—a situation they described as ‘gender apartheid.’
These Afghan citizens also expressed concern over the attendance of Taliban representatives at international meetings without accountability regarding human rights violations. They believe such an approach can lead to normalization of the current situation and legitimize the repressive policies.
In conclusion, the protesters called on the French government, the European Union, and the United Nations to take practical and effective measures to stop the detention of women, release those detained, and hold the Taliban administration accountable for human rights violations. They emphasized that the international community’s silence towards the ongoing situation in Afghanistan should not be regarded as neutrality but rather as condoning the continued suppression of women.
