Elisenda Calvet, a judge at the People’s Tribunal for Women of Afghanistan, has warned that growing diplomatic engagement between European governments and the Taliban risks lending legitimacy to a regime accused of systematically depriving Afghan women and girls of their fundamental rights.
In an interview with the Spanish newspaper El País, Calvet highlighted one of the most pressing concerns facing Afghan women: that the international community may gradually become accustomed to Taliban rule, allowing the systematic oppression of women to be treated as an ordinary political reality rather than a grave and ongoing human rights crisis.
Calvet expressed concern that the sustained restrictions imposed on Afghan women could eventually become normalised through diplomatic accommodation and international inaction. She described the scale of repression as extraordinary, warning that the world must not lose sight of the severity of the situation confronting women and girls in Afghanistan.
Addressing European engagement with the Taliban, Calvet questioned the implications of officially inviting Taliban representatives to Brussels for technical discussions. She argued that such engagement could contradict the European Union’s stated position of not recognising the Taliban government and risk creating an environment in which relations with the group become increasingly normalised.
Her concerns centre on the distinction between necessary diplomatic communication and actions that could be interpreted as granting political legitimacy to a government whose policies have severely curtailed women’s rights.
The warning comes amid continuing international debate over how to engage with Afghanistan’s de facto authorities while maintaining pressure for respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms, and international legal obligations.
Calvet’s position underscores the need for governments to ensure that diplomatic channels do not come at the expense of Afghan women’s rights or diminish international scrutiny of the restrictions they continue to face.
She stressed that millions of Afghan women must not be forgotten as international attention shifts to other geopolitical priorities. Their experiences, demands, and perspectives must remain central to discussions concerning Afghanistan’s future.
Calvet also highlighted the importance of ongoing negotiations on a future international convention on crimes against humanity, describing the process as a significant opportunity to advance the legal recognition of gender apartheid.
The concept addresses systems of institutionalised domination and systematic oppression based on gender. In the context of Afghanistan, advocates argue that the cumulative restrictions imposed on women and girls warrant sustained international legal scrutiny.
According to Calvet, formally recognising gender apartheid within the international legal framework could strengthen efforts to hold those responsible for systematic gender-based persecution accountable.
She acknowledged that new legal provisions would likely not apply retrospectively, but maintained that recognition of the offence could nevertheless reinforce other mechanisms for justice and accountability.
Such developments could contribute to a stronger international response to systematic violations of women’s rights, support legal efforts to address gender-based persecution, and help ensure that institutionalised discrimination is not treated as an issue beyond the reach of international justice.
The broader challenge, however, extends beyond legal definitions. Effective accountability requires political commitment, credible investigations, the preservation of evidence, and sustained international cooperation.
Calvet further emphasised the responsibility of Afghanistan’s neighbouring states and Muslim-majority countries to challenge policies that restrict women’s rights under Taliban rule.
She argued that these countries should make clear that the Taliban’s treatment of women does not represent Islam or Sharia law, stressing the importance of challenging attempts to justify systematic discrimination through religious interpretation.
The involvement of regional governments and Muslim-majority nations could be particularly significant in strengthening international pressure, countering narratives used to justify restrictions, and affirming that women’s dignity, education, participation in public life, and fundamental rights must not be denied.
Her appeal highlights the importance of a broad-based international response that brings together governments, legal experts, civil society organisations, human rights advocates, and religious scholars in support of Afghan women and girls.
The People’s Tribunal for Women of Afghanistan is a civil society initiative established to examine violations of the rights of Afghan women and girls under Taliban rule. The tribunal was held in Madrid in 2025 with the objective of bringing international attention to allegations of systematic oppression, gender-based discrimination, and persecution.
The initiative seeks to document abuses, amplify the voices and experiences of affected women, and strengthen international efforts to pursue accountability for alleged crimes against humanity.
By providing a platform for testimony and legal scrutiny, the tribunal aims to challenge the invisibility that can surround human rights violations when affected communities are excluded from international political discussions.
Its work also reflects a broader demand from human rights advocates that the experiences of Afghan women should not be reduced to a secondary issue in diplomatic negotiations over Afghanistan’s political future.
The tribunal’s efforts underscore the importance of documenting violations, preserving evidence, and ensuring that the experiences of survivors inform future legal and policy responses.
Calvet’s warning raises fundamental questions about the relationship between diplomacy, international recognition, and human rights accountability. While governments may pursue technical discussions or other forms of engagement for practical reasons, such contacts risk undermining international pressure if they are not accompanied by clear and consistent demands for respect for fundamental rights.
For Afghan women and girls, the danger is not limited to the restrictions they face today. There is also the risk that prolonged exclusion from education, employment, public participation, and other areas of everyday life will increasingly be regarded as an accepted feature of Afghanistan’s political landscape.
Preventing that outcome requires sustained international attention, meaningful opportunities for Afghan women to speak for themselves, and a firm commitment to ensuring that their rights remain central to every discussion concerning the country’s future.
The international community faces a critical responsibility: to ensure that diplomatic engagement does not eclipse accountability, that legal progress translates into meaningful action, and that the voices of Afghan women are neither marginalised nor forgotten.
