'Violence against women is a horrific violation of human rights': Guterres

KABUL: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on everyone to work on eliminating violence against women, according to TOLO News. On the occasion of International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, the UN Secretary-General called violence against women a horrific violation of human rights and a major obstacle to sustainable development.

"Violence against women is a horrific violation of human rights, a public health crisis, and a major obstacle to sustainable development. This year's theme of the UNiTE campaign - "Invest to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls," calls on all of us to take action," he said.

November 25 is observed as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Meanwhile, the European Union in Afghanistan, Amnesty International and other activists in the field of women's rights also raised concerns about the situation of women in Afghanistan, reported TOLO News.

The European Union for Afghanistan shared a post on X, stating, "EU Afghanistan stands united with its partners UN and UNDP and calls to end gender-based violence."

"Women and girls worldwide continue to be disproportionately exposed to violence and EU Afghanistan stands united with its partners UN, and UNDP and calls to end gender-based violence," it added. However, women's rights activist Suraya Paikan stressed that women are not just deprived of their rights; psychologically, they feel violence.

"Women are not only deprived of their rights, but psychologically, they strongly feel violence against themselves," she said. Meanwhile, Amnesty International has announced its support for the women and girls of Afghanistan on this occasion, TOLO News reported. They also launched a campaign to support women.

"The biggest violence against girls is that the doors of schools and universities are closed to them and their rights are ignored; women live with an unknown fate. I'm hoping for the day when the government of the Islamic Emirate will take care of the rights of all Afghan people, especially women," said Tafsir Syahposh, another women's rights activist.

Moreover, some Afghan women said that the restrictions imposed by the Taliban have mutiplied the challenges faced by women in the country. "Our request to the International Community is that they should do something for Afghan women and take action so that girls can study and women can return to their jobs," said Zuhra Rajabi, a student.