Senior U.N. officials in Afghanistan on Monday urged the country's government to fully implement legislation to protect women from child marriage and other forms of violence, following the failure of the Afghan Parliament to ratify the law over the weekend.
Incidentally, President Hamid Karzai has cleared the Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW) through a presidential decree in 2009, but the law has yet to be ratified by the Parliament. The debate between lawmakers on the legislation was halted on May 18 after some hardline lawmakers argued that parts of the law violated Islamic principles and encouraged disobedience.
"The international community - as well as the Security Council - expects that the Afghan authorities will respect and promote Afghanistan's domestic and international obligations and legal norms in the field of human rights, notably the rights of woman children," said a joint news release issued by the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and U.N. Women in Afghanistan on Monday.
Separately, Jan Kubis, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Afghanistan and UNAMA head, stressed that the law is "critical" for all of Afghan society, and said: "Progress in implementing the EVAW law contributes to deterring harmful practices and protecting women from violence in their daily lives."
Meanwhile, the U.N. Women representative in Afghanistan, Ingibjorg Gisladottir, urged the Afghan government and the Parliament to fully respect and defend the fundamental rights of women and girls by ensuring that the EVAW law is implemented.
"It is imperative for the development of Afghanistan that women are able to exercise their rights and be free from violence in their homes and workplaces," she said.
The EVAW law criminalized numerous forms of violence, including child marriage, forced marriage, the selling and buying of women for the purpose or under the pretext of marriage, the traditional practice of ba'ad which requires the giving away of a woman or a girl to settle a dispute, forced self-immolation and 17 other acts of violence including rape and physical abuse, while also specifying punishment for the perpetrators.
According to a UNAMA study released in December, there was "still a long way to go" in implementing the law due to "dramatic" under-reporting of violence and gaps in investigations as a result of cultural restraints, social norms, and taboos, as well as insecurity and weak rule of law.
In Monday's statement, the two U.N. entities also called on international donors to support the government in meeting its latest commitments on gender equality, women's empowerment and the implementation of the EVAW law by developing a joint monitoring framework with specific indicators to measure progress in these areas, with development assistance based on progress made.
Incidentally, the commitments were agreed to by Afghan authorities and the international community at the Tokyo conference in July 2012.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.