In view of the looming humanitarian catastrophe in Afghanistan, high-ranking Taliban meet with representatives from Western countries in Norway. The summit is also about human rights. But the meeting caused a shake of the head.
It is a bizarre picture: High-ranking Taliban officials in traditional robes, scarves and turbans are sitting in a luxury private jet. In another photo they pose in front of the plane. Against the background of the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, these photos seem like a stair joke. That’s precisely why the Taliban flew to a summit in Norway: to talk about the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan.
It is the first time that the Islamists have traveled to a western country with a delegation since they seized power in Afghanistan. The invitation came from Norway. According to media reports, the private plane was paid for by Norway. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that chartering the machine cost around 3.5 million Norwegian kroner – the equivalent of almost 347,000 euros.
Taliban meet women’s rights activists
“It was necessary for security reasons. We will cover all flight and travel expenses for the Afghan participants. Other costs of the visit include security, transport, hotel and meeting costs,” the Foreign Ministry told Norwegian Radio about the expenses.
At the start of the multi-day summit, the Taliban delegation led by Foreign Minister Amir Chan Muttaki met with representatives of Afghan civil society on Sunday, the Norwegian government announced. The Taliban delegation is said to have met Afghan women’s rights activists and journalists, among others. The talks took place behind closed doors. One of the participants, women’s rights activist Jamilah Afghani, told AFP news agency that the meeting was positive. The Taliban “showed good will. Let’s see what they will follow up on their words,” she said.
Meetings with Western diplomats are planned for Monday and Tuesday. According to the Norwegian government, representatives from the USA and several European countries, including Germany and France, will also take part in the political talks.
Human rights also an issue in Norway
The focus of the talks in Oslo is the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, which has escalated massively since the Taliban took power in August. According to the UN, millions of people are at risk of starvation. However, dealing with the humanitarian situation is highly controversial because of the human rights violations by the radical Islamic Taliban.
Even though the Taliban, after taking power, emphasized that they respect women’s rights to work and education, reports of arrested female activists, the suppression of protests and discriminatory rules for women cast doubt on this. “The Taliban have effectively instituted gender apartheid,” said Davood Moradian, head of the Afghan Institute for Strategic Studies, now based outside Afghanistan. Norway is jeopardizing its reputation as a defender of women’s rights by initiating talks.
Former Afghan Mines and Petroleum Minister Nargis Nehan, who now lives in Norway, declined to attend the Oslo talks. She fears that this will “normalize” and “strengthen” the Taliban, she told AFP. “What guarantee is there this time that they will keep their promises?”
“Don’t know if these talks will bring us any further”
The talks in Oslo meant “no legitimation or recognition of the Taliban,” stressed Norway’s Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt before the meeting began. “But we have to talk to the authorities who de facto rule the country. We must not allow the political situation to turn into an even worse humanitarian catastrophe.” For their part, the Taliban had expressed hope for improved relations with the West before the talks began.
Huitfeldt argued that the only way to hold the Taliban accountable for their actions was through dialogue. Her hope is that the situation for women in Afghanistan can be improved through diplomatic efforts. Still, she said, “We don’t know if these talks will get us anywhere.”
The fact that 27-year-old Mohammed Anas Zadran, also known as Anas Haqqani, is part of the Taliban delegation also caused criticism. Haqqani, an adviser to the Interior Ministry in Afghanistan, is the younger brother of Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani and was reportedly blacklisted by the US for links to terrorist activities until recently. Sirajuddin Haqqani, a former head of the Haqqani Network, is wanted by the government for a 2008 attack on a hotel in Kabul that killed at least seven people, including a Norwegian journalist.
Protests over summit with Taliban
The meeting also met with international criticism. Afghans protested both in Oslo and in front of Norwegian embassies in London and Toronto, according to social media videos that were widely shared in the Afghan community. The demonstrators accused Norway of courting the Taliban and thus being on the wrong side. Also in Kabul, some women and girls secretly protested and shared videos of it.
Jonas Gahr Støre, Prime Minister of Norway, showed understanding for the reactions to the Taliban visit. “It’s a movement that’s responsible for terrorist attacks. It’s a movement that has taken power in Afghanistan. They have values that are far removed from ours.” However, he emphasized that Norway had arranged for Taliban representatives to meet Afghan civilians first before holding talks with the EU, the UN, the US and Norwegian diplomats.
In the past, Norway has repeatedly acted as a mediator in conflicts in other countries, most recently in Venezuela. The Scandinavian non-EU country has also been in dialogue with the Taliban for years. A Norwegian delegation traveled to Kabul in the past few days to discuss the difficult humanitarian situation in Afghanistan.
Other sources: News agencies DPA and AFP, , ,
Source From: Stern
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