Afghan women leaders bring calls for justice and accountability to Canberra as Taliban rule enters fifth year

11 August 2026

Ahead of 15 August, which marks five years since Afghanistan plunged into one of the world's worst human rights crises, Afghan women leaders will be joining Amnesty International Australia in Canberra to share their stories and advocate for urgent action from the Australian Government to put an end to the prolonged injustices faced by the Afghan people.

Amnesty International is calling for the international recognition of gender apartheid under international law. We urge the Australian Government to support international accountability mechanisms to investigate and prosecute the Taliban's serious human rights violations.

The Australian Government must fulfil its moral obligations in ensuring safety for Afghans by expanding its humanitarian protection and refugee pathways for Afghan refugees at greatest risk, particularly women, girls, human rights defenders, and persecuted ethnic and religious minorities.

The delegation will be hosting a press conference while in Canberra to speak about the urgent need for international accountability for the Taliban's human rights violations and stronger protection pathways for Afghans at greatest risk.

Date and time: Wednesday 12 August, 8:45am (AEST)

Location: Mural Hall, Parliament House

Speakers:
- Zaki Haidari, Amnesty International Australia's Strategic Campaigner and Afghan advocate.
- Farkhondeh Akbari, Afghan human rights defender and women's rights advocate.
- Parisa Sekandari, Afghan women's rights advocate.
- Fatima Yousufi, Member of the National Afghan Women team and advocate for women's rights.

Farkhondeh Akbar, Afghan women's rights advocate and research fellow, says:

"Five years on, the Taliban have consolidated a system of gender apartheid in Afghanistan.

"But gender apartheid is not sustained by Taliban decrees alone; it is reinforced through social practices, humanitarian responses, diplomatic choices and the wider international system.

"The question for the international community, including Australia, is: what have we actually done over these five years, and how long can this be allowed to continue?"

"The question for the international community, including Australia, is: what have we actually done over these five years, and how long can this be allowed to continue?

"Inaction, silence and symbolic support have consequences. Responsibility means moving beyond symbolic solidarity to meaningful, practical support that strengthens Afghan women's agency and resistance, and enables them to shape the decisions that determine their lives and their country's future."

Zaki Haidari, Amnesty International Australia's International Strategic Campaigner, says:

"Five years is far too long. Women and girls in Afghanistan cannot wait any longer.

"The state of human rights in Afghanistan is a complete and utter abomination. Under Taliban rule, there has been a relentless and flagrant violation of international law, human rights protections, and continual perpetration of injustices with full impunity.

"Afghanistan today is a country where basic freedoms have been dismantled, and millions of people are living in fear. Afghanistan's women and girls have shown extraordinary courage by continuing to resist despite immense personal risk. They should not be left to fight alone.

"After five years of Taliban rule, the need to break this vicious cycle of human rights abuses and injustice for the people of Afghanistan is more urgent than ever.

"After five years of Taliban rule, the need to break this vicious cycle of human rights abuses and injustice for the people of Afghanistan is more urgent than ever."

"The Australian Government and international community must exert immediate diplomatic pressure on the Taliban de facto authorities to demand the restoration of the rule of law and protections for human rights.

"The Afghan people deserve justice once and for all."

Background

Following the Taliban de-facto authorities' takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, women and girls, ethnic and religious minorities, former government employees and human rights defenders have borne the brunt of the Taliban's repression.

The Taliban have systematically stripped women and girls of their fundamental rights, banning girls from secondary and university education, excluding women from most forms of employment, restricting their freedom of movement, and increasingly erasing them from public life. Amnesty International has documented the systematic repression, and characterises it as institutionalised gender-based oppression, calling for the global recognition of gender apartheid.

At the same time, ethnic and religious minorities, particularly the Hazara community, continue to face discrimination, targeted attacks, and persecution. Human rights defenders, journalists and civil society activists have also been silenced through intimidation, arbitrary detention and violence.

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