Bridging Faith and Rights: Promoting Women’s Rights in Taliban-Controlled Afghanistan

May 4, 2026 by lkingston54

Cayla Chun, St. Olaf College – Northfield, Minnesota

This paper analyzes the Taliban’s repression of Afghan women as a violation of international human right standards under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention of the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. It questions how the international community should respond without imposing Western-centric human rights frameworks that disregard Afghan cultural and religious contexts. Recognizing that coercive, Western-led interventions have failed to produce sustainable change and have worsened instability, this paper contends that effective support must integrate progressive Islamic jurisprudence with universal human rights principles while centering Afghan women’s voices and local advocacy.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban have effectively erased women and girls from the public sphere by imposing severe human rights restrictions and violations. A recent Human Rights Watch report flags Afghanistan’s worsening human rights conditions under Taliban authority. Specifically, the report highlights atrocious violations against women and children, including the banning of receiving secondary and university education, heavy restrictions on employment, barriers to receiving healthcare, the barring of participation in sports and recreational activities, and the implementation of strict hijab and male guardianship regulations (Human Rights Watch, 2025). However, despite widespread acknowledgement of human rights violations, there has been little responsive concrete action taken by the international community.

The lack of action by the international community stems from a place of mistrust: “The Afghan government is deeply mistrusted, viewed as lacking legitimacy and as a puppet of international actors,” yet meanwhile in the Middle East there exists “an absent tolerance for these ‘Western’ notions of rights” (Hozyainova, 2014). As a result of the stark ideological tension and the growing human rights crisis, the following ethical challenge arises: How should the international community respond to the Taliban’s gender-targeted policies without imposing Western-centric norms and values based human rights framework that disregards Afghan culture and religious contexts? Throughout this paper, I contend that the international community should promote Afghan women’s rights through an approach that integrates Islamic jurisprudence and universal human rights principles by emphasizing engagement with the Afghan women themselves and local advocacy organizations rather than coercive measures. By working within Afghanistan’s religious and cultural frameworks while upholding fundamental human rights, this approach can foster sustainable change without reinforcing Taliban resistance or imposing Western-centric norms.

To support this argument, this paper will first engage with key debates in the literature surrounding universal human rights and cultural relativism. Additionally, it will examine the tendencies of past international interventions in Afghanistan and their shortcomings, particularly focusing on how Western-centric approaches have undermined local legitimacy and reform efforts. Finally, the paper will propose a solution rooted in progressive Islamic jurisprudence and local engagement while centering Afghan women’s voices as essential to any ethical and effective international response.

Literature Review

Since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, Afghanistan has witnessed a dramatic deterioration in women’s rights, as sweeping gender-targeted policies have eradicated women and girls from public life. Despite widespread acknowledgement of human rights abuse, the international community has largely failed to create a coordinated or effective response. This lack of action reflects deeper ethical and cultural tensions that challenge conventional intervention strategies. These tensions are addressed by scholars in a variety of fields including political science, philosophy, Middle Eastern studies, legal studies, and anthropology.

One of the most discussed and pertinent debates in global human rights advocacy is the tension between universalism and cultural relativism. Advocates of universality, such as political scholar Jack Donnelly, argue that human rights like freedom from discrimination, access to education, and bodily autonomy are inherent to all human beings regardless of geography or culture (Donnelly, 2013). However, some critics point out that applying universal norms without regard for cultural or religious context risks reproducing colonial dynamics and alienating local populations. This tension is especially pronounced in Muslim-majority states, where Western liberal ideas often clash with Islamic traditions or communal values (Na’im, 2008). Sally Engle Merry (2006), an anthropologist, responds to this notion by defining culture as:

Repertoires of ideas and practices that are not homogenous but continually changing because of contradictions among them or because new ideas and institutions are adopted by members. They typically incorporate contested values and practices. Cultures are not contained within stable borders but are open to new ideas and permeable to influences from other cultural systems, although not all borders are equally porous. Cultural discourses legitimate or challenge authority and justify relations of power (p. 1982).

Donnelly (2013) agrees that while particularity and implementation may vary, cultural relativity must operate within the boundaries set by the universal human rights standard. Additionally, Islamic scholars like Abdullahi An-Naim (2008) join Engle Merry (2006) and Donnelly (2013) in cautioning against viewing Islam and human rights as fundamentally opposed, and instead advocate for genuine culturally rooted interpretations that uphold human dignity from within religious frameworks. Specifically, An-Naim (2008) goes on to suggest that a purely secular, Western-centric rights agenda is unlikely to succeed in places like Afghanistan, where religious authority plays a dominant role in shaping public norms and legitimacy. At the center of this debate lies the question of agency: who has the power to define what counts as a human right, and whose voices are elevated or marginalized in that process? Together, these human rights scholars work to discuss the relationship between universality and cultural relativism. They collectively challenge the idea that human rights must be externally imposed, but rather argue for inclusive standard frameworks that empower local actors to shape rights discourse in contextually meaningful ways.

Contrary to stereotypes that present Islam as inherently opposed to gender equality, a growing number of scholars challenge patriarchal interpretations of the religion and assert that Islam can support a robust vision of women’s rights. Heiner Bielefeldt (2000), a philosopher and historian, warns that, “to divide the idea of human rights in ‘Western; and ‘Islamic’ and other culturally defined conceptions would be the end of universal human rights. The language of human rights would simply be turned into a rhetorical weapon for intercultural competition” (p. 92). In critical agreement, legal studies scholar Ann Elizabeth Mayer (1998) highlights that there is no supranational Islamic law that all Muslim countries abide by; some Islamic countries uphold CEDAW and are in compliance with human rights standards. Building upon this notion, scholars likepolitical scientist Masoumeh Rad Goudarzi (2025) and Bielefeldt (2000) argue that many of the gendered restrictions seen currently in Afghanistan are not grounded in divine command but rather in historically contingent, male-dominated readings of Islamic texts. Both scholars call upon contemporary Islamic jurisprudence to reinterpret religious teachings in ways that are compatible with gender justice. Islamic jurisprudence is defined as the human understanding and interpretation of Islamic law; it involves the process of driving and applying Islamic legal principles found in the Quran and Sunnah (Goudarzi, 2025). In correspondence with this practice, Bielefeldt (2000) demands criticism and careful reading of the Islamic Shariah to begin gender-equality reforms. He argues that through means of critical examination and therefore a progressive interpretation of Islamic jurisprudence, the deeper and genuine meaning of the texts can be brought back to light, rather than the “bulk of medieval legal casuistry that has unfairly overshadowed the essential normative message of the Qur’an and Sunna” (Bielefeldt, 2000, p. 108). In particular, Goudarzi (2025) demonstrates how Bielefeldt’s argument works in practice by discussing how prominent Islamic jurisprudents often create new contemporary understandings through a comprehensive critique of Hadiths in connection with the Sunna and Quran.^[1] These scholars work together to provide a crucial foundation for understanding how religious discourse, particularly Islamic jurisprudence, can be mobilized in support of women’s rights, rather than in opposition to them.

Still, the international community has frequently failed to engage with these internal traditions and has instead relied on Western-centric intervention models that often prove ethically and strategically counterproductive. In post-2001 Afghanistan, international organizations and governments promoted a liberal institutional framework that included gender quotas, women’s non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and legal reforms. While Western intervention actions could be seen as well-intentioned, the organizations’ top-down approach made them disconnected from local realities, as they often failed to account for religious, cultural, and political complexities. Anthropologist Lila Abu-Lughod (2015) critiques this “saving Muslim women” narrative and argues that it masks Western political agendas and undermines the agency of the very women it claims to support. Similarly, international law scholars Sebghatullah Qazi Zada and Mohd Ziaolhaq Qazi Zada (2024) point out international actors’ tendencies to prioritize symbolic representation over institution-building and grassroots engagement, which often results in fragile, temporary gains. Western-centric dynamics have contributed to the failure of past interventions in Afghanistan to create lasting change. These critiques reveal that sustainable progress requires more than moral condemnation, external pressure, or commitments to Western-framed rights agendas.

In response to these critiques, a growing number of scholars advocate for strategies that promote cultural legitimacy and local agency. Rather than imposing rights from the outside, sustainable change requires engagement with local actors, like religious scholars, grassroots women’s organizations, and civil society networks, who hold moral authority within their communities. Middle Eastern Studies scholars like Salaiman Haqpana and Maria Tsouroufli (2023) recognize the need for the integration and collaboration of local, grassroots perspectives and NGOs in order to make an intervention by large international organizations more effective. In addition, Qazi Zada and Qazi Zada (2024) note the importance of the influence of “women-led movements” within Afghanistan on the international community and advocates for the collaboration with the Ulama from progressive Muslim countries.^[2] Haqpana and Tsouroufli (2023) agree and continue the discussion by adding that “policymakers should involve local women in policymaking processes. This will enable local women to own their agendas and discourses, prioritize their needs accordingly, and to raise their voices in order to address those needs.” An increasingly sustainable approach points towards a model of human rights advocacy that is based in dialogue rather than coercion. Ultimately, this approach builds from shared values and local credibility rather than external power.

While the existing literature offers important critiques of Western intervention and alludes to culturally grounded alternatives, few studies have fully addressed the ethical challenge of balancing respect for culture with the moral imperative to confront systematic gender oppression. Afghan women’s voices are often sidelined in both policy debates and academic discourse. Yet, it is these women who have the greatest insight into what sustainable progress looks like within Afghanistan. This makes their agency ethically essential. The challenge is clear: How can the international community respond to the Taliban’s gender-targeted policies without imposing Western-centric norms and values based human rights framework that disregards Afghan culture and religious contexts? This paper seeks to address that gap by proposing an approach that integrates Islamic jurisprudence with universal human rights principles and emphasizes collaboration with local actors, especially Afghan women themselves. Such a model that combines ethical sensitivity and strategic realism will offer a more credible and culturally legitimate path forward in supporting Afghan women’s rights under Taliban rule.

Toward an Ethical Framework for Supporting Afghan Women’s Rights

The Taliban’s systematic erasure of Afghan women from public life is a blatant violation of fundamental human rights and a deepening humanitarian crisis. Human Rights Watch, the United Nations, and other major international organizations have documented a wide range of violations. These violations include bans on secondary and university education for girls, the restriction of employment opportunities, requirements for male guardianship, limitations on healthcare access, and strictly enforced hijab mandates (Human Rights Watch, 2025). In reflection and protest of the grotesque bans, a member from the Spontaneous Movement of Afghan Women writes: “They (Taliban) told me to be silent and threatened me with death, but I said even though I am breathing, I feel like you have already killed me…We refuse to accept being jailed in our homes, we refuse to be discriminated against, we refuse to be repressed” (Amiri, 2023). These actions violate international human rights standards, including Afghanistan’s past commitments under treaties like the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Both documents set forth progressive human rights standards that all states are expected to meet and seek to protect human rights (see United Nations, 1948; United Nations, 1979). CEDAW specifically focuses on ending discrimination against women, which the document defines as, “any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality for men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil, or any other field” (United Nations, 1979, Article 1). The Taliban’s policies directly counteract these international standards agreed upon by the international community.

Despite widespread global condemnation, the international community has failed to take coherent or effective action. In a recent United Nations Security Council resolution, the organization “expresses deep concern” over the worsening economic and humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and “condemns” a Taliban policy that worsens gender inequality (United Nations Security Council, 2023). However, the Afghan women themselves plead that the United Nations words are not sufficient by saying, “the international community[3] cannot address the injustice against women and girls in Afghanistan by the Taliban by only issuing some statements and tweets” (Amiri, 2023). However, this designation is not without complications as many past interventions, particularly in Muslim-majority countries, are often driven by Western liberal frameworks, which means that they have historically been coercive, top-down, and detached from local cultural realities (Abu-Lughod, 2015). As a result, they have failed to create sustainable change in gender equality and, in some cases, have truly exacerbated instability and delegitimize human rights as Western impositions. Furthermore, given Afghanistan’s modern history – including its independence in 1919, its liberalization under the 1964 Constitution, the 1979 Soviet Invasion, and the 2001 American led intervention – any external actor’s legitimacy must be critically examined (Abu-Lughod, 2015). While both the Soviet and American military forces have at times invoked human rights rhetoric, their roles in Afghanistan’s instability mean that they cannot be seen as neutral or ideal leaders in today’s advocacy efforts. A reimagined international community must instead prioritize legitimacy through alignment with Afghan women’s leadership. Therefore, a more ethical and effective international response must integrate human rights principles with progressive Islamic jurisprudence, while centering Afghan women’s voices and advocacy networks as the basis for change.

Historically, coercive Western intervention and framework approaches to advancing women’s rights in Muslim majority countries have produced damaging consequences. This can be seen on the ground in Afghanistan, as illustrated by this firsthand account from an Afghan woman:

The Taliban brought dozens of military forces onto the streets and used violence against us. They beat us, used tear gas, fired shots in the air, gave us electric shocks, and arbitrarily detained us. The Taliban shouted at us to be silent, aimed their gun at us, threatened us with death and asked: “How much money has been given to you Western bitches for creating this riot?” We froze with fear, but I asked the protestors not to get frightened. We continued our protest by sitting on the ground (Amiri, 2023).

Furthermore, in post-2001 Afghanistan, intervention prioritized superficial symbolic representation of gender equality reforms without considering long-term, community-driven infrastructure for change. The ever-present “saving Muslim women” narrative reduces Afghan women to passive victims in need of rescue, rather than acknowledging them as political actors with their own agency, goals, and strategies (Abu-Lughod, 2015). The savior complex fuels Taliban rhetoric that human rights are foreign attacks; therefore, it undermines any local reform effort. While the global community bears a shared responsibility to uphold human rights under the UDHR and CEDAW, it is important to note that ethical leadership in this context requires facilitating platforms and conversation, Afghan women-led advocacy, resourcing local networks, and providing diplomatic support. Agreeing with this sentiment, persecuted Afghan women ask the international community not to save them but to stand with them because, as one woman powerfully writes, “the women here [in Afghanistan] are heroes, not just because of their work or their success, but because they are women in Afghanistan, and that will make them heroes for eternity” (quoted in United Nations in Afghanistan, 2023).

These recurring intervention failures stem in part from the structure and history of Western liberalism itself. While claiming to promote universal human rights, it has often operated through top-down, interventionist methods that are entangled within colonial legacies. Western liberalism is not inherently colonialist, but its dominant frameworks – like emphasizing individualism, institutional reform, and a universalized model of freedom – often become colonial in practice when imposed without regard for local histories, religions, and cultures (Abu-Lughod, 2015). The “saving Afghan women” narrative, which gained traction during the post-9/11 United States foreign policy agenda, demonstrates how liberal feminist ideals can be twisted to justify military intervention and thereby frame Afghan women as passive victims in need of rescue (Abu-Lughod, 2015). Although powerful in many contexts, externally applied Western liberalism and feminism often fails to account for the lived experiences, religious values, and communal structures that shape women’s agency in Muslim-majority countries. Its lens flattens the diverse and dynamic forms of resistance practice by Afghan women and dismisses the possibility that Islamic values can coexist with or enhance women’s rights (Abu-Lughod, 2015). As a result, an ethical international response cannot rely on exporting Western feminist and liberal ideals, but rather must support Afghan women in articulating and pursuing rights in ways that resonate with their own values. This is why integrating Islamic jurisprudence, which affirms women’s right from within a religious tradition, offers a more grounded and legitimate framework for sustainable gender justice in Afghanistan.

A promising foundation for addressing the growing human rights crisis in Afghanistan is a progressive reinterpretation of Islamic jurisprudence. While the Taliban claim to enforce Islamic law, many scholars and women activists argue that their interpretations are narrow, politicized, and inconsistent with the genuine meaning of Islamic legal tradition. In a statement, an Afghan woman powerfully proclaims, “women’s rights are recognized and protected in Islam…Women should not be sentenced to confinement between the four walls of their homes” (quoted in United Nations Afghanistan, 2023). Together, these actors work to combat cultural relativist arguments that claim Afghanistan’s Islam and gender equality naturally do not coincide. However, while cultural relativism is often used to justify human rights abuses, it also serves as a critical reminder that legitimate advocacy for women’s rights within Afghanistan must engage meaningfully with religious contexts. Universal human rights can and must be upheld, but their perceived legitimacy in the Afghan context depends on how they are communicated, interpreted, and implemented; when universal human rights are paired with religious and cultural frameworks already present in Afghan society, human rights principles appear less “Western-centric” and more resonant (Na’im, 2008).

Modern and progressive Islamic jurisprudence utilizes these notions and provide alternative interpretations, rooted in core Islamic texts, that support women’s rights to education, work, and participation in public life (Bielefeldt, 2000). For example, when the Taliban’s former Minister of Education, Syed Ghaisuddin, was asked why women needed to be confined to the home, he responded: “It’s like having a flower, or a rose. You water it and keep it at home for yourself, to look at it and smell it. It [a woman] is not supposed to be taken out of the house to be smelled” (quoted in U.S. Department of State, 2001).^[4] Progressive Islamic jurisprudents like Ayatollah Ebrahim Jannaati respond to these types of claims by reviewing Islamic Hadiths and showing that core Islamic texts do not promote the lack of women’s autonomy. Specifically, Jannati reviewed Islamic Verse 33 of Surah Al-Ahzab, which was addressed to the wives of prophets and states, “And abide in your houses and do not display yourselves as [was] the display of the former times of ignorance” (see Goudarzi, 2025). This verse is often used by Taliban leaders like Ghaisuddin to remove women from the social sphere and deprive them of equal opportunity. Jannati provides a reinterpretation of this verse by rejecting the generalization of the verse to other women, as it was specifically addressed to the Prophet’s wives. Additionally, he further discusses that even if this verse is extended to all other Muslim women, it serves as a guide rather than a command. Lastly, he specifically notes the many Hadith narrations of the Prophet’s wives moving freely around society (see Goudarzi, 2025). Overall, rooting advocacy in progressive Islamic jurisprudence allows international efforts to support women’s rights in ways that align with local religious values rather than appearing as an external imposition.

The dynamic where Islamic tradition is not inherently opposed to women’s rights can also be observed in other Muslim-majority societies. For instance, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have made significant strides in advancing women’s participation in education, public life, and government within frameworks that draw upon Islamic principles. Indonesia is one of the world’s largest Muslim-majority nations (Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life, 2011). Indonesian Muslim women have held high ranking political positions and female ulama have played active roles in promoting gender justice within an Islamic framework (Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life, 2011). Similarly, in the UAE, recent developments include growing state support for women’s higher education and public leadership and are framed as consistent with Islamic culture and national development goals (Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life, 2011). However, Indonesia and the UAE do not serve as direct models for Afghanistan, especially given profound political, cultural, and historical differences. Instead, they illustrate that Muslim-majority societies can employ progressive Islamic jurisprudence and interpret Islamic values in ways that affirm rather than restrict women’s rights. Such precedents reinforce the realistic possibility of rights-based change emerging from within Islamic contexts and challenge the notion that Islam must be at odds with gender equality.

While other ethical frameworks could theoretically be used to advocate for Afghan women’s rights, this paper argues for the use of Islamic jurisprudence because of its cultural, religious, and political relevance in Afghanistan. Because the Taliban’s oppression is framed in religious terms, any advocacy that fails to engage with Islam risks being dismissed as illegitimate or foreign (Goudarzi, 2025). While universal human rights remain vital, their implementation in deeply religious societies often lacks local legitimacy unless they are grounded in accepted cultural or religious norms (An-Naim, 2008). Progressive Islamic jurisprudence offers an ethical foundation that both affirms women’s rights and resonates with local understandings of justice. Furthermore, it enables a form of resistance that is internal to the Islamic tradition and therefore empowers Afghan women as authoritative interpreters of their own religious and moral roots.

Ultimately, it is most important that the international community’s role should be to amplify Afghan women’s existing efforts and voices rather than dictating solutions. Afghan women have been organizing, resisting, and advocating for decades from both within and outside of Islamic frameworks. In light of the great amount of action taken by Afghan women, an anonymous women activist encourages protesters and resistance members to continue their push for equality with the following: “To all women remember: the tree that survives the rumble will become the strongest tree in the ground” (quoted in United Nations Afghanistan, 2023). A consequentialist lens further develops this idea. If we evaluate human rights improvement strategies by their outcomes rather than their intentions, it becomes clear that many past approaches by the international community have failed Afghan women. Therefore, the goal must be to utilize strategies that lead to real, measurable improvements in women’s lives. To accomplish this, the international community must engage in approaches that Afghan women themselves deem viable. These approaches will resonate with their communities, protect their safety, and allow for sustainable progress in gender equality. Any ethical and effective international response must take its cues from the women themselves, support their safety and capacity, and create diplomatic spaces that enhances rather than overshadows their work. Mahbouba Seraj, an activist and director of the Afghan Women’s Skills Development Center, specifically calls upon the international community to stand with Afghan women by pleading: “Do not forget the Afghan women, be our voice and raise your voice with your governments. The rest of the struggle is on us and we will continue” (quoted in Amnesty International, 2023). Sustainable and meaningful change will only emerge when Afghan women’s voices are not overshadowed or merely included, but centered as the international community follows their lead in navigating both the moral agency and cultural complexity of the Afghanistan women’s rights crisis.

Conclusion

Due to the Taliban’s ongoing attack against human rights, the international community must develop an increasingly ethical, sustainable, and culturally resonant approach to supporting Afghan women. Historically, Western liberalism driven interventions and approaches have proven ineffective with several long-term harmful consequences. However, a strategy rooted in progressive Islamic jurisprudence while also attentive to the voices and leadership of Afghan women themselves offers a more legitimate and effective framework for action. By aligning human rights advocacy with local cultural and religious realities, the international community can foster meaningful and sustainable change in Afghanistan’s gender equality norms. The path forward will not be easy, but as Afghan women have shown time and again, hope and resistance persist even in the face of unimaginable oppression. Lasting gender equality progress in Afghanistan will not come through rescuing, but rather through standing in solidarity and amplifying Afghan women’s courage by ensuring that their visions for a just future take center stage.

References

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Righting Wrongs: A Journal of Human Rights is an academic journal that provides space for undergraduate students to explore human rights issues, challenge current actions and frameworks, and engage in problem-solving aimed at tackling some of the world’s most pressing issues. This open-access journal is available online at www.webster.edu/rightingwrongs.

^[1] Hadiths are the sayings, actions, and approvals of Prophet Muhhamad.

^[2] Ulama are religious leaders and official scholars of Islam.

[3] In this paper, the international community refers to multilateral organizations, like the United Nations, regional actors, non-governmental organizations, and states with the diplomatic and material capacity to engage in rights advocacy.

^[4] Although this quote is older and from the former Minister of Education, Syed Ghaisuddin, it still represents current teachings and beliefs.

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