Alicia Payne (Canberra, Australian Labor Party) | Hansard source

This week, the Parliamentary Friends of the People of Afghanistan farewelled the ambassador of Afghanistan, His Excellency Mr Wahidullah Waissi, with the Afghan embassy in Canberra to close at the end of this month. The ambassador has served in his role since 2017 and had continued to represent the people of Afghanistan, but not the Taliban, after they seized power in 2021. It was a sad day, but not one without hope, for we want to continue engaging and strengthening ties with the people of Afghanistan, despite the terrible nature of the Taliban regime.

The horror of Taliban rule for women and girls is nothing short of a tragedy, characterised by systemic state-sponsored gender apartheid. The United Nations defines gender apartheid as a system of economic and social sexual discrimination against individuals because of their gender or sex. In Afghanistan, under the Taliban, girls and women are barred from secondary schools, universities and other educational and vocational training centres. Most employment is forbidden, as is participation in public and political life, and women must be completely covered and accompanied by a male relative in public. Violence and coercion are a constant threat, with women who protest these systemic policies facing arbitrary arrest, detention and torture.

I recently met with a delegation of women from Afghanistan who now call Australia home, Voice of Afghanistan Women in Australia. They expressed deep concern for the safety and wellbeing of women and girls in Afghanistan, as well as the Afghan diaspora displaced across the region. They highlighted the need for sustained international engagement and renewed focus on protection and access to education for Afghan women and girls. The delegation outlined several specific priorities, including stronger diplomatic efforts to safeguard the rights of women and girls, and advocacy to stop forced deportations of Afghan women from Pakistan and Iran. They have called for expanded international cooperation to ensure accessible education pathways, including guaranteed enrolment pathways and fee support for Afghan women in Australia. They have called on the Australian government to increase our numbers and expedite our humanitarian refugee intake of Afghan women and they emphasised the importance of urgent and coordinated responses to humanitarian visa needs for those at greatest risk. They also requested that Australia call for gender apartheid to be codified as a crime against humanity.

In January, the Australian government committed a further $50 million in humanitarian support to the people of Afghanistan to address the deteriorating situation there. This brings the total humanitarian support provided to the people of Afghanistan since the fall of Kabul in 2021 to $310 million. As Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Minister for International Development Anne Aly have noted, almost 22 million people in Afghanistan are in urgent need of humanitarian support. Australia's humanitarian assistance is focused on supporting women and girls, prioritising food security, health services and protecting dignity, safety and rights. Australia works with established United Nations partners to ensure our support helps those in need, but not the Taliban regime.

The world must not turn away from the situation that women and girls in Afghanistan face. As UN Women has stated, if the world tolerates the erasure of Afghan women and girls, it sends a message that the rights of women and girls everywhere are fragile and expendable. As my dear friend Dr Nilofar Ibrahimi has said, the women of Afghanistan, the women of Iran and all women living under oppressive extremist systems deserve to be seen, supported and never forgotten. I say that our parliament, our government, does see the resilience and the strength of Afghan women and girls and that we will continue to stand for you and your rights and your quest for justice.

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