In twenty-three rounds of Afghanistan-Taliban peace talks, women were at the table just twice. They need formal roles in any new talks to protect their own progress.
Blog Post by Jamille Bigio, Rachel Vogelstein, and Anne Connell
Afghan women have long feared that negotiators for a peace agreement with the Taliban would trade away women’s rights for the chance to end more than sixteen years of war. This apprehension may soon be tested.
In the wake of Kabul’s recent overture to the Taliban, proposing negotiations without preconditions and offering to recognize the insurgent group as a legitimate political party, many have renewed hope for peace talks. But if talks do begin in earnest, will women be at the table? They should — not simply as a matter of fairness, but as a strategic imperative. As women have demonstrated, from Colombia to the Philippines to Liberia, their involvement makes it more likely both that a peace agreement will be reached, and that it will endure.
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