July
17,2000
The United Nations has begun formal talks with the Taliban to convince them
to reverse their ban on Afghan women working for international relief
agencies. According to U.N. officials, women workers in Afghanistan are
crucial to safeguarding the health and education of Afghan women because male
workers are forbidden to meet with women in the Taliban-controlled parts of
the country. The ban has come at a time of a resurgence of fighting between
the Taliban and Northern Alliance, devastating drought, severe poverty, and
land decimation. United Nations aid workers estimate that tens of thousands of
displaced people who refuse to submit to the Taliban are living in tents in
rural areas. Abdul Karim, one soldier in the rebel force, condemns the
Taliban's interpretation of sharia (Islamic law) as oppressive and inaccurate.
He remarked, "They say they're bringing sharia. But it's not sharia to beat
women and children or build terrorist bases."
