ANKARA - Reacting to the Taliban's participation in the meeting to be held by the UN, Afghan women warned that this situation legitimizes the Taliban.

 

 A group of Afghan women who call themselves "Protesting Women" made a written statement regarding the Doha meeting to be held by the United Nations (UN) on February 17, which will be attended by the Taliban administration.

 

'TALIBAN DESERVE TO BE TRIAL'

 

The statement stated that the Taliban did not deserve negotiation and must be tried instead, and emphasized that the Taliban's participation in this meeting "legitimized" it. Pointing out that this situation will strengthen the Taliban, the statement said: “It is crucial to recognize that previous efforts to elevate the Taliban from a recognized terrorist entity to a negotiating partner in Doha have only served to empower this terrorist group, allowing it to reassert control over Afghanistan.” 

 

WARNING TO OPPOSITORS

 

In the statement, it was mentioned that opposition groups against the Taliban will also attend the meeting, and said: “We also reject the readiness of some Taliban opponents to engage in negotiations, and we caution our fellow protestors against entering into any dialogue with the Taliban. Instead, we advocate for the Taliban to face trial for their crimes. Efforts are underway to bring some of the protesting women in Doha into participating in meetings with the Taliban under the guise of representing women's interests. It must be made unequivocally clear that no individual can legitimately represent women or women protestors in any forum that seeks to legitimize the Taliban.”

 

'WOMEN WILL ONLY SHOW RESISTANCE'

 

The following statements were included in the continuation of the statement: “Those who participate in such negotiations under the banner of representing female protestors risk undermining the women's struggle against this criminal group and delaying the pursuit of justice. The repeated negotiations between the Americans and the Taliban have not only squandered the sacrifices made by the people of Afghanistan and the United States over the past two decades but have also resulted in the loss of countless innocent lives and the marginalization of women from Afghan society. Any consequences arising from negotiations with the Taliban, a criminal group that does not represent the interests of the Afghan people, especially women, will ultimately fall upon those who engage with them. Protesting women will confront the Taliban only through steadfast resistance, refusing to engage in negotiations that compromise our principles. As victims of the Taliban's systematic oppression, we assert that this group deserves to be brought to trial in the international courts of justice. Long live the struggles of protesting women, and may the people of Afghanistan prevail in their pursuit of justice and freedom.”