Geneva, 25 August 2021
Dear Madam President,
Dear Mr. President,
We are writing to you about the critical situation in Afghanistan following the Taliban take-
over.
We strongly urge you to consider what actions your parliaments can take to help the
people of Afghanistan and the humanitarian agencies trying to deliver aid to millions in
need, estimated by the United Nations to be roughly 18 million people.
At the IPU, we are particularly focused on the human rights of the 316 Afghan
parliamentarians and the staff who support them. Over the past 20 years, we have
developed strong relations with this fledgling parliament in their efforts to transition to
democracy.
Women currently make up 27 per cent of the parliamentarians - above the global average
of 25.5 per cent. The safety of those 86 women MPs, as well as former women MPs and
female parliamentary staff is our priority - particularly in light of mounting evidence of
targeting and intimidation against them.
We have been monitoring recent developments in Afghanistan, and have lent support to
those parliamentarians and parliamentary staff who have reached out to us in a bid to
leave the country for safety reasons
We are appealing to you to consider what urgent measures your parliament or your
members can take directly or through your government to uphold the hard-won rights of
Afghan parliamentarians by:
•
Calling on those in power and authority in Afghanistan to protect their lives and
physical integrity and that of parliamentary staff.
•
Facilitating assistance to Afghan parliamentarians and parliamentary staff who are
subject to reprisals or have reason to fear them by helping their urgent evacuation
from Afghanistan and/or by ensuring that they receive humanitarian visas and
temporary relocation in your country (the IPU can provide further details on
specific cases if required).
•
Calling for and supporting the provision of humanitarian assistance to those in
need in Afghanistan, in close coordination with the United Nations and the UN
Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
We would greatly appreciate any initiatives that may be taken in this regard and stand
ready to support you and your Parliament in any way we can.
We would be grateful if you could inform us of any initiatives, you and your colleagues may
decide to take to help the parliamentary community and people of Afghanistan.
Yours sincerely,
Duarte Pacheco
Président
Martin Chungong
Secrétaire général