The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has expressed concern over the enforcement of the Taliban’s “Principles of Separation of Spouses,” saying that “Decree No. 18” approving this regulation is another step in the erosion of Afghan women and girls’ rights.
UNAMA said in a statement on Thursday, May 21, that the Taliban’s “Decree No. 18” further entrenches systemic discrimination in law and practice.
According to the statement, the decree operates in a deeply unequal framework: while men retain the unilateral right to divorce, women must pursue complex and restrictive judicial avenues to separate from a spouse.
UNAMA added that this situation reinforces structural discrimination and limits women’s autonomy in matters fundamental to their dignity, safety, and well-being.
“Decree No. 18 is part of a broader and deeply concerning trajectory in which the rights of Afghan women and girls are being eroded,” said Georgette Gagnon, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Officer-in-Charge of UNAMA.
She added that the decree further institutionalizes discrimination and, when combined with restrictions on girls’ education and women’s public participation, entrenches a system in which Afghan women and girls are denied autonomy, opportunity, and access to justice.
According to the statement, the decree also allows for a girl’s silence as she reaches puberty to be interpreted as consent to a marriage.
The statement further noted that measures adopted by the de facto authorities since August 2021, including bans on girls’ secondary and higher education and restrictions on women’s access to work, have deprived millions of Afghan women and girls of their right to education, weakened economic participation, and deepened poverty, with long-term consequences for Afghanistan’s development.
UNAMA has called on the Taliban to align their laws, policies, and practices with international human rights obligations.
