Amnesty urges France to facilitate visa issuance for Afghan women, girls

Kabul [Afghanistan], October 3 (ANI): In a recent move, Amnesty International has launched a campaign to urge the French government to facilitate the issuance of visas for Afghan women and girls, reported Khaama Press. 
Over 4500 people have requested France to grant visas to Afghan women and girls and provide them the opportunity to come to their country. 
The International organization launched an online petition collection campaign on September 12 to support the request and as of Monday, 4656 people signed the petition.  
Amnesty International organized a program last week in Paris to extend their support for the campaign, Khaama Press reported. 
Noting the atrocities done to the Afghan women, the text of the petition stated that the Taliban are systematically and extensively harassing and mistreating women and girls. 
The behaviour of this group could constitute “crimes against humanity," according to Amnesty International's legal analysis. 
The global human rights organization has highlighted that women escaping Taliban harassment and mistreatment, seeking refuge in neighbouring countries such as Iran and Pakistan, often encounter additional abuse in these nations., Khaama Press reported. 
As per the latest United Nations data, there are approximately 1.3 million registered Afghan refugees in Pakistan, with an additional 8,80,000 possessing legal status to reside in the country.
Official police statistics indicate that at least 700 Afghans have been apprehended in Karachi alone since early September, a tenfold increase compared to August. Hundreds more have been detained in other cities. Afghans assert that these arrests have been indiscriminate, accusing the police of extortion and disregard for valid documentation.
Amnesty International further shared instances where local authorities have arbitrarily detained Afghan women in Iran and Pakistan and have exposed them to severe risks of being forcibly returned to Afghanistan. 
Moreover, the International organization has observed that French visas for Afghan women and girls are being issued sporadically, which further causes delays and inconsistencies in the application process. 
Additionally, the response time from the French consulate to these requests is marked by significant delays, according to Khaama Press. 
Earlier this month, Amnesty International called on the Taliban to take immediate steps to reopen secondary schools for girls in Afghanistan, according to TOLOnews.
It noted that the future and hopes of thousands of Afghan girls are at stake, adding that the prohibition on girls' admission to secondary education in Afghanistan has been in place for two years.
This came at a time when two years have passed since the Taliban ban on the education rights of Afghan girls. Notably, it was on September 18 2021 when the de-facto authorities had banned girls from attending secondary and high schools in Afghanistan, reported TOLOnews. (ANI)