Improving the situation of Afghan women
Afghan assets and the position of women
The position of women in Afghan women is intolerable for them and unacceptable to the civilised world, especially for wome. But how can we persuade the Taliban regime to change their fundamentalist mindset? War is clearly not the answer. Afghanistan has had enough of war, about 25 (twenty five) separate episodes (URL retrieved 6 July 2026) going back to Alexander the “Great”.
It is worth considering giving the Taliban the option of setting the recovery of their country’s seized assets against against their policy of repressing women.
It is well known that the Taliban government has subjected the female population of Afghanistan to an extreme regime of restrictions which is not acceptable.
It is clear that the military violence cannot be used to compel the Taliban to change their policies.
Therefore the international community must use non-violent persuasion to bring about the liberation of Afghan women.
The USA holds $7 billion and switzerland holds another $3.5 billion of assets seized and frozen in August 2021 following the Taliban’s victory over NATO and the collapse of the Afghanistan Republic.
The Taliban need those assets to be returned the central bank of Afghanistan, the DAB, so that the people of Afghanistan can work to undo the malnutrition that is affecting much of the country.
A plan needs to be designed that matches the phased return of assets to the phased liberation of women. There would be a number, say ten, phases, beginning perhaps with provision of education to Afghan girls, and in return the government of Afghanistan would receive one tenth of their assets. The details of the plan could be agreed by
There would of course be a rigorous verification process to ensure that all aspects of the bargain are adhered to.
A More Peaceful World 