Challenges in Improving Afghan Women’s Rights : An analysis of International Legal and Economic Interventions After the Taliban’s Return to Power in 2021

Sammanfattning

As of 2023, Afghanistan is regarded as one of the worst countries in the world for women. Following the Taliban's return to power in 2021, previous progress in women's rights has declined, while the humanitarian situation has deteriorated. Women face restrictions, including bans on education and employment. The international community has responded through economic sanctions and international conventions. Despite these efforts, women's living conditions remain unchanged. This study therefore analyses the paradox of why international economic and legal interventions have failed to uphold women's rights. Using an inductive analysis of policy documents from the CEDAW Committee and reports by the U.S Congressional Research Service, this study applies feminist institutionalism to explain why international interventions have failed to improve women's rights in Afghanistan. Legal interventions have been largely ineffective due to the dismantling of domestic legal institutions, reliance on general calls for action rather than enforceable measures, and the framing of women's rights as part of a broader humanitarian crisis rather than a distinct issue. Economic interventions have also fallen short not because of sanctions themselves, but because they were interpreted and implemented in ways that disrupted humanitarian assistance.