UN Calls on UK to Open Doors to More Afghan Refugees Amid Taliban Persecution

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The United Nations' special rapporteur for Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, has urged the UK to extend greater support to Afghan refugees fleeing the Taliban’s oppressive rule. Bennett emphasized that these individuals are not seeking a better life out of choice but are escaping severe persecution, making them clear examples of true refugees.  

 

“Afghans are not coming to the UK because the streets are paved with gold,” Bennett told *The Independent*. “They are coming because they are persecuted, and life is very hard for them. Nobody wants to be a refugee.”  

 

His appeal comes nearly four years after the Taliban regained control of Kabul following the withdrawal of Western forces in 2021. Since then, the regime has imposed strict restrictions on women, effectively erasing them from many aspects of public life. Despite the UK’s commitment to accepting 20,000 Afghan refugees over five years, by December 2024, more than 34,940 had arrived, with nearly 26,000 provided accommodation. However, many continue to suffer from the trauma of displacement, often separated from their families.  

 

Bennett, who was barred by the Taliban from entering Afghanistan last year, stressed that there is no need for exhaustive individual screenings of those fleeing the country, as the persecution is widespread. “The situation is so repressive that it meets the definition of persecution for every class of that gender,” he explained. Urging compassion, he referenced his own country's values, stating, “I come from New Zealand, and we had a prime minister who asked people to be kind. So that’s what I would do too – to be kind to Afghan refugees, please.”  

 

At the recent Herat Security Dialogue in Spain, Bennett described the conditions faced by Afghan women and girls under Taliban rule as “hell.” His latest report underscored the Taliban’s unwillingness to fulfill international obligations, highlighting their failure to gain formal recognition from any nation nearly four years after seizing power. The militant group’s refusal to allow him access to Afghanistan, he noted, further signals their disregard for global accountability.  

 

Many countries have made it clear that the Taliban’s position on women’s rights remains a major obstacle to diplomatic recognition. Afghan women have been barred from secondary education, forbidden from visiting parks, and restricted from traveling without a male guardian.  

 

Bennett also raised concerns over the plight of Afghanistan’s LGBTI+ community. Reports have surfaced alleging that the Taliban sentenced a man in a same-sex relationship to death by burying him under a wall. “We have been looking into it. It was a couple of years ago, but we have not verified it yet,” he said, confirming ongoing investigations into abuses faced by LGBTI+ individuals.  

 

He recalled video calls from members of the community hiding in safe houses, showing injuries from beatings inflicted by police. Even before the Taliban’s return, he noted, Afghanistan remained an unsafe place for individuals who did not conform to rigid gender norms. “They are expected to meet gender norms and can be targeted for how they dress,” he explained. “If you are a man, [you’re expected to] have a beard – which may not be what they want to do – and dress in a certain way or walk in a certain way, and they’ll draw attention to themselves by being themselves.”  

 

One transgender woman recounted to him how her family was detained and beaten by Taliban affiliates after she fled the country. “They do not see us as human,” she told him.  

 

Bennett warned against normalizing diplomatic relations with the Taliban without “significant, verified, and measurable improvements” in Afghanistan’s human rights situation. He urged nations like the US and the UK to hold the regime accountable and to ensure that engagement does not come at the cost of Afghan lives and freedoms.

 

Based on a report by The Independent  2025-03-10