Gender Apartheid Under the Taliban: Key Elements of an Ideology Designed to Disempower Afghan Women

Despite its frequent use since 2021, the notion of ‘gender apartheid’ is misconceived in terms of existing international law. The type of abhorrent policies pursued by the Taliban regime against women and girls is best conceived as gender-based persecution. Even so, there is no reason why a new and distinct international crime of gender discrimination cannot be established through soft law, domestic law, or treaty-making in order to preserve the plight of women and girls around the world who are subjected to collective discriminatory practices that deny them fundamental human rights. The crime would arise where the discriminatory practices in question reach a level of institutionalized discrimination with the aim of dominating the victim group. In the case of the Taliban, this institutional discrimination is derived from cultural practices and interpretations of particular religious beliefs that have culminated in various forms of gynophobia and objectification of women. By providing insights on the misogynistic ideological bases at the heart of Taliban policies towards women and girls, the Article allows policymakers engaging with the Taliban an opportunity to better frame human rights arguments.