EU states must not send Afghans back to danger, warn UN experts

According to Mirage News, the experts told EU states they must meet their obligations to comply with international human rights and refugee law, including the principle of non-refoulement.[1]The experts said that in Afghanistan, "Women and girls are suffering gender persecution on such a widespread and systematic scale that they may amount to crimes against humanity"[1], Mirage News reports.Scoop reports that the experts also pointed to "serious violations, including torture and extrajudicial killings"[2] against groups including journalists, human rights defenders and minorities.According to Scoop, the experts said "some European Member States continue such 'technical discussions' to facilitate and prepare deportation and have accepted Taliban consular officials on their territories."[2]The experts warned that such engagement "leads to the normalisation of gross human rights violations by the Taliban, including gender persecution,"[1] Mirage News reports.They insisted, according to Scoop, that there be "no normalisation or legitimation of the Taliban unless there are concrete improvements on human rights"[2].Scoop reports that the experts have formally contacted the European Union and the Governments of several EU Member States regarding this matter.[2]Amu TV reported in June that Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur on Afghanistan, had already urged the EU not to deport Afghans, writing: "I urge the EU and its member states not to return Afghans to danger."[3]