NEW YOIRK, Dec 11 (KUNA) - UN official Georgette Gagnon stressed that the situation in Afghanistan requires urgent attention and greater international support, noting that the country is still suffering from multiple crises and is under severe pressure despite the steadfastness of its people.
This came in a briefing by the Deputy Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Afghanistan, Georgette Gagnon, on Wednesday evening at a session of the UN Security Council to discuss the situation in Afghanistan.
Gagnon said that Afghans - both women and men -face daily intrusions under the de facto authorities' law on the "propagation of virtue and prevention of vice." She noted that "Women and girls remain "systematically excluded" from almost all aspects of public life, as the ban on secondary and higher education for girls has now entered its fourth year".
"Media freedom is increasingly restricted. Journalists face intimidation, detention and censorship, reducing the space for public debate and public participation," Gagnon added.
She stressed that "an opportunity exists to build on the current relative stability" toward an Afghanistan "at peace, reintegrated into the global community and where the human rights of all Afghans are realized." (end) ast.seo