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Biden’s Shameful Betrayal of Afghan Women

Posted on Friday, January 13, 2023
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by Andrew Abbott
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61 Comments
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AMAC Exclusive – By Andrew Abbott

Following the Biden administration’s disastrous evacuation from Afghanistan in August 2021, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stated in a national address that “a new chapter of America’s engagement with Afghanistan has begun…The military mission is over. A new diplomatic mission has begun.” But as recent events in the country have made clear, that “diplomatic mission” can only be characterized as a complete and total failure – particularly for Afghan women, whom Biden specifically promised to protect.

While the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan was costly in both blood and treasure, it did result in dramatic advances in rights for women and girls in the country. For the first time, thanks to the American presence there, women were able to attend school, graduate with advanced degrees, hold political office, pursue careers, and live their lives in relative freedom.

Prior to U.S. military intervention in the country, public stoning, amputations, and executions of women were common. As it became clear that the Taliban would re-assert control over the country following the U.S. exit, a top concern was that this oppressive regime would return.

At the time of the U.S. exit, Biden promised that the U.S. would “continue to speak out for basic rights of the Afghan people, especially women and girls…I’ve been clear that human rights will be the center of our foreign policy.” In November 2021, all 24 female senators also sent a letter to Biden urging him to live up to that pledge. “You have committed to press the Taliban to uphold the rights of women and girls, and you have stated that America will maintain an enduring partnership with the people of Afghanistan resisting Taliban rule,” the letter states.

But sure enough, the Taliban soon began brutally rolling back the progress seen since 2001. In December, Taliban leadership announced that women could not attend school after age 12, could not work for most aid groups, and must be covered from head to toe while in public, along with other severe restrictions. Other accounts have emerged of women being exiled from their workplaces, forced into marriages, and confined to their homes. Rapes are common.

Yet despite clear promises to take action in the face of such reprehensible conduct, the administration has only responded with vague threats of “consequences” for the regime, even as they continue to ship billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars to the country. Meanwhile, congressional Democrats have gone conspicuously silent on the matter, apparently also abandoning Afghan women and girls to their plight.

Following the announcement of more repressive policies in December, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the administration was “discussing options,” but no concrete plan to address the treatment of Afghan women by the Taliban has yet emerged. Since the U.S. exit in 2021, the Biden administration has sent more than $1 billion to the country in aid – leverage that the White House could use to force changes in the country’s policies toward women.

Other Western countries are also continuing to send aid money to Afghanistan – accounting for up to 40% of the country’s GDP. Thus far, international bodies like the UN have also only offered “strong condemnation” of the Taliban’s actions, but no actual efforts to try and force policy changes.

The Taliban have threatened that any reduction in foreign aid would result in even worse conditions for women and children in the country. But sources within Afghanistan have reported that most of the aid money gets scooped up by the Taliban anyway, and have advised the West to use any means necessary to force the Taliban to change course.

The administration has received some pushback in the press, with Politico reporting, “Biden aides struggle to respond to Taliban’s latest curbs on women,” while The Washington Post ran the headline, “As Taliban erases women’s rights, Biden encounters limits of U.S. sway.” But such reports have been few and far between, and have largely failed to break through as national narratives.

Meanwhile, Democrats in Congress have failed to follow up on their promises to hold Biden accountable should Afghan women and girls experience the sort of oppression they are now clearly experiencing. California Democrat Dianne Feinstein, who co-led the Senate letter with Iowa Republican Joni Ernst, has been silent. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who previously expressed “deep concern” for Afghan women, has been similarly absent from the conversation.

House Republicans, meanwhile, have promised investigations into both the chaotic U.S. exit from Afghanistan and the administration’s diplomatic failures in the region thereafter. While such investigations are likely to be of little comfort to women and girls now suffering under the Taliban’s brutal rule, they may be the first step toward forcing some policy changes that might actually put pressure on the regime to respect basic human rights, as Biden promised more than one year ago. Once again, it seems, it will be up to the GOP to do their best to clean up the mess created by Biden and his hapless foreign policy team.

Andrew Abbott is the pen name of a writer and public affairs consultant with over a decade of experience in DC at the intersection of politics and culture.   

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GTPatriot
GTPatriot
1 year ago

Let someone else save Afganistan. Its not our job. The US and Russia both failed to conquer
Afganistan. It cannot be done. We gave the Afgans thousands of our soldiers and 10 times that number were severely injured. Also, we all know we spend quadra billions there for 20 years.
The world assumes if the US wreaks war in a country, the US will rebuild it. So I guess wewill spend more quadra billions over the next 10 years to rebuilt that sand pile.
Afgan men showed that they would not fight for freedom. So should we ? Let the Taliban have it.
I know they will run things as they wish which the US could not.do. Question is: what did we
learn ?

Edward
Edward
1 year ago

To Ron citizenship.
I have to give the credit to Thomas Sewell, I read that and when I posted it the credit was cut off. Still very true.

Rebecca
Rebecca
1 year ago

Would someone please explain to me WHY we continue to GIVE money to countries that HATE us and want to DESTROY us. I think since the taliban says they’ll do more harm to women, take away our money and let them. They’ll only destroy themselves in destroying women. As for these women in Congress who expressed outrage, they’ve moved on. They’re now going to carry the torch and removed gas stoves etc. Guess Nancy and Barbara will rub sticks together to cook and keep warm. Oh wait they don’t cook and they hire others to rub the sticks. Rain is falling in California. Wonder what GOD will do next to reach these people who want to destroy the UNION and the Middle class.

Ed Ross
Ed Ross
1 year ago

A man that abuses his own daughter has no respect for women. He uses women to trick the public to get what he wants
He’s a typical narcissist that only cares about himself.

Rob citizenship
Rob citizenship
1 year ago

To Andrew Abbott, Very important article, the primary concern is to find ways help the women in Afghanistan, and I am thinking that those Afghan people who were fortunate to get out of Afghanistan , who have family still there, they should probably be the best people help, they would know best what can be done. There are some private organizations involved, some government agencies involved . One report I read on the topic was about a pilot who was able to get out of Afghanistan but his wife and children are still there. It is the kind of situation that gets me to thinking that something needs to be tried to help, it is not something that can be disregarded as too complex , even though it is a very complex situation. It would not be in keeping with the teachings of Christ to forget about those who were betrayed and it is not in the tradition of American values to turn away from a situation like this in Afghanistan.
It seems reasonable that all ideas that will provide help for women in Afghanistan should be one of the priority issues for Congress,
And the United States of America needs to fix the damage done by the betrayal, it is not acceptable to have the word betrayal associated with the United States of America

Edward Lawther
Edward Lawther
1 year ago

Reply to John,
One of the painful signs of years of dumbed-down education is how many people are unable to make a coherent argument. They can vent their emotions, question other people’s motives, make bold assertions, and repeat slogans— anything except reason.

Jeri
Jeri
1 year ago

Same shameful betrayal of American women. He even hangs his VP out to dry on a daily basis…what do you expect?

John Riley
John Riley
1 year ago

As usual follow the money and it would come out why nothing is happening.

John
John
1 year ago

Gloria is making post after post filled with lies.

Gloria
Gloria
1 year ago

Biden would be better off – and so would the rest of the world – if he would just stop promising things he will never do. He will be impeached, or be removed soon from the office he was never elected for.

David Millikan
David Millikan
1 year ago

Not surprised since DICTATOR Beijing biden likes to sniff little girls hair here in the USA.
Remember all the News reports showing him doing that.

Kim
Kim
1 year ago

Any promises made by Joe Biden are worthless words on a page. Sending Afghanistan a billion dollars along with contributions from other nations validates the Taliban and perpetuates the misery. In this case and in many others, biden says the words but doesn’t back them up with action.

I pity every one of those women subjected to this brutal regime once again. The country has been thrown back to the Stone Age and we could have prevented it. What the he<< did anyone think the Taliban would do when we pulled out as abruptly as we did?

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