On the International Day of Peace, the Human Rights Activists’ Union recalls with deep regret that our people today are not only deprived of peace but are enduring one of the darkest chapters of contemporary history. Under the rule of the Taliban terrorist group, daily life is saturated with fear, injustice, deprivation, and poverty.
Women and girls are barred from education and employment; freedom of expression has been silenced; community leaders, civil activists, and journalists are either imprisoned in Taliban detention centers or forced into exile. Thousands of families have lost their homes and lands and have been subjected to forced displacement. The youth, along with Afghanistan’s scientific and professional capacities—who should be building the future of the country—are now stranded at borders, struggling merely for work and bread. This picture not only bears no resemblance to peace, but it speaks of an ongoing war.
We believe that in our country, not only is there a silent and unequal war underway, but the current situation is a breeding ground for a protracted conflict. Peace means justice, security, education, freedom, and equal opportunities for all citizens—values that we are moving further away from every day. What prevails today is tyranny, violence, regression, and obscurantism that have turned the country into either a prison or a silent battlefield.
The Human Rights Activists’ Union emphasizes that to achieve genuine peace, the people need a legitimate and collective struggle, even the formation of a national force, for social justice and human dignity—a struggle whose aim is the victory of the people over terrorist and extremist groups, not the repetition of violence and revenge. Such a struggle must be pursued within the framework of human rights principles and international law so that it can open the way to lasting and just peace.
We call upon the international community to:
Dismantle, prosecute, and hold the Taliban terrorist group accountable as systematic violators of human rights—our struggle also lies in this very path;
Support the struggle and resilience of the Afghan people in their quest to defeat terrorism;
And prevent our country from being further trapped in terror and darkness.
Sustainable peace will only be realized when democracy prevails and the people themselves determine their destiny, with justice and freedom guaranteed for all.
Human Rights Activists’ Union
21 September 2025
