PRESS BRIEFING ON AFGHANISTAN

Press Briefing

PRESS BRIEFING ON AFGHANISTAN

"We could have a serious humanitarian disaster on our hands come December, unless we gain access to the large number of displaced persons within the country", Eric de Mul, Humanitarian Coordinator for Afghanistan, told correspondents at a Headquarters press briefing this afternoon.

With the onset of winter, time was running out and the lack of access could pose additional problems, he said. As a result of fighting in the Shomali Plain -- which was north of the capital, Kabul -- there were internally displaced persons in Kabul and in the northern Panjshir Valley, the majority of whom were women and children. While access to the people in Kabul and the western front was fairly easy, access to those in the Panjshir Valley was more complicated. There was a maximum of three weeks to get food, shelter, coal and other materials to them.

While there have been talks with both the Northern Alliance and the Taliban authorities with regard to access across the northern front, they had not been successful so far, he said. There was still hope that access would be gained and materials, especially food, would be transported to the people in need. In trying to get permission to go across the lines, the Taliban had been reluctant to reach an agreement while the Northern Alliance had been more forthcoming.

Also, he said, discussions were held in October in Kabul with the Taliban authorities on such topics as human rights, gender issues and access to education. There would be follow up talks from 14 to 21 November. Presently, there was an increase in the number of women allowed to work and to have access to basic social services, notably in the health sector. There was also an increase in different types of schools for girls, particularly home- based education. In addition, it was now possible to bring international Muslim female staff into Afghanistan, unaccompanied by a male relative. While far from an ideal situation, some reasonable progress had been made and he hoped to make further progress during the next round of talks.

Asked if three weeks was sufficient time to stockpile the necessary materials to last all winter, he said that if it had to be done through the northern access routes, it would not be possible. However, if access was opened up through the South, through the Shomali Plain, then it would be fairly simple. That was why he insisted on the cross-line operation.

Elaborating on the increase of women in various sectors, he said that the rules were simple; males and females had to be separated. For example, in a hospital, one side would be for male patients and the other side for female patients. Now, there were more female doctors and nurses working. While the notable increase was in the health field, there were also increases in other areas, such as more female staff being recruited for the various

Afghanistan Press Briefing - 2 - 3 November 1999

United Nations agencies operating there. There was a slow, but hopefully sustained, increase in employment opportunities for women. There were still difficulties in that there needed to be separate areas for men and women to work.

The problem was more difficult in the cities, since in the countryside the situation was more relaxed, he added. In the countryside there was a more integrated approach to the work that needed to be done and women participated more fully. In the cities, the number of males with steady employment was very low and the number was even lower for women.

With regard to the sanctions, which would come into effect at the end of the month, he said that he hoped that they would not hinder the work of the United Nations in Afghanistan. Although the topic was sure to come up at the next round of talks, it was more useful for the Taliban to discuss it with political side of the United Nations, rather than the humanitarian side.

He added that the Taliban delegation to the talks was usually led by the Minister of Planning and included representatives from the technical ministries, such as health and education, as well as the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Asked whether official United Nations recognition of the Taliban government would make his job any easier, he replied that once there was a recognized government in a country, it made the work for the United Nations and others easier. Non-recognition did make things more difficult.

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