Former Prime Minister of Pakistan and Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan said that if the international community wants the implementation of human rights in Afghanistan, it should improve its relations with the Taliban.
Imran Khan gave an interview to British TV Channel 4 News and said that ‘Afghans don’t like being told what to do.’
During the interview, senior television journalist Matt Fry asked Imran Khan that ‘Many events in Afghanistan affect Pakistan, so do you ask the Afghan Taliban to let girls go to school?’
In response to this question, Imran Khan refrained from saying anything to the Taliban and said that the Afghan Taliban should be brought into the mainstream first, then the issue of human rights can be discussed. ‘I know the Afghans well, at least the Afghan character better than the Western world. They don’t like being told what to do.’
Matt Fry has reported on Afghanistan for the BBC before Channel Four.
Imran Khan said that if Western countries want to influence the Taliban, they should bring the Taliban into the mainstream. I have been telling them to have a relationship with them and communicate with them. In his words, ‘If you leave the Taliban alone, what effect will you have on them?’
Imran Khan said that first include them in the mainstream and then talk about human rights. At this time, the Taliban have been isolated and their money has been frozen, so why should they listen to anyone?
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Imran Khan, who was the Prime Minister of Pakistan between 2018-2022, was instrumental in arranging the Doha Agreement between the US and the Taliban at the time.
Imran Khan advised the world to increase dialogue with the Taliban, who he said would listen to him. ‘Why should they listen to you now? They react when you talk like that.’
Imran Khan made this statement at a time when the Taliban had imposed strict restrictions on education and work on Afghan girls and women since the beginning of their rule. But the Taliban have never openly said that the sanctions are due to pressure from the world.
The Taliban have repeatedly said that women’s education and work will be decided again after creating an Islamic environment.
Talking about Pakistani politics, Imran Khan said that he fears that the country is moving towards martial law. Accusing the authorities of trying to kill him, he says he is lucky to be alive.
However, the government says that there is no possibility of martial law in the country at this time. Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif clarified in a press conference in Islamabad yesterday that unlike the past, the current military leadership has no political ambitions.