The inclusion of women in peace negotiations leads to more successful and durable agreements. In Afghanistan, women have made meaningful contributions to the peace process, but haven’t been included in most formal negotiations. The State Dept. should keep an eye on this issue and report to Congress on it and the status of womens’ and girls’ rights in Afghanistan after a peace deal is reached.
Although Afghan women haven’t been included in most peace negotiations, they’ve found other ways to participate in the peace process, so they’re not fully shut out. Additionally, the U.S. negotiating team has been aggressively pushing for greater women’s inclusion in the peace process — which is more likely than this legislation to yield tangible results.