Experts discuss their expectations of the current CEDAW dispute concerning Afghanistan.
On 10 June 2025, the Afghanistan Legal Research Network (ALRN) held its fourth symposium of the year on the Afghanistan dispute under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Legal scholars spoke to the legal and geopolitical dimensions of the negotiation and arbitration phases regarding a potential case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Professor Payam Akhavan prefaced the discussion by illuminating the structure of international dispute settlement. He laid out the modalities of ICJ non-compulsory jurisdiction, zooming in on Article 36 of the court’s Statute. Building on the ICJ’s jurisprudence in the Mavrommatis Palestine Concessions case, Professor Akhavan explored the concept of crystallisation of an international dispute and elucidated the significance of erga omnes partes standing before the ICJ. The discussion then shifted focus to Afghanistan and the role of CEDAW Article 29, the compromissory clause, as well as the implications of negotiation and arbitration in this case, against the backdrop of relevant case law.
In her contribution, Hanifa Girowal addressed the factual parameters of the negotiation and arbitration processes, such as a potential timeline, current geopolitical realities, and implications for the question of recognition. First, Ms Girowal took a sceptical stance towards the prospects for negotiation, specifically, that the Taliban de facto authorities are not making a ‘genuine attempt’ at negotiation, instead seeking to cause delay. Ms Girowal further outlined some of the ways in which past, present, and future international engagements may shape the dispute. For example, she highlighted the Court’s treatment of Myanmar and the agent of Myanmar in the case of the Application of the Genocide Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (The Gambia v. Myanmar), the importance of China’s vote in the UN Security Council to the Taliban de facto authorities, and the relevance of any ICJ decision to government admission programmes for vulnerable Afghans.
This symposium was part of a series hosted by the Foundation under the auspices of the Afghanistan Legal Research Network. As always, the event concluded with a Q&A session during which members of the audience brought on further discussion of specific topics, such as Article 36 declarations to recognise the ICJ’s jurisdiction.