Spain on Thursday unveiled a plaque at its foreign ministry honouring the resilience and courage of Afghan women and girls, in a symbolic show of support for their struggle for rights and freedoms under Taliban rule.
The plaque, marking a room named “Women and Girls of Afghanistan,” was unveiled by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez alongside Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Madrid.
Spain’s foreign ministry said the initiative was both symbolic and political, intended to pay tribute to Afghan women and girls who “continue to fight for their rights and freedoms despite repression and deprivation.”
Several Afghan women activists attended the ceremony, including former Afghan lawmaker Fawzia Koofi, who urged participants to take concrete action to support Afghan women.
“The Taliban are using women’s rights as a bargaining tool in their political games,” Koofi said. “We must stop this, because Afghanistan can only be a prosperous country at peace with the world if women are part of it.”
Koofi said naming the room went beyond symbolism, calling it “a beacon of hope” for Afghan women who feel forgotten by the international community.
In his remarks, Albares said violations of international law always represented a failure of democracy, “even in countries where democracy has not fully taken shape,” and stressed the importance of diplomacy in defending democratic values and human rights.
Sánchez welcomed the Afghan women delegation, saying the world still had an “unresolved debt” to Afghan women within the framework of feminist foreign policy. He said Spain’s foreign policy would continue to support Afghan women and amplify their voices internationally.
The advocacy group Women for Afghanistan said the room was named in recognition of the support shown by Spain, its foreign ministry and the Spanish people for the ongoing struggle of Afghan women and girls. Koofi, who heads the organisation, described the move as a sign of Spain’s practical support.
Spain’s foreign minister also told diplomats attending the Madrid Ambassadors’ Conference that “there is no weapon better than diplomacy,” urging them to continue defending democratic values and human rights.