Editors Guild condemns exclusion of women journalist at Taliban FM's press conference

New Delhi: The Editors Guild of India (EGI) on Saturday strongly condemned the exclusion of women journalists from a press conference held by Afghanistan's Taliban foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, during his diplomatic visit to India. 

Several prominent leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and P Chidambaram from Congress, as well as Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra expressed dismay over the barring of female journalists from the press briefing. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) clarified that it had "no involvement" in organising the press interaction, which took on Friday in New Delhi.

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Despite this, the EGI stated that the exclusion of women journalists was "deeply troubling" and amounted to blatant gender discrimination. “While diplomatic premises may claim protection under the Vienna Convention, that cannot justify blatant gender discrimination in press access on Indian soil,” the statement said.

The Guild further noted that, regardless of whether the MEA coordinated the event, allowing such a discriminatory practice to proceed without objection signals a "troubling complacency."

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The statement also called on media houses and journalist colleagues to reflect on the incident and adopt a zero-tolerance stance against discriminatory exclusion. “A free and inclusive press must defend representation, not enable exclusion,” the EGI added.

Muttaqi's visit marks the first high-level delegation from Kabul to New Delhi since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021. Under Taliban rule, Afghan women face systematic restrictions across education, healthcare, employment and public life. Girls have been barred from attending school beyond the sixth grade and women are required to remain fully covered whenever outside their homes. The Taliban has imposed strict limitations on women's public presence and participation, such as restrictions on speaking in public places.