May 1st, International Workers’ Day, is a moment to honor human dignity, social justice, and the fundamental rights of workers who form the backbone of every society. It is a day rooted in historic struggles for decent work, fair wages, safe conditions, and the right to organize.

In today’s Afghanistan, however, workers especially women are living through one of the darkest periods in the country’s recent history. Since the taliban regained power, not only has the economic structure deteriorated, but women have been systematically stripped of their right to work. Millions of women have been excluded from employment, denied economic participation, and deprived of financial independence deepening poverty, dependency, and vulnerability at an alarming scale.

Afghan workers, in the absence of legal protections, oversight, and institutional support, face harsh conditions, extremely low wages, job insecurity, and constant threats. Women workers, in particular, endure compounded discrimination, structural exclusion, and policies that amount to gender apartheid.

On this day, the Women’s Justice Movement declares:

We stand in solidarity with all workers, especially women workers in Afghanistan, and affirm that the struggle for their rights is inseparable from the broader fight for justice, freedom, and equality.

We call on the international community, human rights organizations, and labor institutions to break their silence on the widespread violations of workers’ rights and the systematic exclusion of women from the workforce in Afghanistan. Indifference in the face of such injustice is complicity.

We firmly believe that no society can achieve sustainable development or justice without the full, free, and equal participation of women in economic and public life.

Today, we raise our voices for all workers denied their rights; for women pushed out of their workplaces; and for a future that can only be built on justice and equality.

Work is dignity and dignity is a fundamental right of every human being.

Women’s Justice Movement
May 1 – International Workers’ Day