VIENNA: The Taliban government asked her to leave. But for more than four years, Manizha Bakhtari has defied the leadership in Kabul and remains accredited by Vienna as Afghanistan’s ambassador to Austria.

Since returning to power in Aug 2021, the Taliban authorities have sought to replace Bakhtari with one of their own diplomats, because she was appointed by the former government.

When Bakhtari, like many of her colleagues, received a letter from Taliban officials relieving her of her diplomatic duties, she simply ignored it.

“That was just a piece of paper for me,” she said in an interview at the embassy’s downsized premises, after relocating from central Vienna with the help of the Afghan diaspora.

“I don’t recognise the Taliban as Afghanistan’s legitimate government, and they don’t have recognition here in Austria,” said 53-year-old Bakhtari.

Vienna has so far refused to accredit Taliban-appointed diplomats, although the Austrian government has held direct talks with Taliban authorities over deportations this year.

“Ms Bakhtari is still accredited as Afghanistan’s ambassador and permanent representative to international organisations in Austria,” a spokesperson for Austria’s foreign ministry said on Thursday.

Her embassy also offers limited consular services such as extending passports.

As the last Afghan woman accredited as an ambassador anywhere in the world, she was featured in an Austrian documentary that is currently showing in cinemas.

But the film has also painted a target on her back, with hate messages, including even death threats, frequently flooding her social media, said Bakhtari.

“They call me a ‘dirty, ugly woman’ who ‘cherishes Western values’, but I don’t care,” she said.

“They’ve adopted draconian policies, especially towards women but also men, freedom of speech and the media,” Bakhtari said.

Published in Dawn, November 1st, 2025