Explained: The Taliban¡¯s Attack On Women¡¯s Education

The Taliban have rescinded the status granted to the secondary-level education of girls. Up until December 20, young girls could attain secondary and higher education through middle/high school, colleges and universities. But the recent blanket ban has dashed the hopes of women for education and equality and has redrawn the parallels with Taliban 1.0: the Taliban of 1996-2001.

The first ban

On September 18, 2021, the Taliban enforced a ban on secondary school education for girls, a month after coming to power. The ban was to be temporary. But come December 2022, the ¡®temporary suspension¡¯ is appearing permanent and the Taliban have their defences ready in case of opprobrium originating from their decision.

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The Taliban¡¯s defence

Talking with the Indian Express, Abdul Qahar Balki, Taliban¡¯s foreign ministry spokesperson held that despite ¡®the cultural constraints, budgetary constraints, lack of resources, lack of infrastructure, lack of teachers, books¡±, the government was ¡®working extremely hard to try to address this problem¡¯.

The ban had affected the poor disproportionately, as the ones who could, they did send their girls to private schools.

The Talian¡¯s allegations against the world

Balki further accused the world of diverting the issue of the return of Afghanistan¡¯s financial assets by using ¡®women¡¯s education against the regime¡¯. The Indian Express further reported that out of the 34 provinces in Afghanistan, women had access to secondary education in more than 12.

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The ban does not cover secondary and higher education for women but fits well with the Talibani viewpoint on women. ¡®Women teachers have been banned from working. Along with the medical profession and police, teaching was one of the few remaining avenues for working women. In most government offices, women employees had already been asked to take a pay cut and show up once a week to mark attendance¡­ On November 9 this year, women were banned from visiting most public parks, hammams, and gymnasiums.¡¯ The Indian Express wrote.

The return to the old

The Taliban is clamouring for recognition from the world after violently filling the void left by the US. To gain legitimacy in the international arena, it stated publicly of charting new routes different from the old. But since the apple doesn¡¯t fall far from the tree, the Taliban returned to its methods of justice by bringing back public floggings and executions.

¡®The first public execution took place on December 7 in the southwestern province of Farah ¡ª an alleged murderer was shot dead by the father of his victim. There have been several public floggings since then.¡¯ The Indian Express learned.

The World

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Despite being beleaguered by sanctions, and its presence on Afghan soil unrecognised by the international community, the Taliban have refused to live up to the models of modern society: parity in education irrespective of gender being one of them.

The situation was discussed in the meeting of the United Nations Security Council in New York.

¡°The Taliban cannot expect to be a legitimate member of the international community until they respect the rights of all Afghans, especially the human rights and fundamental freedom of women and girls,¡± The Indian Express quoted U.S. Deputy U.N. Ambassador Robert Wood. Who further described the Talibani move as ¡®absolutely indefensible.¡¯

Barbara Woodward, Britain¡¯s UN Ambassador, on the ban on women¡¯s education, said,¡¯ another egregious curtailment of women¡¯s rights and a deep and profound disappointment for every single female student.¡¯
Roza Otunbayeva, the U.N. special envoy for Afghanistan, said,¡¯ As long as girls remain excluded from school and the de facto authorities continue to disregard other stated concerns of the international community, we remain at something of an impasse,¡± she said.

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Domestic support

Not only the international community, but male colleagues and university lecturers also, to mark their protest, ¡®are abandoning & walking out of their exam in protest against Taliban¡¯s decision to ban female students from university education.¡¯ The Indian Express quoted Pamir News.