By Kreshma Fakhri
Two days after the Taliban banned female students from attending universities in Afghanistan, the Taliban have also prohibited the entry and participation of girls above the sixth grade in private educational centres.
On Thursday, December 22, the Taliban Ministry of Education sent an official letter to the education directorates in every province in Afghanistan, announcing that the education of girls in schools and educational courses above the sixth grade is prohibited until further notice.
The letter is signed by Taliban Minister of Education Habibullah Agha, who states that this decision was based on a decision of the cabinet of the Islamic Emirate. “All the directorates of education are informed that they have to abide by this ruling in all government and private schools and courses,” the letter explains
Even before this letter made the edict official, the Taliban gunmen had prevented girls from attending private educational courses in several areas of Kabul on Wednesday. Female students and officials of some educational centres tell Zan Times that the Taliban entered the classrooms while classes were underway and expelled all the female students. As well, Taliban members did not allow female students to enter other educational centres.
On Tuesday, December 20, the Taliban Ministry of Higher Education announced that university education for girls would be banned until further notice. The two measures announced this week follow the draconian ban on the education of girls above the sixth grade that was announced by the Taliban a month after they regained control of Afghanistan in 2021.
The recent decisions by the Taliban have provoked angry condemnations around the world. On Wednesday, Human Rights Watch called the Taliban’s ban of female university students as misogynistic and added that Taliban does not seem interested in change. Such restrictions on girls’ education will ensure that there will be no educated and university-graduated women in the coming years, which will cause deep and irreparable damage, the organization stated.
Human Rights Watch also emphasized that the countries that help Afghanistan, as well as the international community, must talk to the Taliban about the damage caused by their decisions to all in Afghanistan.
