The Taliban government in Afghanistan has banned girl students from private and public universities in the country. The order was shared by a Taliban government spokesperson on Tuesday, December 20, who added that the order was effective immediately and until further notice.
According to a report by PTI, the decision was announced after a government meeting. A letter shared by the spokesman for the Ministry of Higher Education, Ziaullah Hashmi, told private and public universities to implement the ban as soon as possible and to inform the ministry once the ban is in place. Hashmi tweeted the letter and confirmed its contents in a message to The Associated Press without giving further details.
The Taliban has already banned girls from attending middle and high school and from most employment opportunities. This comes as yet another blow to the freedom and rights of women and girls in the country. The announcement comes days after girls took their high school graduation exams.
Female students from Afghanistan express anguish
Speaking to AP, a third-year Journalism and Communication student at Nangarhar University said, "I can't fulfill my dreams, my hopes. Everything is disappearing before my eyes and I can't do anything about it." She did not want to be identified for fear of reprisals.
"Is being a girl a crime? If that's the case, I wish I wasn't a girl. My father had dreams for me, that his daughter would become a talented journalist in the future. That is now destroyed. So, you tell me, how will a person feel in this situation? God willing, I will continue my studies in any way. I'm starting online studies. And, if it doesn't work, I will have to leave the country and go to another country," she added.
Apart from banning women from educational institutions and workplaces, the Taliban has also banned them from parks and gyms, and has mandated the wearing of head-to-toe clothing. When the terrorist organisation took control of the country earlier this year, they had ensured the international community of enforcing a more moderate regime, respectful of the rights of women and minorities.
Another "broken promise"
PTI reported that with the country going through a worsening humanitarian crisis, it might become difficult to obtain donations due to such policies against women. The international community has urged Taliban leaders to reopen schools and give women their right to public space. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the decision, calling it another "broken promise" from the Taliban and a "very troubling" move.
"It's difficult to imagine how a country can develop, can deal with all of the challenges that it has, without the active participation of women and education," Guterres said. Robert Wood, the deputy US ambassador to the United Nations, said the Taliban cannot expect to be a legitimate member of the international community until they respect the rights of all Afghans.
Afghanistan's UN seat is still held by the previous government led by former President Ashraf Ghani, despite the Taliban's request to represent the country at the United Nations, which was recently deferred again. Afghanistan's charge d'affairs Naseer Ahmed Faiq said at the UN that the announcement "marks a new low in violation of most fundamental and universal human rights for all of humanity."
