Girls school in Herat in 2019 (Shutterstock)

The new school year began in Afghanistan on March 22, but there is no indication on the horizon that the Taliban government will open the doors of schools and universities to hundreds of thousands of girls.

Despite all internal attempts - and with continuing international demands - the authorities did not allow girls to return to school after the primary stage.

Depriving women of education and education has turned into a real internal crisis, and has become a major obstacle to the normalization of relations between the Taliban and the international community, which demands lifting the ban on women’s education as a basic condition for recognizing the government of the Islamic Emirate.

until a further notice

Schools and universities were closed to girls during the Taliban's first rule (1996-2001), but the movement's leaders, before returning to power for the second time, confirmed on various occasions that they would allow women to study and teach, which many observers considered an indication of a change in the Taliban's way of thinking. .

However, shortly after assuming power, the movement issued a decision preventing girls from continuing their studies after the sixth grade of primary school, including the university stage, “until further notice,” as happened for the first time during its rule in the nineties of the last century, as it did not change from that position until the American invasion. of the country and overthrew its government in November 2001, and girls were then able to return to schools and universities.

A long journey to educate women

The beginnings of formal education for women in Afghanistan were during the reign of King Amanullah Khan (1919-1929). Afghan women continued in education, and this series was not interrupted except for a short period after the fall of the government in 1929, then during the period of the first rule of the Taliban, and finally the last and continuing interruption until now after the return of Movement to rule.

Although Afghan language was exposed to waves of Westernization during the past century, which sparked strong reactions among religious scholars and segments of the people, and serious and systematic government attempts since the 1960s, it continued until the end of communist rule in 1992 to impose co-education at the university level. However, girls' schools at all levels remained free from mixing, with the necessity of adhering to modest dress.

According to UNESCO statistics, the number of female students in Afghan universities was about 5,000 with the return of girls to schools and universities in 2001. Then this number increased, bringing the number of female university students in 2021 to more than 103,000.

This number then declined to zero under the current Taliban rule, as there is not a single female student in public and private universities, which number more than 165 universities and higher education institutions, 39 of which are government and 126 are licensed private, according to data from the Ministry of Higher Education.

As for the number of female students in all levels of education from middle school to secondary school, it increased from zero in 2001 to 2.5 million students in 2018, and according to UNESCO data, the year 2021 witnessed the presence of 4 girls out of every 10 students in the primary stage, while under the Taliban government today girls are allowed Studying at the primary level and religious schools only.

Justifications for the ban

The authorities did not provide a clear justification for their decision to close girls’ schools and universities, and contented themselves with a brief statement stating that girls are prohibited from attending post-primary schools until “further notice.”

As for the universities, girls’ studies continued for a year and 4 months after they were separated from boys with barriers inside the classrooms first, then complete dismissal by allocating 3 days for male students, and the same for female students in the second step, and later the universities were closed to female students in December 2022.

The statements of officials in the caretaker government and their justifications differed. The official spokesman for the Islamic Emirate, Zabihullah Mujahid, justified the decision by saying that it was to “provide appropriate conditions” without disclosing these circumstances. As for the spokesman for the Ministry of Education, he initially said that the ban was temporary, and the reason was logistical and technical problems. Later stages.

On the other hand, the Ministry of Education said that it was “ready to open schools to female students in the middle and secondary levels if the leadership orders it to do so,” while other figures and officials in the movement and the caretaker government attributed the decision to ban girls’ education to the presence of “legitimate notes in the school curricula, school uniforms, and the type of subjects taught.” Girls".

As for the former Minister of Education in the Taliban government, Nurullah Munir, he said in a statement in Uruzgan Province that “people in remote areas of the country do not want their daughters to go to school after the primary stage.”

Observers say that the main reason for preventing girls from studying is the firm conviction of some of the senior and influential leaders of the movement that it is not permissible to teach women anything other than religious matters at all, and to only allow the teaching of professions such as embroidery and sciences such as medicine. There are those who go further and issue a fatwa that it is not permissible to teach writing to women based on narrations. And fabricated hadiths.

Supporters of the ban

Based on his opinion on the role of women within society, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Mawlawi Abdul Hakim Haqqani, says about her education, “In educating and learning women, it is necessary to differentiate between the principle of learning and teaching and how to learn and teach. The first is undoubtedly permissible. Rather, women must know what is necessary.” She must do what it is desirable for her to do.”

Haqqani believes that “it is better for women to learn at home from their mahrams, because the right to teach them lies with their guardians...” He emphasizes women’s commitment to Islamic etiquette if they need to go out to learn religious sciences.

As for learning modern sciences, the author of the book The Islamic Emirate and its System says, “This applies to women learning religious and worldly sciences, such as learning sewing and medical science. As for what is not suitable for them, such as chemistry, engineering, and the like, there is no need for them to go out for it, even if it is a sufficient obligation... But by learning and teaching men, everyone’s obligation is cleared.” What legal need is there for them to leave?”

Haqqani, who is one of the theorists and jurisprudential authorities of the Taliban movement, believes that “in the Islamic state, religious education must be given priority over the modern, and this does not mean that the latter should be left out. Rather, what is meant is that the modern should be included in the religious,” and he adds, “It is a proven known fact that incursion into new, modern sciences is fatal to belief and work.” .

This trend is adopted by a wide segment of those affiliated with the Sharia sciences within the movement, and these include, for example, Mawlawi Khalifa Din Muhammad, Chairman of the Shura Council of Kabul Scholars appointed by the leader of the movement, the President of Herat State University, Mufti Abu Al-Hikmat Abdul Ghaffar, and others.

Abdul Ghaffar stated that “the idea of ​​girls’ schools being Western in origin came to us from the infidels, and it has no basis in Islam, and there is no example for it in the Sunnah of the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace.”

This mufti - who heads a university with 16 colleges and 70 scientific departments - believes that a woman’s study in schools and outside the home “causes her corruption and deviation,” and if there is a need for her to study religious sciences and medicine, “her father, brother, and husband must teach her medicine at home.”

Supporters of women's education

In contrast to the voices prohibiting women's education, there is a sector of Sharia scholars within the movement who support and demand the opening of schools and universities to girls, and the introduction of reforms and amendments to the educational system if there are Sharia observations.

Among those voices is Mawlawi Abdul Sami al-Ghaznawi, one of the Taliban’s leading scholarly authorities, who says, “The hijab should not be linked to education. The hijab was originally obligatory for Muslim women, and education is also an obligation. If there are problems - as they say - the government must fix things and create conditions.” This is its responsibility, and the solution is not to close and prevent it.”

There are voices within the movement and the government demanding that schools and universities be opened to girls, including Sher Abbas Stanekzi, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, who spoke more than once about women’s right to education, demanding that they be allowed to return to schools and universities, and said, “We must provide the conditions for educating every citizen in this country as a man.” Mother of a woman, this is their natural, legal and Islamic right.”

In another statement, the Deputy Foreign Minister said, "The continued closure of school doors to girls increases the distance between the people and the government."

A figure close to the Taliban spoke to Al Jazeera Net on the condition that his name not be mentioned, and said, “Many ministers and officials in Kabul, such as the Ministers of Foreign Affairs Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, Defense Minister Mawlawi Muhammad Yaqub Mujahid, and Interior Minister Mullah Siraj al-Din Haqqani, support lifting the ban on girls’ education, but they cannot.” Violating the movement’s leader, Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada, and the sheikhs close to him.”

Social insistence

What raises doubts about the will to open schools to girls is that the government did not take any step to reform the girls’ education system, and did not announce any progress or measures in this regard, which means, according to high school student Bahara Sadat, that “the Taliban authority does not want girls to return to schools and universities.” Just as they did during their first rule.”

Scholars, political figures, and figures from society are calling on the Taliban and its government to open schools and universities to girls, and they believe that the continuation of the situation and the deprivation of half of society from studying from education not only contradicts the teachings and provisions of Islam, but portends a real disaster for the people and the future of the country, as stated in a statement issued by the campaign. National support for girls' education.

The statement said, "Education is a religious duty and a basic human right. It also represents the will of the people and is considered an important condition for the country's independence, stability, self-sufficiency, and prosperity in its future. Therefore, no Afghan citizen can accept or tolerate restricting girls' education."

The statement adds, "Despite the repeated demands of religious scholars, tribal sheikhs, civil society, and the international community, the doors of schools were not opened to girls. Rather, the doors of universities were closed to women, and the protests were met with repression. Although some regime officials consider the current ban on teaching Afghan language to be temporary and talk about A new curriculum and suitable conditions for women’s education, but in reality no light can be seen in this dark tunnel yet.”

Repercussions of the ban decision

Regarding the consequences and repercussions of continuing to prevent Afghan women from education, university professor Waheeda Adalat Jaw says that it “causes the spread of depression among girls.”

For his part, Dr. Muhammad Ibrahim Shinwari, Acting Minister of Education in the government of former President Ashraf Ghani, confirms that the continued ban on education leads to despair, psychological pressure, severe depression, and loss of self-confidence among girls, and also causes the spread of psychological diseases and various social problems, according to his description.

Media reports talk about the migration of many Afghan families to neighboring countries and some Western countries in order to provide educational opportunities for their daughters, and Western universities and institutions embrace Afghan female students by offering them scholarships.

Until the Taliban leaders resolve their position on women’s intellectual education and reconsider their decision, Afghan women will remain deprived of education, and despair, frustration and resentment will remain among segments of the people, while tension in relations with the international community continues.

Source: Al Jazeera