demonstrations
Protest in Kabul against expulsion of girls from school
Young Afghan girls attend classes at a primary school in Kabul. Photo: Oliver Weiken/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
The tender hopes were abruptly disappointed. The Taliban continue to deny young girls and women access to secondary schools. They even take to the streets now.
Dozens of people protested in Kabul on Saturday against the decision by the militant Islamist Taliban to bar girls from attending secondary schools in Afghanistan.
Video footage from local media showed dozens of women and girls demanding their right to go to school and work. The demonstration ended peacefully, said one of the organizers of the German press agency dpa. In previous protests, the Taliban intimidated and harassed participants and journalists covering them.
Contrary to their promise, the Taliban announced on Wednesday that schoolgirls from the 7th grade onwards would be banned from attending classes until further notice. First, a school uniform should be designed for girls that is based on the values of Islamic Sharia and Afghan culture and tradition. The Islamists had previously announced that, subject to certain conditions, girls in secondary schools would be allowed to attend classes again at the beginning of the new school year.
After the United States and its allies withdrew and the Taliban took power around seven months ago, most provinces were only allowed to teach schoolchildren up to the sixth grade. At universities, seminars are now held separately by gender. There have also been separate school classes in the past. Since their return to power, the Islamists have imposed ever stricter regulations on public life. In many cases, women cannot go back to their jobs.