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ALL OR NONE!

Taliban have ordered an indefinite ban on university education for the women in Afghanistan, the ministry of higher education, Neda Mohammad Nadeem, said in a letter issued to all government and private universities

“You all are informed to implement the mentioned order of suspending education of females until further notice" said by Neda Mohammad Nadeem.

Ministry’s spokesperson, Ziaullah Hashimi, who tweeted the letter, confirmed the order in a text message to Agence France-Presse.

The ban on university access to women comes less than 3 months after thousands of women sat university entrance exams across the country, with many aspiring to choose engineering and medicine as future careers. Universities were forced after the Taliban takeover to implement new rules including gender-segregated classrooms and entrances. Furthermore, women were only permitted to be taught by female professors or old men.

Since more than 470 Days most Afghan teenage girls have been banned from secondary school education and severely limiting university intake.

Additionally to that, women have been pushed out of many government jobs or are being paid a slashed salary to stay at home. They are also barred from travelling without a male relative, and must cover up outside the home, ideally with a burqa. In November they were prohibited from going to parks, funfairs, gyms and public baths.

The decision is certain to hurt efforts by the Taliban to win recognition from potential international donors at a time when the country is mired in a worsening humanitarian crisis. The international community has urged Taliban leaders to reopen schools and give women their right to public space.

We, an alliance of youths, associations and local initiatives are therefore calling for a global rally in 24 countries and 57 cities on 14th January 2023 to demonstrate for the rights of Girls and Women in Afghanistan. These rallies are part of the Global Movement for Peace, which had already organised numerous rallies internationally in August 2021. We urge the international stakeholders, particularly the United Nations, the United States, the European Commission and all the 24 countries, where we held our protests, the following:

1) We demand the lifting of restrictions on women and girls and ensure that respect for and protection of women's rights is at the centre of all talks with the Taliban. Afghan women must be able to exercise their rights to education, freedom of movement, work, self-determination and security. Education is a fundamental right for all. Therefore, we demand the immediate opening of secondary schools and high schools for girls and an implementation of the lessons with the standard curriculum. Furthermore, women should also be granted access to universities with immediate effect.

2) We call for action to be taken to investigate and prosecute those responsible for gender based persecution in Afghanistan in appropriate international and extraterritorial jurisdictions.

3) We call for the monitoring of humanitarian aid and ensuring that this aid actually reaches civil society in need.

4) We demand that the diplomatic headquarters of the Taliban in Doha be closed in order to address the ongoing injustices and oppressive policies towards women and the promotion of extremist ideology that the regime has continued to perpetuate. The establishment of this office in 2013 with the approval of a global institution and a major world power has served as a symbol of indirect recognition for the Taliban, enabling them to expand their diplomatic relations while denying fundamental human rights to individuals and communities. Shutting down this office is necessary in order to bring an end to these harmful actions and protect the rights and dignity of all people.

5) We call on the international community not to recognise the Taliban, as their recognition would encourage other fundamentalist and radical groups to challenge democracy and democratic governments around the world, which would particularly endanger women and girls, and which would mean gender segregation in the country. We demand, in view of their recent violations, severe sanctions including a travel ban and the refusal to establish diplomatic relations as long as the Taliban do not make schools and universities accessible to all people, regardless of their gender.

International Comments on the Ban

1. Human Rights Watch criticized the ban on Tuesday, calling it a “shameful decision that violates the right to education for women and girls in Afghanistan.”
2. "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," U.S. Deputy UN Ambassador Robert Wood told the council, describing the move as "absolutely indefensible."
3. Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said in a tweet that Canada condemned the move as an "outrageous violation."
4. Britain's UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward said the suspension was "another egregious curtailment of women's rights and a deep and profound disappointment for every single female student."
5. UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the move on Tuesday was "clearly another broken promise from the Taliban.

Please sign the petition, please share the petition! Let us be united in the goal to open universities for our Afghan sisters!

Countries in the Movement involved: Austria, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finnland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Rwanda, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom, USA.

Sources: 

• CBC, Taliban suspends female students from Afghanistan's universities
• CNN, Taliban suspend university education for women in Afghanistan 
• NPR, Taliban ban Afghan women from attending universities
• The Guardian, Taliban ban Afghan women from university education
• UN, Afghanistan: Latest Taliban treatment of women and girls may be crime against humanity, say UN experts | OHCHR

Foto Credit: Goliv Tolibov, ST Adobe Stock