Afghan girls reiterate demand to reopen schools

Kabul [Afghanistan], November 11 : After two years of the Taliban's decision to ban girls from accessing education after sixth class, Afghan girls reiterated their demand to reopen schools for them once again, reported TOLO News.
Coinciding with World Science Day, Afghan girl students who are above sixth class, said that education is one of their fundamental rights and the Taliban should open the gates of schools to girls as soon as possible.
Asma, a student, said, "Eight hundred days is not a small number. A day for a girl to study is like a year, but it's been 800 days since you deprived Afghan girls of education."
Another student, Shabnam, 18, who aspires to be a doctor, said, "Today is the World's Science Day, and the largest part of the Afghan society, which is women, are deprived of their most basic right. My request to the caretaker government is to open the gates of schools to all Afghan girls as soon as possible."
World Science Day is celebrated on November 10 every year globally for Peace and Development, reported TOLO News.
Many Afghan university teachers consider Afghanistan to be one of the countries where the education process has always faced challenges.
They added that the Taliban should put access to education for the girls' students on their agenda.
Hekmatullah Mirzada, a university scholar, said, "Keeping a large part of the society, i.e. women and girls, from education, is actually avoiding a religious order on the one hand and on the other hand, depriving this large and influential section of society of the blessing of literacy, which is actually a divine order."
However, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, said that the caretaker government is trying to make Afghanistan progress in various sciences, TOLO News reported.
"We want Afghanistan to be equal in sciences and reach the same stages that the countries of the world have reached, we are trying to progress in various sciences," Mujahid said.
More than two years have passed since the Taliban banned girls from studying beyond sixth grade in Afghanistan and there is no sign of reopening the schools to girls studying above sixth grade.
Earlier, Firoza Amini, a women's rights activist, said, "When this restriction is imposed on girls, and schools and universities are closed, girls' depression, despair and demotivation continue to rise, and it causes further harm," TOLO News reported.
Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan, they have issued several decrees which impose restrictions on women. Afghanistan's women have faced numerous challenges since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Girls and women in the war-torn country have no access to education, employment and public spaces.