Afghanistan: Activists urge global community to demand rollback of Taliban's ban on women from universities

NEW DELHI : Human rights activists and groups have appealed to the international community to urgently intervene and demand the immediate rollback of Taliban government's "misogynist decree" of banning women from universities in Afghanistan. Several countries including the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom have strongly condemned the Taliban's latest step in its brutal crackdown on the freedom of Afghan women and girls.

In March, the Taliban barred girls from going to secondary schools. Human Rights Watch called it a "shameful" decision that violates the right to education of women and girls in Afghanistan. "The Taliban is making it clear every day that they don't respect the fundamental rights of Afghans, especially women," the HRW said in a tweet.

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The Indian Muslims for Secular Democracy also condemned the "blatantly misogynist decree" of Taliban that for all practical purposes has effectively banned women's education in Afghanistan. "Since the Taliban have taken over in 2021, girls have not been able to access schools. Although they promised to open girls' schools from March 23, the same day they revoked the order. Going by what they have done with schools, the ban appears to be a permanent one," IMSD said in a statement. "We welcome the fact that the governments of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey have condemned the Taliban's regressive step and appeal to the international community to urgently intervene and demand that this grossly violative decision be taken back immediately" it said.

Child rights activist and nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi said denying education to girls is completely unacceptable. "Every act of discrimination, suppression and abuse of women and girls is an act of crime against humanity. But how long can darkness hold light in captivity? Light of freedom will prevail," Satyarthi tweeted.

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Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani female education activist and the 2014 Nobel peace prize laureate, tweeted, "The Taliban may lock all the classrooms and university gates in the country — but they can never lock up women's minds. They cannot stop girls from seeking knowledge. They cannot kill the quest to learn". Yousafzai was herself shot by a Taliban gunman in an assassination attempt in retaliation for her activism. India on Thursday joined several other leading countries in criticising the Taliban's decision, and renewed its call for setting up of an inclusive government in Kabul that ensures equal rights of women in all aspects of the Afghan society.