Female students in Farah urge Taliban to reopen girls’ schools

Girls in the southern Afghan province of Farah expressed growing concern over the Taliban’s decision to close girls’ schools up to grade six and urged them to be reopened.

They said it is necessary to learn modern education in addition to religious lessons, according to Tolo News. “We call on the government to reopen the girls’ schools besides religious education, so we can continue with our learning,” said Fatima, a student.
“Along with studying religious lessons, hopefully, the schools will be reopened because our community needs female doctors and I want to become a doctor in the future,” said Zahra, a student.

Around 3,500 female students are enrolled in 19 seminaries in the province, according to representatives of the Farah Department of Education.

“We have 18 to 19 seminaries for women, and they have between 120 and 130 teachers and around 3,500 students,” said Akhtar Mohammad Zaeem, head of the provincial department of education.

This comes as the acting education minister underlines the need to teach modern education when visiting the province of Baghlan, according to reports .

According to Pakistan Observer, the delay in reopening secondary schools for Afghan girls was also questioned by residents of Farah.

“Islam orders that both males and females have the right to be educated, therefore, we ask the government to open schools,” said Shir Ahmad, a resident.

Of the 372 schools in the province of Farah, 81 are specifically for girls.

Earlier, the Taliban shifted the blame onto Afghan parents, holding them responsible for not letting their daughters attend school.

Acting Education Minister Noorullah Munir, while visiting Uruzgan Province, said, “You wouldn’t need to ask me the same question if you asked how many people in this mosque are willing to send their 16-year-old daughter to school. You and I both grew up in the same Afghan society, and the culture is clear to everyone.”

Tolo News reported that several Uruzgan villagers said they would be willing to send their girls to school if the Taliban would permit it.

They urged the current administration to quickly reopen girls’ schools.

“I think that the minister came from Kabul, and he cannot represent our people, because he came from Kabul. People in Uruzgan want their daughters to go back to school, and they used to go to school before,” said Javid Khpolwak, a civil society activist.
“Those schools that are closed should be reopened as soon as possible because it is the demand of the people,” said Mohammad Wali Samsor, a resident of Uruzgan.