Locals urge Taliban to reopen schools for girls after 4 million kids drop out in 2 months

The Taliban's interim government in Afghanistan has once again been urged by young Afghan girls to reopen girls' schools across the country. Young women in grades 7 to 12 and higher, have been denied an education in several districts since the Taliban assumed control of the country, according to TOLO News. Mariam, an Afghan girl in the 12th grade, expressed her concern about not being able to complete her secondary education, telling an Afghan news organisation, ANI reported, "It has been over two months that we have been deprived of education, and I feel that all the girls who have stopped going to school feel the same way."

Mariam urged the Taliban to restore schools based on Islamic law, claiming that the delay in the opening of girls' schools is "very dangerous" to the pupils. According to the United Nations Educational Organization, approximately 4 million Afghan students are unable to attend school. Following the Taliban takeover, girls' schools were closed for nearly two months. Only three provinces in Afghanistan have reopened girls' schools: Balkh, Kunduz, and Sar-i-Pul. The UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, had previously stated that the Taliban administration had breached promises made to the country's women and girls. He also reminded them of their responsibility under international human rights law to keep their pledges to Afghan women and girls.

The Taliban said last month that schools will reopen, but only boys of all ages were asked to return, leaving secondary school girls out. The move has sparked debate over the organization's policy on girls' education and women's rights. Before older girls could return to school, the Taliban claimed a safe learning environment was required, and that schools will reopen as soon as possible, without specifying a timeline. The Taliban's lack of clarity on secondary school reopening has exacerbated the problem and dealt a blow to millions of girls, particularly those whose families had hoped that with the conclusion of the war, life would return to some sort of normalcy.

Kandahar citizens urge Taliban to rebuild demolished schools

Meanwhile, Kandahar citizens have urged the Taliban administration to rebuild all of the schools that have been damaged as a result of the war. According to TOLO News, dozens of schools have been demolished in the city and surrounding areas, and thousands of pupils have been denied access to education. In recent combat between the Afghan government and the Taliban, the Ghazi Mohammad Akbar Khan school in the Arghandab region of Kandahar province was destroyed. The destruction of the school is an illustration of Kandahar's war devastation.

"Anyone who sees this school says 'we ask our leaders to let the children go back to school,' but they said that a large part of the school has been destroyed," Barialai, the school's principal, told TOLO News. Officials from Kandahar's education department have stated that preparations for the rehabilitation of schools in the province are in the works.

(With inputs from ANI)

Image: AP