The Taliban and the uncertain future of afghan women and girls
More than fifteen months have passed since the Taliban took control of the country, but Afghan girls still have an uncertain future ahead of them.
In the first days of Taliban government, girls above the seventh grade were firmly shut out behind the school gates - they were forbidden to receive an education. Later, the Taliban introduced a prohibition on women travelling without a man.
From the first days of the Taliban government, Afghan girls did not look on quietly. They came out on the streets in demonstrations to demand that their rights be respected. However, unfortunately it was unsuccessful, and subsequently the Taliban even imposed further restrictions on Afghan women and girls.
In the latest repressive act, the Taliban banned Afghan girls from going to amusement parks, sports clubs, and public bathrooms.
According to some sources, the Taliban are planning to prohibit girls and women of Afghanistan from going to university, which would complete the exclusion of women from participating in society. This development means that the future for women and girls would be plunged further into darkness.
The previous decision of the Taliban to fire more than 120,000 female civil servants was considered an attempt to completely remove women from the government body and social sphere. It had the devastating effect of putting the lives of more than two million children at risk due to a lack of food and the other basic necessities. Now, their childhood and life chances have been stolen, as young children look for work rather than going to school to learn each day.
I implore the countries of the world to act through the platform of the United Nations. Together, they must impose more serious punishments and sanctions on the Taliban government in order to secure the rights of Afghan women as human beings deserving of basic human rights.
