The Taliban decided to shut down secondary girls’ schools in Afghanistan barely hours after they resumed on March 23, claiming they would stay sealed. After months of prohibitions on high-school girls’ education, the Taliban Education Ministry announced this week that schools for all students, including girls, would reopen across the nation on March 23.
A ministry notice informed that girls’ schools would remain close until a plan was established by the government in compliance with Islamic law and Afghan culture. In a Twitter message, UNICEF South Asia Regional Director George Laryea-Adjei expressed his dissatisfaction with the decision, calling it a big disappointment.
Laryea-Adjei said that he was optimistic when he got up this morning that every girl and boy in Afghanistan would have the opportunity to attend school but he is terribly concerned that girls in grades 7 through 12 would be unable to return to school. This is a serious blow for girls and their future.
Furthermore, human rights activist Heather Barr took to Twitter and wrote that Girls in Afghanistan are weeping after the Taliban, claimed their schools will reopen only to lock them out at the last minute.
Malala also showed her disappointment and wrote “Today, I had only one hope that Afghan girls going to school would not be returned. The Taliban, on the other hand, did not honor their word. Because they are scared of educated girls and strong women, they will continue to create justifications to prevent girls from learning.”
Furthermore, education ministry spokesman Aziz Ahmad Rayan said that “We are not supposed to comment on this.” “It’s quite upsetting that the girls who had been looking forward to this day were forced to return to school. It demonstrates that the Taliban are untrustworthy and unable to keep their commitments,” according to Shukria Barakzai, an Afghan politician, and journalist residing in London.