KABUL, Afghanistan — The Taliban’s ban on education for girls above sixth grade and women in universities has forced many young women into marriages they neither wanted nor consented to, as families struggle with the restrictive environment.
Ziba, a 21-year-old former university student, is one such victim. Forced into marriage after the Taliban shut down universities, she endured a year of physical and emotional abuse from her husband and his family. She now lives in hiding, separated from her husband, with little hope of justice.
“I was a student who worked hard to get into university,” Ziba said, speaking under a pseudonym. “But when the universities closed, my family arranged my marriage to the son of a tribal elder in our province of Badghis. For over 11 months, I faced beatings and violence because my dreams and way of thinking didn’t align with my husband’s.”
Her dowry was set at 500,000 Afghanis (around $5,800), a sum paid to her family by her husband’s. Despite her efforts to seek legal recourse, Ziba found herself trapped in a system that heavily favors men.
“When I went to court to seek a separation, they sided with him because of his connections,” she said. “The judge said a Muslim woman must have a male guardian, and since I didn’t, they forced me to return to my husband’s house.”
Ziba eventually fled to another province, where she now lives in precarious conditions with acquaintances. “If there were a place where women’s rights were respected, my situation—and that of many others—would be different,” she said.
Two years since university closures
This Thursday marks the second anniversary of the Taliban’s closure of universities for women, a move that further deepened the marginalization of Afghan women and girls. Nearly three years have passed since the Taliban prohibited girls from secondary education, leaving millions in limbo.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) estimates that at least 1.4 million girls have been denied access to secondary education since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021. This number has risen by 300,000 since April 2023, as more girls reach the age of 12, the cutoff for attending school under Taliban rules.
“Allow girls to study. Let girls pursue education,” one female university student said, calling on the Taliban to reverse their ban. “Girls, like men, have the right to education, the right to work, and the right to dream.”
An uncertain future for Afghanistan’s women
For many Afghan women, the Taliban’s education ban has become a source of profound mental and emotional distress. Several former university students described feeling hopeless, as their ambitions and futures have been taken away.
“The ban on education has destroyed our dreams,” one student said. “We’re left with no path forward.”
The ban has also increased the risk of forced and early marriages, as families grapple with societal pressure and limited opportunities for their daughters. Young women like Ziba are often treated as economic or social liabilities, especially when they can no longer pursue an education or career.
Ziba’s story is emblematic of a broader crisis. Without legal protections or access to education, Afghan women are increasingly vulnerable to forced marriages, domestic abuse, and systemic oppression.
“Girls in Afghanistan deserve better,” Ziba said. “They deserve the chance to dream, to study, and to live lives free from violence and despair.”
