US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at an event on Tuesday said that the Muslim world condemned Taliban’s restrictive bans on women’s higher education in Afghanistan.
“When the Taliban enacted restrictive bans on higher education for women, governments from across the Muslim world spoke up to condemn the Taliban’s decision, arguing that their actions were inhuman and contrary to Islamic believes,” Blinken said. “Scholars of Islamic law weighed in to condemn the Taliban’s actions, too, noting that the Quran gives the right to education to women and men alike.”
A number of religious scholars meanwhile said that the closure of schools for girls in the country is contrary to the teachings of Islam.
They said that the Taliban’s restrictions are rooted in the decisions made by its leaders who believe that “women should remain at home.”
“Women have the same right as men in Islam, such as the right to live, the right to work, education, the right to marriage, travel, economic activities, political activities, the right of presence at gatherings and others,” said Falz Hadi Wazin, a religious scholar and member of the union of Muslim world’s scholars.
A women’s rights activist said they are trying to prevent a generation from lacking access to education.
“This is a treason and a crime that the international community is still providing aid to the Taliban,” said Huda Khamosh, a women’s rights activist.
Taliban’s education ministry has said that two reasons have been behind delay in reopening secondary schools for girls and universities for women.
Taliban authorities have said that they are working to provide a legitimate and Sharia-based educational environment that matches Afghanistan’s culture.
Taliban’s education minister on Tuesday said that work on a new curriculum for universities has ended and that it will be announced in the near future.
