As the Taliban’s decision to not let girls attend high schools prevails, many international bodies such as the United Nations and World Bank have condemned the move.
The World Bank recently made the decision to put four projects in Afghanistan worth $600 million dollars on hold over the Taliban's decision to not allow girls in high schools until further notice. The projects, under the Afghan Reconstruction Trust Fund, were going to be implemented by United Nations agencies in Afghanistan in the areas of education, agriculture, health, etc.
Since the World Bank's guidance requires all ARTF financed activities to support access and give equity to women and girls in Afghanistan, the Taliban's ban on girls attending high schools has made it difficult for them to continue.
“They are monsters to us,” said Karimullah Karimi, a student in Afghanistan who stated that such draconian concepts of not giving girls the right to education take them backward as a society.
Many Afghan girl students who are studying in universities are not happy with the decision as they believe the decision by the Taliban puts their future in jeopardy. “We anyway had limitations when it came to applying for jobs. As the eldest child of my parents, I have many responsibilities and it can’t happen that I sit idle without work and education,” said Khatira Azizi, who took a provisional admission in BBA from Andhra University in India but has not been able to attend any of the classes.
For some like Yasmin, “Taliban breaking the promise after months of deliberation,” hurts. “At first the situation was such that we were told to follow a dress code which we didn’t oppose, still they went back on what was promised to us,” said Yasmin.
The latest incident that took place in Dera Ismail Khan in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which borders Afghanistan, highlights a problem that concerns places of learning in the neighbouring country as well.
A teacher, at an all-girls religious school in the city of Peshawar, was killed by her female colleague and two students who accused her of blasphemy.
Another statistic that highlighted many children in Pakistan not being able to avail education, revealed that most of Pakistan’s total spending is on the public education sector but some 22 million children are still out of school. A non-profit Green Crescent Trust (GCT), which has been operating charitable schools for the past 28 years, conducted the research.
Many students took to Twitter in Pakistan to express their views on the dissolution of the National Assembly, equivalent to the Lok Sabha in India, after a no-confidence motion against Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was dismissed on Sunday.
“Pakistan, the constitution of Pakistan, and the law of the state should come first before any political affiliation,” said a tweet by law student Mishakaat.
Another tweet by Aftab Zehri, a law student in Pakistan, said, “The supremacy must not belong to a person who considers himself as law and I hope the Supreme Court of Pakistan will protect the constitution and maintain the rule of law.”
Some took the opportunity to make a quirky statement on the situation. “Now we have to study an extra chapter in Hamid khan's book 'Constitutional and Political History of Pakistan'. Congratulations to all CSS/PMS aspirants, Law, and political science students,” said Wasim Sajid in a tweet.
A general election will be held again in 90 days according to Prime Minister Imran Khan.
