UN calls for quality education for Afghan boys and girls

Richard Bennett, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, and other United Nations experts, said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has no “justification to deny the right to education, on any grounds, including religion or tradition” to girls in the country.

In a statement issued on Monday, the UN said that schools should “be reopening to girls across Afghanistan” when the new school year starts on Wednesday.

“Instead, it appears that for the second successive school year teenage girls will be banned from resuming their studies – making Afghanistan the only country in the world that forbids girls and young women from attending secondary school and places of higher education.”

According to the statement, being a state party to United Nations human rights treaties, “Afghanistan is obliged to respect, protect and fulfil the right to education without discrimination on the basis of gender or any other ground, irrespective of the authority in power.”

The UN noted that the IEA denied women and girls their right to education during their initial rule in the country between 1996 and 2001 and after seizing power for a second time in 2021, teenage girls were again denied their right to education.

“Both times, the ban on girls’ education was introduced as a temporary measure. However, during the first period the ban was not lifted and unless the Taliban fulfills its promises to reopen secondary schools and universities immediately, it must be concluded that they have no intention of doing so,” read the statement.

They also said that “even if the ban is reversed, we are concerned about the quality of education that will be provided for girls as well as boys. Disturbing reports from boys’ secondary schools highlight the replacement of qualified professional teachers with religious teachers, with significant changes in school curricula, and a limited provision of school subjects.”

They called for the IEA to immediately reopen all secondary schools and places of higher education to girls and young women.