Afghan Women Have Been Barred From Working or Attending Kabul University

The new Taliban-appointed chancellor, Mohammad Ashraf Ghairat, has announced that Afghanistan women will no longer be allowed to work or attend Kabel University. On Monday, Sept, 27,2021, the chancellor proclaimed that women cannot attend or work at the university “until an Islamic environment is created.”

Via his Twitter account, Ghairat stated “Islam First.” He believes that women should not be allowed to work or further their educations “As long as real Islamic environment is not provided for all.”

Earlier that day the Taliban-appointed chancellor tweeted that Kabul University has been working on a plan to accommodate female students. However, he did not mention when said plan would be complete.

Image by ResoluteSupportMedia (Flickr CC0)

According to his tweet about the situation, they are hashing out “a plan for male lecturers to be able to teach female students from behind a curtain in the classroom.”

There has been a lot of criticism over Gharirat’s lack of credentials. To which Ghairat tweeted that he felt he was “fully qualified to hold this chair.”

On September 28, the Taliban-appointed chancellor revealed his vision for Kabul University. He wants the university to become a hub for “all real Muslims around the world to gather, research and study [as well as] Islamicize the modern science.”

Gharirat further wrote that the university will welcome “pro-Muslim scholars and students to benefit from a real Islamic environment.”

The Taliban has a history of treating women as second-class citizens. They have subjected women to forced marriages and violence; making them almost invisible in Afghanistan.

Back in August, the Taliban reclaimed Kabul after the United States pulled out their forces. After they reclaimed the capital the Taliban’s leadership claimed they were not going to enforce such harsh conditions this time around. However, they have yet to keep these promises.

Many people have become extremely worried about the lack of female representation in the newly formed interim government.

Written by Sheena Robertson

Source:

CNN: Afghan women barred from teaching or attending Kabul University; by Karen Smith and Tara John

Top and Featured Image Courtesy of Michael Foley’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License

Inset Image Courtesy of ResoluteSupportMedia’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License