Several families in Panjshir province’s Paryan district say Taliban forces insult and humiliate their schoolgirl daughters at checkpoints on their way to a religious school. They say Taliban forces at three checkpoints in the district question the girls about attending school and about traveling without a mahram, a male guardian. According to the families, some of these forces use abusive language to discourage the girls from continuing their education. In some cases, they add, students have also faced threats and physical harassment.
The families told the Hasht-e Subh Daily that this treatment has heightened their fears for their daughters’ safety on the way to school, prompting some families to stop sending their daughters altogether. They are calling on the Taliban to end the insults and lift the restrictions on schoolgirls’ movement.
Sharif (pseudonym) lives in the Kojan area of Paryan district. He says Taliban forces at checkpoints along the girls’ route insult and humiliate them simply for going to school. He adds that the forces are present at these checkpoints throughout the school day and harass the students with abusive language. According to Sharif, this treatment has sometimes escalated into threats.
“I have seen many times that Taliban forces stand at checkpoints along the girls’ route from the start of classes until the end of the school day,” Sharif says. “Some of them insult and humiliate the girls simply because they are going to school, and use foul language. This has caused enrollment to decline in schools, even those that only go up to sixth grade. In some cases, the harassment has escalated into warnings and physical abuse.”
Asad (pseudonym) is another resident of Panjshir. He says Taliban forces reprimand and insult schoolgirls for traveling to class without a mahram. He adds that the forces question families’ “honor” and “manhood” to discourage them from sending their daughters to school. According to Asad, this campaign against girls’ education is not confined to checkpoints; mullahs and Taliban-affiliated figures promote it in some mosques as well.
“They have repeatedly told the girls that it shows whether their fathers and brothers have honor and manhood, since they travel the streets without a mahram to reach their classes,” he says. “They insult them and ask what they want out of it, since no matter how much they study, they will end up married and staying home.”
Asad adds: “Even some mosques carry propaganda against girls’ education. Certain mullahs say girls should not attend school and liken the practice to a Jewish custom. In several mosques, Taliban-affiliated figures take to the pulpit to speak against freedom, education, and knowledge, discouraging people from sending their daughters to school.”
Sadeq (pseudonym), another resident of Paryan, says more than 600 girls travel from areas near and far to a single school for religious instruction, passing through three Taliban checkpoints along the way. He adds that the presence and surveillance of Taliban forces during the girls’ commute, along the road and near the river, has caused them distress and heightened their security concerns. According to Sadeq, if the situation continues, it could deepen families’ fears for their daughters’ safety and drive them to abandon their education altogether.
“These students travel every day from near and far to study religious lessons, and their route passes through three Taliban checkpoints,” Sadeq says. “Taliban forces know when the girls commute and station themselves along the road, at the checkpoints, and near the river, leaving the students feeling unsafe and fearful of being approached or harassed.”
These complaints come as the Taliban continue to bar girls from education beyond sixth grade and women from attending university.
In the latest instance, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, asked by a journalist about girls’ education, said: “This is not the time to discuss this issue.”
According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), at least 2.6 million girls in Afghanistan have been denied education beyond the primary level over the past five years. The agency has warned that excluding girls from education exposes them to greater risk of early marriage, gender-based violence, and abuse.
UNICEF has also said the consequences of the education ban extend beyond students themselves. By its assessment, Afghanistan risks losing about 20,000 female teachers and 5,400 health workers by 2030.
Meanwhile, a UNICEF analysis published in April estimated that the Taliban’s ban on girls’ education costs the Afghan economy roughly 84 million dollars a year, a toll that will grow annually if the restrictions remain in place.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
دختران دانشآموز مدرسه دینی در پریان؛ طالبان در ایستهای بازرسی توهین میکنند
