Jakarta –
Muslim-majority countries including Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the Gulf states have criticized the Taliban government’s decision in Afghanistan to ban women from attending university courses.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry said the Taliban group has an obligation to implement Islamic principles regarding women’s rights.
In a written statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said that “the policy of banning women from attending educational activities in universities is a surprise in all Islamic countries”.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the ban was “un-Islamic and inhumane”.
He urged the Taliban government to reverse its actions.
“Is there a disadvantage for women getting an education? What is the loss for Afghanistan? Yes [pelarangan ini] allowed by Islam? Our religion, Islam, is not against education; on the contrary, it promotes education and science,” Cavusoglu said.
Saudi Arabia and Turkey join the list of Muslim countries that have strongly criticized the Taliban.
Earlier, Qatar, known as a mediator between the United States and the Taliban, also criticized the Taliban’s actions.
In addition to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States, the G7 foreign ministers also strongly criticized the move by the Taliban, which entered into force a few days ago.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said the Taliban “systematically adopt policies that persecute gender, which amount to crimes against humanity”.
The Taliban group said the ban was taken because “female students are not wearing Islamic dress and there has been interaction between male and female students”.
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Getty Images The capital’s female students – Kabul University and other campuses will reopen in the spring after the Taliban takeover.
Taliban security forces barred hundreds of female students from entering campuses on Wednesday (21/12), a day after the ruling group in Afghanistan banned women from studying at universities.
Videos circulating on social media show female students huddled in front of campus cheering each other on. Dozens of medical students emerged from classrooms in solidarity in the cities of Kandahar and Jalalabad.
The Ministry of Higher Education said the ban was in effect until further notice. This should go into effect soon.
This policy further restricted girls’ access to formal education, as they were already barred from most secondary schools.
A Kabul University student told the BBC he had been crying since hearing the news.
Three months ago, thousands of young and adult women sat the university entrance exams across Afghanistan.
However, the subjects they could study were severely limited, with veterinary science, engineering, business and agriculture banned altogether, and journalism severely curtailed.
Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan last year, universities have implemented gender segregation in classrooms and lobbies.
Female students may only be taught by senior female or male faculty.
In response to the latest ban, a female student told the BBC she thought the Taliban were afraid of women and their power.
“They destroyed the only bridge that could connect me to my future,” she said.
“How can I react? I thought I could learn and change my future or bring light into my life, but they destroyed it.”
Afghanistan’s education sector has been hit hard after the Taliban came to power and there was an exodus of trained academics following the US-led withdrawal of foreign troops last year.
Another woman spoke of “too much trouble” to simply try to continue her education after the Taliban came to power.
He told the BBC: ‘We are fighting with our brothers, with our fathers, with society and even with the government.
“We went through a difficult situation just to be able to continue our training.
“At that time at least I was happy to graduate from university and fulfill my dream. But now how can I convince myself?”
Afghanistan’s economy has relied largely on foreign aid in recent decades, but aid agencies have cut some – and in some cases completely – support to the education sector after the Taliban refused to allow girls to attend secondary schools.
Many teachers have not been paid for months.
This latest move is likely to raise further concern in the international community.
Getty Images Female students at a private university attend a graduation ceremony in Kandahar, Afghanistan on Nov. 27, 2021.
The United States and other Western countries have made improving women’s education in Afghanistan a condition of formal recognition of the Taliban government.
Deputy US Ambassador to the UN Robert Wood condemned the latest actions of the Taliban.
“The Taliban cannot expect to become a legitimate member of the international community until it respects the rights of all Afghans,” he said.
“Especially the human rights and fundamental freedoms of women and girls”.
In November, authorities banned women from visiting parks in the capital Kabul, arguing that Islamic law was not observed there.
The issue that divided the Taliban
Analysis by Yogita Limaye, BBC South Asia Correspondent
In the past month, there has been speculation that the Taliban government will ban university education for women.
A student had already predicted this a few weeks ago. “One day we’ll wake up and they’ll say girls can’t go to college,” she said.
So while many in Afghanistan probably expected this decision to be made sooner or later, it still comes as a shock.
Last month, women were banned from parks, gyms and swimming pools. In March this year, the Taliban government failed to fulfill its commitment to open secondary schools for girls.
From conversations with Taliban leaders over the past year, it’s clear that there is disagreement within the Taliban on the issue of girls’ education.
Unofficially, some Taliban members have repeatedly stated that they want and are committed to girls getting an education.
Girls were allowed to sit their secondary school leaving exams two weeks ago in 31 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces, even though they have not been able to attend school for more than a year.
It had given a glimmer of hope, which has now faded.
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