Following domestic and international reactions to the closure of schools for girls above the sixth grade, the Assembly of Religious Scholars in Afghanistan issued a statement calling for the lifting of all restrictions on girls' education and the reopening of girls' schools.
The religious scholars called the education of girls a fundamental right and urged the Islamic Emirate to reopen girls' schools as soon as possible.
“According to the Sharia rules, a woman has full rights to study Sharia and modern sciences alongside a man. That is why we call on the Islamic Emirate to open the doors of education for girls and remove all obstacles in this regard,” the statement reads, according to TOLOnews.
“Girls have the right to education, and the way should be paved for them. According to Islam, every Muslim has the right to education and it should be provided to him or her,” said a religious scholar in an interview with TOLOnews.
“According to the ruling of Islam, there are no obstacles blocking the education of girls, and learning is the presumed right of every person, and girls should be given this right to be educated,” said Faiz Mohammad Zaland, a university lecturer.
Meanwhile, Ms. Yvonne Ridley, deputy of the European Muslim Union, in an exclusive interview with TOLOnews, expressed concern over the situation of girls' education in Afghanistan.
She said that during her meeting with the officials of the Islamic Emirate she asked for the reopening of secondary and high schools for girls as soon as possible.
“The senior girls’ schools opened then closed and this is something that I have raised with the Taliban leadership. So, they promised a great deal at a historic press conference that they gave when they assured the world that women’s rights would be observed,” she said.
In the meantime, in Berlin a number of Afghans living in Germany as well as German citizens protested against the closing of girls' schools above the sixth grade and demanded the reopening of schools.
More than two hundred days have passed since the closure of girls' schools above the sixth grade in Afghanistan. The decision was met with widespread domestic and international reactions, and a recent meeting of envoys in Europe which included US and UK representatives issued a statement saying that the scope of continued aid to Afghanistan will be conditional on reopening schools for girls.
