Sher Muhammad Abbas Stanikzai, deputy foreign minister in the Taliban government, urged his country’s authorities to reopen schools for girls after grade six, saying there is nothing in Islamic teachings that forbids the education of girls.
Stanikzai’s address was delivered today, Tuesday, during a large Taliban rally in Kabul.
“Education should be provided to everyone without any discrimination. Women should have access to education, in Islam there is no ban on the education of girls,” Stanikzai said.
“Let’s not let others create a gap between the government and the people. If there are technical problems, they must be resolved and girls’ schools should be opened,” he added.
The deputy foreign minister is seen as a rare moderate voice amid the crackdown imposed by the Taliban since seizing the reins in August 2021.
These measures include keeping girls out of secondary and secondary schools despite initial promises to the contrary. The movement requires women to cover themselves from head to toe in public, showing only their eyes.
The Taliban said they were working on a plan to reopen high schools for girls, but did not specify a timeline.
Source: Associated Press