Afghan women are fighting for their right to education. (AFP file photo)
Shocking footage has emerged from Afghanistan showing a Taliban official beating female students protesting their right to education after being denied entry to a university for not wearing a burqa. A report in Independent said the official seen with a whip on the students belonged to the Ministry of Vice and Virtue of the Taliban government. The incident took place outside the gates of Badakhshan University in northeast Afghanistan on Sunday, the paper said in its report.
The video shows a Taliban government official chasing the students and forcing them to disperse. The dozens of students banged on the university gates to give authorities permission to enter.
Taliban beat female students
Even though the girls are wearing hijabs, why aren’t they allowed to enter the university?
The #Taliban wants to close the universities for #Female students.Today, the Taliban did not allow female students to attend university. #Badakhshanpic.twitter.com/xXmZ8eDolH
— Panjshir_Province (@PanjshirProvin1) October 30, 2022
Since taking over the reins in August last year, the Taliban have imposed severe restrictions on women’s freedom of movement, expression, work opportunities and clothing. They have also banned girls from school from sixth grade.
The Taliban’s Ministry of Vice and Virtue has ordered women to dress appropriately in public — either a niqab (a veil that covers the head and face, but not the eyes) or a burqa. But the women have protested this order, chanting slogans of “access to education”.
Naqibullah Qazizada, the university’s president, said the terror group’s violence and illegal behavior towards the students will be addressed and the student’s request granted, according to Khamma Press.
According to Human Rights Watch, the Taliban’s response was brutal from the start, beating demonstrators, disrupting protests, and arresting and torturing journalists covering the demonstrations. The Taliban also banned unauthorized protests.
In particular, the human rights situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated since the collapse of the Afghan government and the return of the Taliban in August last year.
Last week, citing a report by Gallup’s Law and Order Index, local media said it has been ranked as the “least safe” country in the world.
The survey evaluated about 120 countries based on the safety and security of the country’s citizens.
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