UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday regretted Taliban’s announcement suspending education for young girls in Afghanistan, saying it is deeply damaging for the country. In a statement, Guterres urged the de facto authorities to open schools for all students without any further delay.
“I deeply regret today’s announcement by Taliban authorities in Afghanistan that girls’ education from the sixth grade has been suspended until further notice,” the UN chief said. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said in a tweet that it deplores the announcement by the Taliban that they are further extending their indefinite ban on female students above the 6th grade being permitted to return school.
The UN chief said that the start of the new school year has been anticipated by all students, girls and boys, and parents and families. The de facto authorities’ failure to reopen schools for girls above the sixth grade, despite repeated commitments, is a profound disappointment and deeply damaging for Afghanistan. The denial of education not only violates the equal rights of women and girls to education, it also jeopardises the country’s future in view of the tremendous contributions by Afghan women and girls, he said.
UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said millions of secondary-school girls around Afghanistan woke up hopeful that they will be able to go back to schools and resume their learning. It did not take long for their hopes to be shattered. She said that the de facto authorities’ decision to delay the return to school for girls from Grade 7 to 12 is a major setback for girls and their futures.
“With this decision, an entire generation of adolescent girls is being denied their right to education and being robbed of the opportunity to gain the skills they need to build their futures,” she said. The UNICEF chief urged the de facto authorities to honour their commitment to girls’ education without any further delays and appealed to community leaders in every corner of Afghanistan to support the education of adolescent girls.
All children deserve to be in school. This is the surest way to put the country on a surer path towards the peace and prosperity that the people of Afghanistan deserve, she said. United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo tweeted that she is extremely concerned and disappointed over the reported decision by the Taliban to keep girls out of high schools and classes above grade six. “This is not only a denial of fundamental rights. It goes against the facto authorities’ own commitments. Open the schools for all,” she added.
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