Tuesday, his brother and the United Nations reported that the founder of a project that advocated for girls’ education in Afghanistan has been detained by Taliban authorities in Kabul.
Afghanistan was the only country to ban secondary schooling for girls last year under the Taliban.
Monday, Matiullah Wesa, the president of PenPath and an advocate for girls’ education, was arrested in Kabul, according to a tweet from the UN mission in Afghanistan.
Wesa’s brother verified his arrest, stating that he was detained outside a mosque after Monday evening prayers.
“Matiullah had just completed his prayers and was leaving the mosque when he was stopped by men in two vehicles,” Samiullah Wesa reported to AFP. When Matiullah requested their identification documents, they beat him and forcibly removed him.
Matiullah’s organization, which campaigns for schools and distributes literature in rural areas, has long been committed to informing village elders of the significance of girls’ education.
Since the ban on secondary education for females, Wesa has continued to visit remote areas to garner local support.
“We are counting down the hours, minutes, and seconds until girls’ institutions open. As the new school year began in Afghanistan last week. He tweeted, “The damage that school closures cause is irreversible and incontestable.”
If the schools remain closed, we will continue our protests with the local community.
The Taliban have imposed a strict interpretation of Islam since their return to power in August 2021. Following the withdrawal of US and NATO forces supporting previous administrations.
Leaders of the Taliban, who have also prohibited women from attending university, have repeatedly asserted that they will reopen schools for girls once certain conditions are fulfilled.
They claim that they lack the resources and time to redesign the curriculum along Islamic lines.
From 1996 to 2001, the Taliban promised to build girls’ schools but never did.
It is believed that the ban on girls’ education was issued by Afghanistan’s supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada. And his ultra-conservative advisors, who are extremely skeptical of modern education — particularly for women.
In addition to provoking international outrage, it has also provoked criticism from within the movement. With some senior government officials in Kabul and many rank-and-file members opposing the decision.
Rural Afghanistan’s conservative and patriarchal society is slowly recognising the benefits of girls’ schooling.
