Afghan girls turn to online learning, defying Taliban education ban 

washington — 

Saliha began taking online classes aft she mislaid anticipation of returning to schoolhouse to prosecute her imagination of becoming a doc successful Afghanistan.

She was successful ninth people erstwhile U.S.-led forces withdrew from the state and the Taliban seized powerfulness successful August 2021, banning girls' secondary education.

"I utilized to imagination of finishing schoolhouse and going to university," said Saliha, 18, who did not privation her household sanction to beryllium revealed for information reasons. "But now, considering each the limitations, my anticipation is conscionable to person immoderate benignant of education, whether via online courses oregon underground school."

With the Taliban's prohibition connected secondary acquisition successful its 4th year, immoderate Afghan girls and young women similar Saliha are looking for an alternate root of education.

According to the United Nations, much than 1.4 cardinal girls successful Afghanistan person been affected by the ban.

Under the Taliban, women are barred from receiving a assemblage education, moving with authorities and nongovernmental organizations, and going to nationalist places, specified arsenic parks, gyms and quality salons.

Like different Afghan girls and young women, Saliha and her 4 sisters indispensable stay astatine home, but, she said, she is determined to proceed her education.

"I saved each penny to acquisition a machine and wage for the internet," she said, to proceed learning online.

But not each Afghan girls and women tin spend to instrumentality online courses.

In 2022, lone 6% of women had net entree successful Afghanistan, compared with 25% of men, according to Gallup.

Flexibility required

Pashtana Durrani, laminitis of LEARN Afghanistan, a integer schoolhouse web successful the country, told VOA that due to the fact that of Afghans' varying degrees of access, her enactment provides antithetic acquisition models.

"A one-size-fits-all attack does not enactment successful Afghanistan. The cardinal is being flexible and responsive to each community," said Durrani.

In summation to offering online classes, Durrani's enactment runs underground schools successful six provinces, educating immoderate 700 girls.

But, she said, determination is simply a request to enactment with section elders to guarantee much girls be these classes.

Meetra Alokozay, enforcement manager of Sahar Education, a nonprofit moving to empower women successful Afghanistan, told VOA it was indispensable that men enactment pistillate household members to be either online oregon underground classes.

"We privation men to enactment their daughters and sisters successful pursuing an education," said Alokozay.

But, she said, the Taliban's instrumentality to powerfulness affected the acquisition strategy successful Afghanistan.

UNESCO reported that the fig of girls and boys enrolled successful superior schoolhouse dropped from 6.8 cardinal successful 2019 to 5.7 cardinal successful 2022.

The prohibition has already taken a toll connected girls and women.

A superior schoolhouse teacher successful Kabul, who requested anonymity for fearfulness of reprisals, told VOA that aft the Taliban's takeover successful 2021, parents withdrew immoderate of her students from schoolhouse adjacent earlier they finished the sixth grade.

"Shortly after, they were some joined off. I don't retrieve their nonstop age, but I bash cognize they were nary older than 13 years," added the teacher.

Mental wellness problems

A study by exiled Afghan quality rights watchdog Rawadari this period said that girls successful Afghanistan are experiencing a deterioration successful intelligence wellness and an summation successful termination attempts, successful summation to being forced into marriage.

"As a effect of the prohibition connected women's education, unit against women increased, which has made beingness hard for girls and women" successful Afghanistan, the study said.

Sahar Education's Alokozay said, "Raising consciousness astir what's going connected successful Afghanistan is crucial. Many people, adjacent successful the U.S., are unaware of the situation."

Saliha urged the planetary assemblage "not to permission Afghan girls alone."

"Think astir us, constitute astir us, springiness america opportunities to learn, and assistance america combat this system," she said. "If 1 doorway closes, assistance america find another."

This communicative originated successful VOA's Afghan Service.