The new ban declared by the Taliban adds to the ban on female students from studying at universities
The Taliban have an agenda that they are fulfilling step by step despite outside criticism and pressure. 24 hours after announcing the suspension of women’s access to universities, the Ministry of Economic Affairs issued a statement banning non-governmental organizations from employing women. The reason given by the Islamists was that proper dress code is not respected in the offices of these organizations.
The initial reaction came from organizations such as Save the Children, CARE and the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), who decided to suspend their programs in the country. “Without the women leading our response, we would not have been able to reach millions of Afghans in need since August 2021,” read the joint statement they released after learning of the Taliban announcement. Only in the NRC there are 470 women who work every day and without them “we can’t operate”, general secretary Jan Egeland complained.
Initially, United Nations agencies are left out of the regulation, as it will apply to groups under the coordination body for humanitarian organizations in Afghanistan, known as ACBAR. That body does not include the UN, but includes more than 180 local and international NGOs, which currently play a key role in channeling aid to civilians in a time of great need.
Not only are the Islamists unconcerned about criticism, but they warned officials in countries like the United States that “we will not allow anyone to talk nonsense or make threats about our leaders’ decisions under the heading of humanitarian aid,” in the words of the movement’s spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid.
This order for humanitarian organizations came amid protests organized at some universities in the country after women were banned from entering. The Taliban did not hesitate to call on Mullah Omar, the movement’s first major leader, to explain these latest decisions after initially announcing that they were not the same as in the late 1990s. “We are not against women’s education and we are not forbidding them to be educated. Women must be educated according to the rules and conditions of Sharia (Islamic law). They must study according to Sharia,” is the sentence of Mullah Omar, which the Taliban conveyed through the media.
The clearest message to contextualize the moment came from the Ministry of Education, saying that “religion is more important to us than national interests, and if it were not for this, we would have extradited Osama Laden to the United States. in 2001 without going to war. The messages are clear from a group in which the strongest sector is in the lead, a sector that has grown strong against those who were present during the negotiating process with the United States in Doha.
Source: La Verdad
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