“This preposterous decision is a flagrant violation of the right to education and freedom of movement and demonstrates the continued gender persecution against women and girls in Afghanistan,” the rights group said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“This preposterous decision is a flagrant violation of the right to education and freedom of movement and demonstrates the continued gender persecution against women and girls in Afghanistan,” the rights group said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
Human rights group Amnesty International has criticized the Taliban for imposing new restrictions on Afghan women’s education and movement.
The Taliban recently prevented women from visiting a prominent national park in Afghanistan and barred them from traveling to the United Arab Emirates for academic scholarships. The move drew condemnation from human rights advocates.
“This preposterous decision is a flagrant violation of the right to education and freedom of movement and demonstrates the continued gender persecution against women and girls in Afghanistan,” Amnesty International posted on social media.
Khalaf Ahmad al-Habtoor, founding chairman of Al Habtoor Group based in Dubai, said the Taliban prevented approximately 100 women from traveling to the UAE, where he had sponsored their university education.
He expressed his intention to sponsor female students for university education and had arranged for a plane to transport them to the UAE, but the plans were reportedly thwarted by the Taliban’s actions.
In an audio recording shared by Al Habtoor, one of the Afghan students explained that despite having a male chaperone, airport authorities in Kabul prevented them from boarding the flight.
The Taliban’s decision to close universities and high schools to female students in Afghanistan has raised concerns about women’s rights and access to education.
Meanwhile, another advocacy group, Human Rights Watch, called on the international community to put pressure on the Taliban to stop these violations of women’s rights.
The Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice recently closed the Band-e-Amir national park to women, citing concerns about improper dress.
Heather Barr, associate women’s rights director at HRW, expressed concerns about the decision to ban women from the park, calling it “cruel in a very intentional way.”
“Not content with depriving girls and women of education, employment and free movement, the Taliban also want to take from them parks and sport and now even nature,” she said.
Mohammad Khalid Hanafi, who leads the ministry, justified the ban, claiming that women were not wearing hijabs properly.
The ministry’s spokesman, Akef Muhajir, stated that the temporary closure of the Band-e-Amir national park to women was requested by local religious leaders due to concerns that women from outside the province were not adhering to the hijab dress code. He mentioned that other national parks in Afghanistan remain open to all visitors.
