Citation

Qaderi S, Miranda AV, Odey GO, Musa SS, Sy Lim LT, Vicente CR, Obnial JC, Ekpenyong A, Negida ASAE, Ahmadi A, Ntacyabukura B, Wong BLH, Shomuyiwa DO, Manirambona E, Ogunkola IO, Lopez JCF, Buban JMA, Chamlagai LK, Ukor NA, Vicerra PMM, Adebisi YA, Elhadi YAM, Lucero-Prisno Iii DE. Public Health Chall. 2023; 2(2): e80.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2023, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/puh2.80

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The Taliban's decision to ban women's and girl's education in Afghanistan paints a bleak picture of the future of Afghan women [1]. It is a direct violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which states that everyone has the right to education [2]. Deprivation of education is known to negatively affect other human rights, such as the rights to health and freedom. We, as health journal editors from across six continents, call for urgent international actions to restore justice and protect human rights in Afghanistan.

The Taliban's takeover in August 2021 added massive pressure to the already overwhelmed health system of Afghanistan [3]. Afghan women and girls have been disproportionately affected, as the Taliban adhere to an ultra-fundamentalist interpretation of Islam that severely restricts women's freedom of movement and access to healthcare, education, and employment. Although the Taliban have repeatedly claimed that they would protect the rights of girls and women, they have in fact done the opposite. Some of their most drastic restrictions have been around education. In March 2022, the Taliban banned girls from returning to secondary schools [5]. This was followed by another decision in December 2022 to indefinitely ban women and girls from pursuing higher education and work [1]. Years of progress were reversed overnight, with Afghanistan once again becoming the only country in the world that actively prevents girls from receiving an education...

Language: en