The prolonged closure of girls’ schools in Afghanistan is causing psychological problems among girls as many of them remain worried about their future and are going through constant mental stress, experts said. Since coming to power last year, the Taliban has not allowed girls above grade six to attend schools.

“When someone likes something and is prevented from doing it, it causes mental stress and anxiety,” Jamasada Rasa, an Afghan psychologist, was quoted as saying by TOLOnews. “The girls who like to be educated and are not allowed to engage, it causes them mental pressure.”

Despite calls from civil society groups and religious organizations in favor of girls' education, Afghanistan’s ultra-conservative Islamist group hasn't allowed senior girls to access education. However, within the group’s rank and file, some sections are reportedly in favor of resuming schools for girls.

In the last two decades, during the tenure of the erstwhile democratic Afghan government, the country had made remarkable progress in socio-economic domains, including in girls' education and women’s right to work. Much of this progress has been reversed now with Taliban rule.

“I am very disappointed that the schools were not reopened. It is the right of every girl to have access to education,” Saeeda, a grade 10 girl student, was quoted as saying by TOLOnews. With the arrival of the Taliban rule, her dream of becoming a doctor appears impossible now. 

Tragically, the trend of early and forced marriages is growing across Afghanistan, aided by the ongoing ban on girls' education and escalating humanitarian crisis. There are several reports indicating the selling of children, particularly girls, by desperate parents.

“The banning of girls from going to secondary and high school will cause a surge in forced marriage,” Bahauddin Baqayi, a sociologist, told TOLOnews. The Taliban regime, which has failed to win recognition from the international community, remains reluctant to open schools, despite international pressure, the latest being from the United States.

(SAM)