"The most difficult situation in my life is the loss of education." Afghan girls are facing mental stress due to the closure of universities, Daryo Correspondent in Afghanistan reports.
According to the official letter of the "Taliban" Ministry of Higher Education, starting from December 2022, girls in Afghanistan are barred from entering universities.
Image: Afghan women and girls protest outside the Education Ministry in Kabul in March 2022, demanding that high schools be reopened for girls. Source: Getty Images
The female students had hoped that the universities would reopen for them at the beginning of the academic year, 2023. However, they were met with disappointment when that did not happen, and many are suffering from stress and anxiety as a result.
Hasiba successfully passed the exams and entered university, but she was forced to stop studying because of the Taliban’s decree to close the doors of the universities. She says: "I'm not in a good mood at home right now because I have nothing, no goals, and no motivation. I experienced depression. The hardest part of my life is missing out on education, I'm under a lot of pressure and worry constantly, and the uncertainty of the future makes me afraid".
Few families in Afghanistan support their daughters' pursuit of education. For this reason, several girls fought with their families in order to continue their studies. Risola is one of those girls who fought against her family's wishes and managed to continue her education, but now she is in this ambiguous circumstance, not knowing when or even if she will continue her studies, and is confused.
Risola, a student from Balkh region, says: "These days I'm suffering, I can't sleep at night. Even the smallest thing makes me nervous, I'm out of patience. I know that this nervous tension caused by the closure of universities will have a negative effect on me and thousands of other girls who do not know what the future holds for them." She says that she has nothing to do but sit at home, and every month she waits to hear the good news that the universities will open again, but unfortunately, this dream is not coming true.
Some of these students have turned to psychotherapy centers, seeking psychiatric help.
Haseina was also a student, and successfully passed the entrance exams and entered Balkh University. She says: "When the universities were closed, I struggled with my mental health. I waited more than 6 months for the doors of the university to open. I take sedatives every day."
On the other hand, a number of private universities in Balkh region report that their institutions are in crisis due to the decrease in the number of students.
They added that due to economic problems, among other reasons, the enrollment of students in private higher education institutions has decreased. The Union of Higher Education Institutions and Private Universities reported that the number of students at private universities in Afghanistan has decreased by 40 percent. The union cited economic problems and the Taliban government's ban on girls' education as the main factors behind the drop in enrollment.
An employee of a private higher education institution, who did not want to disclose his name, said that the number of students has decreased recently, and therefore the educational process has slowed down. According to him, if the situation continues in this way, the doors of many private higher educational institutions may be closed soon due to lack of funds.
“With the arrival of the "Taliban" government, the girls' departments were partially closed. Our students have many problems, we are also facing financial difficulties," he said.
Asadulla Nadim, an expert on political and social issues, said in an interview to "Daryo" that if the rule of the "Taliban" continues, there may be a shortage of female doctors in hospitals and clinics in Afghanistan.
A number of Afghan families were forced to flee the country so that their daughters could continue their studies.
Ferozan Khalilyar, a resident of Afghanistan's Faryab province, said he left Afghanistan to raise and educate his children and lives outside Afghanistan.
When the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan, not only did they limit access to universities, but their actions deprived women of all their human rights, and today all women in Afghanistan suffer from mental oppression and hope for a brighter future.
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