“Do not take our right to education from us!” Afghan Students Demand Transfer As Taliban Advances

KUALA LUMPUR, 19.8.2021 – Students of the war-torn Afghanistan are demanding to relocate to universities in safer provinces in an effort to continue their education. The Taliban’s deadly assaults on major cities left millions of civilians – and students – fearing for their lives and safety.

Image source: Reuters

On 12 August, cities like Kandahar and Herat were taken over by Taliban forces. Lashkargah fell on Friday, and Fayzabad, Ghazni, and Taluqan followed suit.

When the capital city Kabul fell into their hands on 15 August, the Afghanistan President, Ashraf Ghani fled the country.

The fall of the Afghan government shattered students’ prospects of higher education as Taliban forces continue to cement their power on the helpless.

Afghanistan has never seen such a huge surge of girls who made it in higher education than in recent years.

However, the impending war delivered a major blow and studying became impossible – universities, schools, and other higher education institutions in many provinces and cities were shuttered due to threats of war.

As their last hope, many female students protested on the streets of Kabul.

“It was our hope and dream to stand side-by-side with our brothers to rebuild our country, help the children with education and become ‘angels of salvation’ for the sick and wounded,” Shagufta Amiri, a student in the Logar province, commented.

The students rallied in front of the Presidential Palace in Kabul’s green zone, demanding a relocation to higher education institutions away from the war, in the safer capital city. They also protested against the collapsing security situation.

Among the slogans chanted were: “Transfer is our right! Do not let the war close the gates of knowledge on us! Do not send us to war-torn areas! Do not make us victims of these wars! Do not take our right to education from us!”

Tahmina, a medical student at Khost University who joined the protest said, “All provinces have security problems, especially the provinces where we [protesting students] are. The provinces are far away, we cannot continue our studies there with peace of mind.”

Parents are also increasingly worried about their children’s safety and future.

“The security situation is not good and we cannot send our girls there,” a concerned mother of a protesting student from the Nangarhar province stressed.

When addressed on the issue, Hamed Obaidi, spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Higher Education said: “The doors of the Ministry of Higher Education are open to students and it is our duty to solve the students’ problems.”

“Therefore, our suggestion to the dear students is that the Ministry of Higher Education of Afghanistan is obliged to listen to the demands of the students and, as much as possible, in accordance with the laws and regulations, address their problems,” he added.