After previously announcing that Afghan female students would be allowed to continue their university education with a ban on mixing genders, the Taliban has opened schools today, Saturday, only for male students and male educators. The Ministry of Education in the interim government announced that all male students from grades six to twelve and all male teachers must resume classes across Afghanistan starting today.
**Neglect of Girls**
However, the statement posted on Facebook yesterday, Friday, did not mention girls of that age, according to the Associated Press. The lack of reference to girls has stirred outrage in Afghan society and reignited fears that have been simmering since the group took power and entered Kabul in mid-August 2021 over the possibility of the Taliban imposing restrictions on girls and women. Notably, the Taliban has asked women in some provinces to refrain from resuming their jobs, except for those working in health sectors, hospitals, and education.
**Haunting Memories of the Past**
Although the group allowed girls in grades one through six to resume their studies, its historical record of suppressing women in the 1990s has revived memories of the past and awakened fears among millions of Afghan women. It has also recalled the Taliban's previous rule when girls and women were barred from education and work.
**Abolition of the Ministry of Women's Affairs**
Moreover, it seems the Taliban is not only ignoring girls' access to schools but has also abolished the Ministry of Women's Affairs, replacing it with the Ministry of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, a move reminiscent of its first rule over two decades ago. Workers were seen placing a sign bearing the phrase "Ministry of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice" on the building of the Ministry of Women's Affairs in the capital, Kabul. Meanwhile, social media has been flooded with images showing employees of the ministry protesting outside the building over the loss of their jobs, as they reported.
