Women's Stories

Education and the Women of Afghanistan:
Sometimes freedom and rights are recognized in writing, but not in practice
By Lisa Zalovick

It is a quiet Saturday at noon in the Kingstowne Library in Northern Virginia, USA; you could hear a pin drop. It is amazing that even though this house of knowledge and wonder is chocked full of people - people of all ages, sizes, genders and backgrounds, the code of respectful silence is honored by all. The shared freedom to gain knowledge from the volumes of history stored in this place of enlightenment is an often-overlooked privilege.

Take a look around. There is a teenaged girl wearing jeans and a collegiate sweatshirt, sitting cross-legged in the middle of an aisle; her face is buried in a book parading the history of rock and roll music. There is a mother squatting in a too-small chair in the center of the reading rug, pointing out pictures to her toddler. In a cozy leather chair in the far corner of the room, a grey-haired, retired school teacher sits and peruses books on gardening and landscaping. She is excited about her future and having a bit more free time on her hands.

I wonder if the teenaged girl has ever thought about how fortunate she is to live in a country where she can visit the library, attend the school of her choice, and borrow or buy any book that piques her interest. Has the mother of the small toddler ever wondered what it would feel like to be forced to sneak a picture book under her dress just so she can share it with her eager child? Does the retired schoolteacher realize that she would never have had a career imparting knowledge to her students if she lived in a land where she, herself, would not be allowed to attend school or receive an education?

We glance at the world map in the library and spy far away lands. We learn the names of every continent and every country, but do we truly have any idea of the vast differences in lifestyles that exist across the massive oceans? Take a fresh look at that map, and move your eyes eastward, across the United States, across the Atlantic Ocean, and through the Mediterranean Sea, into the Asian country of Afghanistan. The vision of a leisurely Saturday afternoon in a local library, where women are free to drink in all sorts of knowledge and wisdom for the betterment of their lives is as foreign to the women of Afghanistan as the blatant violation of the human rights of Afghan women and girls is to American women.

When the Taliban took control of their country in the fall of 1996, Afghan women were among the first to feel the impact of what, for many long years, would wreak havoc on their beloved homeland. While conditions were never completely favorable to women and children in this male-dominated country, at the very least, some women were afforded the privilege of attending school, having access to books and information, and
in some rare instances, allowed to gain the skills necessary to provide for their families. Although women were granted equal rights by their Constitution, for centuries, the leaders of the land had denied them these rights.

In the early 1900's, during the reign of King Amanullah Khan, education became a priority in Afghanistan. By 1935, education for girls, at least on the primary level, was compulsory, and offered free of charge. Mullahs or Islamic teachers, who taught the basics of reading, writing, arithmetic and religion, staffed the schools. Often, these teachers, of whom many had no higher education, were simply filling a position, passing along information from curriculums provided to guide their students. It wasn't until 1961, that women were permitted to attend a university or any school of higher education. Although their Constitution stated that women were allowed rights equal to that of men, their equality was recognized only in written form, not in practice.

By 1975, eight years of primary and four years of secondary education were required for girls as well as boys, but all that changed with the tyrannical reign of the Taliban beginning in 1995-96. While these abusive insurgents overran their country for more than half of a decade, women were once again exploited and their rights denied. They were forced to retreat into the background of society, stripped once again of the freedom they had painstakingly earned.

Schools and libraries were burned to the ground. Books were destroyed. Women were raped, beaten, and in many instances killed, for simply attempting to survive. The chaos that ensued between 1996 and 2001 left over 40,000 war widows in the capital of Kabul, alone. With the country in such turmoil, these widows, having an average of 7.5 children per household and little or no education, had no way of providing for their offspring. It wasn't until the Taliban was overthrown in 2001 that women could even begin to think about pursuing education again.

Much still remains to be done in Afghanistan to restore women to their rightful place in society, and although the rule of the Taliban has come to an end, there are still many hurdles to navigate for Afghan women to feel safe in pursuing their dreams of self-betterment.

Organizations such as The World Bank, who has an office in Kabul, are busy with initiatives and programs that bring the education and training of Afghan women to the forefront. The World Bank believes that "fast access to information will play a critical role in the rehabilitation and advancement of the country's education system." High frequency radio communication equipment has been made available to each of Afghanistan's 32 provincial education offices by The World Bank Organization to "improve their school monitoring activities and strengthen communications with the Ministry of Education in Kabul." The Bank is also "supporting the Ministry's efforts to improve its management capabilities and design new education policies for the country."

Global awareness of the need to assist the women of Afghanistan in fighting for their freedom and rights seems to be at an all time high. Many other organizations, like the UN Girls' Education Initiative, the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, the Afghanistan Women's Educational Centre (AWEC), Save the Children Alliance, UNICEF, and numerous other organizations, are key in realizing the future success in bringing education to Afghan women.

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