Afghan universities were declared off limits to women because female students were not following instructions including a proper dress code, the Taliban’s minister for higher education said Thursday.
The ban announced earlier this week is the latest restriction on women’s rights in Afghanistan ordered by the Taliban since their return to power in August last year.
It has drawn global outrage, including from Muslim nations who deemed it against Islam, and from the Group of Seven industrialized democracies who said the prohibition may amount to “a crime against humanity”.
But Neda Mohammad Nadeem, the minister for higher education in the Taliban government, insisted Thursday that women students had ignored Islamic instructions — including on what to wear or being accompanied by a male relative when travelling.
“Unfortunately after the passing of 14 months, the instructions of the Ministry of Higher Education of the Islamic Emirate regarding the education of women were not implemented,” Nadeem said in an interview on state television.
“They were dressing like they were going to a wedding. Those girls who were coming to universities from home were also not following instructions on hijab.”
Nadeem also said some science subjects were not suitable for women. “Engineering, agriculture and some other courses do not match the dignity and honour of female students and also Afghan culture,” he said
