KABUL: A decision to ban girls over the age of 12 from reading poems or singing at public events sparked anger in Afghanistan this week, with literary figures and campaigners saying it marked a backwards step on educational rights.
The Education Ministry’s directive comes as the government negotiates a power-sharing deal with the Taliban, and critics said the order recalled rules imposed by the hard-line Islamist group during its 1990s rule, when it banned girls from school.
“Forgive us God, human beings can be so cruel that they see even a child from a gender-based perspective,” tweeted author and poet Shafiqa Khpalwak, one of the country’s most renowned female writers.
Other social media users quoted from well-known poems and national songs as they criticized the ban, which further separates male and female students in the country’s already segregated schools.
Most Afghan schools have separate classes for boys and girls. Only a few city schools allow them to study together until the third grade.
Education Ministry spokeswoman Najeeba Aryan said many parents had asked for their daughters to be excluded from performing in public, while some students had complained that taking part in school events hindered their studies.
The country’s independent human rights commission rejected the government’s explanation, however, saying the freedom to express artistic skills was a fundamental right of all children.
“Any restrictions on the rights and freedoms of children violate the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” the commission said in a statement.
Women’s rights have improved dramatically in Afghanistan since the Taliban was ousted in 2001, with billions of dollars poured into the country since then to help create a more open and equal society.
The Education Ministry’s move has fueled fears that with the Taliban seeking to return to formal power, conservative elements of society will be emboldened to demand that women stay at home.
In a report to Congress this week, John Sopko, the special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction (SIGAR), warned that gains made by Afghan women and girls in fields including education and public life might not be protected.
The Taliban says it has changed and will let girls be educated, but fears remain that women’s rights will deteriorate if the group regains influence.
An estimated 7.3 million Afghan children attend school, including 2.4 million girls, according to data from the UN children’s agency, UNICEF.
But about 2.2 million girls are still out of school and less than 30% of women in Afghanistan are literate, according to UN agencies.
Curbs on girls reading, singing in public stir rights fears in Afghanistan
https://arab.news/5j64e
Curbs on girls reading, singing in public stir rights fears in Afghanistan
- Social media users quoted from well-known poems and national songs as they criticized the ban
- About 2.2 million girls are still out of school and less than 30% of women in Afghanistan are literate
Migrant entries into Spain drop over 40 percent in 2025
- EU border agency Frontex has also cited stricter preventive measures in departure countries, particularly Mauritania, as a key factor in the drop in migrant arrivals in the Canaries
MADRID: Migrant arrivals to Spain fell by over 40 percent in 2025, largely due to a sharp drop in arrivals along the perilous Atlantic route to the Canary Islands, official figures showed Friday.
Spain is one of the main entry points for people seeking a better life in Europe, and the country has faced pressure from European Union partners to curb irregular migration.
The interior ministry said 36,775 migrants entered Spain irregularly last year, the vast majority by sea, declining by 42.6 percent from 64,019 in 2024.
Arrivals to the Canary Islands dropped 62 percent to 17,788 in 2025, while arrivals in the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean — mainly from Algeria — rose 24.5 percent to 7,321.
Despite the overall decline, migrant deaths remained high.
Spanish NGO Caminando Fronteras said Monday that over 3,000 people died while trying to reach Spain in 2025, including 437 minors.
The group compiles its figures from families of migrants and official statistics of those rescued.
The drop in arrivals to the Canaries follows improved relations between Spain and Morocco, where many of the boats headed for the archipelago originate, since Madrid in 2022 backed Rabat’s autonomy plan for the disputed Western Sahara territory.
Both countries have increased maritime surveillance, intelligence sharing and crackdowns on smuggling networks, with Morocco intensifying coastal patrols.
Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska has called for “prevention at the source” to reduce irregular migration.
He has credited Spain’s cooperation with Mauritania and other African countries for the decline in arrivals to the Canaries.
“We can only reduce irregular migration by establishing comprehensive alliances based on trust and mutual benefit,” he said at a November meeting in Malta with EU interior and migration officials.
EU border agency Frontex has also cited stricter preventive measures in departure countries, particularly Mauritania, as a key factor in the drop in migrant arrivals in the Canaries.
In 2024, Mauritania signed a pact with the EU aimed at curbing dangerous maritime crossings in exchange for 210 million euros ($246 million) in funding.
Human rights groups, however, argue that such agreements can encourage abuse.
Human Rights Watch accused Mauritanian authorities in an August report of systematic abuses of migrants, including rape, torture and extortion at the hands of border personnel.
It said the violations worsened after Mauritania signed the migration pact with the EU.
Mauritania has rejected the accusations.
