The Taliban government has banned all books written by women from Afghan university curricula, blacklisting at least 679 titles and ordering replacements that comply with its interpretation of Islamic Sharia.
The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has moved to remove books written by women from university curricula, under a sweeping new educational decree. A committee member overseeing textbook reviews confirmed to BBC Afghan that “all books authored by women are not allowed to be taught.”
At least 679 titles have been blacklisted for allegedly violating “anti-Sharia and Taliban policies,” including works on human rights, women’s studies, constitutional law, Western political thought, and Islamic political movements. The decree, signed by Deputy Higher Education Minister Ziaur Rahman Aryoubi, instructs universities to replace these texts with materials that “do not conflict with Islam.”
Women have already borne the brunt of restrictions under Taliban rule; they are banned from schooling beyond the sixth grade, and six university subjects related to gender are among those ordered to cease. The ban also targets around 300 books written by Iranian authors or from Iranian publishers, citing concern over “infiltration of Iranian content.”
Zakia Adeli, a former deputy minister of justice and author of Political Terminology and International Relations—one of the banned works—said she was unsurprised: “Considering what the Taliban have done over the past four years, it was not far-fetched to expect them to impose changes on the curriculum,” she told BBC Afghan. She added, “Given the Taliban’s misogynistic mindset and policies, it is only natural that when women themselves are not allowed to study, their views, ideas and writings are also suppressed.”
Sources in Kabul say the ban could significantly cripple higher education, as universities scramble to find substitute texts and adjust teaching materials.