New Delhi: On live television, a professor at Kabul University tore up his diplomas days after the Taliban outlawed women's access to higher education in Afghanistan. He claimed that if his "mother and sister cannot study," he would not accept education in Afghanistan. The video from the television show has been widely shared on social media. It criticizes the Taliban's action and denounces the Taliban's decision to prohibit women nationwide from attending universities.
Shabnam Nasimi, a former policy advisor to the Minister for Afghan Resettlement and Minister for Refugees, wrote, "Astonishing scenes as a Kabul university professor destroys his diplomas on live TV in Afghanistan," when she shared the video on Twitter.
Quoting the professor as saying, she wrote, "From today I don't need these diplomas anymore because this country is no place for an education. If my sister & my mother can't study, then I DON'T accept this education."
Nasimi is now the executive director of Conservative Friends of Afghanistan, a group whose mission is to raise awareness of and support for Afghanistan in the UK.
The Taliban outlawed women's access to higher education in Afghanistan earlier this week. The move has received global criticism.
Even British PM Rishi Sunak also condemned the move. He wrote on Twitter on 21 December, "As a father to daughters, I cannot imagine a world in which they’re denied an education. The women of Afghanistan have so much to offer. Denying them access to university is a grave step backwards," adding, "The world is watching. We will judge the Taliban by their actions."
In addition to prohibiting women from working in non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the Taliban also instructed all national and international organisations to fire their female employees.