RASC News Agency: A generation of Afghanistani girls, deprived of their right to education, now suffers from severe depression, attributing their mental decline to the ongoing closure of schools and universities under Taliban rule. With few options left, many of these young women find themselves pushed into forced marriages, unable to resist the mounting pressure from their families.
Banafsha (a pseudonym), one of the many girls excluded from Afghanistan’s university entrance exams, spoke out about the mental toll the educational ban has taken. “The closure of schools has left me and countless other girls feeling trapped in a life without purpose,” she shared, explaining that the despair has driven many into situations, including forced marriages, that they would otherwise have avoided. Now twenty and bound by both depression and an imposed marriage, Banafsha revealed that after being barred from furthering her education, she attempted suicide due to unbearable emotional strain. While she survived, her family’s response was to pressure her into marriage.
“I had no choice but to surrender to my family’s demands,” she confided. “I watched as my brother and cousin prepared for university entrance exams, but I was denied that same future. The frustration and helplessness became overwhelming. One day, I took several of my father’s pills. My sister discovered me and alerted the family, who rushed me to the hospital. I woke up feeling completely desolate, as if these dark days would never end.” Reflecting on her current reality, she described how the Taliban’s stringent restrictions have overshadowed her life and those of thousands of other girls, pushing them to endure harsh family expectations.
“I dreamed of becoming a doctor, to serve my community, and to eventually build a life of my own,” she said. “But the Taliban’s policies have buried the aspirations of countless girls, turning their dreams into impossibilities.” Others who have also been barred from education are similarly tormented, grappling with severe mental health struggles. They warn that if schools remain closed, many may lose all hope.
Since seizing control of Afghanistan, the Taliban have systematically shut down educational opportunities for girls, standing firm in their refusal to reopen schools despite repeated calls from the international community.
