Despite being far from the capital city and not having enough resources and facilities, Sare Pul was secure. One of the things that gave people hope was this that students could go to school without fear, however the last month the city has changed drastically in this regard.
People’s peace of mind is disrupted by gunshots and even more importantly, the security has given those who intend to suppress women even more tools. Female students are threatened to death on a daily basis and only a few meters away from the center of city, girls’ schools have closed their doors. Working women are called “whores” in public spaces and pushed back into their houses as they were during the Taliban.
A few days ago as I was on my way to class, an old man looked at me and said, “You women have no shame. Even now you are leaving your home.”
It was strange to me that he would speak out loud and even think such things, but with the rise in insecurity and radicalism, this behavior is becoming the norm. There are more people who will publicly agree with him than me. These men, and sometimes women, try to remind women and girls that the only place fit for them is their homes and they should be terrified of public spaces. It is a sign that our enemies have understood the importance of women’s education quicker than we have. They are trying to stop change at its root, women’s education.
In Sare Pul, families are nervous about the safety of their children and sometimes forbid them from going to schools and other learning institutions because Daesh and Taliban have both warned that their first targets are educational centers. Their biggest fear is an educated population of women, but the people of Sar-e-Pul have already lived through Taliban once and are still suffering from its consequences. This time, we must work in solidarity to prevent their terror and not bow our heads in obedience. If my education is a thorn in their eyes and hearts they should know that I will keep poking them with it. I will continue going to school and encouraging my peers to do the same. We will break the chain of illiteracy and free ourselves and our children from slavery.
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Read this piece in Persian here.