Afghan Embassy and Mission in Vienna Hold Meeting on Long-Term Effects of Girls' Education Ban

KABUL (Afghan Verified) -- Manizha Bakhtari, Afghanistan's ambassador to Austria, stated that the Afghan embassy and permanent mission in Vienna, in cooperation with Finland, held a meeting on the long-term effects of the ban on girls' education.

Bakhtari posted on her X account on Tuesday, March 10, 2026 -- corresponding to 19 Hoot in the Afghan calendar -- that the meeting was convened under the auspices of her role as chair of the Asian Partners Group for Cooperation.

Participants included Richard Bennett, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, and Mira Mehran, a women's rights activist.

The meeting emphasized that "the systematic exclusion of Afghan girls and women from education is not only a serious violation of human rights, but a structural challenge that will have profound and long-term impacts on the stability, development, and regional security of Afghanistan."

Bakhtari said Afghanistan cannot achieve stability and prosperity while half of its population is deprived of the right to education.

Bennett addressed the human rights situation in Afghanistan during the session.

The report comes more than four years after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, a period during which human rights organizations say the human rights situation has worsened daily.