The woman with the face covered
As part of the BBC’s 100 Women Series, we asked four women leaders in Afghanistan to share their careers or interests in a letter with four women who share their careers or interests in Afghanistan.
Malala Yousafzai, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. She was shot in the head by the Taliban in Pakistan in 2012 for speaking out for the right of women to education. Here is a letter to Malala, a 17-year-old Rohila (name has been changed for security reasons) who has been unable to go to school for four months after being captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Student Rohila. App earlier this yearகாNistan was the victim of the exclusion of girls from high schools after the Taliban captured it.
Dear Malala,
When I wake up every morning, I think I’m late for school. Only then do I remember my school being closed with pain. My school is a few kilometers away from our house. I would go in a rickshaw with my brothers and sisters. I see a rickshaw coming every morning to take the boys to school.
I watch the news daily in the hope that schools will open in my area and I will be able to chat with my friends and teachers once again. But really, no one knows when schools will open for girls my age. I feel the pain of being deprived of the basic right to education, because we are women.
I’m worried about my former female teachers. They have not received a salary for many months, which is the only benefit for their family.
I long to see my friends. Very few of my friends have internet access. I try my best to read English on the internet and teach myself. But, it is very difficult without the teacher.
To test again in our science lab, I would like to participate in a speech contest that I once enjoyed. I felt so proud when I represented my school and won the match against another school.
Image source, Getty Images
Classroom
I always felt the need to excel in my favorite subjects. When I was a kid, my dad used to bring me cartoon clips in English. Encouraged to watch science shows on TV. That’s why these are my favorite lessons right now.
In the future, I want to study science and English and have a successful career. I dream of getting a scholarship to study abroad and return to my country with expertise and experience.
But Afghanistan is cut off from the rest of the world. Also, my dreams of pursuing my education now feel futile.
I hope that our many years of hard work will not be in vain and that this world and the international community will not forget us. I hope the world will give voice to us.
Image source, Getty Images
Map of Afghanistan
Malala Yousafzai is the co-founder of the non-profit Malala Fund. With this fund, every woman should be educated without fear, Lead their lives Create a new worldகுவதை Is aimed at.
Dear Rohila,
I want you to know that you are not alone.
I remember seeing gunmen in Pakistan closing schools for girls. Not knowing what tomorrow will bring, I know what it is like to be afraid of not coming back to the classroom.
When the Taliban captured Kabul last August, I was in hospital. This is the sixth treatment I have received in the last nine years to repair an injury caused by their bullet.
I saw Afghan women and girls fighting in the streets for equal rights in the news. My heart ached to see history repeat itself.
Image source, Getty Images
Malala Yousafzai
If all girls go to school, we can accept leadership positions in all fields. We advocate better for ourselves. Can help improve our world. Highly educated women can help speed up the process of contributing, developing vaccines or finding climate solutions. I want to see this future.
Every day as I fight for education and equality, I think of you. With a passion for your science and a father like the one I got, I would love to see you read and guide. I promise to continue sharing your story and invite you to continue working on it.
All I ask of you is never to lose faith in yourself. Trust the voice that hears within you. You can achieve anything.
Malala Yousafzai
Production: Georgina Pierce, Laura Owen, Kaun Kamush, Suhal Ahad
Gallery: Valeria Perso
Images: Zilla Dustmalcy
Additional Images: Joey Ruxus
BBC 100 Women