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🇦🇺 Australia /Health & Science

Afghan Doctor Secretly Teaches Girls Amid Taliban Restrictions

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Sources not specified Context piece
  • Azada, a qualified doctor in Afghanistan, secretly teaches medicine to girls banned from education by the Taliban.
  • She communicates daily with her friend Alison Pitt in Tasmania, sharing fears and daily life under strict Taliban rule.
  • Women in Afghanistan face severe restrictions on employment, education, and public life, with Azada using her phone as a vital lifeline.

Inside Afghanistan, where possessing a phone, especially for women, is banned, Azada* communicates with her friend Alison Pitt in rural Tasmania, whom she now calls 'mother.' Their six-year friendship, initiated through a mutual contact in Iran, provides Azada with a crucial connection to the outside world.

Hello my dear mother, I hope that you be fine good morning

— AzadaA greeting to her friend Alison Pitt, whom she considers a mother figure.

Azada, a 28-year-old qualified medical doctor, cannot practice her profession under the Taliban's rule. However, she has found a way to resist by secretly teaching medicine to young girls who are denied education. "Today marks five years under strict Taliban rule that denies women and girls most forms of employment and education and places harsh conditions on their day-to-day lives," the article notes. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Taliban leaders on charges of gender persecution.

Its this night the shooting between Taliban and Isis but we are fine just we afraid and it was a horror at all everything is okay … if you hearing any news about our site please dont worry

— AzadaDescribing a dangerous night of conflict and reassuring her friend.

Under the Taliban's fundamentalist interpretation of Sunni Islam, women are forbidden from showing their faces or speaking in public and must be accompanied by a male chaperone. "Daily life is very hard, because women aren't at work, just the men are working," Azada tells ABC News. "Please, let us work, let us work to feed our babies, for feeding our families," she pleads, directing her words toward the country's leaders.

Daily life is very hard, because women aren't at work, just the men are working.

— AzadaExplaining the economic hardship faced by women under Taliban rule.

Azada shares her fears with Alison, describing the constant threat of violence and imprisonment from the regime's enforcers. In one message, she recounted an incident where a woman was stoned for not wearing a hijab, followed by shooting, creating a dangerous situation in their neighborhood. For Azada, her phone serves as a lifeline, enabling her to stay informed about global events. "Phone is an important device in all people life, [so] we can be aware from all situations that have exist [in] the world," she says. The Taliban regained control in 2021 following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces.

Please, let us work, let us work to feed our babies, for feeding our families.

— AzadaA plea to the country's leaders for the right to work.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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