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Stand with Afghan Girls
Stand with Afghan Girls

To the Taliban and leaders around the world:

One month ago, the Taliban shut school gates for millions of Afghan girls — robbing them of not just an education but also their futures.  

Afghanistan is now the only country in the world that forbids girls' education. Leaders everywhere must take urgent, decisive action to get every Afghan girl back in school. 
  • To the Taliban authorities, you assured the world that you would respect the rights of girls and women — but you are denying millions their right to learn. Reverse the de facto ban on girls’ education and re-open girls’ secondary schools immediately.
  • To the leaders of the G20 nations, discussing the importance of education isn't enough. Use the G20 Leaders' Declaration to call on the Taliban to allow girls to go to school and provide urgent funding to support a coordinated education plan for all Afghan children.
  • To the leaders of Muslim countries, religion does not justify preventing girls from going to school. Make this clear to Taliban leaders by issuing public statements on the Islamic imperative for girls’ complete education. 
The longer a girl stays out of school, the less likely she is to return. Join us in calling on leaders around the world to defend Afghan girls' right to learn and lead.


Sincerely,

Zarqa Yaftali, Malala Yousafzai, Shaharzad Akbar

Nobel Peace Prize Winner Malala Yousafzai and women’s rights advocates Zarqa Yaftali and Shaharzad Akbar just called on leaders to urgently get millions of Afghan girls back in school. 

Let’s all join them -- sign the open letter now::
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Recent signers

To the Taliban and leaders around the world:
" One month ago, the Taliban shut school gates for millions of Afghan girls — robbing them of not just an education but also their futures.  

Afghanistan is now the only country in the world that forbids girls' education. Leaders everywhere must take urgent, decisive action to get every Afghan girl back in school. 
  • To the Taliban authorities, you assured the world that you would respect the rights of girls and women — but you are denying millions their right to learn. Reverse the de facto ban on girls’ education and re-open girls’ secondary schools immediately.
  • To the leaders of the G20 nations, discussing the importance of education isn't enough. Use the G20 Leaders' Declaration to call on the Taliban to allow girls to go to school and provide urgent funding to support a coordinated education plan for all Afghan children.
  • To the leaders of Muslim countries, religion does not justify preventing girls from going to school. Make this clear to Taliban leaders by issuing public statements on the Islamic imperative for girls’ complete education. 
The longer a girl stays out of school, the less likely she is to return. Join us in calling on leaders around the world to defend Afghan girls' right to learn and lead.


Sincerely,

Zarqa Yaftali, Malala Yousafzai, Shaharzad Akbar
"
Signatories:

Ziauddin Yousafzai, Co-Founder, Malala Fund
Pashtana Durrani, Co-Founder, LEARN
Mohammad Rahim Jami, Senior Campaign and Advocacy Manager, WBRAO
Somaya Faruqi, Captain, Afghan Girls Robotics Team
Roya Mahboob, Co-Founder, CEO, Digital Citizen Fund
Professor Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Laureate
Dr. Graça Machel, International advocate for women and children's rights
Françoise Moudouthe, CEO, African Women's Development Fund
Dr. Alaa Murabit, UN Health Commissioner and SDG Advocate
Peymana Assad, Cabinet Member, Harrow Council, UK
Muqadasa Ahmadzai, Afghan activist
Emma Watson, Actor and activist
Paulo Coelho, author and U.N. Messenger of Peace
Edward Norton, actor, filmmaker and U.N. Messenger of Peace
Michael Douglas, actor, producer and U.N. Messenger of Peace
Charlize Theron, Actor, producer and U.N. Messenger of Peace 
Dr Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, former United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women





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