Rights Activists Dispute Afghan Singing Ban for Girls
2021-03-16
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1A message from Afghanistan's education ministry that banned girls over 11 years old from singing at events has received a lot of attention recently.
2News of the ban has spread on social media.
3Afghan officials have reacted by saying the memo was a mistake.
4They said that the writers of the document misunderstood the memo's goal.
5However, the hashtag #IAmMySong is gaining popularity on Twitter.
6Some Afghan girls are singing their favorite songs on video and putting their performances on the internet.
7Rights groups want to ensure that human rights gains of the last 20 years in Afghanistan remain central to peace talks with insurgents.
8The Afghan government is trying to negotiate a peace agreement with Taliban rebels.
9Sima Samar has been an Afghan human rights activist for nearly 40 years.
10Speaking about the memo, she said, "This is Talibanization from inside the country."
11When they ruled the country, the Taliban denied girls the right to education.
12Music, except religious songs, was banned for everyone, as was television.
13The disputed memo was sent to all schools in Kabul.
14However, it was canceled, said ministry spokeswoman Najiba Arian.
15She said the memo writers had misunderstood its purpose.
16A new memo was sent after the first one.
17It said music groups for secondary school girls and boys are banned.
18The real goal was to prevent boys and girls from going to public events that could spread the coronavirus, she said.
19Afghanistan has recorded more than 55,000 cases of the virus and 2,451 deaths.
20But there has not been enough testing and the real numbers are believed to be higher.
21The hashtag campaign was started by Ahmad Sarmast, the founder of Afghanistan's Institute of Music.
22He began #IAmMySong to let officials know "that the people of Afghanistan oppose this decision and they will stand for the rights of the children, whether boys or girls."
23Haroon Baluch is with BytesforAll, a Pakistan-based rights organization that studies internet traffic.
24He said that the hashtag has gotten over 600,000 clicks and continues to grow.
25The Associated Press looked at a copy of the memo, which does not talk about the pandemic or health concerns.
26It states that educators in Kabul, the government and private companies are "seriously advised" not to let females aged 12 and up sing at events.
27The only exception is at all-female gatherings.
28The memo also says that only female teachers can teach music to girls older than 12 years of age.
29Sima Samar said the directive violates basic human rights.
30She also said it violates the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children, an agreement Afghanistan signed.
31Sarmast of the Institute of Music said the memo violates both national and international law.
32After the reaction to the first memo, a second one went out but it too was criticized.
33It reportedly bans both boys and girls older than 12 from singing or performing in public.
34Sarmast said it takes "the right of choice and freedom of expression away from all students in secondary and high schools."
35The education ministry has had to deal with other problems recently.
36In December, it was criticized after suggesting that children in first through third grade be taught in Muslim religious centers known as mosques.
37After a strong reaction, the ministry made a correction.
38The ministry said it meant that, in poor rural areas where there are no school buildings available, mosques are the only choice.
39I'm Alice Bryant.
1A message from Afghanistan's education ministry that banned girls over 11 years old from singing at events has received a lot of attention recently. 2News of the ban has spread on social media. Afghan officials have reacted by saying the memo was a mistake. They said that the writers of the document misunderstood the memo's goal. 3However, the hashtag #IAmMySong is gaining popularity on Twitter. Some Afghan girls are singing their favorite songs on video and putting their performances on the internet. 4Rights groups want to ensure that human rights gains of the last 20 years in Afghanistan remain central to peace talks with insurgents. The Afghan government is trying to negotiate a peace agreement with Taliban rebels. 5Sima Samar has been an Afghan human rights activist for nearly 40 years. Speaking about the memo, she said, "This is Talibanization from inside the country." 6When they ruled the country, the Taliban denied girls the right to education. Music, except religious songs, was banned for everyone, as was television. 7The disputed memo was sent to all schools in Kabul. However, it was canceled, said ministry spokeswoman Najiba Arian. She said the memo writers had misunderstood its purpose. A new memo was sent after the first one. It said music groups for secondary school girls and boys are banned. 8The real goal was to prevent boys and girls from going to public events that could spread the coronavirus, she said. Afghanistan has recorded more than 55,000 cases of the virus and 2,451 deaths. But there has not been enough testing and the real numbers are believed to be higher. 9The hashtag campaign was started by Ahmad Sarmast, the founder of Afghanistan's Institute of Music. He began #IAmMySong to let officials know "that the people of Afghanistan oppose this decision and they will stand for the rights of the children, whether boys or girls." 10Haroon Baluch is with BytesforAll, a Pakistan-based rights organization that studies internet traffic. He said that the hashtag has gotten over 600,000 clicks and continues to grow. 11The Associated Press looked at a copy of the memo, which does not talk about the pandemic or health concerns. 12It states that educators in Kabul, the government and private companies are "seriously advised" not to let females aged 12 and up sing at events. The only exception is at all-female gatherings. 13The memo also says that only female teachers can teach music to girls older than 12 years of age. 14Sima Samar said the directive violates basic human rights. She also said it violates the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children, an agreement Afghanistan signed. 15Sarmast of the Institute of Music said the memo violates both national and international law. 16After the reaction to the first memo, a second one went out but it too was criticized. It reportedly bans both boys and girls older than 12 from singing or performing in public. Sarmast said it takes "the right of choice and freedom of expression away from all students in secondary and high schools." 17The education ministry has had to deal with other problems recently. In December, it was criticized after suggesting that children in first through third grade be taught in Muslim religious centers known as mosques. After a strong reaction, the ministry made a correction. The ministry said it meant that, in poor rural areas where there are no school buildings available, mosques are the only choice. 18I'm Alice Bryant. 19The Associated Press reported this story. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 20_______________________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22memo (memorandum) -n. a short, written message or report form one person or department in a company or organization to another 23hashtag -n. a word or phrase that starts with the symbol # and that shows what a message, such as a tweet, is about 24insurgent -n. a person who fights against an established government 25click -n. the act of choosing something on a computer screen by pressing a button on a mouse or some other device