Inside Afghanistan’s secret schools for girls: ‘We don’t talk about our students to anyone’

When the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, following the withdrawal of US troops, the lives of women and girls across the country changed almost overnight.
Under Taliban rule, women and girls are removed from nearly every aspect of daily life and under the new ‘vice and virtue’ laws, face restrictions going out alone, speaking or even singing in public.
“Now women are not allowed to go to school after 6th grade. They are not allowed to continue their education,” says Arezo Rahimi, an Irish based freelance journalist who fled Kabul when the Taliban seized power more than three years ago.
Speaking to The Irish Times Women’s Podcast, the 21-year-old explains how an underground network of schools has emerged in Afghanistan since the takeover, providing education to the girls who can no longer access it due to political and social barriers.
Daricha School offers online and in person classes to more than 4,500 students and is currently the only option to provide secondary education for girls in Afghanistan. Rahimi works as an editor for the school’s magazine and as their Irish representative.
As the school network goes against the rule of the Taliban, secrecy is key to ensuring the safety of those involved. “We don’t mention the addresses [of the schools]. We don’t mention the teachers, we don’t share their information and we don’t talk about our students to anyone,” Rahimi explains.
“Even if they want to join our classes, we need to know who they are, where they live… we don’t share the information out and we are trying to be so careful with that.”
Rahimi says her involvement with Daricha helps her stay connected to Afghanistan and lets her provide help to women and girls from afar. “This is the only way that I can sleep because if I don’t work for women in Afghanistan, I would feel guilty that I’m not doing enough or I’m not doing something for them”.
You can listen back to the full conversation in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.