Batol Gholami Defies Afghanistan’s Gender Apartheid

Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, Afghanistan has witnessed a systematic dismantling of women’s rights. Girls are barred from secondary and higher education, women are excluded from most forms of employment, and public life is heavily restricted. This institutionalized oppression has been termed “gender apartheid” by human rights organizations, highlighting the regime’s deliberate efforts to erase women from public and private spheres.

Amid this despair, Batol Gholami, a courageous young activist from rural Baghlan province, emerged as a beacon of hope. Forced into exile but unyielding in her mission, Batol continues to lead the Afghanistan Youth Leaders Assembly (AYLA) — a grassroots volunteer organization she co-founded in 2019 dedicated to empowering Afghan women and youth, especially those in rural areas left behind by development. Her story is a testament to resilience, the enduring power of education, and the urgent need for global solidarity in ending gender apartheid in Afghanistan.

The Rise of Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan

Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, Afghanistan has experienced a devastating rollback of women’s rights and girls’ education, undoing nearly two decades of progress. From 2001 to 2021, supported by international aid and reforms, Afghan girls made historic advances in education, with enrollment rising from just over 1 million to nearly 3.7 million girls in school by 2020. This marked a significant improvement from the Taliban’s previous regime in the 1990s, when girls’ education was virtually banned.

However, the Taliban’s policies on gender following their 2021 takeover have led to what many international organizations describe as gender apartheid in Afghanistan—a systematic exclusion of women and girls from public life, education, and employment.

Key developments include:

August 2021: Taliban takeover sparks widespread uncertainty over women’s and girls’ rights.
September 2021: Closure of schools for girls above grade 6 across many provinces.
December 2021: Official nationwide ban on secondary education for girls aged 12 and above.
2022-2023: Widespread exclusion of women from government jobs, universities, and public gatherings; restrictions on women’s movement and mandatory dress codes.
2023: UNICEF reports over 1.2 million girls denied access to secondary education, with rural areas most affected.

This deliberate and institutionalized gender discrimination represents a new form of apartheid that silences Afghan women’s voices and erases their presence in education, politics, and the workforce. The impact is catastrophic: millions of girls face a future limited by illiteracy, poverty, and lack of opportunity.

In rural provinces like Baghlan, where activist Batol Gholami grew up, the challenges are compounded by security risks, cultural restrictions, and poor infrastructure. According to UNICEF, approximately 60% of rural Afghan girls are out of school, a figure that has worsened significantly since 2021 due to Taliban restrictions.

Batol’s experience highlights the intersection of gender inequality, rural deprivation, and political repression. Her story is a powerful reminder of how the Taliban’s gender apartheid not only reverses past gains but threatens to erase an entire generation of Afghan girls from the educational and social landscape.

Batol Gholami: A Voice from Baghlan

Batol Gholami is originally from Baghlan province, one of Afghanistan’s most underdeveloped and conservative regions. In her own words:

“I am from Baghlan province, one of the very undeveloped cities of Afghanistan. There were no educational opportunities, conferences, and programs like in developed provinces. For attending a very simple event I had to travel to the capital province and big cities of Afghanistan. Traveling was not easy for a young girl in such a society from the perspective of security as well.”

Faced with these hardships, Batol resolved to take action locally, not just wait for change elsewhere. In 2019, alongside students from different provinces, she co-founded the Afghanistan Youth Leaders Assembly (AYLA) to empower women and youth in rural areas like her hometown:

“We students from different provinces of Afghanistan started establishing a volunteer team for women and youth empowerment by the name of Afghanistan Youth Leaders Assembly (AYLA) in 2019.”

Since then, AYLA has grown into a platform that supports women and young people, especially in rural communities, through informal education, training, and advocacy. Though forced into exile, Batol continues her work remotely with unwavering resolve.

“Now I am living in exile, but still I am working voluntarily for the AYLA team. I am trying to find opportunities for Afghan girls and women who are deprived of education and participation.”

What is AYLA?

AYLA — the Afghanistan Youth Leaders Assembly — is a grassroots initiative that began as a volunteer platform for youth and women’s empowerment. After the Taliban’s return to power, AYLA adapted to meet the growing needs of Afghan girls forced out of schools and public life.

Since 2021, AYLA provides online classes, scholarships, and mental health support to help Afghan girls continue learning in secret and in exile. Despite the Taliban’s crackdown on any semblance of education or dissent, AYLA creates a virtual lifeline for many girls across Afghanistan.

AYLA’s mission is not only educational but deeply political: by fostering leadership skills and creating safe spaces for dialogue, it directly challenges the structures that marginalize Afghan girls and young women. This approach is vital, given that the Taliban’s return rapidly reversed the decades of progress witnessed since 2001 — when nearly 3.7 million girls were enrolled in school, compared to virtually none under the Taliban’s previous regime.

AYLA’s impact extends beyond urban centers to remote communities where government outreach is weak or nonexistent. Such grassroots mobilization is crucial in a landscape where international aid is frequently restricted and political uncertainty abounds.

Exactly after August 2021 as the 2nd Team in Afghanistan we started AYLA online classes, scholarship tips, and community networks. We created safe, virtual spaces where they can continue learning and feel part of a wider, supportive community. We also collaborate with organizations inside and outside Afghanistan to provide resources like learning material, Language certification material, mental health support, and leadership training. Most importantly, we listen to the girls, their dreams, their fears, their ideas and from the fall of Afghanistan we tried to make sure they know they are not forgotten. They are still the future of Afghanistan, and we stand beside them, no matter where we are.

Life in Exile: Beyond Safety

For Batol Gholami, exile meant seeking refuge in Spain — a country that has provided her safety after she was forced to flee Afghanistan. Yet, as she explains, safety is only the beginning of a far more complex and challenging journey: rebuilding a life from scratch in an unfamiliar land.

“Based on my experience, I see Spain’s refugee policies as a mixture of hope and challenge,” Batol shares candidly. She expresses profound gratitude for the sanctuary Spain offered when she lost her homeland, emphasizing the invaluable role the country has played as a safe harbor. However, she also highlights the significant gaps many refugees encounter during resettlement.

Batol describes these challenges clearly: “I also see the gaps, the long waits, the uncertainty, the difficulty of rebuilding a life with dignity.” Such hurdles often arise from bureaucratic delays in asylum procedures, limited access to language education, and difficulties securing stable employment and housing — all essential for successful integration into the host society.

Her perspective disrupts the common narrative that frames refugees as passive victims. Instead, Batol insists that refugees are people with “dreams, talents, and the ability to contribute.” This crucial viewpoint calls for a shift in both public perception and policy approaches. While Spain has made important progress in welcoming refugees, Batol stresses that “true support means more than shelter; it means opportunity, inclusion, and respect.”

This powerful statement points to the broader need for comprehensive refugee policies that go beyond safety to include social and economic empowerment. For many refugees, including Batol, survival is not the end goal. “Refugees don’t want only to survive or to be a burden in the host country but we want to live fully, independently and proudly,”she affirms.

When the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan in 2021, activists like Batol faced immediate threats, forcing them into exile. Despite the physical safety exile offers, the emotional and psychological struggles continue.

“Now I am living in exile, but still I am working voluntarily for the AYLA team. I am trying to find opportunities for Afghan girls and women who are deprived of education and participation,” she explains.

Yet, exile brings profound challenges:

“Living in exile is very difficult. You are far from your family, friends, and country. Although you are safe, still you are not living a peaceful life. You don’t have peace of mind, and you are missing your loved ones and your country all the time. It is very difficult to adjust and start a new life again from zero.”

Batol’s reflections expose a painful paradox faced by many Afghan women forced abroad: escaping direct violence often leads to psychological trauma, social isolation, and economic uncertainty. The Afghan diaspora now exceeds four million people worldwide and continues to wrestle with legal obstacles, language barriers, and limited opportunities to rebuild their lives. Afghan women refugees, in particular, face additional marginalization due to cultural dislocation and gender discrimination in host countries.

Her story reflects a wider reality. Afghan women activists in exile, including those in Europe and North America, have formed networks to sustain advocacy efforts, yet they often remain disconnected from the on-the-ground realities and local communities in Afghanistan — highlighting the difficult balance between safety and effective action.

In her own words:

“The war I live in now is invisible. It’s the war inside, between hope and despair, between memory and survival. It’s the constant fight to keep my identity alive when everything tries to erase it. It’s the ache of watching my country suffer from afar, feeling helpless but refusing to give up. It’s battling the fear that the world will forget women of Afghanistan, and fighting every day to make sure that doesn’t happen. It is okay if currently I am not living under the bombarding but the war inside my heart has never ended. Therefore we need a sustainable peace in our country to live in prosperity with freedom of voice, choice and work.”

Batol’s journey reveals the complex realities of exile — where physical safety is just the first step in a lifelong struggle for dignity, identity, and hope.

Redefining Freedom: A Fundamental Human Right

For Batol and millions of Afghan girls, freedom is no abstract ideal. It is the right to attend school, work, move freely, and participate fully in society — rights stripped away by the Taliban’s policies.

“After everything I've endured, freedom means more than just movement or
speech, it means dignity. It means being able to dream without fear. To study without
hiding. To raise your voice without punishment. Freedom, to me, is not just personal, it’s
collective. It’s seeing every girl in Afghanistan, and everywhere, have the right to live
fully, to decide her own future. Freedom is not something I take for granted anymore. It’s
a daily fight, a quiet hope, and a promise I carry with me wherever I go."

This statement lays bare the brutal reality of life under Taliban rule, where girls above grade 6 have been banned from attending school, women are excluded from universities and workplaces, and strict dress and mobility restrictions confine them to their homes. The UNICEF estimates that 1.2 million girls have been denied secondary education nationwide, with the rural poor disproportionately affected.

The implications are dire: denial of education and economic participation condemns a generation to poverty, illiteracy, and social invisibility. It also threatens Afghanistan’s future, as half its population is barred from contributing to development, governance, or public discourse.

Batol’s definition reminds us that freedom is multi-dimensional — education is foundational, but equally vital are dignity, agency, and political voice.

The Global Responsibility and Global Silence

Despite international condemnations, effective action to uphold Afghan women’s rights remains inadequate. Global powers, fatigued by complex geopolitics and competing priorities, have largely failed to deliver on promises of support.

Batol’s activism is aligned with a broader call by Afghan women leaders demanding international inclusion:

It is clear that their silence is not neutral, it is a choice. By staying quiet, injustice grows bolder. Women and girls only demand their basic rights, their humanity. Your words, your pressure, your actions can make a difference. History will remember not just what the oppressors did, but what the free world allowed. Silence is easy but courage is what is needed now for Ending gender apartheid and violence against
women’s rights.

Initiatives like Spain’s HearUs platform seek to amplify Afghan women’s voices in exile and provide support. However, the fragmented nature of international aid and political engagement has left many women feeling abandoned.

This silence is costly — without consistent international pressure and funding, the Taliban’s gender apartheid will become normalized. The world risks allowing systemic oppression to persist under the guise of “stability.”

What the World Must Do Now

To reverse this catastrophic regression, the international community must:

Ensure Afghan Women’s Inclusion: Afghan women must have a seat at every negotiation and policy forum concerning their country’s future.
Expand Education Access: Remote learning, scholarships, and community-based programs are urgently needed, especially in rural provinces.
Support Grassroots Groups: Funding and logistical support to organizations like AYLA ensure localized and culturally sensitive empowerment.
Protect Refugees: Accelerate asylum pathways and improve support services for Afghan women displaced abroad.

Such measures reflect Batol’s vision for restoring dignity, agency, and hope to millions of Afghan women and girls.

How You Can Make a Real Impact

Change begins with individuals. You can:

Donate to grassroots Afghan women’s organizations like AYLA.
Advocate for Afghan women’s rights by sharing their stories and urging political leaders to act.
Volunteer skills or mentorship to Afghan refugees rebuilding their lives.
Educate yourself and others about the historical and current struggles Afghan women face.

Batol Gholami’s journey — from the conservative valleys of Baghlan to the uncertain exile — symbolizes both the trauma of Afghanistan’s gender apartheid and the indomitable spirit of its women. Her leadership exemplifies the critical role of grassroots activism in confronting oppression.

Yet, without sustained global solidarity and concrete action, Afghan women’s futures remain at risk of being written by silence and neglect. The world stands at a pivotal moment — to choose justice, inclusion, and freedom over complicity and erasure.

The story of Batol and thousands like her reminds us: the fight for Afghan women’s rights is not only a local struggle but a universal test of human dignity and the global commitment to gender equality.

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