In a land where the light of knowledge has been extinguished by the hands of tyranny, remembering teachers means remembering resistance.
On this day, when the world honors educators, we—the Afghan Women’s Justice Movement—raise our voices in reverence and sorrow for all the silenced, exiled, and imprisoned teachers of Afghanistan.
Today, in our homeland, learning itself has been criminalized. Thousands of female teachers who once planted seeds of enlightenment in the eyes of Afghan girls are now confined to their homes or forced into exile—yet they continue, with empty hands but steadfast faith, to teach the lessons of life and resistance.
Since the return of darkness to Afghanistan, teachers—especially women—have been among the first victims of the Taliban’s misogynistic regime. The closure of schools and universities to girls, the exclusion of women from academic and cultural life, and the replacement of critical thinking with blind obedience represent an assault not only on education but on the conscience of humanity.
We believe that a teacher is the guardian of collective consciousness and social awakening.
A society that silences its teachers is, in truth, destroying the roots of its own freedom and development. More than ever, Afghanistan needs its teachers to return—not only to the classroom but to the heart of public life, to history, and to the collective moral soul of the nation.
On this day, the Afghan Women’s Justice Movement declares:
- We honor all teachers, especially women educators, who stand bravely against the darkness.
- We demand the immediate reopening of schools and universities for girls and the reinstatement of women teachers to their rightful roles.
- We call on international organizations and the global community to end their silence over the destruction of education in Afghanistan and to defend the fundamental right of our people to learn and to know.
In Afghanistan, Teachers’ Day is not a day of celebration—it is a day of mourning and of promise:
mourning for the extinguished lamps of knowledge, and promise to rekindle them again.
We believe that no power can forever hide the sun of awareness behind the clouds of ignorance.
The day will come when Afghan teachers—women and men alike—will once again stand in bright classrooms, teaching the children of this nation the lessons of freedom, reason, and humanity.
Afghan Women’s Justice Movement (AWJM)
October 7, 2025 / 15 Mizan 1404
