Feminism Today

Fearing our minds, fearing our embracing self-determination. Their motivation is their own fear. These bastards...are afraid of our potential.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6350500.ece

In two years the Taliban burnt down more than 200 of Swat’s 1,500 schools. Residents were told that if they were good Muslims they would stop their daughters going to school.

“Every evening he broadcast the names on the radio of girls who had stopped going to school – it would be, ‘Congratulations to Miss Kulsoom or Miss Shahnaz, who has quit school.’ Then he warned others if they continued with their education they would go to hell.”

Yusufzai said that some brave girls continued to attend his school, even in defiance of their parents. He scrapped the uniform to make it easier and let them leave their book bags at school.

In December, Fazlullah announced a deadline of January 15 for all girls to stop attending school. Yusufzai hoped that they would be able to reopen when the government signed a peace deal in February, agreeing to the Taliban demand for a system of Islamic courts. However, instead of laying down their arms, as they had promised, the Taliban moved into the neighbouring area of Buner, just 60 miles from Islamabad, prompting American alarm that Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal could fall into Taliban hands.