Educating women?

[R1Geezer]

What part of the Koran or the Taliban interpretation of it makes it a bad thing to educate women? For example, apparently in Taliban controlled Afghanistan it was illegal for a male doctor to treat a women and illegal for a woman to become a doctor, work that one out! Can someone explain? thanks

[Old_Geezer]

Educating women ?!? The very idea. What a waste of resoure. They'll be wanting to vote next and then where will we be ?

[123everton]

Many a true word spoken in jest Old Geezer, the attitudes that now prevail in our society towards women are brand spanking new.
I can remember a little over twenty years ago there was a discussion in the media about rape in marriage, and was there such a thing, conjugal rights etc.
It never ceases to amaze me how quickly we forget our past history.

[naomi24]

Everton, this discussion isn't about Hindus, Sikhs, or Buddhists.

[123everton]

Whilst it's true that Islamic societies differ depending upon their individual interpretations of Islamic literature, since their cultures are, without exception, based solely upon the tenets of that literature, it's most certainly to do with Islam - and to claim anything else is a cop out.
The same practices can be found in Hindu society (Hindus even had sati) so the practices are not by definition Islamic as cross cultural, it's lazy to blame it just on religion, the problem is much deeper than that.
It has to be, until very recently similar problems existed here.

[naomi24]

Everton, I'll say again, we aren't talking about Hindus, Sikhs, or Buddhists, and neither are we talking about any problems that may or may not have existed here - and even if we were, two wrongs don't make a right and one does not negate the other. Furthermore, no one claimed all the practices upheld by the Taliban are by definition Islamic. However, the Taliban is what we're talking about, the members of the Taliban are Muslim, and their philosophy is dictated solely by their interpretation of their religious literature. The fact that other cultures may or may not carry out similar practices is irrelevant to the discussion - unless of course you are, as usual, making every effort to defend, and to excuse, barbaric religious beliefs and customs. If you are, then shame on you, because in any civilised society, the philosophy of the Taliban is indefensible.

[123everton]

I'm not defending the Taliban, far from it, but they do not exist nor were they formed in a vacuum.
They have codified a cultural practice common throughout the continent into their religion.
The problem is much deeper than religion, the solution is to move the various communities away from local relativism to form some sort of centralised government with a national conciousness.
It is very hard to formulate a world view in a village that lives on a mountain in the Hindu Kush, people for whom a journey 50 miles is an event and a rarity, the idea, the notion, the point of Afghanistan having a place on the world stage is an anaethema to them.
The conciousness that will be formed will be partly Islamic, it has to be, the economics of education is what will carry the policy through, the problem in the policy is as much as anything (like here) the curriculum.
It has to reflect Afghan culture, otherwise it won't work.

[naomi24]

Everton, //the solution is to move the various communities away from local relativism to form some sort of centralised government with a national conciousness. //

Perhaps you should tell them. I'm sure they'd listen and be very grateful for your advice.