As soon as it came to power, the Taliban assured the world that it had mellowed considerably since it last ruled Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001. Now, we were assured, the Taliban would uphold the rights of women. Girls would be allowed to go to school and university and women would be allowed to work outside the house. But that is not how things are turning out, as we learned the Taliban hasn't changed at all. 

According to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, Taliban leaders have contradicted those public promises on rights by ordering women to stay at home. All over the country, the Taliban has been preventing girls over 12 from going to school. That will make these girls fit for little else than motherhood and housework, which is just what the Taliban wants.