KABUL, MAY 11: A street book exhibition has been held in the city of Herat with the aim of encouraging youth to read. Most of the enthusiasts and visitors of this exhibition are girls deprived of education.
“The holding of our book exhibition at the city level indicates that our society is an aware and cultural one, and there is security in this society,” said Abdullah Momini, the organizer of the exhibition.
Lalah Sahra, who is deprived of education after the ban on girls’ education and the closure of universities’ doors, told TOLOnews: “I was in my second semester when unfortunately, the university was closed. I love to read and despite the university being closed, I have not distanced myself from books.”
A number of young people said that although they are interested in reading, they do not have the money to buy the books they like.
They believe that the only way to lead Afghanistan towards a bright future is to turn people, especially the youth, to reading books.
“Reading is very beneficial for the youth to gain and learn something,” said Mohammad Sefat Mushfeq, a resident of Herat.
“Reading makes our minds more open to understanding past and future issues,” said Najibullah Mohammadi, a student.
This street book exhibition comes as, according to booksellers, book sales in Herat have significantly decreased compared to previous years.
The closure of schools and universities to girls is said to be one of the reasons for the cooling of the book-selling market in Herat.
