Afghanistan professor Ismail Mashal has campaigned on girls’ child education, calling on men to stand up for women, especially the girl child. Professor Mashal, who runs a private university in Kabul, says he has had enough of the restrictions women face in Afghanistan. Slender and well-dressed, he is a mixture of defiance and raw emotion. “Even if they’re not allowed in – they should do this daily. It’s the least they can do to prove they are men,” he tells me, holding back tears. “This is not me being emotional – this is pain. Men must stand up and defend the rights of Afghan women and girls.” In December, the Taliban government announced female university students would no longer be allowed back – until further notice. They said they were doing this to enable them to create an Islamic learning environment aligned with Sharia law practices, including changes to the…