Quick Facts
Biography
Matiullah Wesa (born 1992 or 1993) is an Afghan girl's education advocate and the founder of The Pen Path organisation.
Early life and education
Wesa was born in 1992 or 1993 and grew up in the Maruf District of Kandahar. Both his father and his grandfather were community elders and his father opened Marouf's first ever girls school in 2003.
In 2002, when he was aged nine, the Taliban burnt his school to the ground, prompting the family to relocate to Kabul. He completed his higher education in India, specialising in human rights.
Advocacy
In 2009, Wesa founded The Pen Path volunteer organisation and became one of the most notable activists for girls education in Afghanistan.
In 2016, he organised a book donation drive to create libraries in the provinces of Kunar, Helmand Kandahar, and Uruzgan. In 2017, he travelled around Afghanistan advocating for schools to reopen.
On 27 March, 2023, the Taliban arrested Wesa in Kabul and raided his house. Hamid Karzai, the former president, expressed sadness at his arrest and called for his release. The United Nations called for clarification about the reasons for his arrest and for the sharing of information about his location.
On 26 October, 2023, Wesa was released from a Taliban prison after seven months of incarceration.