Following their takeover of Afghanistan, the Taliban have systematically and gradually restricted fundamental human rights, particularly those of women.
According to Global News, the Taliban government in Afghanistan has prohibited women from speaking in public as part of a new effort to limit their rights. The “vice and virtue” news laws are now in effect. The restrictions enacted by the Taliban government also prohibit women from exposing their faces in public.
A ministry dedicated to the ‘propagation of virtue and the avoidance of vice’ was established after the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan after the withdrawal of the US-led global coalition. This ministry earlier on Wednesday published a bill.
The Associated Press said that the 114-page document contains new regulations.
Speaking on behalf of the ministry, Maulvi Abdul Ghafar Farooq said, “Inshallah, we assure you that this Islamic law will be of great help in the promotion of virtue and the elimination of vice.” The new regulations forbid women from publicly reading aloud, performing, or even singing. It seems that women’s voices are not meant to be heard since they are deemed “intimate.”
It is said that Article 13 of the statute mandates that women cover their entire body, including their faces, to ward against temptation. This implies that the hijab, a popular outfit that covers the face, is no longer permitted.
In addition, the new legislation prohibits women from gazing at males who are not connected to them by marriage or blood. Should any lady be discovered to be breaking these guidelines, she may face warnings, having her belongings seized, or even being detained for a maximum of three days. Similar moral laws have already resulted in thousands of arrests.
Many of these regulations were in effect earlier, but in a less official capacity; currently, they are being codified. According to Heather Barr, assistant director of Human Rights Watch’s women’s rights section, “I think this is a sign of what we’ve been seeing over the last three years which is a steady and gradual escalation of the crackdown,” as stated by ANI.
