Taliban’s Morality Laws and Afghan Women!

MOHAN KHOUND

In a chilling affirmation of its regressive agenda, the Taliban has formally codified a new set of morality laws in Afghanistan, starkly reinforcing its draconian interpretation of Islamic Sharia law.

These laws, encompassing 35 articles, dictate every facet of daily life, particularly for Afghan women, who now face a future marked by repression and systemic erasure from public life.

Taliban’s Morality Laws: A Grim Reality for Afghan Women!

The international community, human rights organizations, and Afghan citizens are grappling with the implications of this disturbing legal framework that marks a return to the medieval-era restrictions that characterized the Taliban’s previous rule from 1996 to 2001.

A Return to the Dark Ages

The Taliban’s new morality law, officially ratified by Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, demands women to cover their entire bodies, including their faces, whenever they step outside their homes. It further prohibits women from raising their voices in public, viewing this as an intimate act that must be concealed.

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Men, too, are subjected to strict regulations, including the requirement to grow beards and avoid Western-style haircuts. The Taliban’s morality police, known as the Muhtasib, are empowered to enforce these laws with a range of punishments, from verbal warnings to detentions and fines.

This codification represents a formalization of many measures that have already been enforced inconsistently across Afghanistan since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021. The law’s enactment, however, signifies a deeper entrenchment of these practices, giving them a legal backbone that could lead to even more brutal enforcement.

The Impact on Afghan Women

For Afghan women, the new laws are not just a setback but a devastating blow that threatens to erase their presence from society. The prohibition against showing their faces, hearing their voices, or moving freely without a male guardian effectively strips women of their basic human rights. These measures echo the Taliban’s brutal rule in the late 1990s, when women were similarly marginalized and oppressed under the guise of religious piety.

This regression is particularly poignant given Afghanistan’s history. In the early 20th century, Afghan women were granted the right to vote, a full year before women in the United States. The country saw significant strides toward modernization, with women taking up roles as ministers, judges, doctors, and diplomats.

The progress continued through the 1960s to the 1980s, with women increasingly participating in public life. The Taliban’s rise to power in 1996 abruptly halted this progress, plunging women back into a medieval existence.

During the two decades of relative freedom following the Taliban’s ousting in 2001, a new generation of Afghan women emerged—educated, ambitious, and hopeful for a future where they could contribute to society on equal footing with men. The return of the Taliban has dashed these hopes, replacing them with a grim reality of systemic oppression.

Resistance and Defiance

Despite the overwhelming repression, Afghan women are not remaining silent. Acts of defiance, both subtle and overt, are emerging across the country. Videos on social media show women singing or chanting in public, even while fully covered in black veils, their faces obscured.

Some have taken to the streets in protest, risking their lives to voice their opposition to the Taliban’s tyranny. These women, as noted by former Afghan lawmaker Fawzia Koofi, are driven by desperation, feeling they have nothing left to lose.

Others are resisting in more covert ways. Pashtana Dorani, an Afghan activist now in exile, founded the non-profit organization LEARN, which operates underground schools for girls within Afghanistan. These schools, which educate over 600 girls, continue to function despite the Taliban’s surveillance and threats. Dorani’s efforts symbolize a broader resistance movement among Afghan women who refuse to let their dreams be crushed by the Taliban’s authoritarian rule.

International Response: Condemnation without Consequence?The international community has reacted with condemnation to the Taliban’s new morality laws. The United Nations, along with various governments and human rights organizations, have decried the laws as oppressive and intolerable. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock described the laws as “almost 100 pages of misogyny,” while actress Angelina Jolie called the Taliban regime “cowardly and oppressive.”

However, despite the strong words, there has been little concrete action to counter the Taliban’s crackdown on women’s rights. The United Nations continues to engage with the Taliban, a strategy that some critics argue only emboldens the regime. Former lawmaker Fawzia Koofi pointed out the lack of political pressure on the Taliban, suggesting that the international community’s inaction has led the Taliban to believe that women’s rights are not a priority on the global stage.

The UN’s decision to exclude Afghan women from peace talks in Doha earlier this year is particularly troubling. This exclusion not only undermines the credibility of these talks but also sends a dangerous message to the Taliban—that the world is willing to overlook their abuses against women for the sake of diplomatic engagement.

The Path Forward

The Taliban’s enforcement of these morality laws marks a dangerous escalation in their campaign to impose a regressive, theocratic state on Afghanistan. The international community faces a critical choice: continue to engage with the Taliban without conditions, or take a firm stand in defense of Afghan women’s rights.

The latter would require more than just rhetoric; it would necessitate tangible actions such as sanctions, diplomatic isolation, and support for Afghan civil society, particularly the women who are leading the resistance against the Taliban’s authoritarian rule.

For Afghan women, the struggle is far from over. As they continue to resist in whatever ways they can, their resilience serves as a stark reminder of the human spirit’s capacity to endure and fight back, even in the face of overwhelming oppression. The world must not turn its back on them.

Instead, it must amplify their voices, support their resistance, and hold the Taliban accountable for the human rights atrocities they are committing in the name of religion.

03-09-2024

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