Afghanistan Women All Updates
The Taliban’s rule in Afghanistan has taken yet another restrictive turn, with a new decree reportedly barring Afghan women from raising their voices in any communal setting—even when praying together. This oppressive directive, reported recently, adds to the many limitations imposed on Afghan women since the Taliban’s takeover in 2021, tightening a regime that many say isolates Afghan women further from society.
Afghanistan Layer of Silence: Prohibiting Women from Hearing Each Other
In a move criticized internationally, the Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, led by Khalid Hanafi, reportedly issued an order forbidding Afghan women from praying aloud, even when in the company of other women. According to The Telegraph, Hanafi emphasized that adult women must not allow their voices to be heard while praying, reciting the Quran, or in other instances where they might be audible to one another.
For Afghan women, who have already faced a series of bans from educational, professional, and public sectors, this rule strikes a deeply personal blow, limiting their freedom to worship as they have traditionally done. Critics point out that this order effectively forces Afghan women into isolation and reflects a broader strategy to suppress female agency and autonomy under Taliban rule.
Religious and Social Justifications for Silencing Women
Khalid Hanafi has justified these restrictions by referring to the concept of awrah, which in some interpretations of Islamic law refers to parts of the body and aspects of privacy that must be covered or shielded. Hanafi extended this concept to women’s voices, saying, “A woman’s voice is awrah, meaning that which must be covered and shouldn’t be heard in public, even by other women.” This reasoning is unprecedented in many Islamic contexts, as women’s voices have been commonly heard in religious and social gatherings across Muslim communities worldwide. By expanding awrah to cover women’s voices, the Taliban’s interpretation of Islamic law is seen by many as unique to their regime and largely unsupported by mainstream Islamic teachings.
The minister also remarked on the Taliban’s policies against music and singing, tying them to this recent prohibition. “When women are not permitted to call takbir or athan [the Islamic call to prayer], they certainly cannot sing songs or music,” Hanafi added. In enforcing this rule, the Taliban government signals a broader cultural crackdown, targeting any form of self-expression that could potentially unite or empower Afghan women.
A Pattern of Ever-Tightening Restrictions
This decree follows a slew of restrictions that have defined the Taliban’s governance in Afghanistan since their return to power in 2021. In 2022, the United Nations’ special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan expressed concerns that these measures could constitute crimes against humanity. Afghanistan’s morality ministry, under Taliban rule, also recently announced its intention to bar news media from publishing images of any living beings, a directive aimed at controlling media representation and restricting journalistic freedoms in the country. This announcement further indicates the Taliban’s strategy to eliminate platforms where women and others could voice opposition or simply express themselves publicly.
International human rights organizations and various Afghan advocacy groups have responded with strong condemnation. They argue that these ongoing restrictions prevent Afghan women from exercising their basic rights and isolate them further from community and personal freedom. Experts also warn that these oppressive policies will have long-term consequences on Afghan society by eroding women’s mental and physical health, as well as impacting future generations.
The Taliban’s latest restrictions on Afghan women’s voices signify a deepening of their isolation from Afghan society. As voices of protest continue globally, Afghan women remain largely unseen and unheard within their own country. International attention on this issue is critical, as Afghan women face the loss of freedoms once protected under previous governments. With each restriction, the Taliban seems to be erasing a fundamental part of Afghan women’s identity, limiting them to an existence governed by silence and restriction.
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FAQs
The Taliban’s government, represented by Khalid Hanafi, has classified a woman’s voice as awrah, a term in Islamic jurisprudence referring to that which must be covered or kept private. In this interpretation, the Taliban considers a woman’s voice something that should not be heard by others, even in a private religious context. This ruling follows the Taliban’s approach to women’s rights, which is largely based on their unique and extreme interpretation of Islamic law.
Human rights organizations worldwide have condemned these restrictions, calling them an assault on women’s basic freedoms. The UN and various rights advocates warn that these policies further isolate Afghan women from public life and could amount to a crime against humanity. International pressure and advocacy continue, but with limited access to enforce or monitor human rights inside Afghanistan, substantial intervention has been challenging.
