Kabul: In a new move to systematically reduce women’s rights in Afghanistan, Taliban authorities on Sunday instructed the taxi drivers to not offer transport to women, travelling more than 72 kilometers, unless they are chaperoned by a close male relative. The guidance issued by Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice also advised taxi drivers against taking fares from women who do not follow a strict Islamic dress code by wearing the hijab, according to Deutsche Welle (DW).
As per DW report, Ministry spokesman Mohammad Sadiq Akif confirmed the authenticity of the advisory, which was issued in a pamphlet. The media report said that the ministry has also urges drivers, presumably male, to grow long beards and break for prayer. In addition, the pamphlet says they should refrain from playing music, which the Taliban deem to be un-Islamic, in their vehicles.
The guidance comes weeks after Taliban authorities asked Afghan television channels to stop the telecast of dramas and soap operas featuring women actors. The ministry had previously also called on women TV journalists to wear hijabs while presenting.
Since seizing power in Afghanistan in August, the Taliban have imposed various restrictions on women and girls, despite pledging a softer rule compared with their first stint in power in the 1990s. In several provinces, local Taliban authorities have been persuaded to reopen schools — but many girls still remain cut off from secondary education, according to AFP.
During the Taliban’s last reign, from 1996 to 2001, women were forced to wear a burqa, not go outside without a male guardian. Prayer timings were brutally imposed, men were forced to grow beards. Moral police were installed in every street, to punish violators with harsh punishments like flogging, amputations, public executions, reported New York Post. Signs of such incidents have started re-appearing on the streets of Kabul.
As the Taliban took control of Afghanistan once again after 20 years, experts also believe that Afghan women are most likely to face an uncertain future under the group’s regime.
(With inputs from Agencies)
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