New bans from the Taliban: Women will no longer be able to speak in public

The Taliban administration has approved a new series of bans, including one that prohibits women from speaking in public in a way that their voices can be heard.

Under the new rules, it is completely forbidden for women to show their faces outside their homes.

With these latest laws regarding social rules, the regime claims to aim at "promoting virtue and eliminating vice."

The United Nations (UN) has condemned the latest bans imposed on "morality and virtue."

The institution that will oversee the implementation of the law, officially named the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, emphasized that no one in the country is exempt from these laws.

WHAT DOES THE LAW INTRODUCE?

According to a report by BBC Turkish, the new law defines the sound of women's voices being heard in public as "vice." The relevant clause states, "When an adult woman leaves her home out of necessity, she is obliged to conceal her voice, face, and body."

These extremist social rules had been implemented by decree in the country since 2022, but they have now gained official status with the latest law.

The Taliban states that more than 10 thousand people who did not comply with social morality laws have been detained so far.

BANS IMPOSED ON WOMEN

The law also defines how women must completely cover their faces and bodies "so as not to lead men into sin and evil":

A woman must cover her body completely.

A woman must cover her face to "avoid leading into sin."

A woman's voice is considered within the scope of "awrah" and should not be heard in public. (The Arabic word awrah refers to parts of the body that must be covered. Awrah includes parts of the body that should not be seen by society, for both men and women.)

Women should also not be heard singing or reading books aloud even inside their homes.

Women's clothing should not be thin, short, or tight.

Women must conceal their bodies and faces from men to whom they are not related by blood or marriage.

It is also forbidden for men to look at women's bodies and faces, and the same applies to adult women looking at men.

BANS IMPOSED ON MEN

Barbers are also prohibited from shaving or trimming beards.

Men are also required to cover their bodies from the navel to below the knee when outside their homes. These parts of the body are considered "awrah."

It is also forbidden for men to style their hair in a way that contradicts Sharia law. The Taliban has also banned barbers from shaving or trimming beards.

Under the new rules, men are required to grow their beards to the length of a fist, and wearing a tie is prohibited.

The law also prohibits women from taking a taxi alone and sitting next to men in a vehicle.

Another ban concerns drawings. Accordingly, it is forbidden to draw pictures of a bird, an animal, or a family member.

Similarly, the buying and selling of statues depicting a living being has been banned.

Those who act against these rules may face penalties ranging from fines to three days in prison.

The law, approved by Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, has not yet been put into effect.

News Source: 12punto