RASC News Agency: Recent data from the Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice indicates that, within the first three months of implementing their newly ratified moral policing law, the ministry’s enforcers have detained 38 individuals, including seven women, across nine provinces. Afghanistani women and girls report that the enforcement of this law has drastically intensified restrictions on their lives.
The law imposes stringent limitations and heavy obligations on citizens, particularly targeting women and girls. It even designates women’s voices as inappropriate in public spheres. According to official statistics, during the first quarter of the law’s enforcement, arrests were made in provinces including Kabul, Farah, Logar, Kandahar, Balkh, Sar-e Pol, Kunduz, Faryab, and Paktia. Those detained were accused of “witchcraft” and “moral corruption,” among them eight amulet-makers.
Many citizens argue that the number of arrests is likely higher than officially reported. They express mounting frustration over the worsening living conditions under Taliban rule. A resident of Kabul lamented, “We are suffocating under the Taliban’s ever-growing laws of virtue and vice. Every day, new restrictions are introduced. Women and girls are being seized from the streets how much longer can we endure this?”
The new law appears to have significantly expanded the authority of the ministry’s enforcers, granting them influence even over media outlets by banning depictions of living creatures. Touba Attai, a prominent women’s rights activist, criticized the ministry’s actions: “These enforcers constantly interfere in the daily lives of citizens, using any pretext to restrict individual freedoms. They detain people without valid justification, fostering a climate of fear and oppression. Such actions are egregious violations of human rights and fundamental liberties.”
Despite persistent international demands to repeal the law, the Taliban leadership remains resolute in its enforcement. From the supreme leader to senior officials, Taliban representatives have repeatedly emphasized the necessity of adhering strictly to the law during their provincial visits, urging citizens to ensure its rigorous implementation.
