Lagatar24 Desk
Kabul, Feb 22: Women working in Afghan government agencies must cover themselves, even if it means using a blanket, or risk losing their employment, according to the Taliban’s religious police.
Since the Taliban retook control in August, most women have been excluded from official positions, though Afghanistan’s new rulers promise they will be permitted to return after certain requirements are met, such as separate offices.
The Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice published a statement on Tuesday saying that women should not go to work unless they are fully covered, and that if they do not follow the rules, they may be sacked.
During the Taliban’s first term in power, from 1996 to 2001, the ministry gained reputation for policing the leadership’s stringent interpretation of Islam.
It was unclear why they published the statement on Tuesday, given most Afghan women have always covered their heads in public, at the very least with a loose scarf.
“They can follow the hijab the way they want,” said ministry spokesman Mohammad Sadeq Akif Muhaji.
Notably, a rigorous interpretation of Islam entailed controlling people’s daily routines, actions, and dress during the Taliban’s earlier reign of terror.
Western clothes were forbidden, males were forbidden from shaving, and those who did not hurry to prayers were thrashed.
Despite pledging a lighter version of their rule this time, certain stringent rules have returned, such as banning TV dramas starring women unless they have an Islamic theme and prohibiting music in public places.
