The Taliban morality police, overseen by the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, are contributing to a climate of fear and intimidation among Afghans, as reported by the UN mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
In a report released today, July 9, on the impact of the Taliban morality police on human rights, UNAMA emphasized that Taliban edicts and their enforcement methods constitute violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
Shortly after returning to power, the Taliban replaced the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, established during the republic government, with the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (MPVPV) to enforce their interpretation of sharia.
Since then, the ministry has harshly enforced decrees, edicts, and instructions issued by the Taliban leadership. It has also imposed restrictions on both women and men through public beatings, harassment, and imprisonment.
Ministry authorities, mostly religious clerics, have also reportedly violated people’s privacy, including conducting searches of homes and shops without warrants and inspecting individuals’ cars and phones.
UNAMA says that the ministry’s actions have negatively impacted human rights, with a disproportionate impact on women. The report highlights that the ministry’s measures have forced many women out of the workforce, exacerbating poverty and reducing job opportunities for women who are the sole breadwinners of their families.
While the Taliban claim that women can work in private sector, the UNAMA report reveals that the ministry ordered the closure of women-run bakeries in Kabul, some women’s shops in Kandahar and Balkh provinces, and asked that shop owners replace female shopkeepers with men.
“Many of the instructions interfere with women’s public and private lives. For example, the prohibition of women’s beauty salons, of women appearing in movies, and the arbitrary closure of other women-led businesses limit their right to work and to attain an adequate standard of living,” the report said.
According to the report, the ministry’s primary role is to implement the decrees, edicts, and instructions of the Taliban’s supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, particularly those related to their interpretation of Islamic law.
The report indicates that the ministry implements the Taliban leader’s decrees and edicts though different methods, including verbal intimidation, arrests, ill-treatment and public lashing.
Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021 until March 2024, UNAMA documented 1,033 instances (205 on female, 828 on male) where the Taliban used force during the implementation of their instructions.
“The ill-treatments, arbitrary arrests and detentions associated with violating de facto MPVPV instructions are violations of the liberty, and physical and mental integrity of person,” a section of the report reads.
UNAMA concludes its report by emphasizing that Afghanistan, as a state party to several international human rights instruments, obligates the Taliban to prioritize the protection and promotion of human rights for all people living in the country.
