Wednesday, November 27

The Taliban bans long-distance travel for women unaccompanied by men in Afghanistan

The Taliban has stated that Afghan women seeking to travel long distances by road should be offered transportation only if accompanied by a male companion.

The guideline, published this Sunday, is the last restriction on women’s rights since this Islamist group seized power in Afghanistan last August.

Most secondary schools remain closed for girls, while most women have been prohibited from working.

The human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said that these new restrictions were one more step towards the seclusion of women in this country.

Heather Barr, associate director of women’s rights at HRW, told AFP that this order “extinguished the opportunities for women to be able to move freely “Or” to flee if they suffered violence do mestica “.

Luchador talibán en Kabul.

“The Taliban captured our happiness”

This last guideline, issued by the Taliban Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, decreed that those women who travel more than 72 kilometers must be accompanied by a close male member of the family.

Too bad, “Fatima, a Kabul-based midwife, told the BBC in reaction to the Taliban order.

” I can’t go out independently. What can I do if my son gets sick and my husband is not available? “, He added.

” The Taliban captured our happiness … I have lost my independence and my happiness “.

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The document asks vehicle owners to refuse to bring women who do not wear Islamic headscarves or hijab , although it does not say which type they should use. Most Afghan women already wear veils.

Mujeres afganas cubiertas con un burka en un mercado en Kabul el pasado 20 de diciembre.

The order also prohibits playing music in vehicles.

Escalation of restrictions

Since power was established after the departure of US troops and their allies, the Taliban has called for working women to stay at home and has opened secondary schools only for boys and male teachers.

The Taliban say that these restrictions are “temporary” and that the objective is to ensure that work and education centers are “safe” for women and girls.

During the Taliban’s previous mandate in the 90 , women were banned from education and work.

Last month, the group also banned the appearance of women in television fictions and ordered women journalists and presenters to u saran veils on screen.

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  • Presentadora de televisión afgana.
    Last month, the Taliban decreed that journalists and television presenters would have to cover their faces with a veil to appear on television.

    Donor nations have told the Taliban that they must respect women’s rights before financial aid is reinstated.

    The country faces a deep humanitarian and economic crisis exacerbated by the elimination of international support after the group took power.


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