Taliban Prohibits Women from ‘Listening to Other Women’s Voices’

The Taliban has imposed a ban preventing women from hearing each other’s voices as part of its ongoing efforts to restrict women’s rights in Afghanistan. On October 28, the country’s Minister for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, Khalid Hanafi, announced this unusual restriction via a voice message.....Read Full Article>>

He stated that even when an adult woman prays, she must not do so loudly enough for another woman to hear her. Although the specifics of the ruling are still unclear, Afghan human rights activists have expressed concerns that it may effectively prohibit women from engaging in conversations with one another.

Hanafi further emphasized the Taliban’s intention to gradually implement these “new rules,” asserting that divine support would guide them in this process. Since seizing power in August 2021, the Taliban has systematically rolled back women’s rights.

Women have already been mandated to cover their faces to “avoid temptation” and are discouraged from speaking in the presence of unfamiliar men. The Taliban has also ordered women to remain silent within their homes to prevent their voices from being heard outside.

Activists have criticized this latest measure, questioning how women, who often serve as the primary breadwinners for their families, are expected to navigate daily life without being able to communicate with one another.

One Afghan woman expressed her frustration, stating, “Living in Afghanistan is incredibly painful for us as women… They are torturing us daily.” Another woman lamented the impact of the ban, saying, “They want us not to exist at all, and there’s nothing we can do about it.”

In a broader context, the Taliban’s strict enforcement of such rules has prompted fears for the future of women’s rights in Afghanistan, with warnings of severe consequences for those who defy them.

Below are some of the things the Taliban has said Afghan women are not allowed to do:

1.Drive a car

2.Speak in public

3.Speak loudly inside your house

Play sport

Travel alone

Own a smartphone

Wear bright clothes

Wear high-heels

Go to high school or university

Sing

Read the Quran aloud in public

Look at men they don’t know

Attend a protest

Go to the gym

Go to the park

Work in the civil service

Ride in a taxi

Go abroad

Show their faces in public

Speak to a male doctor