In a move that underscores the Taliban’s hardline governance, Afghanistan’s ruling authorities have introduced stringent new vice laws, effectively banning women’s voices and bare faces in public spaces.
The decrees, approved by the Taliban supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, were announced on Wednesday, marking the most comprehensive codification of vice and virtue laws since the group regained control of the country in 2021.
The laws, which span 114 pages and comprise 35 articles, were published by the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. This ministry, established shortly after the Taliban’s return to power, has now formalized its mission to regulate daily life in Afghanistan by its interpretation of Islamic law.
“Inshallah, we assure you that this Islamic law will be of great help in the promotion of virtue and the elimination of vice,” declared Maulvi Abdul Ghafar Farooq, a spokesperson for the ministry, during a press briefing on Thursday.
A particularly controversial aspect of these new laws is Article 13, which imposes strict dress codes and behavioral guidelines on women. It mandates that women must cover their bodies fully in public, with a specific emphasis on concealing the face to prevent temptation. The regulations stipulate that clothing must not be thin, tight, or short and that women must veil themselves in the presence of all male strangers and non-Muslims to avoid “corruption.”
Additionally, Article 13 prohibits women from raising their voices in public, deeming them “intimate” and inappropriate for public recitation, singing, or reading. Women are also forbidden from making eye contact with men to whom they are not related by blood or marriage, further limiting their interaction in public spaces.
The laws extend beyond women’s conduct, with Article 17 banning the publication of images depicting living beings—a restriction that threatens to cripple Afghanistan’s already fragile media landscape. Article 19 outlaws music, the transportation of unaccompanied female travelers, and the mixing of unrelated men and women. Furthermore, it compels all passengers and drivers to observe prayer times.
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