“My voice has become an offence,” acknowledges Mariam (her name has been altered to ensure her safety), a Kabul educator, recalling her experience as a female under the newly enforced Taliban regime via an unstable WhatsApp link. She expresses dread not only due to the violent streets but also from the fear of being betrayed by her own voice.
A set of new legislation, labelled as “virtue and vice,” were recently authorised by Hibatullah Akhundzada, the paramount leader of Taliban, proscribing women’s public vocal expression and further limiting their outdoor activities. These intrusive regulations have drawn strong criticism from the global community, notably the United Nations.
Roza Otunbayeva, the chief of the UN’s Afghan mission, has articulated serious apprehensions about the recent mandates, characterising them as contributing to an “alarming future perspective” for Afghanistan. Otunbayeva suggested that these new laws enhance the “already unendurable restrictions” on females, and even the faintest female voice outside the house is now perceived as a moral infringement.
Mariam, a 35-year-old, embodies numerous Afghan women for whom living has transformed into a complicated survival game due to these laws. Mandates require Mariam to be entirely concealed; her face, body, and now even her voice whenever she steps outside. “Previously, we whispered to each other, exchanged pleasantries, or hailed a cab in the streets, but even these actions are now proscribed. It feels like we’re merely shadows in our homeland.”
The outlook for Afghanistan’s women seems grim under these laws. “Our hope is steadily diminishing,” Mariam relays, “and it feels like our freedom is being dismantled, piece by piece.”
Following Taliban’s return to ruling power in August 2021, post the American-led forces’ withdrawal, these regulations mark a successive step in an ongoing series of increasing constraints placed on women. Females are now prohibited from employment in the majority of fields, receiving secondary education, visiting public parks, exhibiting their faces, and vocalising in public. The Taliban defended these rules by claiming that a woman’s voice and face might lead men astray.
Amina, a 28-year-old ex-student from Herat province, voices her concerns regarding the severe restrictions on women imposed by the Taliban. She desired to become a medical practitioner, but the restraints have cast shadows over her dreams. Women were initially outlawed from attending universities when the Taliban ascended to power, now they have gone a step further to suppress women’s voices from even being heard in public. Amina ponders on how women are to navigate this and effectively study or work under such suppressive conditions.
These laws have taken a toll on the sanity of women, with despair increasingly becoming a shared sentiment amongst Amina’s colleagues. Once filled with conversations about the future and their aspirations, their exchanges are now drowned in a suffocating silence.
Moreover, the Taliban’s draconian actions, Amina highlights, is not just antagonism towards women, it’s an assault on humanity as a whole. Their reasoning that women’s voices are overly private and hence should not be heard in public is frightening. Amina expresses that it is not only women who are in the crosshairs but all humans, demanding that the Taliban be held accountable.
The quietness enforced by the Taliban is not simply symbolic but made physical with their new code of conduct. Women are prohibited from singing, reading out loud, or even voicing their thoughts within their homes if it can be heard by men outside. The repercussions for not abiding by these rules are harsh, with women liable for arrest and punitive action according to the whims of the Taliban officials.
A poignant account comes from Zohra, a 27-year-old former musician from Kandahar province. Music which once filled her life has now been forced into silence. Her voice, which was once used to express herself and connect with others, has been robbed from her by the Taliban.
Though the international community has criticized these new laws, women like Zohra feel deserted. She expresses her despair and frustration at the world’s inaction while they suffer their imposed silence. She naturally questions the insufficiency of global advocates and the isolation they’re subjected to.
In June, a meeting was convened in Qatar where officials from the United Nations and 25 other nations gathered to dialogue with Taliban representatives. The main aim of this meeting — convened by the UN — was to build an international consensus on how to handle matters regarding the Taliban. However, human rights groups criticized the meeting due to the absence of Afghan women.
Various countries in the region, such as Russia, China, India, Pakistan and several Central Asian countries, have gradually started recognizing the Taliban’s diplomatic representation. The United Arab Emirates recently acknowledged a Taliban-appointed diplomat as Afghanistan’s Ambassador, coming in second to China in this regard. This move, as stated by the UAE, is in alignment with their larger strategic goal of offering humanitarian aid and fostering regional stability. Even so, apprehensions have been raised regarding the potential fallout of engaging with a regime notorious for showing little regard for human rights.
Mariam, an Afghan resident expressing her dissatisfaction in Kabul, criticises the international community’s response to the actions of the Taliban. She finds it disconcerting that international bodies such as the United Nations seem to be attempting to legitimise the Taliban, despite the group perpetrating numerous egregious acts. Mariam’s feelings illuminate a wider sense of abandonment felt by a substantial number of Afghan women. The initial array of indignation and manifestations of solidarity exhibited by the international community when the Taliban seized power has now been superseded by an overwhelming silence. Mariam laments that the world seems to have abandoned them when they need support the most.
A similar sentiment is echoed by another woman, Amina. She asserts that the Taliban’s rule doesn’t constitute a legitimate government. In her view, their new policies, which are aimed at subjugating and erasing women, demonstrate their intense aversion towards women. Yet, she says, the global community is behaving as though this situation is routine.
*The names of the women have been altered to ensure their safety.