“Presenting a program for more than three hours while wearing a mask as the decree orders us is extremely difficult”, testifies Tahmina, presenter of the Afghan channel TOLO News. As the Taliban’s supreme leader earlier this month issued an order that women must cover themselves fully in public, including their faces, female presenters from major TV channels decided on Saturday to challenge Afghanistan’s new masters : they went on air without covering their faces.
“Our sisters fear that if they cover their faces, the next thing they will be told is to stop working”explained Abid Ehsas, chief information officer of Shamshad TV. “That’s why they haven’t complied with the order so far”he told Agence France Presse (AFP).
The dreaded Ministry of Vice and Virtue called the channels to order on Saturday, stressing once again that presenters must cover their faces with a mask as of Sunday, reports TOLO News. The ministry spokesman said the decision was “final” and that there was “no discussion possible”.
A decree moderately respected
In the streets of the Afghan capital, this new decree is only “moderately respected”tell it New York Times. In the Dasht-e-Barchi neighborhood, home to the Hazaras, a predominantly Shia Muslim minority, “very few women cover their faces”notes the American daily. “But in neighboring Karte Naw, an ethnic Pashtun area, which is part of the Sunni majority, most women wear hijabs, or headscarves, which hide their faces”. Outside the capital, the majority of women seem to obey the decree. Across the country, many have reported being called to order by the Taliban, sometimes violently, says the New York Times.
The Taliban regained power in August 2021 announcing a more flexible regime than during their first rigorous reign. But they have in recent months begun to repress opposition and erode freedoms, especially for women in education, work and daily life.