Afghanistan: headscarves are mandatory for women, but not the burqa

Wearing the burqa, a full-face veil, will not be mandatory for women because “there are different types of veils,” a spokesman for the Taliban, who seized power in Afghanistan, announced on Tuesday. When the Taliban ruled the country between 1996 and 2001, girls’ schools were closed, women could neither travel nor work, and were forced to wear a burqa in public—a veil that covers the entire body and face, with a fabric mesh over the eyes.

“The burqa is not the only hijab (veil) that can be worn; there are different types of hijab that are not limited to the burqa,” Suhail Shaheen, spokesman for the group’s political bureau in Doha, told Sky News. Shaheen did not specify which other types of hijab would be considered acceptable by the Taliban.

With the Taliban’s return to power and their implementation of an ultra-strict version of Islamic law, many countries and human rights organizations have expressed concern about the fate of girls and women in Afghanistan. “They can receive an education from primary school through university. We announced this policy at international conferences, at the Moscow conference and here at the Doha conference (on Afghanistan),” explained Mr. Shaheen. Thousands of schools in Taliban-controlled areas remain open, he added.

A step backwards for women’s rights

Last week, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said it was “particularly horrifying and heartbreaking to see hard-won rights being taken away from Afghan girls and women” in areas under Taliban control.

Under the previous rule of this radical movement, women could only leave their homes accompanied by a “mahram,” a male chaperone from their family. Floggings and executions, including stoning for adultery, were carried out in city squares and stadiums. AFP

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