The Taliban’s newly introduced morality law will severely impact the activities of Afghan women journalists, the media watchdog the Afghanistan Journalists Center (AfJC) said in a statement on Monday.
The Taliban’s supreme leader has announced a new vice and virtue regulation, declaring, among others, women’s voices as private parts that must be covered and not exposed.
This broad set of regulations empowers the Taliban’s morality police to monitor and control citizens’ behavior, attire, and appearance, setting stringent rules and prohibitions, the statement said.
The AfJC said that the law includes both explicit and vague restrictions that could undermine the work of media outlets, particularly affecting women journalists.
Article 17 of the law ambiguously assigns the morality police the role of enforcing media compliance with Islamic Sharia law and religious standards and preventing content that could insult or demean Muslims, according to the statement.
This ambiguity poses a risk of broad and varied interpretations, potentially leading to increased suppression of media and freelance journalists, AfJC said.
According to the statement, over the past three years, the Taliban has issued at least 17 directives targeting journalists and media, which have significantly restricted press freedom, with a particular impact on women journalists.
The statement added that these new restrictions are a continuation of the media suppression that began with the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021.
The statement has urged the Taliban to reconsider their stance on media freedom and allow journalists and media outlets in Afghanistan to exercise their fundamental rights in alignment with existing media laws.
