Taxi drivers in the area are being penalized by the Taliban for carrying women who are not wearing burqas. Women are now traveling to cities in fewer numbers as a result. According to the Taliban, women need to wear burqas to hail a cab, and a headscarf is not sufficient.
Women in Afghanistan continue to defy strict instructions meant to restrict their rights nearly two years after the Taliban took control of the nation. According to reports from motorized rickshaw drivers like Fereydun in Herat, who suffers beatings and vehicle seizure for transporting women without full-body covers, disobeying the Taliban’s rules can have troubling repercussions.
now taking back control in August 2021, the Taliban have vowed to preserve women’s rights, but they have now instituted rules that exclude women from several occupations and educational institutions. Hibatullah Akhundzada, the commander of the Taliban, has ordered that women entirely cover their faces in public, citing tradition and respect.
However, the concept of a “full Islamic hijab” is still up for debate, making women like Dina from Herat exposed to abuse for donning a long coat and headscarf rather than a full body covering. A Kabul taxi driver named Mirza confirmed the use of these regulations because he fears being fined and having his car impounded if he transports ladies who aren’t wearing burqas or veils.
The Taliban’s most recent limitations, in line with those put in place during their previous rule from 1996 to 2001, according to Maryam Marof Arwin, founder of an organization in Afghanistan that supports women and children, aim to completely force women out of public settings. Back ago, women were prohibited from seeing males as doctors, required to wear burqas in public, and were to be escorted by a man whenever they left the house.
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To enforce tight guidelines on women’s dress, the Taliban Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice has stationed morality police in all of the main cities. In-city transportation of women who are not wearing a hijab is now forbidden for drivers of taxis, rickshaws, and other passenger vehicles. Furthermore, when traveling, ladies must be accompanied by a male; no guy is permitted to sit near them.
However, the concept of a “full Islamic hijab” is still up for debate, making women like Dina from Herat exposed to abuse for donning a long coat and headscarf rather than a full body covering. A Kabul taxi driver named Mirza confirmed the use of these regulations because he fears being fined and having his car impounded if he transports ladies who aren’t wearing burqas or veils.
