UN Criticizes Taliban's 'Moral Law' That Makes Women's Voices in Afghanistan Illegal

The United Nations expressed concern over the approval of a 'moral law' by the Taliban government in Afghanistan, a law that imposes severe restrictions on personal freedoms, silences women in public, and requires them to cover their faces. The Islamist Taliban approved their law on promoting the so-called 'promotion of virtue and prevention of vice' on Wednesday, prohibiting women from singing, reciting poetry, or speaking loudly in public and mandating that they always cover their faces and bodies. The head of the UN mission in Afghanistan stated on Sunday, 'This is a disturbing outlook for the future of Afghanistan, where moral agents have arbitrary powers to threaten and detain anyone based on a broad and sometimes vague list of offenses.' Roza Otunbayeva, in a statement released by her office in Kabul, emphasized that 'this law expands unbearable restrictions on the rights of Afghan women and girls, even the voice of a woman outside the home is considered a moral violation.' The publication of the new 35-article Taliban law came after the extremist group banned Afghan girls from continuing their education beyond the sixth grade and imposed extensive restrictions on women's ability to work in most jobs and participate in public activities. Afghanistan is currently facing one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, resulting from years of war and natural disasters, and these Taliban laws worsen the conditions for the people, especially women. The UN stated that it is still reviewing the new law and its implications for Afghan citizens and its potential impact on UN operations and humanitarian aid. The Taliban's restrictions on women's employment prevent them from seeking jobs in UN agencies and humanitarian aid groups. The UN mission once again urged the ruling authorities in Afghanistan to 'quickly reverse these policies and practices' that they claim 'limit the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms of women and girls.' Taliban officials did not respond to criticism of their law. The head of the Taliban's Ministry of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice declared the enforcement of Sharia law and hijab for Afghan women as their 'red line.' The Taliban's state television quoted Mohammad Khalid Hanafi, head of the Ministry of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, as calling on clerics to strongly counter 'the criticism and propaganda of Western countries' targeting the enforcement of Sharia in Afghanistan. New Taliban restrictions: Women's 'tempting' voices should not be heard in public places. After China, the UAE also accepted the credentials of the Taliban ambassador. Taliban: Security forces 'without beards' were dismissed; we destroyed 21,000 musical instruments. Reuters: Airlines prefer flights over the Middle East to Afghanistan.