In one other crackdown on women, the Afghan Taliban government on Saturday ordered all NGOs within the country to suspend their female workers – allegedly because a few of them wore Islamic headscarves.
It was not immediately clear whether the order applied to all women or simply Afghan women working in NGOs.
At the identical time, the Taliban told the women he could not attend religion classes in mosques in Kabul.
Saturday’s orders got here just three days after the Taliban announced they might they don’t allow women to study at universities. Girls have already been excluded from secondary schools because the return of the Taliban last yr, and there may be fear that the Taliban will eventually force women to stay at home.
Afghan women are protesting the ban in major cities – a rare and dangerous move considering the Taliban seized power across the country last yr.
On Saturday, Taliban security forces used water cannons to disperse women protesting against a ban on women’s university education within the western city of Herat, eyewitnesses told The Associated Press.
Women also organized protests in Kabul last week, reported the BBC.
The latest order for NGOs is available in a letter from Economy Minister Qari Din Mohammed Hanif, which says that any organization that fails to comply with the order can have its license to operate in Afghanistan revoked.
The ministry said it had received “serious complaints” about NGO workers not wearing the “proper” headscarf or hijab.
“It is a heartbreaking announcement,” said Maliha Niazai, 25, a head coach at an NGO that teaches young people about issues comparable to gender-based violence. “Aren’t we human? Why are they treating us so cruelly?”
Niazai, who works at Y-Peer Afghanistan and lives in Kabul, said her job is significant because she serves her country and is the only breadwinner.
“Will officials support us after this announcement? If not, then why are they ripping the food out of our mouths?” she asked.
One other NGO employee, a 24-year-old from Jalalabad who works for the Norwegian Refugee Board, said it was “the worst moment of my life.”
“Work gives me greater than … life, it’s a mirrored image of all of the efforts I actually have put in,” she said, refusing to give her name out of fear for her own safety.
Countries all over the world have spoken out against the university ban, including officials from Muslim-majority countries comparable to Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. The US and the G-7 group of major industrialized countries also warned Afghanistan that this policy would have consequences for the Taliban.
An official within the Taliban government, Higher Education Minister Nida Mohammad Nadim, first spoke out concerning the ban on Thursday in an interview with Afghan state television.
He said the ban was needed to prevent gender mixing in universities and since he believes that some subjects taught violate the principles of Islam. He said the ban would remain in effect until further notice.
The Taliban have promised that women can be treated fairly once they return to power in August 2021 after 20 years of US-backed rule. But since then, they’ve increasingly imposed their interpretation of Islamic law, or Sharia, across the country.
With Postal Wires