The Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice has issued a ban on women’s beauty salons in the country. In a written statement, the ministry announced that based on a verbal order from Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, the supreme leader of the Taliban, women’s beauty salons will no longer be permitted to operate starting from July 25th of this year. As a result, licenses for thousands of beauty salons nationwide will be revoked. This decision has generated strong reactions from the public. Some female beauticians argue that the decree will lead to increased female unemployment and demand its revocation. Women’s rights activists further assert that the ban on women’s beauty salons is part of the Taliban’s misogynistic agenda to further restrict women’s livelihoods. They denounce this action as oppressive to the people of Afghanistan and express their dissatisfaction with the world’s indifference toward the Taliban’s misogynistic measures.
The Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice of the Taliban has issued a written statement, imposing a ban on the operation of women’s beauty salons. The statement, published on social media networks on Sunday, July 2, 2023, allows women’s beauty salons in Kabul city and provinces to continue operating until Tuesday, July 25, 2023. However, after this date, their activities will be prohibited. Furthermore, their licenses and contracts have been declared invalid starting from Sunday, July 23, 2023. Mohammad Fakir Mohammadi, the deputy of the Policies and Vocational Department of the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice of the Taliban, has issued and sent this order to the Beauty Salon Association, bearing his signature.
This Taliban action has sparked reactions across the country. Some beauticians argue that such a measure will jeopardize their livelihoods. Yalda Azizi (pseudonym), who has been operating a women’s beauty salon in a corner of Charikar City, Parwan province for over ten years, expresses her concern about the ban on her activities. She emphasizes that the closure of women’s beauty salons will result in the loss of income for thousands of families. According to her, most female beauticians are the sole providers for their families, and their right to work should not be taken away by the Taliban. Azizi stated, “Upon hearing the news of the ban on women’s beauty salon activities, our bright day turned into darkness. We are a family of fifteen, and this salon has been our means of living. What are we supposed to do now? I also have five apprentices who earn a monthly salary ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 Afghanis, and they will also face unemployment and despair.”
Nasrin, another female beautician in Kabul, expressed her concerns to Hasht-e Subh Daily, stating that the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice of the Taliban has not offered any explanation or justification for the ban on their work activities. Nasrin further added, “The Taliban should reconsider their decision as it will result in unemployment and lack of livelihood for our families. Even before the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, our work and livelihoods were not thriving, but at least it ensured our basic needs. Now, what are we supposed to do?”
In the meantime, some women’s rights activists perceive the ban on women’s beauty salons as part of the Taliban’s misogynistic actions. Munisa Mobariz, a female protester and women’s rights activist denounces this Taliban measure as an “injustice” against the people of Afghanistan. She believes that such actions by the Taliban are intended to exert pressure and gain political advantages, particularly from countries like the United States. During an interview with the Hasht-e Subh Daily, Mobariz asserted, “Since their arrival, the Taliban group has centered all its policies and strategies around imposing restrictions and pressuring women to serve its political interests in negotiations with the United States.” According to her, the Taliban regime stands alone as the only regime in the world that has deprived people of their livelihoods, freedoms, and possessions, turning life into a living nightmare for Afghan citizens. She emphasizes the apathy of the international community towards the Taliban’s “misogynistic” actions, stating, “It is disheartening to strip women of their means of honorable survival and force them into begging on the streets of Kabul. The Taliban deem women’s work as forbidden, yet they consider begging permissible for women. By shutting down women’s beauty salons, which served as the sole source of income for Afghan women, the Taliban are perpetrating clear injustice and oppression against the Afghan people, and the world remains indifferent as the Taliban serve as pawns securing the interests of global powers in the Asian continent.”
Shamila Tawana Nasseri, another women’s rights activist, asserts that the ban on women’s beauty salons by the Taliban is intended to “further restrict” the living conditions of women in the country. She further comments, “The Taliban go beyond the bounds of Islam and actively strive to suppress, curtail, and isolate women in every conceivable manner. This unexpected action of theirs showcases the escalating extent of the Taliban’s misogynistic ideology and extremism.”
It’s worth noting that during their previous rule, the Taliban had also forcibly closed down all women’s beauty salons. At that time, women resorted to practicing the profession of beautician secretly. This current action is being taken amidst the Taliban’s implementation of numerous restrictions on women in Afghanistan since coming to power. The group’s supreme leader issued orders progressively prohibiting girls from receiving education and subsequently extended the Taliban’s misogynistic policies to include the prohibition of women from visiting recreational parks and public baths. Prior to this, the Taliban’s supreme leader had already barred girls from attending universities and banned women from employment in domestic and foreign organizations.
