A UN report said Thursday that the moral police in the Taliban detained men with hairstyles and their barbers, while others missed prayers for praying at mosques during Ramadan.
Last August, the Deputy Ministry of Afghanistan issued a law covering many aspects of daily life in Afghanistan, including public transportation, music, shaving and celebrations. Most notably, the ministry banned women's voices and naked faces in public.
That same month, top UN officials warned that the law provides a “dismasing vision” for the country's future by increasing restrictions on existing employment, education and dress codes for women and girls. Taliban officials rejected UN concerns about moral law.
The UN report in Afghanistan said that in the first six months of the law’s implementation, more than half of the detention involved “men who do not have compliant beard lengths or hairstyles, or barbers who offer beard trims or hairstyles that do not match beard trims or hairstyles.”
The report said ethical police regularly detain people arbitrarily, with “no due process and legal protection.”
During the Holy Fasting Month of Ramadan, attendance of males in congregational prayers is closely monitored, sometimes resulting in arbitrary detention of those who did not appear.
Both genders are negatively affected, especially those with private education centres, barbers and small businesses such as hairdressers, tailors, wedding catering providers and restaurants, resulting in reduced income and employment opportunities or total losses.
It said the direct and indirect socio-economic impacts of the implementation of the law could complicate the severe economic situation in Afghanistan. A World Bank study assessed the authorities' ban on women's education and work that could cost the country more than $1.4 billion a year.
Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada emphasized the primacy of Sharia and the role of the Deputy and Virtue Ministry in reforming Afghan society and its people.
In a message sent before the religious Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan, Akenzida said it was necessary to “build a society without corruption and judgment and prevent future generations from becoming victims of misleading beliefs, harmful behaviors and bad morals.”
The report said that more than 3,300 male inspectors are tasked with informing people about the law and enforcing it.
No one in the Associate and Virtue Department immediately commented on the report.
