Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
May 19, 2022
Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers have reportedly issued an order saying that female television presenters must cover their faces when appearing on programs.
The privately owned media giant Moby Group, which runs Tolo News, said in a tweet on May 19 that it was informed of the requirement by the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice.
“The Islamic Emirate in a new order demanded all female presenters working in all TV channels to cover their faces while presenting programs,” Tolo News said on Twitter, adding that the ministry “called it a final verdict and not up for discussion.”
There was no immediate confirmation by the Taliban, but Tolo News said that its inquiries revealed that the order has been issued to all media outlets in Afghanistan.
The Taliban took control of the country in August 2021 as international forces withdrew after two decades of fighting.
Most of the world’s countries do not recognize the Taliban-led government amid concerns that the militants are not living up to their promises of respecting human rights.
A May 7 decree from officials of the Taliban-led government calls for women to only show their eyes and recommends they wear the head-to-toe burqa. Head scarves are common for most Afghan women, but in urban areas such as Kabul, many do not cover their faces.
Two months before that, Taliban officials ordered that all secondary girls schools be closed just hours after reopening them for the first time since the Sunni fundamentalist militants swept to power.
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