Taliban to stop Afghan women from visiting popular national park
- The Vice and Virtue Ministry says women have not been properly wearing the hijab, or Islamic headscarf, when visiting the popular Band-e-Amir park
- ‘Going sightseeing is not a must for women,’ a minister said, while Human Rights Watch said ‘step by step … the walls are closing in’
The Taliban will use security forces to stop women from visiting one of Afghanistan’s most popular national parks, according to information shared by a spokesman for the Vice and Virtue Ministry.
The ministry alleges that women have not been observing the proper way to wear the hijab, or Islamic headscarf, when going to Band-e-Amir in the central Bamiyan province.
This comes a week after the minister, Mohammad Khalid Hanafi, visited the province and told officials and religious clerics that women have not been adhering to the correct way of wearing the hijab, asking security personnel to stop women from visiting the tourist hotspot.
“Going sightseeing is not a must for women,” Hanafi said at the time.
Ministry spokesman Molvi Mohammad Sadiq Akif shared a report of Hanafi’s remarks late on Saturday, including the use of security forces, clerics and elders to carry out Hanafi’s order. A recording of the minister’s speech in Bamiyan, aligning with Akif’s report, was shared on social media.
Akif was not immediately available for comment on Sunday.