Kabul: The Taliban have reportedly imposed a new ban on families and women from restaurants with gardens or green spaces in Afghanistan’s northwestern Herat province.
The move follows complaints from religious scholars and members of the public about the mixing of genders in such places, according to an official.
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This is the latest in a series of restrictions imposed by the Taliban since they took power in August 2021.
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The group has shut girls out of classrooms beyond the sixth grade, and women from universities, most types of employment, including jobs at the United Nations. Women are also banned from public spaces such as parks and gyms. The Taliban authorities say the curbs are in place because of gender mixing or because women allegedly are not wearing the hijab, or Islamic headscarf, correctly.
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The outdoor dining ban applies only to establishments in Herat, where such premises remain open to men. Baz Mohammad Nazir, a deputy official from the Ministry of Vice and Virtue’s directorate in Herat, denied media reports that all restaurants were off limits to families and women, dismissing them as propaganda.
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It applies only to restaurants with green areas, such as a park, where men and women could meet, he said. “After repeated complaints from scholars and ordinary people, we set limits and closed these restaurants”, he added.
Nazir also denied reports that sales of DVDs of foreign films, TV shows, and music are banned in the province, saying that business owners were advised against selling this material because it contradicted Islamic values. Shopkeepers who did not follow through on the advice eventually saw their shops closed, he added.
He also denied local media reports that internet cafes have shut down in Herat but said that gaming arcades were now off-limits to children because of unsuitable content. Some games insulted the Kaaba, the cube-shaped structure in the Great Mosque at Mecca toward which Muslims turn when praying, and other Islamic symbols.
“Internet cafes, where students learn and use for their studies, are necessary, and we have allowed them,” Nazir said.
The new ban has sparked concerns among human rights advocates and the international community, who have criticized the Taliban’s actions as a violation of basic human rights.
The United Nations has expressed concern over the Taliban’s restrictions on women’s rights and urged the group to respect the rights of all Afghans.
The move has also been seen as a setback for women’s rights in Afghanistan, which had made significant gains over the last two decades.