Agencies-Gaza post
Afghan broadcaster women defy the Taliban by covering their faces
The Afghan broadcaster women on Sunday appeared on the most famous Afghan television channels, wearing a niqab (HIJAB COVERS THE WOMAN FACE) in defiance of a decision by the Taliban authorities requiring them to cover their faces during the broadcast.
Since coming to power in August 2021, the Taliban has gradually shortened women’s freedoms and imposed gender bias according to their strict interpretation of Islamic law.
At the beginning of this month, the movement ordered women to cover their faces in public, preferably by wearing a niqab.
The movement has so far imposed only on women the placement of the hijab, which means leaving the face visible.
The Ministry of Good Will and Disbelief asked broadcasters to abide by its latest decision, starting Saturday.
However, in contrast, the broadcasters appeared on television channels with exposed faces during Saturday’s live broadcast. On Sunday, they reversed their position, unveiling only their eyes and forehead on Tolo News, Shamshad TV, One TV, and Ariana channels.
Sonia Niazi, the broadcaster at Tolo News, told AFP: “We fought back and we were against wearing” the niqab.
She added, “The channel was pressured, and the Taliban said that any broadcaster appearing on the screen without covering her face had to look for another job.”
In turn, the director of Tolo News, Khalwak Sabai, said that the channel was “forced” to implement the decision… We were told: “You have to do it. You have to comply. there is no other solution “.
He added, “I was phoned yesterday (the first of yesterday) and asked in strict terms to comply. That is why we have not been chosen, but we are hated and forced. ”
The spokesman for the Ministry of the Order of Good Will and Disbelief, Mohamed Sadik Akif Muhajir, said that the authorities had no intention of forcing female broadcasters to leave their jobs. He told AFP, “We are happy that the channels exercised their responsibility properly.” The “Taliban” authorities ordered the expulsion of women workers in public institutions if they violated the new rules.
Men in public service face the risk of expulsion if their wives or daughters fail to abide by the decisions.
Since its return to power in August 2021, the Taliban have initially pledged to be more flexible than its previous regime between 1996 and 2001 when women were denied almost all rights.
Source: here
