Taliban orders NGOs to ban female staff for not adhering to Islamic dress code

By Team Newsable | First Published Dec 25, 2022, 4:05 PM IST

After banning women from universities, Afghanistan's Taliban-run administration ordered all local and foreign NGOs to stop female employees from working. The letter said the female employees were not allowed to work until further notice because some had not adhered to the administration's interpretation of Islamic dresscode for women.

The Taliban rulers on Saturday ordered local and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Afghanistan to immediately ban female staff from coming to work "until further notice.”

Female employees of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are not permitted to work until further notice, according to a letter from the economy ministry's spokesperson, Abdulrahman Habib. The letter further said, "This is because some of the organisations do not comply with the Taliban administration's directives regarding a mandatory Islamic hijab or dress code for their female staff."

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This comes days after the regime issued an order banning women from attending institutions, drawing outrage on a global scale. Both choices are likely to jeopardise the Taliban-run government's efforts to win international legitimacy and lift the crippling sanctions on the economy.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken took to Twitter and wrote he was "deeply concerned" and the move "will disrupt vital and life-saving assistance to millions," adding: "Women are central to humanitarian operations around the world. This decision could be devastating for the Afghan people."

Deeply concerned that the Taliban’s ban on women delivering humanitarian aid in Afghanistan will disrupt vital and life-saving assistance to millions. Women are central to humanitarian operations around the world. This decision could be devastating for the Afghan people.

— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken)

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In Kabul, women protested against a Taliban directive that forbade female students from pursuing higher education. The demonstrators wanted equal rights for women in employment and education.

Since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021, the country has been subject to sanctions, reductions in foreign assistance, and a freeze on central bank assets, tipping an already fragile economy into disaster.

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