Afghanistan: Taliban replace women's Ministry with vice prevention Ministry

The Taliban seem to have closed the Ministry of Women's Affairs on Friday to replace it with the Ministry of the Promotion of virtue and the Prevention of Vice, fearing for its fundamentalism during their first reign, twenty years ago.

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Workers were seen installing a sign bearing the image of the Ministry for the Promotion of virtue and Prevention of Vice in the former Women's Affairs Building in the capital.

"what else can we expect from these animals?"

Several messages had appeared on social media in the past 24 hours, showing Ministry employees demonstrating in front of the building, claiming they had lost their jobs.

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"No one hears our women," one Twitter user protested, while another wondered, "what else can we expect from these animals?" No Taliban official responded on Friday to AFP's requests for comments on this case. "No one can hear our women," one Twitter user protested, while another wondered, "what else can we expect from these animals?" No Taliban official responded on Friday to AFP's requests for comments on this case.

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The men have returned to school.

Although they insisted that they would govern more moderately than in 1996-2001, the Taliban did not allow most women to return to work. They have introduced rules on what they can wear at university. No women were among the ministers of the new Taliban government announced two weeks ago.

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On Friday, the Ministry of Education announced in a statement the reopening of middle schools and high schools for boys, and the return to work of male teachers. "all male teachers and students must return to their schools," he said, without any mention of teachers or high school students.

Under the previous regime, boys and girls shared the same schools only in some primary schools and universities. In higher education, gender segregation will be the rule, the Taliban have already announced, which have introduced rules on what female students are allowed to wear.

The women are said to have been ordered to stay at home.

Although still marginalized, Afghan women have acquired human rights over the past 20 years, especially in cities, becoming parliamentarians, judges, pilots and police officers.

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Hundreds of thousands of them have entered the labour market-often out of necessity, as many have become widows or support disabled husbands after two decades of conflict.

But since their return to power on 15 August, the Taliban have shown no willingness to guarantee their rights. Islamists claim that women have been ordered to stay at home for their own safety, but that they will be allowed to work once adequate segregation has been put in place.

During the first reign of the Taliban, women were largely excluded from public life. They could leave their homes only if they were accompanied by a chaperone. The officers of the Ministry of the Promotion of virtue and the Prevention of Vice were known to have whipped women walking alone. They were also responsible for strictly applying other strict interpretations of Islam, such as the obligation to attend prayers and the prohibition of men from shaving.

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