The Taliban have liquidated the Ministry of Women’s Affairs of Afghanistan, according to local media, citing Focus. Instead, a new body was created to act as the Islamic “morality police.”
On Friday morning, the Taliban reportedly removed a sign with the former name from the ministry building and hung “Amr be maaruf wa nahi az munkar” (“forcing decent people and banning convicts”), the name of a body that existed in 1996. -2001, when the Taliban were in power in Afghanistan.
In recent days, employees of the ministry were not allowed to work, and reinforced security was posted in the building of the department.
The Ministry of Women’s Affairs was established in Afghanistan in December 2001, shortly after the Taliban were expelled from Kabul and lost control of much of the country. The ministry dealt with issues of equal rights for women and men in Afghan society, including education, medicine and participation in public affairs.
Amr be maaruf wa nahi az munkar in 1996-2001 was one of the repressive and punitive bodies of the Taliban, which then served as the Islamic “moral police”, often using violence against the population.