Women’s oppression in Afghanistan has been intensified by the Taliban’s order for hair and beauty salons to shut down. Hilary Whiteman reported in her CNN article “Taliban compounds misery for women in Afghanistan with order to close all beauty salons” that Mohammad Sidik Akif Mahajar, a spokesman for the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, announced that salons had until July 27th, 2023 to close down. The Taliban government has given no explanation for the ban. This newest restriction underlines the decline in women’s rights that has taken place since the Taliban regime took over power in August 2021.

Nicolas Young mentioned in his BBC article “Taliban order Afghanistan’s hair and beauty salons to shut” an Afghan woman who shared her upset with the restriction. She told the BBC that “the Taliban are taking away the most basic human rights from Afghan women. They are violating women’s rights.” The ban will have many economic consequences. A salon owner in Kabul told Hilary Whiteman and CNN that the income that she is making with the salon provides for her husband and her four children and that “this move will not only take away the income of so many families, but it will further deprive women of their rights and freedom.”

This deprivation of women’s rights in Afghanistan intensified after the withdrawal of the US troops in August 2021, which enabled the Taliban to take over the country. When the Taliban held power between 1996 and 2001, they banned beauty salons and suppressed women. After the United States invasion in 2001 these beauty salons reopened. The current ban highlights that 20 years of progress for women and girls’ rights were erased in 2021 and are further deteriorating. Right after the takeover, women and girls were prohibited from travelling alone without a man. Furthermore, post-primary education was denied to girls and they were banned from several public places and employment fields. Then in December 2022, the Taliban’s announced that women were no longer allowed to work for non-governmental organisations. This ban was extended in April 2023 to incorporate Afghan women who work for the United Nations Mission.

The actions against women taken by the Taliban government have been criticised internationally. Many international donors have stopped their humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. Furthermore, Arpan Rai reported in her article “UN condemns Taliban Closure of beauty salons for women” that the United Nations has urged the Taliban to revert the ban on beauty salons. While international actors condemned the situation in Afghanistan and the treatment of women, very little is done to actually support women and girls. The suspension of humanitarian aid affects those who are most vulnerable in the country, which are often women and children. Different actions therefore need to be taken that will affect the Taliban and not the civilians. Despite the lack of successful impact on the Taliban and the situation of women, international support will be crucial in protecting women and girls’ rights in Afghanistan.

Women’s rights are non-negotiable human rights that have to be protected and preserved. The suppression of women in Afghanistan under the Taliban that have once more become apparent with the new ban on beauty salons is therefore a great violation of human rights. Women are no longer allowed to express themselves and do as they will. While international sanctions have been unsuccessful in bettering the situation for women and girls, the international community cannot stop its endeavours. It is of huge significance that other states and organisations like the United Nations will remain involved and try to stand up for women and girls and their rights.