The Taliban’s vice and virtue department has ordered all shopkeepers to cover the faces of female mannequins or to chop the heads off.
The owner of one large clothing store in Kabul, Nangialay, said the Taliban’s vice and virtue department sent a letter ordering shop owners to cover the faces of female mannequins used by women’s clothing stores – or to “behead” them.
In addition to this, the Taliban has also ordered the owners of men’s barber shops and women’s beauty salons to take down all photographs in their stores.
The group has also banned women from appearing in adverts – either in photographs or videos.
Haseeb Hassas, one clothing store owner in Kabul said his shop is inspected by the Taliban on a weekly basis and said shopkeepers have been told that if the faces of their mannequins are not covered, they run the risk of being fined or of having their mannequins destroyed.
The Taliban have been using all means to erase women from society since they retook power in August 2021.
Within the first few months after taking control, the group ordered women to wear burqas. They then gradually began to impose more restrictions including a ban on women using public baths; playing sports, visiting parks and traveling without a male guardian.
Last month, the group ordered public and private universities to suspend education for women and banned them from working for non-government organizations (NGOs).
