The Vatican state newspaper, Osservatore Romano, has come out in favour of gender equality in Afghanistan.
On 20 July, the newspaper dedicated its front page to condemning the Taliban’s decree that all Afghanistan’s beauty centres must close down.
The beauty centre closure is a complete shutdown.
The Taliban decree is likely to negatively affect thousands of women-run businesses. Many have families and no other source of income.
The Kabul Chamber of Commerce estimates 50,000 women will lose their jobs as 12,000 businesses close.
The decree has sparked protests and widespread concern. Some 50 women even braved personal danger to protest in the capital city last week.
The Taliban dispersed them with gunfire and fire hydrants.
Afghanistan “has been plunged back into darkness for almost two years now,” the article says. (The two-year time span refers to the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021.)
Banning beauty centres is the latest in many Taliban efforts to control women’s rights.
The centres “were one of the last spaces of freedom and gathering for Afghan women”, the article continues.
“Women have been banned from working in NGOs; they have been barred from most secondary schools, universities and public administrations.
“They have been denied access to parks, gardens, sports centres and public bathrooms, while they are once again obliged to cover their faces when they leave their homes.”
UN support
The United Nations mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) is gravely concerned about how the Taliban suppressed the women’s peaceful protest.
UNAMA condemned it as a significant setback for women’s rights in Afghanistan.
The UN mission urges the Taliban to respect citizens’ rights to voice their opinions without fear of violence.
As international attention remains on the unfolding situation, Afghan women’s plight continues to draw global concern.
Observers are monitoring developments in Afghanistan, particularly in relation to the future of women’s rights and gender equality.
The United Nations mission in Unama is also openly supporting the women.
“The news of the forced repression of a peaceful protest by women against the closure of beauty salons, the latest denial of women’s rights in Afghanistan, is deeply disturbing,’ the UN mission in Unama said in a statement.
It is urging the Taliban “to guarantee the right of citizens to express their views without suffering violence.”
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