Taliban reintroduces stoning, targets women under strict Sharia law
The Afghan regime resumes public stoning and flogging. Last week, the supreme leader of the Taliban, Hibatullah Akhundzada, declared the government's plan to revert to a traditional interpretation of Sharia law. This pivot includes considering the reintroduction of public flogging and stoning for women accused of adultery.
7:35 AM EDT, March 30, 2024
Human rights groups have expressed alarm over this announcement. The Taliban's intention to reinstate traditional punishments has sparked international concern. Out of deference to fundamentalist traditions, Afghan leaders seek full compliance with Sharia's ancient laws.
According to "The Guardian," this stance has deeply worried activists from organizations dedicated to human rights and women's rights. Safia Arefi, a lawyer and leader of the Afghan Women's Window of Hope organization, remarked that the Taliban's declaration particularly targets Afghan women, pushing them back to the oppressive era of the 90s.
"With this announcement, the Taliban leaders have initiated a new era of private punishments. Afghan women are facing profound isolation, while the international community seems to have chosen silence over confronting these rights violations," Arefi commented.
Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban's supreme leader, has indeed confirmed the reimplementation of public flogging and stoning for women on charges of adultery. "You may call it a violation of women's rights when we publicly stone or flog them for adultery because it contradicts your democratic principles. But I am representing Allah, and you, Satan," he stated in a radio broadcast.
Women to face stoning for adultery as the Taliban enforces Sharia law
He rationalized this policy as a continuation of the Taliban's opposition to Western influences. "The Taliban's mission did not conclude with the seizure of Kabul; it merely marked a new beginning," Akhundzada mentioned, referencing the group's takeover of Kabul in August 2021.
"Back then, they lacked the honesty to disclose their intentions. Now, it's clear that we are regressing to darker times. The Taliban are imposing their moral and social order through the oppression of Afghan women," explained Sahar Fetrat, an Afghan researcher with Human Rights Watch.
Since assuming control in August 2021, following the withdrawal of US forces, the Taliban disbanded the Western-supported democratic constitution, suspended the existing penal codes in favor of Sharia law interpretations, and denied women access to many workplaces, schools, and universities.
Afghan Witness, a group monitoring human rights in Afghanistan, reported that last year alone, Taliban-led courts sentenced 417 individuals to public floggings and executions, including 57 women.
Source: "The Guardian"
