The Taliban government’s “Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Immorality” law, which came into effect on July 31, regulates many aspects of Afghan life according to Islamic law, sharia.

Some of the prohibitions included in the text of 87 pages and 35 articles are.

– The most hard-line provision concerns the voice of women (who were already excluded from the education system beyond Primary school), which should not be heard outside their home.

– A man cannot look at the body or the face of a woman who does not belong to his family, and vice versa.

– A woman must be fully veiled in front of a non-Muslim.

– Men must grow a beard longer than a fist.

– When exercising, a man must be covered in loose clothing from at least the navel to below the knee.

– The media must not publish information that mocks or humiliates Muslims.

– Transport companies should adjust their routes to allow passengers and drivers to pray on time.

– Sodomism is prohibited “even with your wife”.

– Traditional games with hard-boiled eggs, nuts or lamb bones are prohibited.

– It is forbidden to take or view photos or videos of living beings on computers or smartphones.

– It is forbidden to have friendly relations with non-Muslims and to help them.

– Disobedience to parents is prohibited.

Besides, numerous obligations have already been imposed for three years:

– The obligation to have a “mahram”, a male companion belonging to the family, when a woman travels.

– Women must be covered from head to toe (hijab).

– The prayer (at certain times) and the fasting of Ramadan are obligatory.

– Music is prohibited in public places, as are games with money.

– Nowruz (the new year in Persian) and winter solstice celebrations, as well as fireworks, are prohibited.

– Adultery, homosexuality, drugs and smuggling are prohibited.

– It is forbidden to carry a woman who is not veiled, and one must “refrain from carrying her” if her mahram “does not have the brakes” or is too young.

– Separation between men and women is required in most public places.

Patrols and warnings

According to accounts gathered by AFP, in Kabul PVPV brigades are actively patrolling and warning women without a “mahram”, with hair that is not properly covered or who are not wearing gloves.

In the central province of Parwan, women were reprimanded for not wearing a mask, and in Mazar-i-Sharif (northern Afghanistan), a taxi driver says he was “repeatedly warned not to transport women without a mahram or who do not wear a hijab.”

A 23-year-old resident of Kabul recounts being stopped three times because he does not have a beard. “I was scared and I promised them I would let her grow up,” she tells AFP.

Already at a private bank, AFP journalists found that all the men had changed their western suits to salwar kameez, the traditional attire.

The law leaves important issues pending – The question marks

– It allows the woman to leave her house alone “in case of significant need”, without further clarification.

– Since friendly relations with non-Muslims are prohibited, can Afghans still work in businesses in non-Muslim countries? Can Kabul cooperate with these countries?

– The brigades of the Ministry of Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Immorality (PVPV) can impose any punishment they deem “appropriate” (up to three days’ detention) and which is not “the exclusive competence of the courts”. Will this moral police, for example, be able to flog Afghans in the middle of the road?

– Women, whose voices can no longer be heard, still speak on the radio, as well as on television.

– Will the law be applied uniformly even in the less “strict” provinces, such as that of Kabul?

– How will the moral police be able to enforce, for example, the banning of any photo or video of people, animals or plants on mobile phones or their publication in the media?