Women in Afghanistan staged a rare protest against the Taliban’s plan to close female beauty salons.
According to accounts, some 50 women took part in the protest on Wednesday, yelling “work, bread, and justice” as they gathered in Kabul, the capital city.
Water cannons were used by Taliban guards in response, and several demonstrators claimed stun guns were used against them.
The Taliban has given businesses until July 2nd to close thousands of beauty salons across the country.
They claimed that wearing wigs and eyebrow plucking were against Islamic beliefs, and that parents were spending money on beauty parlors when their children married.
Afghan women are already restricted from entering classrooms, gyms, and parks as a result of the ruling. The Taliban recently barred them from working for the United Nations.
According to Afghanistan’s chamber of commerce, the closing of all beauty salons will result in the loss of 60,000 employment.
Beauty salons were last shut when the Taliban ruled between 1996 and 2001. They stayed open after the Taliban retook power two years ago following the withdrawal of US forces, but shop windows were often covered up and images of women outside salons were spray painted to hide their faces.
Women’s rights have been increasingly restricted since Taliban rulers returned to power in 2021.
Despite worldwide censure, the Taliban’s restrictions on women have persisted, including severe dress requirements and bans on women traveling alone.
There have been modest intermittent rallies against Taliban-imposed policies, but any kind of opposition is suppressed.
