The Taliban government in Afghanistan has revealed plans to gradually implement a ban on images of living things in media, citing strict interpretations of Islamic law. This decision is part of recent legislation formalizing the Taliban’s religious policies since regaining power in 2021.
Saiful Islam Khyber, spokesman for the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (PVPV), told AFP, “The law applies to all Afghanistan… and it will be implemented gradually.” Khyber emphasized that officials would focus on persuading people that images of living things contradict Islamic law, stating, “Coercion has no place in the implementation of the law.”
The new legislation outlines rules for news media, including banning the publication of images of all living things, prohibiting mockery or humiliation of Islam, and forbidding content that contradicts Islamic law.
While some aspects of the law have not been strictly enforced yet, such as advising the public against taking or viewing images of living things on personal devices, implementation has begun in certain provinces. Khyber noted that “work has started” in the Taliban stronghold of Kandahar, neighboring Helmand province, and northern Takhar.
In Ghazni province, PVPV officials summoned local journalists on Sunday, informing them of the gradual implementation of the law. Visual journalists were advised to take photos from a distance and film fewer events “to get in the habit,” according to an anonymous journalist who spoke to AFP.
The ban on images of living things echoes similar restrictions imposed during the Taliban’s previous rule from 1996 to 2001. Since their return to power, Taliban officials have sporadically enforced censorship rules, such as obscuring faces on advertisements and covering mannequin heads in shops.
The media landscape in Afghanistan has changed dramatically since the Taliban’s takeover. Media employees decreased from 8,400 to 5,100, with only 560 women remaining in the profession. Afghanistan has also dropped from 122nd to 178th out of 180 countries in Reporters Without Borders’ press freedom ranking.
