Afghanistan: in the streets of Kabul, the image of the woman disappears

In twenty years, beauty institutes have flourished in the hundreds in Kabul, offering make-up or manicure sessions to these women who have grown up with a burqa hiding their entire body up to the eyes.

But while the Taliban were at the gates of the capital, the Kabulis were already whitewashing their windows to hide the advertisements on which women, in wedding attire, smiled broadly.

On Tuesday, the fronts of beauty salons were covered in black paint to hide the faces of the models.

Often a Taliban fighter patrolled the front, assault rifle slung over his shoulder.

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During the five years in which they ruled the country, from 1996 to 2001, the Taliban imposed their ultra-rigorous version of Islamic law.

Women were prohibited from going out without a male chaperone and from working, girls from going to school.

Women accused of crimes such as adultery were whipped and stoned.

Images of women were hidden in the window of this beauty salon in Kabul's Shar-e-Naw neighborhood on Wednesday.

(Wakil Kohsar / AFP) WAKIL KOHSAR

Anxious to display a reassuring face and to convince that they have changed, the Taliban pledged Tuesday "to let women work", before adding "in respect of the principles of Islam", without further clarification .

A spokesperson, Suhail Shaheen, said the burqa would no longer be compulsory this time around.

He also claimed that women would be allowed to study at the university.

Girls' schools also remained open.

But many Afghans and representatives of the international community have made no secret of their skepticism about such promises.

صورة غير نمطية في أفغانستان.

أول مظاهرة نسائية بعد حركة طالبان الى العاصمة كابل. @ Abuhilalah @khanfarw pic.twitter.com/XKQprFjcht

- @HameedMohdShah (@HameedMohdShah) August 17, 2021

During the Taliban's advance, there were media reports of single people or widows who were forced to marry fighters. This information was denied by a spokesperson who described it as "propaganda". Across the world, demonstrations were organized in support of Afghan civilians, especially women and girls.

On Wednesday, in a joint statement, the European Union and the United States on Wednesday said they were "deeply concerned" about the situation of women in Afghanistan, calling on the Taliban to avoid "all forms of discrimination and abuse" and to preserve their rights. In July, the manager of a beauty salon in Kabul said she expected to have to close it if the Taliban returned to power. "If they come back, we will never have the freedom we have now," the 27-year-old feared, asking to remain anonymous. “They don't want women to work,” she said.