Taliban fights with contraceptives: "Western conspiracy against Muslims" - Voila! news

Demonstration of women in Kabul against the Taliban's decision to prevent them from studying at the academy (Reuters)

The Taliban has begun cracking down on the sale of contraceptives in Afghanistan's two largest cities, claiming it is a "Western conspiracy" to control the Muslim population.

According to a report in the "Guardian", the fighters of the extremist organization, which retook control of the country in the summer of 2021, go door to door threatening midwives and instructing pharmacies to clear their shelves of contraceptives.

"They came twice to my store with weapons and threatened me not to continue selling birth control pills. They check every pharmacy in Kabul and we stopped selling the products," said a store owner in the city.

According to the Guardian, Taliban fighters patrol the streets of Kabul and say that "the use of contraceptives and family planning are a Western agenda."

A veteran medical worker, who spoke to the Guardian on condition of anonymity, said she had been threatened several times.

According to her, a senior Taliban official warned her that "

A girl walks past Taliban fighters in Kabul, last month (Photo: Reuters)

Other pharmacies in Kabul and the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif also said they had been instructed not to stock any contraceptives.

"Items such as birth control pills and injections are not allowed to be sold in the pharmacy from the beginning of this month, and we are too afraid to sell the existing stock," said the owner of another store in Kabul.

This is the latest step in a series of measures taken by the Taliban against women's rights, following the ban on secondary education for girls and the closing of the academy to women.

In addition, women were forced to leave their jobs and were restricted from leaving the house.

The latest move is expected to put many women at risk, as one in every 14 women in Afghanistan already dies from pregnancy-related complications.

Afghanistan is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for pregnant women.

Afghanistan's Ministry of Health has not issued any official statement on the issue, nor has the UN responded to inquiries on the matter.

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"I don't want my daughter to have a future like mine"

Zainab, 17, who got married two years ago at Mazar-i-Sharif, said she was shocked to hear about the ban on contraceptives from a medical nurse.

Zainav, mother of a one and a half year old toddler, said she was worried.

"I secretly received contraceptives to avoid pregnancy immediately. I want to raise my daughter with proper educational and medical institutions, but my dreams were shattered last week when the nurse informed me that she had no birth control pills and injections to offer me," she said.

According to her, "I stopped studying to get married and I don't want my daughter to have a future like mine. I want a different future for my daughter. The last hope of planning my life has been shattered."

Even before the Taliban returned to power after a 20-year war with foreign forces led by the United States, a 2021 Human Rights Watch report noted that the most basic information about maternal health and family planning was not available to most Afghan women.

Women's rights activists called on the Taliban to comply with international agreements that state women should have universal access to sexual and reproductive health services.

"The Koran does not prohibit the use of contraceptives" (Photo: Reuters)

Shabnam Nasimi, a social activist from Afghanistan who currently lives in Britain, said that "the Taliban control not only the right of women to work and study, but now also their bodies. This is outrageous."

It is a basic human right to have access to family planning and contraceptive services without threats.

These are essential elements of women's rights such as the right to equality, non-discrimination, life, sexual health, a healthy birth and other basic human rights." "

Access to contraceptives and the right to family planning is not only a matter of human rights - it is also central to empowering women and lifting a country out of poverty." , Nasimi said. "It is already well known that the Koran does not prohibit the use of contraceptives, nor does it prohibit couples from controlling their pregnancies or the number of children they want to have.

The Taliban have no right to limit access to contraceptives based on their interpretation of Islam."

The Koran supports women's right to space between pregnancies to raise their children.

Ustad Feridon, a senior Taliban official from Kandahar, told the Guardian that he did not support a total ban.

"The use of contraceptives is sometimes medically necessary for the mother's health. Sharia allows the use of contraceptives if there is a risk to the mother's life. Therefore, a complete ban on contraceptives is not correct."

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