When the group rose to power in August 2021, it pledged to be different. They claimed they had learned from the past and would be a trustworthy force, opening Kabul to a new era under Taliban rule. Yet the promises proved hollow. The pace of change unfolded slowly, and by December, a sweeping restriction took center stage: women were barred from entering colleges and from working with non-governmental organizations. Restrictions had begun much earlier, and as soon as the victory was declared, the education landscape showed the first signs of what was to come. In September 2021, within weeks of triumph, men’s institutions reopened after summer break, while girls’ institutions remained unsettled, with future plans unclear.
Traveling with a parent
On September 19, the Taliban asserted that women could stay at home. By December 26, 2021, citizens could travel to another city only with a male guardian from the same family. In January 2022, wearing a headscarf became compulsory. In March, it was confirmed that girls could read, but only up to primary school. The timeline made clear that access to education and mobility would be tightly controlled.
By May 3, travel became more restricted yet again. On May 7, the attire rule intensified, with an emphasis on covering the face in public. A mandatory headscarf evolved into a compulsory burqa for many women.
October brought another constraint: women were barred from choosing certain fields of study, including engineering, journalism, veterinary medicine, agriculture, and geology in universities. In November, parks, gyms, and baths restricted entry to those accompanied by male guardians. By December, university access for women had tightened further, along with limits on NGO work and broader public life.
Exclusion police and his deputy
From the outset, restraints were enforced, and a kind of moral policing emerged, with inspectors scrutinizing women’s clothing, according to Nilab, a young Afghan woman and analyst with the Afghanistan Analysts Network. It was common to see shopkeepers telling women to avoid going out alone. If the Taliban discovered women without burqas or with makeup, guardians could be targeted and investigations could follow, threatening the family’s security.
Nilab notes that early in the enforcement phase, patrols and officials patrolled streets to intimidate those not following the new rules. The government’s official name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, appeared frequently in discourse. A year and a half later, the presence of such enforcement has waned, but the underlying risk endures.
Men in the region were warned not to let women leave home or enter public spaces without a male escort. Taxi operators were told to avoid carrying single women, under threats that highlighted the guardianship system. The dynamic remained deeply tense and unpredictable for many families.
A story that repeats itself
These restrictions did not emerge from nowhere, nor were they entirely new to the region. For two decades, international attention in Afghanistan focused on the rural, southwestern parts of the country, where conservative traditions had long shaped daily life. The new rules reflected a continuity with practices that existed for decades, even longer, and they were often most visible in the countryside.
In many rural communities, deeply rooted norms persisted: a girl could be compelled into marriage, after which she faced severe isolation and a life confined to household duties. Urban centers, by contrast, appeared more open, creating a striking contrast between city life and village life.
According to Nilab from Nimruz province, Afghan society remains deeply traditional and literacy levels are uneven. Many men support the new restrictions, while educated individuals who understand the harm they cause often fear speaking out. One example she cites is her father, opposed to the measures but choosing silence to protect himself and his family.
She summarizes the past year and a half under Taliban rule with a stark observation: women are expected to wear the burqa, while men tend to keep beards. People comply for fear of arrest or punishment, and enforcement appears to intensify around personal celebrations—police have been known to intervene in weddings, stopping music to prevent gatherings from getting out of hand. The atmosphere is suffocating for many families, even as some communities strive to cope with the new reality. (Source: Afghanistan Analysts Network)