Taliban’s New Criminal Code Legalises Domestic Violence Against Women, Eases Penalties for Husbands
A newly issued 90-page Taliban criminal code reportedly allows physical punishment of wives and children provided injuries are not severe. Approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban law removes previous protections for women and restructures penalties based on social hierarchy.
Provisions on Domestic Abuse
Under the code, husbands are permitted to use physical punishment in certain circumstances. Even when visible injuries are present, the maximum penalty is 15 days’ imprisonment, and only if the woman can prove the abuse in court.
To pursue a case, she must show her injuries before a judge while fully covered and be accompanied by a male guardian—often the same husband accused of the violence.
The regulations also limit women’s freedom of movement. A married woman may face up to three months in prison for visiting relatives without her husband’s permission.
The Taliban law also repeals the 2009 Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW) act introduced under the previous US-backed government.
Class-Based Punishments
The code classifies society into four groups—religious scholars, the elite, the middle class, and the lower class—and assigns punishments accordingly:
- Religious scholars: advice only
- Elite: summons and advice
- Middle class: imprisonment
- Lower class: imprisonment and corporal punishment
For serious offences, corporal punishments are to be administered by clerics rather than prison authorities.
International Concern and Criticism
Rights groups say people inside Afghanistan are reluctant to speak publicly about the code after authorities warned that even discussing it could be treated as an offence. Exiled Afghan rights organisation Rawadari called for an “immediate halt to the implementation of the criminal procedure code” and urged international bodies to “use all legal mechanisms” to stop it.
Reem Alsalem, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, wrote on X that the implications of the code for women and girls are “simply terrifying,” adding that the Taliban appear to believe no one will intervene and questioning whether the international community will prove otherwise.
The Taliban has not publicly responded to the international criticism of the new legal framework.
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