“Our national dress is not the costumes of Dementors”

KABUL (gazeta.ru): Afghan women around the world are protesting against the new Taliban * requirement to wear the hijab in public. They post photos of themselves in national costumes on social networks, showing that the culture in their country is actually different. “Gazeta.Ru” – about who decided to launch this flash mob and why it was supported.

The Taliban (an organization banned in Russia), which has come to power in Afghanistan, is increasingly putting pressure on society, especially women . However, the Afghans do not want to obey. They not only go to rallies in Kabul, but also launched a flash mob on social networks, defending their rights to wear secular clothes.

Recently, the Taliban demanded that educational institutions be divided into classes according to gender, and also ordered female students, teachers and other workers to wear hijabs, which are a mandatory attribute for women in accordance with their interpretation of Sharia. In response, Afghans have posted pictures of themselves wearing bright and colorful traditional dresses – a stark contrast to the black hijab.

Launched a campaign by Bahar Jalali, a former faculty member at the American University of Afghanistan (the first private university in the country), on LinkedIn. Her colleagues and others supported the initiative on Twitter using the hashtags #DoNotTouchMyClothes and #AfghanistanCultur.

“In the entire history of Afghanistan, no woman has dressed like this,” Jalali commented on a photo of a woman in a burqa. “This is completely alien to Afghan culture. I posted my picture in traditional Afghan clothing to inform, educate and refute the misinformation spread by the Taliban.

Indeed, if you type “Afghan traditional clothing” in a Google search , you will not see anything like the current dress code of Afghan women.

National Afghan dresses with pleated skirts and voluminous sleeves are decorated with handmade embroidery and multicolored glass beads. The outfits are made in red, purple and green colors. The so-called “demo” of these dresses has been worn by Afghan women over the past 20 years to universities or to work, according to the BBC.

As a continuation of the campaign, Waslat Hasrat-Nazimi, head of the Afghan service of DW News, posted her photo in traditional clothes on social networks. “This is Afghan culture and this is how Afghan women dress,” she wrote on Twitter.

Peymana Assad, an Afghan-born British politician, said in her post: “Our national dress is not the Dementor costumes that the Taliban force women to wear.”

Several Afghans working for the BBC joined the flash mob. Sana Safi, a journalist, wrote : “If I were in Afghanistan, I would have a headscarf on my head. It’s as ‘conservative’ and ‘traditional’ as you can imagine. “

Her colleague Sodaba Haidare shared similar photos in national dress and said: “This is our traditional dress. We love a riot of colors. Even our rice is colorful, like our flag. “

Judging by social networks, all women are inclined to one idea: their clothes are their identity and right.

“Afghan women wear such colorful and modest outfits. The black burqa has never been a part of Afghan culture, ”Spogmai Masid, a human rights activist from Virginia, formulated a general message on Twitter. “For centuries we have been an Islamic country. Yes, our grandmothers dressed modestly, but in traditional clothes, and not in filthy cloaks. “

The fate of the Afghan women has raised concerns after the Taliban came to power. An organization banned in Russia ruled the country from 1996 to 2001, implementing a tough policy towards women. They were subjected to violence, given in marriage against their will, forced to stay at home, forbidden to work and study after 12 years.

This time, Taliban officials have pledged a softer approach. “We’re going to allow women to work and study. Of course, there will be certain limits. Women will become an important part of Afghan society, but within the framework of Islam, ”said Zabihullah Mujahid TASS, a representative of the Taliban movement . However, these promises have not yet been fulfilled (with the exception of the right to education).