Report on the Implementation, Enforcement and Impact of the Law on the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Afghanistan (April 2025) [EN/PS/Dari]

About this Report and Methodology

This report provides an overview of the implementation, enforcement and impact in Afghanistan of the “law on the propagation of virtue and prevention of vice” (“PVPV law”) from its promulgation on 21 August 2024 by Afghanistan’s de facto authorities to 31 March 2025. The report is mainly based on impartial daily monitoring and observations of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) carried out across Afghanistan in accordance with UNAMA’s mandate from the United Nations Security Council to monitor and report on political, security, human rights, social and economic developments. 1 The information in the report is compiled from multiple sources, including regular UNAMA Field Office reporting, meetings with Afghanistan’s de facto authorities, official statements of the de facto authorities, statements and press releases of other stakeholders, media reports, as well as information and reports from UN Agencies, Funds and Programmes and entities such as the World Bank and surveys by the Gender in Humanitarian Action and the Humanitarian Action Working Group in Afghanistan.

Executive Summary

Six months into implementation of the PVPV law, UNAMA observed a determination by Afghanistan’s de facto authorities to ensure their vision of a pure Islamic system is implemented nationwide. The de facto authorities have stated they view the PVPV law as a component of measures aimed at reshaping Afghan society in line with their vision by creating a culture of self-perpetuating social and individual conduct and values they assert will result in a nationwide return to a pure Islamic system in Afghanistan.

The PVPV law codifies many of the de facto authorities’ existing directives and restrictions issued as decrees, edicts and instructions, broadening some and adding new ones. These include a requirement for women to wear a hijab (with face covering) outside of the home; for men to have a physical appearance considered Islamic and to attend congregational prayers; prohibition of certain celebrations, items and activities deemed un-Islamic; prohibition of unrelated men and women from looking at each other requiring the separation of men and women; drivers prohibited from transporting women unaccompanied by a mahram (male guardian) with women banned from using public transport without a mahram; and ensuring publications and media content do not contradict Sharia, insult Muslims or contain images of living beings.

The PVPV law articulates a robust enforcement framework. It can also be viewed as additional to previous decrees and efforts of the de facto authorities including conversion of the public education system into a madrassa system, the gradual replacement of educated technocrats in line ministries with religiously educated clerics loyal to the Taliban movement, and a reported gradual exclusion from power and economic opportunities of ethnic and religious minorities.

Increased nationwide enforcement of the PVPV law was evident within weeks of the law’s promulgation which varied depending on the region, province and district. UNAMA observed an initial wave of advocacy efforts by the de facto authorities, with a particular focus on northern provinces where greater resistance may have been expected for social, cultural, and religious reasons. Three key themes were conveyed through this advocacy: that all Afghans have an obligation to obey the Taliban leader; that the de facto authorities would not bow to any internal or external pressure in their pursuit of their version of Sharia; and that Afghanistan is the only nation in the world living under pure Sharia.

Across Afghanistan, men, women, minorities, and youth have been impacted to varying degrees by enforcement of the PVPV law often marked by violations of personal and private spaces, public areas, economic activities, and, in the case of non-Sunnis, religious spaces. Thousands of predominately male PVPV inspectors are conducting enforcement operations, equipped with broad discretionary powers, including of arbitrary detention and confiscation.

UNAMA observed overall more systematic and consistent efforts in the de facto authorities’ enforcement of the PVPV law led by the de facto Ministry of the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice and Hearing of Complaints compared to the de facto authorities’ enforcement of earlier decrees. To support the law’s enforcement, the de facto authorities established provincial implementation committees in 28 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces chaired by the de facto Provincial Governor. The provincial committees supplement the efforts of several thousand mostly male PVPV inspectors in the de facto Ministry of the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice who have been trained and are conducting enforcement operations around the country, equipped with broad discretionary powers, including of arbitrary detention and confiscation.

Across Afghanistan, men, women, minorities, and youth have been impacted to varying degrees by enforcement of the PVPV law often marked by infringements of personal and private spaces, public areas, economic activities, and, in the case of non-Sunnis, religious spaces. UNAMA observed that enforcement of the law has increased restrictions on women and girls, including on access to public spaces, dress code and travel without a mahram (male guardian). Female access to healthcare, already constrained, has been further restricted by women’s inability to travel alone for short distances and female health care professionals in several areas described their inability to report to duty because they do not have a mahram. These restrictions have also created a culture of uncertainty and fear. Many women reported that enforcement responsibilities have been increasingly taken up by local community and family members, reshaping social and family dynamics.

Enforcement of the PVPV law has also affected men facing stipulations on hairstyle and beard length, attendance at prayers and from other provisions of the law. UNAMA observed that in the first six months of implementation of the PVPV law, over half of the PVPV lawrelated arbitrary detentions concerned men’s appearance—either men not having the compliant beard length or hairstyle, or barbers providing non-compliant beard trimming or haircuts. During the month of Ramadan (1 to 29 March 2025) compliance with attending mandated congregational prayers was closely monitored, leading at times to arbitrary detention of persons who failed to attend prayers.

The education sector has experienced active PVPV inspections to enforce compliance, including on the appearance of staff and measures to enforce segregation of men and women. Books not aligned with Hanafi jurisprudence have been ordered to be removed.

The PVPV law has further impacted the ability of UN Agencies, Funds and Programmes and national and international NGOs to deliver humanitarian assistance, with aid organizations already experiencing restrictions on Afghan women working in the assistance sector. While previous decrees have not been fully enforced, or exemptions negotiated, surveys conducted by the Humanitarian Access Working Group have highlighted increased staff anxiety with almost half of national female staff not able to travel to their offices or field locations following promulgation of the PVPV law. The surveys also noted that nearly half of the affected organizations surveyed could no longer engage with women beneficiaries and had their offices subjected to PVPV compliance visits.

The direct and indirect socio-economic effects of PVPV implementation are likely to compound Afghanistan’s dire economic situation. A World Bank study has assessed that the de facto authorities’ ban on women from education and work could cost the country over USD 1.4 billion per year.2 This loss is likely to ripple through the economy with decelerated economic activity, including through restrictions on businesses that provide a range of services. UNAMA observed that while the law’s implementation disproportionately affected women and girls, both men and women were negatively affected particularly small businesses such as private education centres, barbers and hairdressers, tailors, wedding caterers and restaurants, leading to a reduction or total loss of income and employment opportunities. UNAMA received reports from men and women across Afghanistan expressing their concerns on the exclusion of females from work and education, which they said deprived families of their incomes, exacerbated poverty and forced families to consider migration.

Afghanistan’s media sector, already impacted by pervasive intimidation, censorship and selfcensorship, faces an additional challenge under the PVPV law related to uncertainty around the scope of the prohibition of images of living beings and music, ultimately harming the public information space and freedom of expression.

The PVPV law and institutions created to implement and enforce the law suggest the de facto authorities are continuing to pursue a path that distances Afghanistan from its international obligations. Six months on from the law’s promulgation, the PVPV institutional infrastructure, informational apparatus and personnel implementing the law have contributed to making the goal of reintegrating Afghanistan into the international community harder to reach. In this regard, the United Nations Security Council reaffirmed in Resolution 2777 of 17 March 2025 “its call for the Taliban to swiftly reverse these policies and practices, including the ‘vice and virtue’ directive”