Taliban's New Penal Code Institutionalises Domestic Violence and Caste System
The Taliban regime in Afghanistan has published a comprehensive new penal code that formally enshrines some of its most regressive practices into national law, with women facing particularly severe consequences in the court system. Signed by the hardline Islamist group's supreme leader, Hiabatullah Akhundzada, the 90-page criminal document includes archaic stipulations that differentiate punishment based on whether an offender is considered "free" or "a slave."
Women Effectively Treated as Property Under New System
Perhaps most alarmingly, the code appears to place women on the same legal footing as slaves, with specific clauses stating that both "slave masters" and husbands may administer discretionary physical punishment to their wives or subordinates. The Independent has obtained a copy of the criminal code, titled De Mahakumu Jazaai Osulnama, which has been distributed to courts throughout Afghanistan.
Many Afghans are reportedly too frightened to speak out against the new regulations, even under conditions of anonymity, due to fears of Taliban reprisals. Following initial expressions of discontent circulating online and through activists based outside the country, the Taliban has issued a separate ruling declaring that even discussing the new code constitutes a criminal offence, according to human rights organisations.
Justice System Stacked Against Female Victims
The code specifies that corporal punishment for serious crimes will be administered not by correctional services but by Islamic clerics. For less serious misdemeanours, it encourages resolution through "ta'zir" or discretionary punishment—which in practice means that when the "offender" is a wife, her husband may beat her.
While the code theoretically provides a route to justice for assaulted women, the requirements make it virtually inaccessible. Victims must prove they have suffered serious bodily harm by displaying their wounds to a judge while remaining fully covered according to Taliban dress codes. Additionally, they must be accompanied to court by their husband or a male chaperone (mehram)—even though the majority of offenders in such cases are the husbands themselves.
Legal Adviser Describes 'Impossible' Situation for Women
A Kabul-based legal adviser, speaking anonymously for safety reasons, told The Independent that women now face an "extremely lengthy and difficult" process to obtain justice for assaults under Taliban law. She recounted a recent case where a woman was beaten by a Taliban guard while visiting her imprisoned husband.
When the victim complained to authorities, she was informed her plea would not be heard without her male chaperone present—the very husband who was incarcerated. "She cried and shouted in public that death is better than the process she is going through," the legal adviser reported. "It is impossible for women to get any justice for an assault that happens to them."
Stark Regression from Previous Protections
This represents a dramatic deterioration from progress achieved under the previous NATO-backed Afghan administration, which had implemented stringent measures against forced marriage, rape, and other forms of gender-based violence. Under that system, domestic violence against women carried penalties ranging from three months to one year in prison.
Under the new Taliban code, even if an Afghan woman manages to overcome all legal and social obstacles to prove she has been seriously assaulted by her spouse, the maximum sentence her husband will receive is just fifteen days. Human rights experts confirm that the Taliban has neither condemned nor explicitly prohibited physical, psychological, or sexual violence against women in the new legislation.
Further Restrictions on Women's Mobility and Safety
Rawadari, a human rights movement monitoring the Taliban regime primarily from exile, highlighted another concerning provision. Article 34 states that if a woman repeatedly visits her father's house or other relatives' homes without her husband's permission and refuses to return despite his request, both the woman and any family members who prevented her from returning to her husband are deemed criminals subject to three months' imprisonment.
"This provision, particularly in the case of women who take refuge at their parents' house from violence and maltreatment by their husbands, exposes them to continued domestic violence and strips them of family and community protection," Rawadari stated in an official release.
Institutionalised Caste System with Religious Immunity
Shaharzad Akbar, Rawadari's executive director, explained to The Independent that the code makes religious scholars responsible for enforcing systemic restrictions on women, girls, and minorities while granting mullahs themselves sweeping immunity from legal consequences. The new legal framework effectively establishes a formal caste system where punishment is determined not by the nature of the crime but by the social status of the perpetrator.
At the hierarchy's apex are religious scholars, followed by elites, the "middle class," and finally the "lower class." If a religious scholar commits a crime, they receive mere "advice" regarding their actions. A social elite member would face maximum punishment of "advice" and possibly a court summons. The "middle class" could be imprisoned, while the "lower class" faces imprisonment combined with corporal punishment.
"So the mullah is king now," Akbar concluded. "The mullah calls the shots, and the mullah gets all the privileges that ordinary people can't, because they're put even above elites."
