HOPES that the Afghan Taliban would this time around run a more open country have largely been dashed after the hard-line movement’s shadowy supreme leader, Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada, passed a set of stern edicts recently. In Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, Hibatullah’s word is law, which is why his call for the ‘full enforcement’ of the Taliban’s version of Sharia is important. Afghanistan’s most powerful man, who rarely issues public edicts and remains mostly confined to his Kandahar redoubt, reportedly told judges to enforce “hudood and qisas” injunctions, and that this was “obligatory”. It is obvious that the Taliban leadership wants to take their country into a more obscurantist direction, as recently women were banned from entering parks and gyms, while the ban on women’s higher education has remained in effect since the movement took Kabul last August.

The move to enforce strict penal codes, as well as restrictions on women, seems to be sending two messages. Firstly, the messaging is directed at more hard-line factions amongst the Taliban, who view their government’s very limited concessions since they came to power last year as going ‘soft’ on the movement’s ideological goals. Secondly, Mawlawi Hibatullah appears to be sending the outside world, particularly the West, a warning that if they push the Taliban rulers too hard, the latter will go back to their old ways. The fact is that both parties have unrealistic expectations. If the Western states think that their threats will scare the Taliban into ushering in an era of glasnost and liberalism, the likelihood of this happening is non-existent. On the other hand, if the Taliban think their retreat into isolationism and obscurantism will make the outside world heed their demands, that is also highly unlikely. A middle path is required. The international community can discuss giving the Taliban regime limited recognition if it promises to uphold basic human rights, including women’s full access to education, and commits to ejecting terrorist organisations from Afghan soil. Though imperfect, this may be the only viable solution in the absence of better alternatives.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2022