Since the fall of Afghanistan and the return to power of the Taliban in August 2021, the group has begun implementing Sharia law, disregarding international law and the UN Charter on Human Rights. They enforce Islamic punishments on those they consider guilty, including sentences ranging from imprisonment and flogging to stoning and execution.
In the most recent instance, the Taliban publicly flogged sixty-three people, including fifteen women, in a sports stadium in Sar-e Pol province. The Taliban claims that some of these individuals engaged in “immoral relationships”, which the group refers to as “sodomy” and “adultery.”
The spokesperson for the Taliban government in Sar-e Pol, stated that today “punitive measures were carried out against 63 individuals, including 15 women,” in the presence of Mohammad Yaqoob Abdul Rahman, the governor of Sar-e Pol, and other local officials at the sports stadium in the city of Sar-e Pol.
He declared the allegations against these individuals were “illicit acts such as adultery, sodomy, fleeing from home, theft, and defamation,” who were arrested and after “investigations by judicial bodies” were each sentenced to 39 lashes according to the verdicts of the local courts of the Taliban government in Sar-e Pol.
Abdul Rahim Rashid, the spokesperson for the Supreme Court of the Taliban government, also wrote on X that “some of them were accused of sodomy and theft, while others were charged with committing unethical relationships.”
He added that local officials delivered speeches before the implementation of the punishment. These officials spoke about the punishment of crimes and the reformation of society.
The implementation of these sentences has faced criticism from the United Nations and human rights organizations, including Amnesty International.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) condemned the mass flogging of dozens of people in Afghanistan and called on the Taliban to refrain from repeating such actions.
Jeremy Laurence, a spokesperson for the United Nations, stated that corporal punishment is a clear violation of international human rights conventions, of which Afghanistan is a member.
photo: Parwiz/Reuters
