MSF says one of its staff was among women detained in Afghanistan for violating dress code rules

A Taliban fighter stands guard as women wait to receive food rations distributed by a humanitarian aid group, in Kabul, Afghanistan on May 23, 2023. (Ebrahim Noroozi / AP Photo)

A Doctors Without Borders paramedic was among women arrested during a recent crackdown for alleged dress code violations in Afghanistan, the medical aid organization said Friday.

The paramedic was arrested for not wearing a face covering while on her way to work at a hospital in the western city of Herat, and was detained for two days, according to Sarah Champion, the aid group’s program manager for Afghanistan.

The organization, also known by its French acronym MSF, said in a statement Thursday it was “outraged by the arrest and detention of one of its employees as part of the enforcement of dress code requirements in the city.”

“This incident is not isolated. Women in Afghanistan already face very severe restrictions on movement and access to public life, which have direct consequences on the access to care and delivery of healthcare services across the country,” it said.

The United Nations has said at least 30 women were arrested in Herat on Saturday and Sunday over alleged infringements of Afghanistan’s draconian dress code for women. The arrests and detentions sparked a rare protest in the city on Monday which was violently dispersed by Taliban police.

The UN mission in Afghanistan has said that at least one person was killed by gunfire and several others suffered injuries, including from beatings, in the police response to the protest.

Women face draconian restrictions in Afghanistan

Protests are very rare in Afghanistan, which has been run by the Taliban since 2021 in the wake of the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led forces. The government has since imposed rules governed by a strict interpretation of Islamic law, or Shariah. Dissent is not tolerated, and protests against government decisions are banned.

The regulations include draconian restrictions on women and girls, such as bans on education beyond primary school and on many jobs. Women are required to be accompanied by a male guardian when outside the home, and strict rules govern what women can wear. Healthcare is one of the few sectors where women are still allowed to work.

The rules stipulate that women can only go out in public when wearing full hijab — which includes a headscarf and long robe covering the entire body — as well as a face covering that leaves only the eyes visible. The regulations are policed by the feared Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice.

MSF staffer and her husband detained

The MSF staffer was being driven to work in a hospital in Herat by her husband when the couple was stopped at a checkpoint set up by the vice and virtue ministry, Champion said Friday.

The woman was told that not wearing a face covering was a violation of the dress code for women. However, she was wearing her work uniform, which has been approved for female hospital staff by Afghanistan’s Health Ministry, Champion told The Associated Press.

After explaining she was working at the hospital, the staffer left the checkpoint. But she and her husband were arrested when they arrived at the hospital, and were both detained for two days, Champion said.

The detention “is completely disproportionate,” Champion added. “You don’t go to jail for that. You don’t get arrested and detained for not covering your face.”

The medical worker had to sign a commitment to wear a niqab

Before being released, both husband and wife had to sign a written commitment that the woman would wear a niqab — a garment that covers the entire body, including the head and face, leaving only the eyes visible. The document stipulates that if she does not do so, she could be jailed for a month, Champion said.

The woman’s father, brother and brother-in-law were also required to sign the document, to guarantee the woman’s husband will ensure his wife conforms to the dress regulations.

MSF currently runs seven projects across Afghanistan for maternity, pediatric, trauma and tuberculosis care. It said that women make up 45% of its nurses and more than half of its workforce in maternity projects.

Elena Becatoros, The Associated Press