JAKARTA - Hairdressers in Afghanistan risk being detained if they cut men's beards or beards too short. This is because the Taliban authorities are increasingly enforcing their strict interpretation of Islamic law.
AFP reported on Thursday, February 19, that the Afghan Ministry of Welfare and Crime Prevention stated last month that it was "mandatory" to grow a beard longer than a fist, a policy that reinforced a previously issued order.
Afghan Minister for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice Khalid Hanafi said the decision was "the government's responsibility to guide the nation to have an appearance in accordance with the sharia," or Islamic law.
He said officials tasked with promoting virtue "must implement the Islamic system."
To ensure the rules are followed, ministry officials patrol the city streets.
AFP interviewed a number of male barbers who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons.
A 30-year-old barber in the southeastern Ghazni province said he was detained for three nights after officials learned that one of his employees had given a Western-style haircut to a customer.
"First, I was detained in a cold hall. Then, after I insisted on being released, they moved me to a cold (shipping) container," he said.
He was eventually released without charge and returned to work. However, the person concerned still often hid with his customers when the patrol passed.
"The problem is that no one can refute or question [the ministry officials]," said the barber.
"Everyone is afraid of them," he continued.
He added that in some cases where both the barber and the client were detained, "the client has been released, but they still detain the barber" in custody.
Last year, three barbers in Kunar province were jailed for 3-5 months for violating the ministry's regulations, according to a UN report.
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