The Taliban’s Ministry of Justice has announced that, over the past three and a half years, it has enacted 10 new laws, all of which have been approved and enforced by the group’s leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada. These laws have been officially published in the national gazette.
Among the most controversial is the law on the propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice, which has drawn significant criticism for its sweeping restrictions on human rights, particularly the rights of women and girls. Since taking control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Taliban have abolished nearly all laws instituted under the previous government, including the Afghan Constitution, replacing them with decrees and directives attributed to Mullah Hibatullah, which are now treated as binding law.
In its recent statement, the Ministry of Justice also highlighted several other enacted laws, including the law on hearing complaints, the law on preventing land usurpation and returning seized lands, the law on the money exchange and financial services sector, the law on industrial zones, and the law on leasing “Emirati” lands.
While comprehensive legislation already existed in these sectors under the former administration, the Taliban have opted to overhaul or replace them entirely.
The ministry also reported that, since 2021, it has issued four procedural guidelines, one charter, and dozens of decrees, rulings, and directives from Akhundzada. A substantial number of these have directly targeted women’s rights and personal freedoms, contributing to ongoing domestic and international concern.
Legislation Rooted in Quran and Hanafi Jurisprudence
According to the ministry, over the past four years it has reviewed, researched, and finalised 119 legislative documents, including laws, charters, statutes, procedural guidelines, and regulations. An additional 196 documents have undergone jurisprudential analysis based on the Holy Quran, the traditions of the Prophet, and Hanafi jurisprudence.
These legislative documents include revisions or new drafts of the Police law, the law on the regulation of prisons, the mining law, the law on the transfer and repatriation of prisoners, the environmental law, the customs law, the labour law, and the private investment law.
By discarding the previous constitution, the Taliban have reaffirmed that their legal system is now grounded solely in Islamic texts, Hanafi legal tradition, and the decrees of their supreme leader.
Despite nearly four years in power, the Taliban government remains unrecognised by any country including Pakistan. Their rigid interpretation and enforcement of Sharia, particularly in regard to women’s freedoms, have not only isolated the regime internationally but also fuelled growing divisions within the Taliban leadership itself.
Prominent figures such as Deputy Foreign Minister Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai have publicly opposed policies like the continued ban on education for girls and women, highlighting internal dissent within the group over the direction of its rule.
