Taliban decrees ‘silence’ of virgin women valid as marriage consent in Afghanistan

KABUL: The Taliban regime in Afghanistan has ratified a controversial new 31-article decree stipulating that the silence of an adult virgin girl will be legally interpreted as her consent to marriage. The regulation, titled "Principles of Marital Separation," has received official approval from the Taliban’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada.

The newly codified legal framework outlines the religious and judicial protocols governing the dissolution of marriage under various circumstances. It addresses highly sensitive issues, including child marriage, missing spouses, forced divorce, and extramarital affairs. Notably, the decree expands paternal authority, granting fathers and grandfathers ultimate jurisdiction over orchestrating child marriages.

Under the specific provisions of the text, a child marriage can potentially be annulled following the onset of the girl's menstruation, though such a cancellation remains strictly contingent upon the approval of a Taliban court. Furthermore, the law creates a gender and marital-status double standard: while a virgin woman’s silence is legally binding as consent, the silence of a male suitor or a previously married woman cannot be interpreted as such.

Human rights organisations have fiercely criticised the decree, warning that it effectively institutionalises regressive customary practices prevalent in pockets of rural Afghanistan. Rights watchdogs have previously documented harrowing cases of families offering young daughters into marriage to liquidate debts or secure emergency financial aid, with dowry payments for young girls reportedly ranging between $500 and $3,000. Activists argue that by formalising these frameworks, the Taliban is functionally legitimising child exploitation and forced marriage under the guise of state law.