Name: Farzana
Province: Badakhshan
I am Farzana from Badakhshan. After completing my university studies, I was selected as an intern at a local organization. This was a great opportunity for me, and I was happy because it was my first professional experience. After completing a six-month internship, I secured a contract position in a government institution.
I worked there for about a year. Then the Taliban returned, the government collapsed, and all our dreams for the future turned to ashes. Even when we tried to retrieve our personal belongings from the office, they denied us entry, saying we were no longer permitted.
Since the Taliban’s return to Afghanistan, they have not only deprived us of the right to work and education, but also reinstated the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. This ministry now imposes new daily restrictions and prevents people from living normal lives.
In Badakhshan, they have taken away even the smallest joys. Officials from the ministry patrol neighborhoods, targeting people who do not follow their strict rules.
They even interfere in wedding celebrations. If they hear music, they raid the event and ruin the moment. There have been several cases in Badakhshan where the bride and groom were arrested just because music was played at their wedding. These joyful occasions are turned into scenes of sorrow and fear.
Recently, in Shohada district, the Taliban raided a wedding where the groom had visited the bride’s house. They arrested both the bride and groom and took them away. I was present at that wedding and witnessed the arrest. They disrupted the celebration and imposed fines on both families.
