Apart from the promise of Taliban from the media “free and independent”, journalists and media workers have faced detention, physical harassment, and torture since the group took over Afghanistan six weeks ago.
Now a new set of media regulations issued earlier this week by the Taliban have journalists and workers who are worried that the group moves towards the sensor directly from the media – reviving his memory in the 1990s.
11 referrals include the requirement that: “Media outlets will prepare detailed reports in coordination with the media and government information center (GMIC),” which is currently led by Mohammad Yusuf Ahmadi, a former group spokesman for their 20-year rebellion on US jobs.
The media did face challenges under the previous Afghan government, including the government of former President Ashraf Ghani, who often received criticism due to lack of transparency and hostile attitude towards the media.
Despite these difficulties, Afghanistan has a difference to have a higher press freedom rating than Turkey, Pakistan, Iran, India, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
But since takeover, journalists feel increasingly difficult to operate under the Taliban called “Islamic Emirates”.
Sami Mahdi, a famous television journalist who recently published a report on the state of the media under the Taliban government, said the group had sent very clear signs of his attitude towards the media since takeover of August 15.
“Since the Taliban took over Kabul, the media had faced a lot of pressure and violence from the Taliban side … only to do their daily work,” Mahdi said, referring to reports of violence and intimidation recently on the increase in demonstrations and daily workers’ demonstrations and interviews .
Mahdi said this dependence on strength and aggression, “sending a clear message to the media, that they must be the mouth of the Taliban,” if they want to survive.
More than 150 media outlets have been closed for fear of increasing the intimidation of the Taliban and the lack of funds because the international government cut assistance to Afghanistan after the fall of the fall of Kabul.
To Afghan journalists, the new guideline is the first direct sign of the Taliban who tried to amaze the media of the nation that had ever developed.
Sherin, a female journalist who fled to Europe after experiencing a direct hostility from the Taliban, said the rules were another example of a group leadership that said one thing and their strength on the ground acted in another way.
“They made these beautiful statements and flowering, but then their men act with physical violence and harassment,” Sherin said, who asked to be a pseudonymeting for fear of his family in Afghanistan.
On August 17, two days after taking power, the minister of information and culture that was now the representative, Zabihullah Mujahid, said, “Personal media can continue to be free and independently, they can continue their activities.”
Eight days later, a news team report – a journalist and cameraman for Tolo TV, the largest private broadcaster in the country – beaten and telephone and their cameras confiscated by the armed Taliban began to circulate.
Especially about media workers is vague vague words of 11 points.
Sherin and Mahdi both point to the first rule, which stated, “stories contrary to Islam” should not be published or broadcast. Although the former Afghan government has similar regulations in their media law, the strict interpretation of the Taliban against Islam leaves journalists with questions and problems.
“What is contrary to Islam and what is not a big topic of debate,” Mahdi said.
He was worried that the lack of the clarity of the Taliban in 11 points would be used to throw wide nets when the group wanted to come after the media. “This leaves a lot of space for personal interpretation. They will use it to limit freedom of expression,” Mahdi
