The United Nations has issued a blistering condemnation of a new Taliban decree on marriage separation, warning that the law effectively legalizes child marriage and further entrenches “systemic discrimination” against Afghan women and girls.
The Taliban’s response? Reject the criticism and insist the decree follows Islamic law.
Afghanistan’s justice ministry published Decree No. 18 “on judicial separation of spouses” last week, setting out rules for how married couples can separate. But buried within its 31 articles is a provision that has ignited global outrage: the law states that the silence of a girl reaching puberty can be interpreted as consent to marriage. It also includes a section on the separation of girls who reach puberty and are married, which, the UN said, “implies that child marriage is permitted.”
“Decree No. 18 is part of a broader and deeply concerning trajectory in which the rights of Afghan women and girls are being eroded,” said Georgette Gagnon, the UN’s Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and acting head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). “The Decree further institutionalizes discrimination and, when combined with restrictions on girls’ education and women’s public participation, entrenches a system in which Afghan women and girls are denied autonomy, opportunity and access to justice.”
What the Law Says
The decree was approved by Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and published in Afghanistan’s Official Gazette in mid-May. While it allows women to seek separation from their husbands, the process is far more complicated for women than for men.
Men retain the unilateral right to divorce. Women must navigate complex and restrictive judicial avenues to end a marriage. The decree “operates in a deeply unequal framework,” UNAMA said. “This situation reinforces structural discrimination and limits women’s autonomy in matters fundamental to their dignity, safety, and well-being.”
Article 5 of the decree has drawn the sharpest criticism. It sets out the procedures for the separation of minors whose family members enter into a marriage contract on their behalf. According to UNAMA, this “implies that child marriage is permitted” and “undermines the principle of free and full consent.”
Puberty generally occurs between ages 8 and 13, according to the U.S. National Institute of Health. The Taliban’s spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, told The New York Times that most Afghan women reach puberty between 15 and 18. Human Rights Watch noted that child marriage was legal under previous governments, “but only between the ages of 15 and 16” and with parental permission.
The decree also makes a distinction between girls and boys regarding annulment. If a “virgin girl” had previously remained silent, the decree considers her choice to separate as “invalidated.” However, “the choice upon obtaining puberty of a boy… is not invalidated by silence.” A girl given away in marriage by her father or grandfather may approach a court to cancel the marriage contract upon reaching puberty — but only if the husband has not treated her with kindness.
Worse, if a girl asks her husband for a divorce and he denies it, “then in this case, there are no witnesses with the girl, the husband’s word is valid.” A woman’s word, standing alone, is legally worthless.
The Broader Context of Oppression
This decree is not an isolated act. Since seizing power in 2021, the Taliban have systematically dismantled women’s rights. Girls are banned from secondary school and university. Women are barred from most jobs. They cannot enter gyms, beauty salons, or public parks. They must cover themselves from head to toe outside the home. Any breach can result in arrest and imprisonment.
The UN’s statement noted that after the Taliban took power, they issued a decree in 2021 that “recognized certain rights for women, including women’s consent to marriage.” But successive decrees have steadily eroded those protections.
UNAMA warned that the myriad restrictions imposed by the Taliban “have deprived millions of Afghan women and girls of their right to education, weakened economic participation, and deepened poverty, with long-term consequences for Afghanistan’s development.”
The Taliban’s Defense
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid rejected the UN’s criticism, telling state broadcaster RTA that objections from “those who contradict the religion of Islam are not new and we should not pay attention to them.” He noted that the Supreme Leader Akhundzada has already issued a previous decree banning forced marriage of girls. Afghan courts and the vice and virtue ministry have investigated thousands of such cases in the past year alone, he said, “which shows the Islamic Emirate’s concern for women’s rights.”
Human rights groups are not convinced. More than 100 Afghan and international organizations have called for the decree to be repealed, arguing that it institutionalizes gender discrimination. Fereshta Abbasi, the Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch, told the New York Times that the Taliban’s interpretation of Islamic law is unparalleled in other Muslim-majority countries and does not adhere to established Islamic teachings on protecting women’s legal rights.
What Comes Next
The UN has called on Taliban authorities to align their laws with international standards, including safeguarding consent to marriage, eliminating child marriage, ensuring access to justice, and protecting the rights and dignity of all individuals. The Taliban have shown no indication of compliance.
UN investigators have previously warned that the Taliban’s treatment of women and girls may amount to “crimes against humanity.” The International Criminal Court has requested arrest warrants for two senior Taliban leaders on charges of persecution “on gender grounds.”
For now, the decree stands. And for millions of Afghan girls, the law of the land now says their silence is permission.
The Bottom Line
The United Nations expressed “grave concern” over a new Taliban decree on marriage separation that implicitly permits child marriage and entrenches systemic discrimination against women. The law interprets a girl’s silence upon reaching puberty as consent to marriage, allows marriage contracts for minors, and makes divorce nearly impossible for women while men retain unilateral rights. The Taliban rejected the criticism, insisting the decree follows Islamic law and noting existing bans on forced marriage.
The decree is the latest in a series of restrictions imposed by the Taliban since 2021, including bans on girls’ education, women’s employment, and access to public spaces. Human rights groups have called for the law to be repealed, and the International Criminal Court is pursuing charges against Taliban leaders for gender-based persecution. The UN has called on the Taliban to align with international standards.
But the Taliban are not listening. And Afghan girls are paying the price.
