I Believe Paper

I Believe the Taliban was Wrong to Restrict Clothing
One’s personal clothing choice is thought of as an expression of their individuality. When taken away, this sense of individuality is also removed. The Taliban enforced these rules against the people of Afghanistan, oftentimes resorting to severe physical punishment. Although the Taliban might have thought that it was in the best interests of the people, it really did more harm than good. The Taliban’s decision to restrict the people of Afghanistan’s clothing, especially the women’s, was wrong and a complete infringement upon their sense of individuality, further causing very detrimental effects on their society.
First of all, when the Taliban invaded Afghanistan, they imposed a multitude of rules, dictating the way the people of Afghanistan were to live their lives. Women often bore the heaviest burden when it came to changes in lifestyles. If anyone decided not to conform to these demands, then the Taliban thought it appropriate to punish them physically. The Taliban justified their unjust behavior by saying they were only doing what the Koran told them to do. One of the rules that the Taliban enforced was the mandatory wearing of a chadri by all women when they go outside. Something this specific could not have been cited in the Koran. The Taliban interpreted the Koran the way that they wanted to, not in the way that makes the most sense. The Taliban should not have created all of these “rules,” stating that they were in the Koran, when in actuality they were not.
The chadri is basically a veil that covers every inch of a women’s body, with a little window of cloth through which one may look out. It is the only article of outerwear that women are allowed to wear. The chadri, to the women in them, acted more like a prison than an article of clothing. There are restrictions not only on the wearing of the chadri, but also on the clothes that you are allowed to wear under it as well. The Taliban says that women are not allowed to wear bright colored clothes under their chadris, even though it would not be seen. The Taliban has regulated pretty much every thing that a woman is allowed to wear; not to mention the fact that everything women are allowed to wear is quite unflattering. Women often have to resort to wearing lingerie under their chadris to feel pretty. This inability to express themselves will undoubtedly result in a huge blow to their self-esteems.
This sort of inhibition is not healthy for the women of Afghanistan. The design of the chadri is very drab, and when the women are forced to put them on, they will inevitably get lost in a sea of uniformity. Clothing is supposed to be a way of expressing your individuality, and if you take away that form of expression, and do not replace it with another, the effect is that of being smothered. Without even the littlest piece of individuality, people's self-esteem will plummet so low that they are bound to become depressed. The more depressed people get, the less productive they will be. Although women are not allowed to have a job, their unhappiness will affect their families. If the men are also depressed, then their performances at their jobs won’t be up to par; further hurting the economy. One of the biggest effects of this depression is the lack of creativity, which inevitably ensues. There are many very smart and creative people in Afghanistan, and if they are inhibited by depression, then they will not be able to attain their full potential. Without these people leading the way, then Afghanistan's society will not be able to advance at the rate they should be advancing.
While this idea of uniformity is probably what the Taliban had in mind when they imposed all of their rules, they didn’t really think of the repercussions that would take place. Over time people will get fed up with the Taliban’s rules and revolutionary thoughts will start to form. Seeing that women are not allowed to work, they will have a lot of free time to plan things. The act of revolting is the exact opposite effect the Taliban had when implementing these rules. They thought they were going to have a society that conformed to their rules, but instead, they got people planning revolutions.
It was not only the clothing that was restricted; women were not allowed to accessorize either. If a woman were caught with nail polish on, her punishment would range from a beating, to the removal of fingers. With this horrific punishment hanging over their heads, the majority of the people of Afghanistan decided it was best that they conform. Footwear was also restricted. No one, even men were allowed to wear white shoes. The reason behind this one is that the Taliban’s flag is white, and if you wear shoes the same color as the flag, you would be stepping on the flag. This very petty crime would also get you a beating. The Taliban are creating rules that, from an outsider’s point of view, are extremely bizarre.
The Taliban imposed an abundance of rules on the people of Afghanistan restricting their clothing. These rules inhibited people’s, especially women’s, sense of individuality. In some cases, when the Taliban decided to stifle these people’s expression of individuality, they were met with an adverse reaction. The Taliban had no right to impose all of those rules upon the people of Afghanistan, and doing so was a horrible decision on their part. Their actions resulted in an effective stopper in the advancement of their society.