Authorities in the Afghan province of Kandaharknown as the birthplace of the Taliban, issued an order this Sunday (18) instructing its employees not to take photos or videos of “living beings”.
In a letter addressed to civilian and military officials, the Afghan provincial department advised them to “refrain from taking photographs of living beings in their informal and formal meetings as this does more harm than good,” officials said. However, text and audio content from official activities are permitted.
Banning images of humans and animals is a common practice in Islamic culture, due to the aversion many Muslims have to images of living beings. A spokesperson for the governor of Kandahar confirmed to AFP the authenticity of the letter, clarifying that the recommendations were only for provincial employees.
“It is not related to the general public and independent media,” he said Mahmoud Azzamgovernment spokesperson.
Images of living beings in photos and videos were prohibited under the previous Taliban government, among 1996 and 2001. Many media outlets have refrained from capturing images of the population and animals since the Taliban returned to power two years ago. However, government agencies frequently distribute and share images of senior officials in meetings with foreign officials.
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