Afghanistan.- Under the Taliban regime, mannequins in women’s clothing stores in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, are an eerie sight with their heads wrapped in cloth sacks or black plastic bags.
Hooded mannequins are a symbol of the puritanical Taliban rule in Afghanistan. But in a way, they are also a small display of resilience and creativity from Kabul’s clothing merchants.
Initially, the Taliban wanted the mannequins beheaded.
Not long after they seized power in August 2021, the Taliban’s Ministry of Vice and Virtue decreed that all mannequins be removed from store windows or beheaded, according to local press. They based the order on a strict interpretation of Islamic law that prohibits statues and images in human form, as they could be worshiped as idols, although it also fits with the Taliban’s campaign to remove women from the public eye.
Some clothing vendors complied. But others resisted.
They complained that they couldn’t properly display their clothes or had to damage valuable mannequins. The Taliban had to modify their order and allowed shop owners to cover the heads of the mannequins.
Shop owners then had to balance obeying the Taliban and trying to attract customers. The variety of solutions they found are on display at Lycee Maryam Street, a middle-class shopping street lined with clothing stores in the northern part of Kabul. Shop windows and showrooms are lined with mannequins in colorful and decorated evening gowns and dresses, all wearing various types of head coverings.
In a store, the heads of mannequins are wrapped in custom-made sacks made from the same material as the traditional dress they model. One, in a purple dress trimmed with cowrie shells, had a matching purple hood. Another, in a gold-embroidered red dress, was almost graceful in a red velvet mask with a gold crown on her head.
“I can’t cover mannequin heads with plastic or horrible things because it would make my window and store look ugly.” Bashir, Owner of a clothing store
Store owners need to keep things attractive. The economy has collapsed since the Taliban took power and the resulting cut off of international funding, plunging almost the entire population into poverty.
Elaborate dresses have always been popular in Afghanistan for weddings, which even before the Taliban used to be segregated by gender, giving women the chance to dress in their best clothes in the country’s conservative society. Under the Taliban, weddings are one of the few remaining opportunities for social gatherings. But in the face of such tight income, they have become less elaborate.
Bashir says his sales are half of what they used to be.
“Buying wedding, evening and traditional dresses is no longer a priority for people. People think more about buying food and surviving.” Bashir, Owner of a clothing store
Another shop owner, Hakim, molded aluminum foil over the heads of his mannequins. He adds some flare to his merchandise, he considered.
“I made this threat and ban an opportunity, and I did it to make the mannequins even more attractive than before.” Hakim, Owner of a clothing store
Not everyone can be that elaborate. In one store, the mannequins in sleeveless dresses all had black plastic sacks on their heads. The owner said that he had no money for more.
Another shop owner, Azis, said agents from the Ministry of Vice and Virtue regularly patrol shops and malls to make sure the mannequins are headless or covered. Azis dismissed the Taliban’s justification for the rules.
“Everyone knows that mannequins are not idols, and nobody is going to worship them. In all Muslim countries, mannequins are used to display clothes.” Azis Owner of a clothing store
A small number of male mannequins can be seen in shop windows, also with their heads covered, suggesting that authorities are applying the ban evenly.
Initially, the Taliban said they would not impose the same harsh rules on society that they did during their first government in the late 1990s. But they have progressively imposed more restrictions, particularly on women. Women and girls have been barred from studying beyond the sixth grade, banned from most jobs and required to cover their faces when outside.
On a recent day, a woman shopping on Lycee Maryam Street saw the covered mannequins.
“I feel like I see myself behind these windows, an Afghan woman who has been deprived of all her rights.” RahimaClient
“When I see them, I feel that these mannequins are also captured and trapped, and it gives me a feeling of fear.” RahimaClient
“I feel like I see myself behind these windows, an Afghan woman who has been deprived of all her rights.” RahimaClient
“When I see them, I feel that these mannequins are also captured and trapped, and it gives me a feeling of fear.” RahimaClient
