Afghan radio goes quiet: How Taliban has silenced the air waves since August 2021

File image of a Taliban soldier in Kabul. AP

The fall of the republican government and the simultaneous rise of the Taliban in August 2021 rendered basic human rights obsolete in Afghanistan.

According to the latest news reports, amidst the quiet collapse of Afghan media at least 86 radio stations too were silenced by the repressive new regime.

Financial and political issues are the main reasons for the collapse of the Afghan media, reported Tolo News.

In the last six months since the military takeover of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and establishing the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, an all male government, the media is among the worst sufferers. Let’s take a look how Taliban silenced the air waves in Afghanistan:

Media under the Taliban rule

On 17 August, two days after taking power, the Deputy Minister of Information and Culture Zabihullah Mujahid said that private media can “continue to be free and independent”.

However, the Taliban government issued a new set of media regulations in September, a little over a month since Mujahid’s assurance.

The new rules spelled outright censorship of the media.

According to Al Jazeera, the 11 directives include a requirement that: “Media outlets will prepare detailed reports in coordination with the Government Media and Information Center (GMIC),” which is currently headed by Mohammad Yusuf Ahmadi, a former spokesman for the group during their 20-year rebellion against the US occupation.

As per a report by Human Rights Watch, the regulations prohibit media from printing or broadcasting reports that “are contrary to Islam,” “insult national figures,” or “distort news content.”

Journalists are required to “ensure that their reporting is balanced” and not report on “matters that have not been confirmed by officials” or issues that “could have a negative impact on the public’s attitude.”

Media outlets are required to “prepare detailed reports” with the new governmental regulatory body before publication.

More than 300 media outlets closed down in less than a month since the Taliban took over, according to a report by Tolo News, one of the largest broadcasters in Afghanistan.

These outlets included radio, print and TV channels.

According to a recent report by the Afghan Journalists Safety Committee (AJSC), 70 per cent of the media outlets across the country closed in the two months since the Taliban came to power.

As per Tolo News, Radio Jahan is one of the dozens of radios that has halted operations since last August.

“Radio Jahan has halted broadcasting for more than six months due to severe economic challenges,” said Mosawar Rasikh, head of Radio Jahan, as reported by Tolo News.

Milma Radio, stationed in Paktika, too stopped its activities. Established in 2011, Milma Radio covered political, cultural, economic and sports stories.

With a total of 35 employees, Milma Radio had an outreach to 13 provinces.

“Due to an inappropriate working environment and economic problems, we stopped our activities,” Yaqob Khan Manzoor, editor-in-chief of the radio, told Tolo News.

Shafiullah Azizi, head of the Zamzama radio stations, said that around 70 per cent of radio stations had closed in the country since August 2021.

With inputs from agencies

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