The Taliban has weaponised misogyny. They're not alone

It isn’t just in Islamic countries that religion is being harnessed to repress women, or to undermine their rights and freedoms and erode their equality as citizens, writes TP O'Mahony

The Taliban has passed a law that allows men to beat their wives. This is presented by the all-male Taliban leadership as in accordance with God’s will.
Picture: AP/Petros Giannakouris

If you have ever wondered what misogynistic religion in the service of politics looks like then a recent story in the Daily Telegraph provided an answer. This was the opening paragraph: “The Taliban has passed a law that allows men to beat their wives as long as it does not cause ‘broken bones or open wounds’.” 

The law is part of a new penal code, signed by the Taliban supreme leader, that has been distributed to courts across Afghanistan. It classifies spousal beatings as discretionary punishment rather than a criminal act.