Ekeomah Atuonwu
As the insurgent group continues to tighten down civil rights in Afghanistan, the Taliban government is targeting international media with broadcasting prohibitions.
Some DW content will no longer be replayed by Afghan partners, according to DW’s Afghan service on Monday.
According to the UK’s national broadcaster, news broadcasts in Pashto, Persian, and Uzbek would be removed off the airwaves.
The Taliban’s broadcasting crackdown targets DW’s political chat show “Aashti” on local partner ToloNews in Dari and Pashto. Ariana TV’s and Shamshad’s science programs were also affected.
“The growing restrictions on press freedom and freedom of expression in Afghanistan are extremely concerning,” said DW Director-General Peter Limbourg.
“The Taliban’s recent criminalization of our media partners’ distribution of DW programming is impeding constructive advancements in Afghanistan. Free media is critical for this, and we will continue to do everything we can to give impartial information to Afghans via the internet and social media “he added.
“The people of Afghanistan have been waiting in vain for their living conditions to improve, or at least for some degree of normalcy, since the Taliban assumed power,” Limbourg added.
In a statement tweeted by BBC anchor and correspondent Yalda Hakim, Kafala added, “We appeal on the Taliban to rescind their decision and allow our TV partners to promptly return the BBC’s news bulletins to their airwaves.”
According to Germany’s DPA news agency, the Taliban is also restricting broadcasts from the US foreign broadcaster Voice of America (VOA) in Afghanistan.
VOA’s television transmissions on Afghan channels have been halted, according to Taliban spokesman Abdul Haq Hammad.
When the Taliban took power over Afghanistan in August 2021, many journalists fled. The Taliban’s decision to shut down international stations comes only days after the Taliban reversed their plan to reopen females’ secondary schools.
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