Tajikistan refutes reports of hijab ban
Authorities in Tajikistan have not introduced a legislative ban on wearing long beards and hijabs in the country.
The news portal Asia Plus reported this, citing the Committee for Religious Affairs, Regulation of Traditions, Celebrations and Rites under the government of the republic.
Earlier, a number of media outlets, citing some "local sources," reported that Tajikistan had allegedly banned men from wearing long beards and women from wearing religious clothing — the hijab — at the legislative level, and had also tightened control over compliance with these instructions.
"The state of ensuring the religious rights and freedoms of citizens of Tajikistan is not what it is portrayed by some media and various organizations. The country has created the necessary legislative and other conditions for the realization of freedom of conscience and freedom of religion. Unfortunately, assessments of religious freedoms in Tajikistan often do not reflect the real state of affairs, since they are often based on information from unreliable sources," the portal quotes a representative of the committee as saying.
In March 2024, at a meeting with public and religious figures, President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon noted that national clothing reflects the material and spiritual values of the past of its people and makes the nation recognizable, and criticized imitation of foreign culture in clothing, in particular the wearing of the satr and hijab. He also instructed the Committee for Women and Family Affairs of the republic, together with Tajik designers, to develop and present designs for national clothing in accordance with the religious and ethical needs of Tajik women.
Later, amendments to the law "On the Regulation of Celebrations and Rites" came into force in Tajikistan, which indicate that citizens are obliged to observe elements of national clothing, and also prohibit the import, sale and wearing of clothing alien to Tajik culture in public places.
National women's clothing has repeatedly become the subject of discussion in Tajikistan. Thus, according to the Asia Plus portal, in 2018 a book was published in the republic with recommendations from the Ministry of Culture on wearing clothes on weekdays and holidays. The publication stated that women are not recommended to wear a black hijab, too revealing European clothing, or to walk in public places in galoshes or slippers.
