Taliban Labor Minister Says Islamic Orders Are Independent of Leadership

Abdul Manan Omari, the Taliban’s Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, stated on Tuesday during a ceremony honoring International Workers’ Day that the commands and prohibitions of Islam are not related to the leader of the administration or its prime ministers. He emphasized that the implementation of these orders goes beyond individuals and government officials.

According to Omari, demanding a duty from an official does not mean ‘creating a system,’ but rather is defined within the framework of divine command. He did not provide further explanation regarding the limits of these responsibilities or how officials should be held accountable.

These remarks come amid recent years in which the Taliban administration has justified many of its policies and restrictions by citing a specific interpretation of Islamic Sharia law. However, critics have consistently called for greater transparency about the basis of decision-making and how officials within the administration are accountable to the people.

Religious experts also believe that the interpretation and implementation of Islamic rulings require consensus among scholars and consideration of temporal and spatial circumstances — a subject that has become a contentious issue in Afghan society today.