The return of Taliban: Burqa prices surge tenfold in Afghanistan

The Taliban have recaptured power with a promise of bringing a new era of peace in Afghanistan. But what the fighters have brought with themselves for the people of Afghanistan are the haunting memories of their brutal rule before they were ousted by the US following the September 11, 2001 (9/11) attacks on the United States.

Among the many fears the Afghans are living with is that of the women in the country who are dreading the loss of the gains they have made over the years in terms of civil rights. The fear reflects in the fact that the demand for burqas, an enveloping outer garment worn by women in some Islamic traditions, has skyrocketed in Afghanistan.

During the earlier Taliban rule, women were required to cover their bodies and faces in a burqa, and were barred from school, work or leaving the house without a male relative.

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With the return of the Taliban and an entire generation's hopes of building a modern, democratic state going down the drain, women in the war-ravaged nation have started going back to burqas, leading to a whopping tenfold surge in the prices of the traditional attire in Kabul, as per reports.

A CNN report quoted a woman in Kabul saying that her household had just one to two burqas to share between her, her sister and their mother.

"If we don't have a burqa, we have to get a bedsheet or something to make it a bigger scarf," she said.

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While the Taliban leadership has assured that it is open to women's education, rights groups say the rules vary depending on local commanders and the communities themselves.

A 25-year-old university graduate, who works for a local NGO in Afghanistan's Herat, said she hasn't left home in weeks because of the fighting. From speaking with other residents, she said there were few if any women out on the streets, with even female doctors staying home until the situation is clearer.

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"I can't face Taliban fighters. I don't have a good feeling about them. No one can change the Taliban's stance against women and girls, they still want women to stay at home," news agency AP quoted her as saying.

"I don't think I would be ready to wear a burqa," she said, referring to the all-encompassing blue robe women were forced to wear under Taliban rule. "I can't accept it. I will fight for my rights, whatever happens," she said.