Geneva: The Press Emblem Campaign (PEC), a global media safety and rights organisation, has expressed concern over the closure of another radio station in Afghanistan by the Taliban authorities.
PEC extended its moral support to the Afghanistan Journalists Center (AJC), which strongly condemned the Afghan Ministry of Justice’s order to shut down Radio Seday-e-Eslah. The Kabul-based radio station, which recently marked its 18th anniversary, was accused of being affiliated with the banned Jamiat-e-Eslah (Afghanistan Social Reform and Development Society).
The management of Radio Seday-e-Eslah (Voice of Reform) denied the allegation, saying the station had been operating under private ownership since 2018 and was duly licensed. Despite this, the authorities shut down the station on August 5, 2026.
The AJC earlier described the closure as another indication of growing pressure on independent media outlets in Afghanistan. In recent weeks, the authorities have also banned Rah-e-Farda TV in Kabul, following the earlier shutdown of another television channel, Tamadon TV.
“Since the Taliban captured Kabul and began ruling the country five years ago, the media fraternity has faced extremely difficult conditions to survive and carry out its regular duties. A number of Afghan journalists have suffered physical and mental abuse without any official justification, simply for doing journalism. Many news outlets have already been restricted or shut down under arbitrary rules,” said Blaise Lempen, president of the PEC.
Lempen urged the Taliban authorities to immediately stop harassing media professionals and reconsider their decision to shut down media outlets so that they can reopen and resume operations.
PEC’s South Asia representative, Nava Thakuria, said many Afghan media professionals have left the country in recent years and sought refuge abroad.
Thakuria cited the case of a senior Afghan journalist who was forced to leave the country and seek unofficial shelter in Pakistan. The journalist had worked with several Afghan media organisations until April 2025 and was arrested by the Taliban authorities in 2023, where he was allegedly subjected to harassment during detention.
He later escaped from Kabul and moved to Pakistan, where he continues to live under the fear of arrest and possible deportation to Afghanistan.
