<![CDATA[This article examines the hijab ban in Tajikistan between 2018 and 2025 as part of a broader state project to regulate religious expression, construct national identity, and preserve a Soviet-influenced model of secular governance. Although Tajikistan is a Muslim-majority country, the government has consistently restricted public expressions of Islam through policies that associate certain religious symbols, including the hijab, with foreign influence, extremism, and threats to national culture. Using a qualitative descriptive approach based on literature and document analysis, this study draws on academic publications, government regulations, international human rights reports, and media sources to analyze the political rationale, implementation, and consequences of the hijab ban. The findings show that the ban cannot be understood merely as a dress regulation. Rather, it functions as an instrument of state control over Muslim women’s bodies, religious identity, and access to public life. The policy is legitimized through narratives of anti-extremism, national cultural preservation, and social order, while its effects include restrictions on women’s freedom of religion, discrimination in education and employment, social intimidation, and intensified state surveillance. International responses from human rights organizations and foreign governments further indicate that the policy is widely viewed as a violation of religious freedom and women’s rights. The study concludes that Tajikistan’s hijab ban reflects the tension between authoritarian secularism and religious freedom in a Muslim-majority post-Soviet society.]]>
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