Crime and barbarism in Shirpur by Afghan ministers and high authorities
By RAWA reporter from Kabul, September 16, 2003
Old houses in the Shirpur area were previously been used by the military units. But in recent years it became as obsolete military district and only in some of the located buildings military barricades were established.
“Marshal Fahim”, the defense minister, ordered the clearing up of the mentioned area from the presence of army and the destruction of the houses. In the neighborhood of those military posts there were about 300 civilian homes from tens of years onwards, and the number increased when refugee families from Shamali came here during the time when their area was attacked by the Taliban.
Recently 300 plots around 120,000 square meters were distributed among senior governmental officials including ministers, deputy ministers, governors, commanders, generals, intelligence (KHAD) administrators and businessmen linked to Fahim, Qanooni, Dostum, Atta, general Dawood and majority of the civil houses came under the plan to be destroyed.
On 6th September 2003 Kabul’s security force under the command of Abdul Baseer Salangi and Jalali the interior minister, both having share of land in Shirpur, rushed to the area and ruined around 30 houses by bulldozers. They even didn’t give the people the opportunity to get their belongings out and hurt some children in the process. The people of the area resisted. They protested and unveiled the acts of government officials and Salangi himself and by pelting stones forced him to get out of the place.
A lady who didn’t disclosed her name while addressing the people said: “Oh people, this culprit by shading our blood has made himself the security chief of Kabul and owns 5,6 homes. These people have betrayed Islam by looting us and telling lies throughout their life. And now they have come to take us out of our mad-homes where we are living since the last 30 years. By destroying our houses they want to make castle for themselves. We should not let them and resist them with our empty hands.”
Mohammad Hanief resident of the area said: “We have come from Shamali at the time when our houses were put on fire by the Taliban and have taken refuge in this place. Unfortunately these warlords have distributed the area among themselves and trying to kick us out. Every one of them owns many homes and now they want to build a new house here.”
The next day the police once again started the destruction. The people once more courageously stood against it. A man, who was former army officer that remained in the house with his family, was shouting loudly: “Let these Jehadies who have ruined the country destroy my home as well and bury me along with my family in the soil.”
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All the officials named by the UN envoy are from the Northern Alliance, which is the backbone of the government.
Correspondents say there remains strong factionalism among those in power in Afghan ministries and their supporters.
The UN's special envoy on the right to adequate housing, Miloon Kothari, said on Thursday he had spoken to people whose houses had been destroyed in Kabul's Shir Pur district to make way for new homes for ministers.
In addition to Marshal Fahim, he named the Education Minister, Yunis Qanooni, and said he had a list of others.
"A number of ministers... including the minister of defence are directly involved in this kind of occupation and dispossession of poor people, some of whom have been there for 25 to 30 years."
Mr Kothari warned that if property disputes were not tackled they could return the country to "decades of conflict".
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BBC, 12 September, 2003 |
Mohammad Mohsin another resident while talking to people said: “We are those unlucky people who have no home in any area of Kabul. We are refugees and have nothing to eat. Baseer Salangi is throwing us out of our homes; the government is also not listening to us. Karzai didn’t give us appointment and we came back with empty hands. We protested in front of UNAMA office.
When the news was reflected by the international media throughout the world, Yunus Qanooni and Anwar Ul Haq Ahadi invited a press conference and told the reporters that they don’t see any human rights abuse in this case and pretended their crime as a “legal act”.
Later government announced the destruction of homes to be stopped till the time the matter will be resolved and established an inquiry commission which was unsuccessful in its mission. Jalalie the interior minister during an interview defended the steps taken by Baseer and said that the police has done its job. Habibullah Asqari the deputy mayor of Kabul was asked about the issue and he shamelessly replied: “The municipal committee is unaware of the matter.” While Mohammad Anwar the mayor of Kabul under the name of Director of Olympic, deputy mayor Amir-u-ddin Salak and Asqari himself, has taken plot in that area.
Three months have been given to the residents of the area to leave the place. Threats are there and it is expected that another 250 homes will be destroyed in the coming days.
The daily newspaper “Arman Milie” described the people’s protest unreasonable and the human right exposures baseless because the editor in chief of the newspaper Meer Haider has taken a piece of land in the area.
The chief of Kabul’s second district said: “The distribution of Shirpur plot which is taking place on the basis of factional and personal relationship is completely illegitimate because at the moment there are more then 10,000 applications for plot on the municipal committee’s table which have got no answer since the last few years and no one cares to reply their demands.”
A document in hand from municipal committee about the distribution of land touched the matter in such away: “… the condition for distribution the plots is that each building will be properly cemented, double story and with a well inside. The area located in Wazir Akbar Khan is more expensive.”
The list of those people who has been given plots:
Some of them possessing many homes have preferred to take plots in the name of their wives:
Some have got plot in the name of their sons:
Those people who have taken plot in exchange of money or having contacts with these thieves:
RAWA Photos from Shirpur
Buildings of Afghan
Authorities in Kabul
Those people who have got plot in Shirpur and their old properties have been disclosed are: