HRW, June 11, 2008

Human rights should be main issue at donors' conference in Paris: HRW

"The Paris conference will take place at a time when the Afghan government is increasingly unpopular because of abuses, corruption and lack of security"

The Afghan government and international donors should place human rights issues including freedom of expression in the war-ravaged country at the centre of discussions at the donors' conference in Paris tomorrow, Human Rights Watch said today.

In an open letter, the international rights watchdog identified women's rights, freedom of expression, impunity, transitional justice, judicial reform, and abolition of the death penalty as among the key issues in Afghanistan requiring serious attention and reform.

"The Paris conference will take place at a time when the Afghan government is increasingly unpopular because of abuses, corruption and lack of security," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

"If the donors just offer more of the same and ignore the need for systemic reform, including a commitment to take on warlords and address impunity, then the situation in Afghanistan is likely to deteriorate," he warned.

"Violence against women and the absence of effective redress for victims, whether through informal or formal justice mechanisms, is a pervasive human rights problem in Afghanistan. The practice of exchanging girls and young women to settle feuds or to repay debts continues, as do high rates of early and forced marriage. According to a study by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and women’s organizations, approximately 57 percent of girls get married before the age of 16. The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), women’s activists, and nongovernmental organizations point to domestic violence being a widespread problem for which there is still little public awareness, prevention effort, or response. Local commanders and their forces have also been implicated in cases of sexual violence against women and girls."

Impunity for serious human rights violations remains the norm, as the government does not prosecute perpetrators of abuses who have protection from government officials, parliamentarians, or warlords. This has a profound impact on public attitudes about the government.

"While the government is formally committed to addressing crimes of the past, little action has been taken to implement the Transitional Justice Action Plan. A major step backwards was taken with the passage of the 2007 Amnesty Law which, though still in legal limbo, could make impunity the law of the land."

"Afghans want justice for the crimes of the past. The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) completed an extensive survey in 2004, based on in-depth interviews and focus groups, addressing issues of justice and accountability for past abuses. The survey makes it clear that the vast majority of Afghans want the past to be confronted, do not see such efforts as destabilizing, and want justice sooner rather than later."

"According to the AIHRC survey results, 94 percent of Afghans consider justice for past crimes to be either “very important” (75.9 percent) or “important” (18.5 percent). When asked what the effects would be for Afghanistan in bringing war criminals to justice, 76 percent said it would “increase stability and bring security,” and only 7.6 percent said it would “decrease stability and threaten security.” Almost half of those questioned said war criminals should be brought to justice “now,” and another 25 percent said perpetrators should be tried “within two years.”"

Full text of the Human Rights Watch open letter: http://hrw.org/english/docs/2008/06/10/afghan19086.htm ( http://hrw.org/english/docs/2008/06/10/afghan19086.htm )

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