Human Rights in Afghanistan

Past and present violations of Human Rights constitute a major concern for the Afghan peacebuilding process, and therefore the Bonn Agreement provided for the establishment of an Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC). Headed by Dr. Sima Samar the commission has publicly highlighted a range of human rights issues, started to record human rights violations and emphasized civic education. AIHRC has opened regional offices in a number of provinces.

The UNAMA is assigned a particular responsibility to assist the AIHRC as is UNHCHR. In addition a number of NGOs are closely following the human rights issues, most notably Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The issue of transitional justice is part of this discourse, as is reformation of the legal system as part of a wider security sector reform.

Links:

• Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission
  http://www.aihrc.org.af/
• Amnesty International
  http://web.amnesty.org/report2003/Afg-summary-eng
• Derechos
  http://www.derechos.org/saran/afg.html
• The Human Rights Research and Advocacy Consortium (HRRAC)
  http://www.afghanadvocacy.org
• Human Rights Watch
  http://www.hrw.org/asia/afghanistan.php
• International Centre for Transitional Justice
  http://www.ictj.org/asia/afghanistan.asp
  
• The United Nations Human Rights System
  http://www.hri.ca/fortherecord2002/vol3/afghanistantr.htm

Publications:

2004

The Afghanistan Justice Project (2004)
Candidates and the Past: The Legacy of War Crimes and the Political Transition in Afghanistan
http://www.afghanistanjusticeproject.org/ajpreport.pdf

Human Rights Watch (2004)
“Enduring Freedom:” Abuses by U.S. Forces in Afghanistan
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2004/afghanistan0304/

Sonali Kolhatkar
Afghan Women Continue to Fend for Themselves
http://www.fpif.org/papers/2004afghanwom.html

2003

The Human Rights Research and Advocacy Consortium (2003)
Speaking Out: Afghan Opinions on Rights and Responsibilities

Human Rights Watch (2003)
‘Killing You is a Very Easy Thing For Us’: Human rights Abuses in Southeast Afghanistan
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2003/afghanistan0703/

International Crisis Group (Asia Report No. 45, 2003)
Afghanistan: Judicial Reform and Transitional Justice
http://www.crisisweb.org/home/index.cfm?id=1631

Rama Mani (AREU, Issues Paper Series) (2003)
Ending Impunity and Building Justice

2002

Human Rights Watch (2002)
We Want to live as Humans’: Repression of Women and Girls in Western Afghanistan
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2002/afghnwmn1202/