Afghanistan

Afghanistan: Press Karzai to Sever Links with Warlords

Human Rights Watch — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:26:53 -0800

(New York) - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other foreign ministers attending the inauguration of President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan on November 19, 2009, should press for concrete action to sideline warlords, criminals and human rights abusers, Human Rights Watch said today.

Bags of gold buy dubious loyalty and creates grievances among Afghans

Rachel Reid — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 05:20:05 -0800

US: Reform Afghanistan Detention Policy

Human Rights Watch — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:00:01 -0800

(London) - The Obama administration should revise its detention policies in Afghanistan to make them consistent with international law, Amnesty International, Human Rights First, and Human Rights Watch said today. The United States military is hosting the media and some nongovernmental organizations today at its recently constructed but empty detention facility in Parwan province, Afghanistan.

Human Rights Angst Lingers In Afghanistan

Rachel Reid — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0800

As Afghanistan's elections draw to a shambolic finale, it is time for President Obama to end his policy review and breathe hope into Afghanistan's bleak landscape.

Afghanistan: Was the Women's Vote Counted?

Georgette Gagnon — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 10:53:45 -0700

KABUL-- The young woman from Kandahar sat with me in the office of an independent monitoring group two days before Afghanistan's August 20th presidential election. Halima had defied her family and threats from neighbors in the tumultuous southern region to work as an election observer and to vote. "It's in our destiny to take our rights," she said.

For Afghan Women, Rights Again at Risk

Rachel Reid — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 06:34:20 -0700

(Kabul) - When the United States and its allies went to war against the Taliban after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, "liberating the women of Afghanistan" was often cited as one of the reasons to seek "regime change." More than seven years later, however, the situation for Afghan women remains dire.

Afghanistan: Human Rights Concerns in Run-Up to Elections

Human Rights Watch — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 17:02:05 -0700

(New York) - Afghans continue to have significant human rights concerns about the preparation and plans for the upcoming presidential election on August 20, 2009, Human Rights Watch said today. It will be Afghanistan's second presidential election since the fall of the Taliban in 2001.

Afghanistan: Law Curbing Women’s Rights Takes Effect

Human Rights Watch — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:26:46 -0700

(New York) - Afghanistan's influential international supporters should insist that President Hamid Karzai act to amend the notorious law that formalizes discrimination against Shia women, Human Rights Watch said today.

Human Rights Watch learned today that the amended bill was published in the official Gazette on July 27, 2009 (Gazette 988), bringing the law into force.

Page Feature 84687

Human Rights Watch — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 12:36:52 -0700

Shades of Fundamentalism

Rachel Reid — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 09:51:29 -0700

The news from Afghanistan has been gloomy of late, with constant questions being asked in Britain about why – and for what – so many of their soldiers are dying. Every week in the UK we see images of families receiving coffins, or read the words of a widow whose mourning is pinched by doubts about what a loved one has died for.