Afghanistan

The Afghan government, interested states, NGOs, local organisations and the
international community made commitments to support human rights in
Afghanistan at two international conferences on Afghanistan that were held in
London and Kabul during 2010. At the Kabul Conference in July, the
government of Afghanistan committed itself to finalise and begin
implementation of its National Priority Programme for human rights and civic
responsibilities and to undertake human rights, legal awareness and civil
education programmes targeting communities across Afghanistan. We
welcomed these important commitments.

During 2010 we continued to work with the Afghan government and the
international community to make progress on human rights and to ensure that
the groundwork for any political settlement should be inclusive and address
the concerns of all Afghan citizens. In keeping with the London and Kabul
2010 commitments to follow an increasing Afghan lead, much of our work
focuses on supporting Afghan voices calling for change by empowering
individuals and groups to play a local and national role, including Afghan
human rights institutions; supporting legislation and national policies; and
providing practical support to people in need in their communities.

2011 will be an important year for human rights in Afghanistan. We will work
alongside our international partners to support the Afghan government make
progress, particularly on implementing their commitments from the London
and Kabul conferences.

Elections
The first Afghan-run parliamentary elections since the 1960s were held on 18
September. More than 2,500 candidates stood for election across 34
provinces. While by no means free of irregularities or fraud, there is general
consensus that they represented a significant improvement on the 2009
presidential elections. Following polling day, cases of malpractice were
investigated and the new anti-fraud mechanisms implemented by the
Independent Election Commission and the Electoral Complaints Commission
resulted in the disqualification of 1.3 million fraudulent ballots.

We continued to support the democratic process in Afghanistan and worked

with the international community to support the Independent Election
Commission and the Electoral Complaints Commission for the 2010
parliamentary elections. We have contributed $28.5 million to the UN
Development Programme’s “Enhancing Legal and Electoral Capacity for
Tomorrow” project between 2009 and 2011, which provides technical support
for Afghan electoral institutions. We supported the deployment of election
observer missions from the EU and the OSCE. Staff from our Embassy in
Kabul also participated in election observation alongside other missions.

Credible and inclusive elections are central to the process of building a secure
and democratic Afghanistan. The UK is committed to supporting Afghan
democratic institutions and processes, including the newly elected parliament.
We also stand ready to assist the Afghan government advance the electoral
reform agenda in line with the commitments it made at the Kabul Conference,
and respond to the lessons learned from both the 2010 and 2009 elections.

Access to justice
Access to justice is key to creating stability and protecting human rights. At
the July Kabul Conference the Afghan government recognised the importance
of state provision of justice, and committed to a programme of reform to
strengthen justice institutions. The international community has committed to
support this programme. There is, however, much to be done. We work
closely with the Afghan government and the international community in
supporting this work.

In 2010, we supported national judicial reform through building the capacity of

the Criminal Justice Task Force, a multi-departmental Afghan detention,
investigation, prosecution and judicial team, to target the narcotics trade.
Between March 2009 and March 2010 the Primary Court of the Criminal
Justice Task Force convicted 440 people, including several leading figures of
Afghanistan’s largest drug trafficking rings. We also provided specialist
mentor support to the Afghan Attorney-General’s Office to improve the ability
of the Afghan system to prosecute, and where appropriate, convict insurgents
and terrorists and support anti-corruption prosecutions.

Due process and clarity of legal procedures are also important for protecting
human rights. During 2010 we worked with the Afghan government and the
international community to progress the new criminal procedure code. We
also worked extensively with the Afghan government to hold them to their
commitments to improve access to, and accountability in, the justice system.
Increasing access to legal representation is another crucial aspect of
improving the justice system. We provided an international adviser to the
Afghan Independent Bar Association and funded training and outreach events
for defence lawyers.

In Helmand Province, we improved access to the state-administered justice

sector through a range of initiatives. We provided ongoing mentoring and
case-tracking support to judges, prosecutors and huquq representatives who
form part of the Ministry of Justice, coupled with salary support and
performance management for prosecutors. In addition, we provided training
for legal professionals on criminal procedure, judicial ethics and fair trials and
funded Helmand’s only “publicly funded” lawyers to provide criminal defence
representation.

Rule of law
Corruption remained a serious problem. The Afghan government entered into
important anti-corruption commitments at the London and Kabul conferences
and progress was made on some of these commitments, including the filing of
asset declarations. The international and Afghan members of the Monitoring
and Evaluation Committee, which will monitor the implementation of anti-
corruption commitments, are now in place and we are looking to the Afghan
government to support the work of the Committee in 2011. We will continue
to support the Afghan government as they translate anti-corruption
commitments into action.

In 2010 we provided support to the Afghan government on tackling corruption

through supporting law enforcement and the management of public finances.
This included developing the capacity of the Ministry of Interior to investigate
cases of corruption within the police force, and building sustainable internal
and external accountability mechanisms. We supported the ministry in
introducing a range of anti-corruption measures, such as a crime-stoppers
helpline and mobile anti-corruption teams. Other steps, such as the payment
of police through electronic funds transfer to a personal bank account rather
than cash-in-hand, have been rapidly expanded. In 2010 we also provided
support to the Major Crimes Task Force, an investigative unit focusing on
serious cases of corruption, organised crime and kidnapping and the Anti-
Corruption Unit within the Attorney-General’s Office. Modest progress is
being made, but this will be a long term effort.

A professional, well-trained police force is critical to ensuring that human

rights are respected in Afghanistan. That is why, in conjunction with the
government of Afghanistan and the international community, we are focusing
efforts on the development of law-enforcement policing skills; the institutional
capacity of the Ministry of Interior; and sustainable mechanisms to hold the
Afghan police to account for corruption and poor performance.

An effective police force, alongside the other Afghan security forces, will also
help ensure that communities are safe and secure, providing an environment
where the human rights situation can improve. There are still many
challenges relating to the integrity and professionalism of the Afghan National
Police, but progress is being made. In 2010, the size of the police force
exceeded growth targets. More effective training programmes raised
standards of leadership and discipline and helped the police to protect their
communities better. Training programmes, which include human rights
awareness, became mandatory for new recruits. The minister of interior has
implemented programmes to improve discipline structures, including the
authorisation of the Afghan National Police code of conduct, and drug
rehabilitation programmes have been initiated.

We are a major contributor to the EU Police Mission to Afghanistan. We have

14 senior UK police officers in key positions, including the Deputy Head of
Mission, and lead the Mission’s work in Helmand. Our EU Police Mission
contingent will soon rise to 19, with five officers deploying to the new police
staff college that will open in 2011. The Mission’s objectives include
implementing an anti-corruption strategy, strengthening cooperation between
the Afghan police and the judiciary, and building structures throughout the
Afghan police to improve their understanding and respect for human rights
and gender issues. In 2010 seminars on gender issues were introduced to
improve the knowledge and sensitivity of the Afghan National Police
leadership on issues such as domestic violence, gender integration and the
prevention of violence against women. These seminars are a significant step
towards an improved, more professional police force.

Gender integration in the Afghan National Security Forces can lead to greater
enfranchisement of women in the Afghan government and society as a whole.
In line with the Afghan National Police Strategy, the Afghan government and
the international community are working to create opportunities for women
within the police force. By the end of December, there were more than 900
female officers in the Afghan National Police, and the Ministry of Interior is
working hard to increase the number of female recruits. In Helmand, UK
police officers are providing support and training to the 16 female police
officers in the province. The women have their own training facility at the
Provincial Headquarters and the Provincial Reconstruction Team also fund a
scholarship programme to support the next intake of women to the Afghan
Uniformed Police.

Throughout 2010, we worked to embed human rights-compliant practices

within the Afghan National Police and other Afghan institutions. We continued
to train the police in human rights awareness and supported the development
of systems to ensure that any claims against them are investigated, and
members prosecuted if appropriate. We also mentored the inspector-general
and senior members of both the Ministry of Interior and the Afghan National
Police, to help strengthen Afghan capacity to investigate complaints against
the police force.

Death penalty
Afghanistan retains the death penalty under current law. The majority of
crimes punishable by the death penalty are terrorism-related, although it can
also be applied to other crimes, such as murder. There were no executions
carried out in Afghanistan during 2010, although the courts handed down
several death sentences and more than 350 prisoners remain on death row.
Together with EU partners, we regularly raise our concerns about the use of
the death penalty with the Afghan government, including our concerns about
particular cases.

Torture and other ill treatment

If the international community come across incidents of torture or cruel,
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in Afghanistan, immediate
steps are taken to raise the issue at appropriate levels, including with the
Afghan authorities and human rights institutions.

Prisons and detention issues

Detaining those who pose a threat to Afghanistan’s security is vital for
maintaining stability. The UK and Afghan governments have put in place
safeguards so that the human rights of detainees captured by British forces
are respected once transferred to Afghan custody. These measures include a
memorandum of understanding on the transfer of detainees backed up with
practical steps. The memorandum sets out the responsibilities of both
countries in respect of human rights, including an assurance that UK-captured
detainees will not face the death penalty.

We have a policy of visiting UK-captured suspected insurgents held in Afghan

facilities in order to monitor their welfare and to inform decisions about future
transfers to those facilities. We also transfer detainees to the Afghan Counter
Narcotics Police if they are captured with narcotics over the Afghan legal
threshold. In 2010, we strengthened our monitoring of detainees through the
establishment of the Detainee Oversight Team, a dedicated team of military
police and a legal adviser responsible for visiting UK-captured detainees
throughout Afghanistan and assisting the Embassy in engaging with
organisations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross and the
Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission. The establishment of the
Detainee Oversight Team has led to an enhanced level of consistency in
reporting on the welfare of detainees and improved engagement with the
Afghan authorities.

In 2010, our policy on the transfer of detainees to the Afghan authorities was
judicially reviewed in the light of a claim that detainees transferred into Afghan
custody faced a real risk of torture or serious mistreatment. In a small number
of cases, UK-captured detainees have alleged mistreatment against the
Afghan authorities. In such cases, and subject to the detainees giving their
consent, we ensure that the Afghan authorities, the International Committee of
the Red Cross and the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission are
informed of the allegations. The court found that our policy of not transferring
individuals where there was a real risk of serious mistreatment was
unimpeachable and that in practice we could continue to transfer detainees to
facilities at Kandahar and Lashkar Gah with various provisos. These included
strengthening the existing monitoring arrangements, which we did through
establishing the Detainee Oversight Team.

Afghanistan’s prison sector faces significant challenges, including non-

existent or poor infrastructure, lack of basic amenities, overcrowding, little
separate provision for women and children and a lack of accountability. There
has, however, been some progress in this area. UK offender management
experts have worked closely with the US to promote the development of a
safe and secure prison sector by assisting the Afghan Ministry of Justice’s
Central Prisons Directorate in developing prison infrastructure, policies and
working practices.
We also continued to share best practice through training and mentoring, for
example, by running courses on prisoner and detainee management. By
December, more than 270 Afghan detention officers had completed the
course. In addition, we delivered basic training to National Directorate of
Security officers in conducting investigations into allegations of mistreatment
by both detainees and staff. A new training wing at the National Directorate of
Security Academy is expected to become fully functional in 2011.

In 2010 we continued to fund the construction of a prison in Lashkar Gah, in

Helmand Province, which will conform to international standards. This project
is one of the ongoing prison building and refurbishment programmes in
Afghanistan which will help address overcrowding and poor infrastructure. By
March 2011, there will be capacity for up to 1,000 inmates, as well as other
amenities. A new fit-for-purpose juvenile facility and a dedicated female
facility will be completed by November 2011. The building of a separate
National Directorate of Security facility with capacity for 152 inmates was
completed in January 2011. We also supported nascent rehabilitation
programmes.

Human rights defenders

Human rights defenders and human rights-focused civil society organisations
are growing in strength and number in Afghanistan. An international civil
society conference on Afghanistan took place in January, which made
recommendations direct to the foreign minister-level London Conference.
Civil society campaigned for and won a place at the table at the Kabul
Conference, demonstrating the determination of Afghan civil society groups
and human rights defenders to make their voices heard on the international
stage.

There is an ever-growing network of women’s NGOs and advocacy groups

across the country. These groups are increasingly leading the way in calling
for change on both women’s rights issues and on the wider human rights
agenda.
In 2010 preparatory work was completed on a multi-donor Civil Society Fund,
which will launch in 2011. This fund aims to increase civil society’s capacity
for advocacy and constructive engagement with the Afghan government to
improve results in human rights, access to justice, anti-corruption, peace-
building and conflict resolution, and the media. We will contribute £20million
over five years to this fund.

In 2010 the UK continued to provide support to the Afghanistan Independent

Human Rights Commission. We also supported the creation of a new
Afghan-led Human Rights Support Unit in the Ministry of Justice, which
opened on 29 September, to coordinate and advise on human rights policy
and legislation across the Afghan government.

Freedom of expression
The principles of free speech and free media are enshrined in the Afghan
constitution and the mass media law. However, while the mass media law
was passed in 2008 by the Afghan parliament and published in 2009, it has
yet to be fully implemented. Journalists continued to face intimidation and
restrictions.

Television and radio stations, websites and the print media also continue to
face difficulties. In 2010 the Afghan cabinet ordered the closure of several
news outlets in contravention of the mass media law, which stipulates that all
media violations should be reported to, and resolved by, the newly
established Mass Media Commission. While the news outlets are now
operating again, without full implementation of the mass media law the Afghan
media continues to operate in a restricted space.

Freedom of religion and belief

In 2010 Afghan parliamentarians publicly called for the execution of Christian
converts. Several Afghans were subsequently imprisoned on charges of
converting to Christianity from Islam. Afghanistan remains a deeply
conservative country, and there is little public empathy for converts from
Islam. Article 2 of the Afghan constitution provides for freedom of religion and
Afghan law does not criminalise conversion, but the constitutional provision
for Sharia law allows the death penalty for conversion. The Afghan
parliamentary debate on conversion followed the screening on Afghan
television of alleged footage of Afghans converting to Christianity. As a result,
two international aid NGOs were suspended and investigated under suspicion
of promoting Christianity. The organisations have now been permitted to
resume their work.

In 2010 we continued to press the Afghan government to implement fully the

provisions in the constitution and to uphold national and international human
rights obligations on freedom of religion and belief. We also supported
projects that have helped to promote religious tolerance and understanding.
We ran a series of successful exchanges between UK and Afghan religious
leaders aimed at countering radicalisation and building understanding of the
compatibility of Christianity and Islam. As part of this programme, a group of
religious leaders from Helmand visited London where they were impressed by
the breadth of Muslim life and the diversity and tolerance of British culture.
We also funded a similar and successful study visit to Egypt for a group of 10
Afghan religious leaders.

Women’s rights
Women in Afghanistan continued to face huge challenges throughout 2010,
including high illiteracy rates, domestic violence, forced marriages, poor
access to healthcare and lack of livelihoods. However, some encouraging
gains were also made. Women played a full and active role in the June
Consultative Peace Jirga – an event hosted by the Afghan government to gain
the support of the Afghan people for their reconciliation and reintegration
proposals – where they made up almost 25% of all participants. There are
nine female members of the High Peace Council, including at least one
woman on each subcommittee. In the parliamentary elections, women won
69 seats in the Lower House, breaking through the constitutional quota of 68.

The Afghan government has pledged to improve the situation of women

through its conference commitments and efforts to include women in the
political process. However, there remains much to be done by the
government to promote women’s rights in Afghanistan and, particularly, to
improve the lives of women in rural communities across the country. The
London and Kabul Conference communiqués contained clear commitments
on women’s rights, including implementing a National Priority Programme for
Human Rights and Civic Responsibilities and the implementation of the
National Action Plan for Women and the law on elimination of violence against
women. Committed implementation of these programmes and legislation will
be key to ensuring improvements over the next few years.

We continued to work closely with Afghan women’s rights advocates to

improve the status of women in Afghanistan. In 2010 we supported a Kabul
women’s legal aid centre run by the NGO Humanitarian Assistance for the
Women and Children of Afghanistan, which provides legal assistance to
female and child victims of violence and discrimination. As part of our work to
empower Afghan women, we funded a project to provide support to female
parliamentary candidates. The year 2010 was also the final year of the UK’s
five-year women’s empowerment project with Womankind Worldwide in
Afghanistan. The UK’s National Action Plan on UN Security Council
Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security was launched on 25
November and contained a specific country action plan for Afghanistan. This
plan sets out how our defence, diplomatic and development work in
Afghanistan will reduce the impact of conflict on women and girls and promote
their inclusion in conflict resolution.

In addition to project funding, we continued to press the Afghan government

to implement national and international human rights commitments, including
the law on elimination of violence against women and the UN Convention of
the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. We also
continued to support progress on women’s rights through the Afghanistan
Independent Human Rights Commission and the Ministry of Justice’s Human
Rights Support Unit.
We also provided assistance to human rights civil society groups in Helmand
Province. We provided infrastructure support to the Helmand office of the
Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission and mentoring and legal
awareness training to elders and mullahs, including the Justice Sub-
Committee members of district community councils.

Children’s rights
There have been some improvements in the situation of children in
Afghanistan in recent years. According to the Afghan Ministry of Education
there are currently more than 7 million school students in Afghanistan, of
whom 38% are girls. In 2010, 135,000 children enrolled in schools across
Helmand Province, a 250% increase on the previous year. Child mortality
rates are down with more than 80% of children now reaching their fifth
birthday, compared to approximately 75% in 2005.

We fully support the UN’s work to protect children in armed conflict in

Afghanistan, including the establishment of an in-country monitoring team to
investigate children’s rights, including the sexual abuse of children. This
monitoring mission has the full backing of the Afghan government.
Prosecution of a small number of cases of child sexual abuse has been
reported by the UN, and more initiatives, including studies on this issue, are
being developed.

Conflict and protection of civilians

Afghanistan has suffered from three decades of conflict and currently faces an
insurgency in several parts of the country. Operations by the International
Security Assistance Force have helped to bring rule of law, democratic
government and human rights improvements to an increasing proportion of
the population.

However, despite Afghan government and International Security Assistance

Force successes in 2010, the insurgency continued to wage an aggressive
campaign in several provinces, including by targeting civilians. The conflict
resulted in 3,368 civilian casualties in the first half of 2010, including 1,271
deaths, according to the August report on the protection of civilians from the
UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. While the International Security
Assistance Force takes the strongest possible measures to prevent civilian
casualties, the insurgency deliberately targets civilians. This distinction was
reflected in the London and Kabul communiqués and UN Security Council
Resolutions 1917 and 1943, all of which condemned the Taliban’s
responsibility for causing civilian casualties. In 2010, the insurgency made
increasing use of improvised explosive devices and stepped up a campaign of
intimidation and murders of civilians. During the first half of the year,
insurgents killed approximately 30 civilians a month. They targeted teachers,
nurses, doctors, officials, tribal elders, community leaders and civilians
working for international organisations.

The International Security Assistance Force and UK forces take the strongest
possible measures to protect civilians. In 2010, the International Security
Assistance Force continued to revise its tactical directives and standard
operating procedures to give greater protection to civilians and learn the
lessons from earlier incidents. Air-to-ground munitions and indirect fire are
only used against residential compounds in an extremely limited set of
conditions. Furthermore, international forces routinely work with Afghan
forces that have local knowledge of residential areas and can assist with
culturally sensitive searches and operations. As a result of International
Security Assistance Force and Afghan National Security Forces measures
taken to protect the local population, the number of civilian fatalities fell 29%
from the first half of 2009 to the same period in 2010, according to the UN. In
particular, the number of casualties resulting from aerial attacks was cut by
more than a half. We will continue to work with International Security
Assistance Force and the Afghan government to take the strongest measures
to protect the local population.