Afghanistan Times
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KABUL: Amnesty International has censured the Afghan government for failing to protect human rights defenders in Afghanistan, urging a serious probe into recent threats and attacks.
Despite a protection mechanism for Afghanistan’s human rights defenders, at least 24 HRDs have been killed since Jan, 21. This is what Rahim Jami, our speaker at the webinar had to say. Sign our petition to ask the Afghan govt. for a functional mechanism,” Amnesty International tweeted on Sunday.
The watchdog in a petition on Sunday called on the government to ramp up efforts to protect human rights defenders and to ensure an effective protection mechanism.
This is as Afghan government has said it will “investigate threats and attacks on human rights defenders promptly, fully, impartially and independently, in full compliance with international standards of courts”.
In December 2020, President Ghani established a Joint Commission for Protection of Human Rights Defenders following a lawsuit in support of human rights defenders. But Amnesty International says very little progress has been made in the six months since the commission was set up.
But Amnesty International stands in opposition to government position.
“Since the presidential decree, health workers, aid workers, human rights defenders and journalists have been targeted in a wave of assassinations. As of January 2021, at least 24 people, including two doctors, have been killed in separate attacks in Parwan and Farah provinces. Female vaccinators and journalists have been killed in Nangarhar province and female judges in Kabul,” it said.
