The International Community seems not to have learned from its mistakes

New York/The Hague, 15 August 2022

Today, we mark the tragic first anniversary since the Taliban took over Afghanistan and reinstated an unconstitutional de facto government, which obtained power in violation of the US-Taliban “deal” entitled “Agreement for bringing peace to Afghanistan” and designed to prepare for a peace agreement between the Taliban rebels and the Afghan central government that never took place.

Despite the Taliban’s promise of an “inclusive” government composition and respect for human rights, Afghan communities and individuals – especially women and girls – have been subjected to serious human rights violations and deprivation of their fundamental freedoms by the new regime. Such widespread or systematic violations may constitute crimes against humanity, and their perpetrators should be promptly investigated and prosecuted under applicable International Law.

For almost 20 years, Afghans had worked tirelessly to build a stronger and more democratic State, but their struggle was significantly weakened and compromised by the protracted impunity for the gross human rights abuses committed by the Taliban and their allies, by warlords that formerly belonged to the Northern Alliance, as well as by armed groups that took part in the so-called “global war on terror.” As reported by experts, NGOs, and UN bodies cited in an enlightening statement by the US Institute for Peace (USIP) in April 2022, all the efforts to create a new Afghanistan based on the Rule of Law and justice were negated by the pro-impunity policies supported by the most important forces in the International Community, which even blocked the publication by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2005 of a massive human rights mapping report that could have served as a basis to incriminate the alleged perpetrators of atrocities committed in the previous 40 years (see reports by Afghanistan analysts network and USIP)

As history has taught us, impunity for past atrocities represents a major incentive for present and future atrocities: This is the scenario that one can observe in Afghanistan in the first year of return to power of the Taliban’s totalitarian regime.

In 2021, when the U.S. and other allies’ troops started to withdraw from Afghanistan, the Afghan Army underwent a rapid process of defection and self-dissolution that led to the fall of Kabul on 15 August 2021, almost without resistance. Since then, the civilian population has been at the center of harsh repressions and denial of human rights. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), established by the Security Council Resolution 1401 (March 2002), reported on the gradual disappearance of women's and children’s rights to education, work, and ability to appear in public spaces. The previously established specialized domestic mechanisms created to address violence against women have been dissolved, leaving gender-based crimes unpunished. Notwithstanding the issuance of decrees preserving the right of women to consent to marriages, UNAMA has noted instances where the de facto authorities have upheld forced marriages. Legal proceedings lack transparency and are characterized by procedural irregularities.

Extrajudicial killings have been reported alongside inhuman and degrading punishments for individuals accused of “moral” crimes, and the treatment of juvenile detainees has also been noted as a key concern. Furthermore, despite a reduction in armed violence since August 2021, an increase in civilian casualties has been identified in the Khorasan Province. As of 15 June 2022, UNAMA reported that at least 59% of the population was in need of humanitarian assistance. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that 24.4 million Afghans are “in need,” 12 million of whom are children.

Since the takeover, human rights defenders have faced near-daily attacks and violent reprisals, including arrests, torture, threats, and killings. Escalating violence in the provinces has forced many civilians to leave their homes and relocate and/or resettle. While thousands of men, children, women, human rights defenders, journalists, government representatives, and Members of Parliament were able to flee into exile to start anew, many feel that the International Community left them behind with many unfulfilled promises. With a 15-year rising trend of internal displacement and numbers of refugees rapidly increasing following the Taliban takeover, Afghan refugees have also been victims of serious human rights violations in the neighboring countries where they have sought protection (e.g., Iran, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Malaysia, and Turkey, among others).

Since early last year, Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) has hosted three Roundtables (see here, here, and here) with legislators, partners, civil society, experts, and ambassadors, worldwide to contribute to the prevention of atrocity crimes and improve the safety and security of Afghan civilians in exile and on the ground. During its last roundtable dedicated to Supporting Afghan Nationals on the ground and in Exile on 30 May 2022, PGA called on Members of Parliaments, governments, international organizations, and other relevant stakeholders to take concrete measures to engage in a meaningful way and elaborate tangible responses to support Afghans on the ground and in exile. PGA reiterated full support for human rights defenders, NGOs, and civilians on the ground and in exile and called upon the International Community and Members of Parliaments from all over the world to provide more support for Afghanistan.

PGA stresses that it is of the utmost importance for the International Community to live up to its commitments and immediately translate them into tangible actions. Parliamentarians from all over the world need to engage meaningfully with their Afghan counterparts and communities in exile to ensure that their countries’ responses follow a human rights approach, including guaranteeing the protection of the rights of Afghans seeking asylum globally.

It is crucial to ensure access to justice, accountability, and redress for the victims of the most severe human rights violations and hold the Taliban leaders and other alleged perpetrators accountable for the crimes against humanity and, as appropriate, war crimes. Widespread or systematic patterns of inhumane acts directed against the civilian population, including women and children, are crimes against humanity defined in Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the ICC, an instrument Afghanistan has been a State Party since February 2003. PGA, therefore, calls upon the relevant organs of the ICC to take all the necessary decisions to ensure that appropriate Pre-Trial proceedings take place as early as possible, hence starting to remedy dramatic delays accumulated in almost two decades of inexplicable inertia concerning investigations and prosecutions on Afghanistan: The time has come for the ICC to move forward and ensure that crimes within its jurisdiction are impartially investigated.

This fight is about justice and accountability; the survival of life and our nation; the assurance that impunity will not prevail again, and that the Rule of Law, the ideals of freedom and democracy, will be reinstated in Afghanistan. We cannot live out of expectations. The world can no longer watch as atrocities and mass violations continue. The world’s justice will lose its meaning and importance if it is only carried with selectivity. Those most responsible need to be held accountable through national and international mechanisms available. Our community wishes a stable, prosperous, democratic, and free Afghanistan.Hon. Mariam Solaimankhil (MP, Afghanistan, in exile), Member of the Parliamentary Rapid Response Team (PARRT)

Today, at this critical time for Afghans, PGA urges all its members to increase support, mobilize resources, and advocate for their governments to act and keep the situation in Afghanistan as a top priority in their agendas. Parliamentarians hold a vital role in the fight against impunity and the protection of human rights. The Taliban regime must be held accountable for perpetuating international crimes and human rights violations. Only united we can succeed.

The following action points, which were developed following the rich exchange that took place during the third PGA Roundtable on Afghanistan on 30 May 2022, should therefore be taken into consideration by the international community:

PGA invites you to read an instructive report by the USIP, which inter alia describes the failures of the International Community to build the Rule of Law and justice in Afghanistan as follows:

Highlights from Previous Roundtables: