Afghanistan: Establishment of accountability mechanism a landmark moment in pursuit of justice
Reacting to the UN Human Rights Council’s decision to establish an independent investigative mechanism for Afghanistan to collect, consolidate, preserve and analyse evidence of past and ongoing crimes under international law and human rights violations and abuses, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Agnès Callamard, said:
“In the face of continued impunity in Afghanistan, the establishment of a UN-mandated evidence gathering mechanism is a vital step towards advancing accountability for past and ongoing crimes under international law and paves the way for victims and survivors to access justice, reparation, and truth.
“Amnesty International, together with Afghan civil society and others, has been calling for this mechanism since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021. Since then, the Taliban has plunged Afghanistan into a system of control and repression. Women and girls have been systematically erased from public life, denied education, work and voice; journalists, activists and minorities silenced through arbitrary detention, torture and enforced disappearance; and brutal corporal public punishments and executions used as tools of fear. This assault on human rights has long demanded more than words from the international community and the mechanism is a major step in a long journey towards accountability for the people of Afghanistan.”
