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Afghan Activists Cautiously Optimistic About New Protection for Rights
Defenders

Roshan Noorzai

   Afghan human rights monitors are sounding the alarm over a spike in
   attacks against them by unknown assailants, as they cautiously welcome
   the formation of a new government body to protect rights activists.

   In a presidential decree Tuesday, the government in Kabul announced the
   Joint Commission for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders to
   address human rights issues in Afghanistan and establish a protection
   mechanism for rights advocates. The commission is led by Vice President
   Sarwar Danish, with the minister of interior and the head of the
   National Directorate of Security (NDS) as its members.

   "The establishment of such a commission was needed," said Lal Gul,
   chairman of the Afghanistan Human Rights Organization.

   Gul, whose Kabul office was attacked in 2006 and 2015 by unidentified
   armed men, expressed frustration at the way the government has handled
   cases of targeted killings against activists. He said that security
   forces have largely failed to provide satisfactory answers to the
   families of victims.

   "It is difficult to talk about the effectiveness of forming such a
   commission. Let us see what measures and actions it will take," he told
   VOA from Kabul.

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