Saranpoh Mohammad Farid Hamidi, Attorney General of Afghanistan: “Corruption and violence against women have made Afghanistan notorious internationally.”
Saranpoh Mohammad Farid Hamidi, Attorney General of Afghanistan:
“Corruption and violence against women have made Afghanistan notorious internationally.”
The Attorney General (AG) of Afghanistan highlighted these issues during the National Conference of Afghan Prosecutors. The program was held at the Intercontinental Hotel on November 2, 2016, and participants included Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, Chief Executive of National Unity Government; Saranpoh Mohammad Farid Hamidi, Attorney General of Afghanistan; Dr. Seema Samar, Head of Independent Human Rights Commission; and Nabila Musleh, Deputy Minister of Women’s Affairs. Officials from Ministry of Interior, independent local, foreign, and civil society institutions, and Attorney General’s Office (AGO) representatives from center and provinces participated.
On the second day of National Conference of Afghan Prosecutors, officials from Afghanistan Independent Bar Association and Afghan Prosecutors Association discussed corruption and violation against women. The conference reviewed a report from AGO Specialized Prosecution Office of Elimination of Violence against Women on 2,462 cases of violence recorded by the department from beginning of this year (2016) until the month of November. With commitments made by high-ranking officials of the government, important steps to fight violence against women and children in Afghanistan are expected.
The third day of the conference identified factors of violence against women and solutions to stop the violence. The Attorney General outlined factors of violence against women and children in the country. Mr. Hamidi stated the AGO has a serious and decisive commitment towards fighting violence against women. The Attorney General said, “Unfortunately corruption and violence against women are two phenomena that have made Afghanistan notorious in the world.”
According to Saranpoh Hamidi, the rule of law, violence and poverty crises that exist in third world countries, is not due to economic issues. Injustice and lack of law empowerment are the main factors damaging the Afghan economy. He considers peace and security to be dependent on rule of law. The Attorney General added, “Violence is the biggest source of insecurity in Afghanistan. Violence is a phenomenon that causes crime; as long as we do not fight violence then we cannot expect peace and security.”
Mr. Hamidi stated that violence and harassment have become a common trend in Afghanistan. In his belief, the judicial and justice approach to fighting violence against women is not enough. A set of justice and judicial, legislative, political, and administrative actions are required to fight violence.
The Attorney General of Afghanistan considers the role of Council of Ministers important in establishing criminal, legislative, and administrative policy to fight violence against women. According to Saranpoh Hamidi, the Council of Ministers can act as a body to review laws, regulations, and preplanned strategies. The Council can make the laws based on gender to preserve the status of women, and eliminating violence against them. He stated that the position of women has changed significantly in the past years. Important work to engage women in the highest legislative, justice, and judicial administrations of Afghanistan is underway.
Article 21 of the Afghanistan Constitution prohibits all types of discrimination and distinction. Mr. Hamidi asked, “Has this article of the constitution been implemented in the community?” The Attorney General of Afghanistan noted, “For this purpose, the patterns should be changed in Afghanistan. For example, all the honorary medals and logos are manly, whereas there are many heroic and famous women who struggled for their rights and justice in Afghanistan. Article 21 of the Constitution should be taken into consideration regarding naming schools, roads, honorary medals, and logos after our county’s famous women.”
In the meantime, Mr. Hamidi considers the creation of Deputy AG for Elimination of Violence against Women, Juvenile Violation and Supporting Human Rights in the organizational structure of the AGO as an important step to fight violence against women. According to the Attorney General, the new DAG will not only treat seriously and legally the violence against women and children; but will manage and lead the fight to mitigate this struggle. He said, “By using information acquired by the deputy office in the course of investigating violence cases can make government entities of Afghanistan capable of providing accurate mechanisms and platforms to support women’s rights.”
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah reinforced the importance of combating violence against women. According to the Chief Executive of National Unity Government, the outcome of this conference should turn to practical actions to achieve AGO goals. He referred to different types of violence against women in various environments and said, “This struggle starts individually. Violence in the country against women does not only exist in the families but violence also exists in the community and workplace. We should fight it altogether.”
The Chief Executive noted how good measures to fight violence against women are in progress, but it is not enough. A negative mindset on violence should be built in the people‘s minds. We should mobilize all Afghan people and fight against a culture of violence, which has become a daily routine in the society.
He welcomed the Attorney General’s proposal about modifying logos in Afghanistan such as determining honorary medals named after famous Afghan women and said, “Measures in this regard will be taken. Women have conducted major activities in Afghanistan and we need to keep their memories alive. This will help women build their self-confidence.”
Nearly four decades of war in Afghanistan is a contributing factor of violence against women. Dr. Seema Samar, Head of Independent Human Rights Commission, believes in war causing violence. She considers boys having more privilege over girls in Afghan families as another factor of violence against women. According to the Head of Human Rights, male privilege would end up in violence against women in families and in the community. Dr. Samar pointed to the issue of running away from home and said, “Escape from home is a crime for girls, and for boys it is not considered as a crime.”
Physical strength of men compared to women, financial issues, seeking a livelihood, unfavorable customs, and lack of access to judicial services are other specific factors causing violence against women.
Pohanmal Maliha Hassan, Deputy of AGO in Elimination of Violence against Women, Juvenile violations, and Human Rights Support, believes the violation against women is a factor of unstable political systems. She believes a society where women are victims of violence caused by social and cultural disruption. Ms. Hassan says the deputy office will vigilantly struggle to fight violence against women.
Impartial investigation of cases of violence against women, legal pursuit of perpetrators of violence, staff capacity building, and providing awareness about laws, particularly Law on Elimination of Violence against Women, are issues that Ms. Hassan has cited as her working priorities. She emphasized, “We will struggle to establish a mental health center within the AGO. In the meantime, building coordination efforts to fight violence against women in coordination with Ministry of Higher Education, Ministry of Public Health, Ministry of Education, and local entities is an AGO priority. A future signed memorandum with those entities would assist the AGO in fighting violence against women and is expected soon.”