WUNRN
AFGHANISTAN - POLICEMEN SENTENCED
16 YEARS FOR LAL BIBI RAPE
Four Afghan policemen have been jailed for 16 years for raping a young woman in northern Kunduz province this year.
Lal Bibi, 18, wept as she told the court in Kabul she had been abducted by a group of policemen who beat and raped her for five days in May.
Reports say she was singled out because a relative offended a family linked to a local police commander.
The case drew attention after she reported the attack. Afghan victims of sexual abuse rarely speak out.
Ms Bibi's ordeal prompted President Karzai to order an investigation.
The BBC's Bilal Sarwary, who was in court, says Ms Bibi sobbed as she relived the events, making it sometimes hard to understand what she was saying.
He says speaking out about sexual abuse often brings shame on the family, as well as potential repercussions.
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From: WUNRN
ListServe
To: WUNRN ListServe
Sent: Friday, July 13, 2012 8:41 PM
Subject: Afghanistan - Gender Violence - Rape Case - UN Women
Condemns
WUNRN
AFGHANISTAN - YOUNG WOMAN AGE 18
KIDNAPPED, RAPED, TORTURED BY POLICE - INTERNATIONAL OUTCRY
AFGHAN WOMAN LAL BIBI RAPED
& TORTURED BY POWERFUL POLICE - IMPUNITY - DISHONOUR - CHALLENGE OF AFGHAN
WOMEN'S RIGHTS
Young
Afghan woman, Lal Bibi, was kidnapped, raped, tortured and chained to a wall
for five days by a gang of powerful Afghan police.
She is only 18 years old.
According to deep cultural customs, as a raped woman, Lal Bibi has been publicly ‘dishonoured’ and more significantly, has publicly dishonoured her family with terrible sacrifices necessary to restore this honour for future generations.
Like in many similar cases the chief suspects have not been prosecuted possibly in the hopes that international attention will die down.
Lal Bibi’s story was circulating at the time representatives from countries including the US, UK and Japan gathered at a conference in Tokyo to discuss support for Afghanistan when foreign troops depart, last Sunday.
A combined total of US$16 billion dollars in civilian aid was pledged until 2015 to hopefully prevent the country from slipping back into turmoil after the troops’ withdrawal.
In exchange for the aid, Afghanistan pledged, among other requirements, to fight corruption, conduct fair elections, protect human rights and raise government revenues under the Tokyo Mutual Accountability Framework.
However, Oxfam’s Head of policy and advocacy in Afghanistan Louise Hancock was dubious about any actual outcomes.
“There were numerous mentions included with respect to women and we welcome that, however, we would have liked to have seen a section included saying how they are going to achieve that,” Hancock told The Advertiser.
“Afghan women and girls were looking to the international community to protect the progress they have made in the last decade and they have been let down.”
Afghanistan researcher for Human Rights Watch Heather Barr, believes while many positive conclusions came out of the Tokyo conference, human rights was the missing ingredient amongst important conversation and was not addressed in terms of direct action.
"Many speakers have praised the increased presence of civil society [groups] at the Tokyo conference, and it is true that Afghan civil society groups have been a forceful, organised and impressive presence,” she said.
“Far less in evidence, however, is any indication that anyone is taking them seriously.”
“Their key demands, including more emphasis on human rights, women's rights and a justice process to deal with the country's "history of atrocities" when setting conditions for aid, had not made it into the Tokyo declaration.”
Refusing to let her case go quietly, Lal Bibi has gained support through an online petition on campaigning website Avaaz which has gained over 600,000 signatures over the past week.
Avaaz also voiced their concern that the pledged international monetary aid would help fund the very police forces that raped Lal Bibi, who rely heavily on foreign support.
Unfortunately however, this level of support for shamed women in Afghanistan is rarely seen.
Recently, a confronting and disturbing video has been released showing the execution of accused adulterer 22-year-old Afghan Najiba, as an audience of 150 cheering men watched on, late last month.
Married to a member of a hard-line Taliban militant group, Najiba was shot multiple times in the back at point blank range after those in her village decided in less than an hour that she was guilty.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said he was "shocked and disgusted" with the government and condemned the "deplorable" action, while US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton made a powerful plea for the rights of women in the war-ravaged nation after the horrific video emerged.
"The United States believes strongly that no nation can achieve peace, stability and economic growth if half the population is not empowered," Mrs Clinton said in a speech at the Tokyo conference.
Despite small improvements on overall human rights in Afghanistan, including more children in school and a fall in infant mortality, since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001, the country still remains on the bottom of most indicators relating to human rights and is the world’s fourth most corrupt country.
With executions like Najiba’s still commonplace in the 21st century, many are left wondering whether outcomes of the Tokyo conference will see any lasting progress made beyond the direct targets of the generous aid package and towards the improvement of women’s rights in Afghanistan.
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UN WOMEN CONDEMNS VIOLENCE AGAINST
AFGHAN WOMEN & CALLS FOR JUSTICE
Statement by Michelle Bachelet Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women, 13 July 2012.
July 13, 2012 - In recent weeks, the Afghan nation has witnessed cases of extreme abuse and appalling violence against women. The torture and rape of a young woman, Lal Bibi, by Afghan Local Police (ALP) and the public execution of a young woman, Najiba, has sparked national and international outrage. These cases have once again focused attention on the continuing and urgent need to protect women’s and girls’ rights as the world redefines its role in Afghanistan, and as the Government of Afghanistan moves forward in transition.
Such brutality is intolerable and UN Women calls upon the Afghan government to act with urgency to respond to these crimes, bringing the perpetrators to justice, and to end a culture of impunity and create a culture of zero tolerance of violence and discrimination against women and girls.
With increased cases of violence against women being reported by Afghanistan’s independent Human Rights Commission, and as the International Security Force draws down, it is vital that the important gains made for and with women over the past decade are advanced and sustained and women are fully engaged in charting the future of Afghanistan.
If Afghan women and girls continue to be ignored within the major decision-making processes affecting their country, the vision of a more secure, prosperous and stable Afghanistan cannot be realized.
Last Sunday the international community pledged $16 billion in funding for Afghanistan at the donor conference in Tokyo. By devoting a significant portion of these funds to justice and full participation for Afghan girls and women, Afghanistan will stand a better chance of achieving peace and democracy. It is essential that the Government of Afghanistan and international community stand by commitments made in Tokyo. This includes commitments to improve access to justice for all, in particular women, by ensuring the Constitution and other fundamental laws are “enforced expeditiously, fairly and transparently” and to ensure the implementation of the Ending Violence against Women Law, including “through services to victims as well as law enforcement”.
To ensure progress for Afghanistan, we must act in solidarity to prioritise women’s rights, equality and accountability, and in ending impunity for violence against women and girls. UN Women remains committed to working with the Government and people of Afghanistan to advance women’s empowerment and gender equality.