Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International Condemn Taliban's New Police Law
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has sharply criticized the Taliban government over a newly published police law that bans demonstrations across Afghanistan. Elaine Pearson, Asia director for HRW, described the measure as "another step in the Taliban's ruthless effort to suppress all dissent," adding that "The Taliban authorities fear any dissent and so they are escalating their repression."
The 84-page legislation, issued by the justice ministry and made public this month, outlines various changes to law enforcement nationwide, including the explicit rule that "all types of protests are banned." Amnesty International echoed the criticism, calling the law "another sweeping assault on human rights in Afghanistan" and labeling the protest ban as "among its most egregious provisions."
The Afghan government has not responded to requests for comment on the legislation, which was reported by Dawn and The Hindu. Demonstrations have been rare during the Taliban's five years in power, but at least two people were killed in June when security forces allegedly opened fire at a women's rights protest in Herat, according to a group of UN experts.
The new law also extends detention without charge from three days to ten, or longer by court order, and allows officers to use force to make a suspect repent. This month, the intelligence agency detained two UN employees for 11 days without providing a reason. In a country where corporal punishment exists for certain crimes, the police legislation prohibits hitting prisoners with weapons such as sticks or wires without a court order, but permits the use of force to elicit repentance.