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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |
AFGHANISTAN: Rights abuses and forced displacement in central Oruzgan province
KABUL, 22 September 2003 (IRIN) - The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) has expressed serious concern about rights abuses in the Daikundi district of the central province of Oruzgan. "At least every week we are monitoring a case of forced displacement or intimidation of civilians by local commanders in the area," Ahmad Nader Naderi, a spokesperson for AIHRC told IRIN on Sunday.
Naderi said their teams in Daikundi had found that factional fighting and cruelty by local commanders had caused many problems for local civilians. AIHRC expressed concern following a report from the Office of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which said that 60 families had been displaced due to factional fighting in Daikundi.
"Up to 60 families have been displaced by recent fighting in Daikundi, in central Afghanistan," Maki Shinohara, a UNHCR spokesperson said on Sunday, adding that fighting between two commanders had erupted in Koshak valley on 26 August, and restarted again earlier this month.
According to UNHCR, local villagers from Kaman, Peshparan and Kulipalat had fled to friends and relatives in neighbouring districts. "We are closely monitoring the situation and are prepared to assist these families if necessary," Shinohara said, noting that the fighting had subsided, "So we hope that these families can soon return back to their homes in safety," she added.
"Our teams monitoring returns have collected over the past two years numerous reports of human rights abuses and harassment by the local commanders in the Daikundi area," the UN refugee agency spokesperson underlined. She also explained displacement due to insecurity remained a problem in northern provinces such as Faryab, as well as Kapisa province, north of Kabul.
"UNHCR currently does not recommend displaced families to return to some of the specific areas in these provinces due to ongoing conflict or human rights abuses," said Shinohara.
The Afghan rights commission has warned that intimidation and displacement of civilians may increase, unless it is not properly addressed." The commission is deeply concerned at increasing amounts of factional fighting and displacement of civilians," Naderi said, warning that unless the government or the US-led coalition acted against the perpetrators, displacement would continue.
AIHRC confirmed that the displacement issue was more serious in the north of the country as people had to leave their areas for their own protection. It's not just fighting that is causing families to flee. "People are leaving their homes in groups and individually to protect their families," the human rights activist said, mentioning many of these families had had to flee the area to save their daughters from forced marriages by local commanders.
According to UNHCR, there are 220,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) in Afghanistan, the majority of whom were displaced by drought in the southern provinces. "UNHCR is working to find immediate and long-term solutions to internally displaced people with an increased involvement of the central government, particularly the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation and the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development," Shinohara highlighted.
Themes: (IRIN) Human Rights
[ENDS]
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