Introduction
While the number of explosions and suicide attacks in Afghanistan decreased in the first six months of 2024 (January-30 June 2024), resulting in fewer violations of the right to life, there has been a disturbing rise in forced disappearances, torture resulting in death, arbitrary detention, and the implementation of cruel and inhumane punishments. The number of arbitrary detentions have doubled and the number of enforced disappearances have tripled compared to the same period in 2023. The Taliban’s failure to uphold human rights principles, the absence of protection mechanisms, and the continued impunity from punishment and legal accountability are some of the contributing factors for the worsening human rights situation and the increase in various forms of human rights violations during this reporting period.
Our findings indicate that former government employees and their families, civil society activists, journalists, human rights defenders, and critics of Taliban continue to face violent and retaliatory attacks from the de facto authorities (DFA), the Taliban. The human rights situation of women and girls has continued tp deteriorate due to the Taliban’s discriminatory and repressive policies and increasing enforcement of these policies. During this period, the Taliban have continued to impose and enforced severe restrictions on access to justice, the right to education, the right to work, and the freedom of movement for women across the country.
This report also covers the Taliban’s discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities. The Taliban have engaged in discriminatory practices in providing government services, access to resources, opportunities, and national services, and distribution of humanitarian aid to vulnerable ethnic and religious groups. They have also hired or dismissed individuals from government positions based on their political beliefs or ethnic and religious identity. The suppression of differing religious beliefs, the imposition and enforcement of severe restrictions on religious freedoms, and the coercion of religious minorities to convert are other Taliban violations that Rawadari has documented in this period.
This report aims to present an accurate depiction of the current human rights situation in Afghanistan, highlighting significant incidents of violations of civil and political rights, the human rights situation of women and girls, and the human rights violations targeting vulnerable ethnic and religious groups in the first six months of 2024.
Methodology
The information included in this report has been obtained through continuous monitoring of the human rights situation during the first six months of 2024. Rawadari’s bbservers used questionnaires and consulted various local sources in 31 provinces of the country to investigate, document, and record incidents of violations of civil and political rights, as well as violations of the human rights of women and vulnerable ethnic and religious groups in the country. Key sources for this report include victims and their families, eyewitnesses, civil society activists and human rights defenders, journalists, lawyers, influential social figures, government employees, staff of educational and health institutions, and staff of relevant national and international organizations.
Additionally, the report utilizes decrees, orders, and audio, video, and written documents issued by the Taliban over the past six months that were available to Rawadari. Previous reports published by Rawadari and other human rights organizations are also referenced in this report.
Rawadari’s findings indicate that access to information during the first half of 2024 has been significantly challenging compared to the same period in 2023 due to increased restrictions imposed by the Taliban. The Taliban have created an atmosphere of fear and intimidation to prevent the dissemination of information related to human rights violations. The General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) , the Ministry for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (MPVPV) , the Departments of Information & Culture, and provincial governor offices are playing key roles in enforcing strict limitations on access to information. Among these, the GDI monitors the activities of individuals, particularly civil society activists, journalists, media outlets, human rights defenders, educational institutions, lawyers, and health centres nationwide. The GDI summons activists, journalists, and human rights defenders, forcibly obtaining commitments from them to refrain from providing information to the media and human rights organizations. Interviewees have reported to Rawadari that the Taliban have threatened them with arrest and torture if they share information with media outlets or human rights organizations. In fact, Rawadari has documented cases where relatives and family members of victims have been arrested and imprisoned for speaking with the media and human rights organizations. Therefore, the prevailing atmosphere of fear and distrust has forced citizens, especially victims and eyewitnesses into silence.
In addition to these restrictions, the Taliban have instructed all de-facto government departments to refrain from publishing decrees, orders, and other important documents without explicit permission and instruction. Another barriers to access to information is the lack of active telecommunications networks in villages and remote areas that complicates outreach to victims and survivors. Therefore, this report includes only the human rights violations that Rawadari has been able to document, and the actual number of violations and cases might be higher.
