Statement from Eight Human Rights Organizations on Violence Against Civil Activists in Afghanistan

“What is happening in Afghanistan today is reminiscent of the era of serial killings in Iran”

The intensification of abductions, assassinations, and attacks on civil activists and journalists in Afghanistan over recent months has heightened concerns about increasing violence against civil society in the country. The scope of violence against Afghan citizens has further elevated the risks facing civil activism and human rights work in Afghanistan.

Human Rights Campaign in Iran, along with several human rights organizations, has released a statement condemning the killing, abduction, and assassination of human rights activists, journalists, and civil activists in Afghanistan. The statement describes this pattern of violence as an obstacle to peace and democratic progress in the region. The statement compares the current situation in Afghanistan to the era of “serial killings” in Iran and emphasizes the impact of Afghanistan’s violent environment on Iranian civil society.

The text of the statement is as follows:

We, the civil and human rights organizations signing this letter, express our grave concern about the new wave of abductions, killings, and assassinations of journalists and civil activists in Afghanistan, and call for an immediate end to all violence against freedom of expression in this country.

Afghan civil society is going through difficult days, days drenched in blood and gunpowder. Threats, abductions, and assassinations over recent weeks and months have directly targeted Afghan journalists and civil activists. In just three days, 15 targeted assassinations occurred in Kabul, many of them targeting women. Six of them were women working as human rights activists, journalists, and doctors.

What is happening in Afghanistan today is reminiscent of the era of serial killings (1988-1998) in Iran, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 80 people, including writers, translators, poets, political activists, and others. Their deaths, by silencing the voices and ideas of individuals who could have influenced Iranian society and culture, changed the course of history in Iran. We see a similar process unfolding in Afghanistan; the incomprehensible loss of individuals who would have had a voice in Afghanistan’s future, through killings and forced disappearances. Without question, these events will alter the course of peace and democracy throughout the entire region. Especially now, when international negotiations are set to determine the future power brokers of Afghanistan.

It would be naive to assume that what is happening in Afghanistan will not also affect Iranian civil society. The damage caused by forced disappearances and assassinations of Afghan civil activists will alter political, social, and cultural relationships within and with neighboring countries.

The people of Afghanistan, both inside and outside the country, are under pressure from several violent forces. Hardliners in the Islamic Republic of Iran are complicit in weakening Afghan civil institutions and putting pressure on Afghan society. Not only that, but we are also witnessing increased pressure on Afghan society residing in Iran. This is demonstrated by the introduction of an inhumane plan called “organizing illegal citizens,” which permits further suppression of Afghans residing in Iran.

Calls for suppressing Afghans within Iran have increased since the interview by Lutfullah Najafzada, a Tolo News reporter, with Javad Zarif, Iran’s Foreign Minister, and Afghans living in Iran have become targets of racist and xenophobic campaigns. Some are calling for “ending the stay” of Afghans living in Iran and demanding severe imprisonment for any Afghan national without proper documentation.

Iran’s interventions, combined with U.S. talks with the Taliban, all disregard the needs and desires of the Afghan people and instead abandon journalists, activists, artists, and students to political violence. There is a connection between targeted killings and harassment on one hand and talks with Taliban figures about Afghanistan’s future on the other.

We believe that the people of Afghanistan are the only legitimate decision-makers for their country’s future. They must be free to determine their future without interference from other countries, particularly the Islamic Republic of Iran, and without ceding political power to groups that have terrorized the Afghan people and committed crimes against humanity.

We, the human rights organizations and civil society signatories of this statement, consider threats and violence against civil activists in Afghanistan to be a threat to peace and stability throughout the entire region. We call upon the Afghan government, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the United Nations, and other institutions to make every effort to protect the lives and civil participation of Afghan journalists and civil activists and to ensure peaceful lives for Afghans living within Iran and Afghanistan.

Signatories:

Third Place Organization

Human Rights Campaign in Iran

Middle Ground Group

Union Organization for Iran

Association for the Defense of the Rights of Azerbaijanis in Iran

Human Rights Association of Kurdistan in Iran – Geneva

Foundation of All Human Rights for All in Iran

Source: Human Rights Campaign Iran