The Future We Want – the motto chosen by the UN in the run-up to the June 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) – is certainly forward-looking. Rio+20 is supposed to define routes towards a safer, fairer, greener, and cleaner world. But the blueprints for a green economy are devoid of gender perspectives. Christa Wichterich’s essay takes a closer look on the relations between feminism and ecology. 

In Afghanistan, natural resources and conflict have a intimate and complex relationship. In conflict assessment surveys, access to natural resources have been consistently reported as the cause for more than half of local level conflict incidents in Afghanistan. In particular, access to land and access to water are regularly cited by communities across Afghanistan as two top two causes of conflict.

Sima Samar is a physician, human rights activist and a politician. She has been the Minister for Women Affairs in Afghanistan and currently is the chair of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commmission. For her life time achievement she has just been honored with the alternative livelihoods rights award. Marion R. Mueller and Neelab Hakim have met her and have discussed about the future in Afghanistan.
 

The aim of publishing the training manual on environment is raising public awareness on environment and its protection measures.
The manual contains two chapters, first chapter gives general information about environment and the second chapter focuses on environmental protection measures.
To disseminate the manual to wide range of people, simple literature along with so many illustrations used inside. Download publication (PDF in Dari, 34 pages, 11.8 MB)

On 8th of July, 2012 in Tokyo, the international community and the Afghan government will discuss financial aspects of development cooperation in the wake of the transition process towards 2014. Financial support for Afghanistan is most likely do decrease and the extractives sector by  many is perceived as a golden way out. A joint policy message to the Tokyo conference focuses on the need for development of accountable, efficient, effective and transparent governance and oversight frameworks, suggests the inclusion of civil society and local communities in decision-making processes and demands minimizing negative social and environmental impacts.   

The Documenta in the German city of Kassel is said to be the world biggest exhibition on contemporary art. Taking place every five years, it is curated each time by a single foreign curator and his team of international agents and aides. This year, for its 13th  edition, for the first time Afghanistan is a focus of the exhibition’s programme.

 

At Rio+20, the concept of the "green economy" focuses on industrial production from biomass as one way to overcome fossil fuel dependency. The push for a bio-based economy comes with a call for market-based mechanisms for the financialization of the Earth’s natural processes, re-branded as ‘ecosystem services’, which also encourage land and water grabs. 

Having an Uzbek, a Pashtun and a Tajik play in a band is spectacular enough in Afghanistan. But their music is even more of a novelty to the war-torn country.
 

In this book the author has reviewed the forms of democracy in different periods of time and has evaluated some questions in relation to the approach of democracy in Afghanistan. This is a valuable resource for learning history of the ideas and opinions as well as making a discussion forum for scholars to debate and consult on how to achieve a governance system that guarantees rights of all afghan citizens. Download Publication (PDF in Dari, 173 pages, 987 Kb)

The current situation in Afghanistan is difficult. The violence is increasing, and neither the international forces nor the Afghan government seem to be able to prevent this. A peace process between the government and the rebels which regulates the distribution of power in the state, could pacify the situation.

The security needs of Afghan men and women differ. Whereas men bear the brunt of the direct impacts of conflict, women disproportionately suffer from the indirect effects such as increased levels of domestic violence, decreased access to health care and poverty. Due to this difference in security needs, gender must be taken into account when evaluating the relationship between citizens and the Afghan National Police (ANP).

In a Heinrich-Böll-Foundation organized conference NGOs and Afghan civil society organizations exchanged their views on the challenges and threats of environmental pollution in Afghanistan. Besides naming the problems they formulated political demands and proposed solutions to the most urgent concerns.

Some observers see incompatibilities between democracy, human rights and gender equality, on the one hand, and a world in which religion plays an active role in public affairs, on the other. Others ask whether it is useful to see religion as the nemesis of gender equality, and secularism as others ask whether it is useful to see religion as the nemesis of gender equality, and secularism as the precondition for it.

How People Define Violence and Justice is a joint research project of ACSFo and HBS on international crimes, massacres, rapes, murders, destruction of residential areas, homicide and imprisonment of intellectuals, torture and human rights abuses of the past fifty years.  The standards for justice and human rights violation in this project are defined by people. Views, beliefs and utterances of respondents constitute the basis of this research.

After strong criticism voiced by Afghan human rights and civil society organizations, the Ministry of Justice has modified the draft law on how to celebrate weddings in Afghanistan. The result is disappointing: The changes are merely technical and do not address the common concern of too much interference in people’s private affairs.

In Kunduz province families are so concerned about their daughters being radicalized through some madrasas they are enrolled in. These residents ask ministry of education and interior to closely observe such activities of the said madrasas because they are afraid that their daughters might turn into religious extremists.

We all recognize the fragile environment conditions in Afghanistan. Both those who work within the government apparatus and are directly involved in the governance and those who are engaged in private business realize this. However, due to the lack of common sense we have not been able to create a nationwide coalition for the protection of environment.

“In environment protection issues the most recurring challenge is public awareness and education.” Countries that are considered successful in this regard provide education to their citizens from early schooling to high education. Thus, the environment issues are not unknown to them and they have adequate information about the current and future status of environment concerns.

Wedding ceremonies have become ruinous for many Afghans. A new law now aims at limiting the expenses. The good intention of the initiative is tarnished, however, because the draft at the same time sanctions heavy governmental interference into personal affairs.

The dust around the election of the speaker of the parliament has settled, but still a major question remains unsolved: What will happen with the special court established for the elections? HBS program manager and legal expert Musarat Hussain – a lawyer by profession – has taken a closer look at the legal basis of this court.

Kabul was originally engineered to house 2-million people but now nearly six million people live here. It is important to know how much waste is produced everyday and how much of it is collected and discarded by concerned entities. Ghulam Ali Yaqoobi, the head of research and policy at National Environment Protection Agency (NEPA) says  that according to statistical research, 2000 – 3000 tons of city waste is produced in Kabul on a daily basis. Kabul Municipality can only collect a quarter of it, while the remaining waste accumulates where it is produced. This is a serious concern as it can cause spread of diseases, air pollution, contamination of drinking water etc.

It is really courageous and brave of Afghan women rising from a country where the conditions are not favorable for females and where the controversies about female football players have to be taken seriously. Many people in Afghanistan believe it is shameful for women to play any sports, especially football which is thought to be men’s sport. Yet over the last years female football is on the raise in Afghanistan. It all kicked off with the establishment of Afghanistan’s first female football club in 2004.

For a long time, security along the Gultapa road in Northern Afghanistan made the area difficult to access.

Afghan journalist Noor ul Ain from the Dari language daily 8 a.m recently travelled along this road and found the situation much improved. Yet, in his trip it became evident: What people are still in need for is development – schools, healthcare and governmental services that make it not only a secure place for now but that open prospects to the people in that area.

Health and wellbeing is undoubtedly a chief concern of every human being. We need a healthy body to continue our lives. Health is achieved when we observe the individual and social hygienic standards. In our current society or more specifically in our city hygienic standards are among the most neglected and absent standards.

On January 27, 2011, the German parliament will once again discuss and decide about the extension of the German troops’ mandate in Afghanistan. There are many critical voices in the German public as well as in the political leadership questioning the success of military and civilian efforts in Afghanistan. While it seems clear that on both levels the results lag behind the expectations, we have asked one of the top political analysts in Afghanistan for his perspective particularly on the presence of foreign troops in his country. Journalist Sanjar Sohail explains why he thinks Afghanistan should not be left alone.

Lack of sewage systems in Kabul has brought about immense health, social and administrative challenges. A number of city reconstruction projects have either been put off or hurdled due to this problem. Recently, there have huge and multi-story buildings constructed, meanwhile, Afghan refugees increasingly repatriate and most of them tend to settle in Kabul city. The question however is whether the municipality authorities have ever thought where the sewage of these buildings will flow. 

The major factors that derail the environmental agenda are security and political issues. These factors have not just undermined the environment but have caused other problems such as conflict and backwardness that do even more harm to the environment. The issues arising therefrom are so immense that almost the entire attention and energy of government officials and ordinary citizens are preoccupied with trivialities such as ethnic superiority, discrimination, territorial rivalries, sectarian and lingual discrimination, cultural violence, fascist policies and ultimately a devastating civil war. They have ill effects not just on current innocent youth, but on the generations to come. In other words, the oppressed people of Afghanistan are in a fight of survival which has not left them enough time to focus on their own lives, let alone the environment.

Loya Paktia is very much embedded in tribal traditions and its social organization still regulated by the customary law known as Pashtunwali. Compared to other parts of Afghanistan, the region has long benefited from strong and cohesive tribal structures. Indeed, tribes in this part of the country are traditionally the largest permanent political and social units, where elites (khans, maliks) and notables (spin giri) hold great influence. While the integrity of these institutions has steadily eroded since the jihad against the Soviet occupation, until relatively recently, security at both the district and provincial levels in Loya Paktia were guaranteed by agreements among tribes, and between tribes and the government. 

Afghanistan is haunted by numbers of problems. While people are already aware of many issues security, health …, but environmental issues were not yet topic of discussion. Nonetheless, ecological problems have a strong impact on people’s life. HBS Afghanistan Office in relevance to its activity in the area of ecology considering the role of media as good source of dissemination in public awareness and civic education, has already started a series of ecology publication in cooperation with daily 8 a.m. The goal of the publication is “To encourage the debate on environmental issues” in order to raise awareness for the importance of ecology and “green issues”, enhance people’s understanding of why the environment needs to be cared for and strengthen the idea of citizenship through identification with their country. 
This series is going to be translated in English and regularly published in HBS Afghanistan’s website.  

At least 46.9 percent of women have been facing physical violence within their families. Out of this, 12.5% of women facing physical violence resulting in their broken limbs, 6.6% of them have become permanently disabled, 22.2% of them have been wounded, and 58.7% of them have been bruised. Women and Children Legal Research Foundation, working partner of HBS Afghanistan as a legal and research entity, following its previous press releases, once again express its concerns on the legal situation of women taking into account the researches undertaken recently.

This paper is the outcome of joint effort of the Heinrich Böll Stiftung Afghanistan Office and Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission in 2006, relevant to the round table conference undertaking a comparative analysis of four aspects of family law in the context of Islam: marriage, divorce, polygamy and child custody. While legal experts from Afghanistan provide the reader with background analysis of the status of these aspects of family law, legal experts from Bangladesh, Egypt, Malaysia and Pakistan share their experience on law advocacy and talk about the status in their respective countries. Download Publication (PDF in English, 55 pages, 328Kb)

The AIHRC, as an active member of the Governance cluster, is assertive and supportive of the priorities on Rule of Law, Justice and Human Rights. All of these priorities are inter-related that each of them effect the achievement of other. Achieving these priority objectives will, definitely, have positive impact on promotion of human rights and civil responsibilities, and finally, it furthers trust between the citizens and government.

A surprising omission is the balanced inquiry into what climate change and its effects mean for democratization, and what democratization could mean for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and climate adaptation. This paper draws attention to the little explored relationships between climate change and democratization.

"This Front Line Award is a tribute not just to me but to all the women of Afghanistan, and in particular those women human rights defenders who on a daily basis face the risk of attack or assassination to defend the rights of other women," Dr. Sobhrang said. Dr. Soraya Sobhrang, one of the most prominent Human and Women's Rights defenders in Afghanistan, was awarded the sixth Front Line Award for Human Rights Defenders at Risk in Dublin in 2010.

Ending wars and establishing durable peace require talks among fair persons in a transparent and credible popular process in Afghanistan. This must pay consistent and central attention to women’s rights and participation in all decision- and policy-making activities. On the eve of the Peace Jirga, women and activists of the Afghanistan Women’s 50% Campaign, that started operating prior to the 2009 Presidential Election, wish to draw the attention of the Jirga participants, the government, the international supporters of the Jirga, as well as the civil and women’s rights activists.

Country Representative

bente.scheller@hbfasia.org

This paper aims, firstly, to tackle the gender political challenges of the future and to renew our understanding of gender democracy. Secondly, it gives an outline of our programme focus, defines our aims and tasks, and sets out terminology and tools of gender democratic policy. By Barbara Unmüßig

Experts from Afghanistan, Pakistan and German and international scientists, politicians and journalists outline challenges for the stabilisation process in the region.

Interview with Dr. Bente Aika Scheller, Director of the Heinrich Boell Foundation in Kabul, about the Afghanistan Conference in London.

In this commentary, former UN Special Representative for Afghanistan, Tom Koenigs, discusses the outcome of the London Conference with a focus on US and German engagement in reconstructing Afghanistan.

Afghanistan in 2006 faced an acute crisis with three inter-related dimensions: insurgency, opium, and dissatisfaction with the government and its international backers. Sustainable solutions to these challenges all require a long-term commitment to improved governance in Afghanistan. By Hamish Nixon. Download Publication (PDF in English, 40 pages, 217 KB)

The six major coordinating bodies of civil society and NGO groups in Afghanistan call on the participants of the London Conference to ensure that the needs of the Afghan people remain forefront on the international community’s agenda. The statement highlights priorities in three areas—security, governance, and economic and social development—and includes the call to immediately cease any attempt to utilise civil society and NGO actors to pursue a military objective.