New Afghanistan law to silence victims of violence against women

The Guardian ^ | 2/4/2014 | Emma Graham-Harrison

[mojito]

A new Afghan law will allow men to attack their wives, children and sisters without fear of judicial punishment, undoing years of slow progress in tackling violence in a country blighted by so-called "honour" killings, forced marriage and vicious domestic abuse.

The small but significant change to Afghanistan's criminal prosecution code bans relatives of an accused person from testifying against them. Most violence against women in Afghanistan is within the family, so the law – passed by parliament but awaiting the signature of the president, Hamid Karzai – will effectively silence victims as well as most potential witnesses to their suffering.

"It is a travesty this is happening," said Manizha Naderi, director of the charity and campaign group Women for Afghan Women. "It will make it impossible to prosecute cases of violence against women … The most vulnerable people won't get justice now."

Under the new law, prosecutors could never come to court with cases like that of Sahar Gul, a child bride whose in-laws chained her in a basement and starved, burned and whipped her when she refused to work as a prostitute for them. Women like 31-year-old Sitara, whose nose and lips were sliced off by her husband at the end of last year, could never take the stand against their attackers.

"Honour" killings by fathers and brothers who disapprove of a woman's behaviour would be almost impossible to punish. Forced marriage and the sale or trading of daughters to end feuds or settle debt would also be largely beyond the control of the law in a country where the prosecution of abuse is already rare.

[mojito]

Islam's idea of human dignity.

[Pollster1]

When the courts fail to provide justice, there is another option. I hope these women will avail themselves of that alternative.

[La Lydia]

The US has spent $100 billion in nonmilitary funds to rebuild Afghanistan, and this is what we have paid for. Taliban rules. Should have just used daisy-cutters on every square inch of the entire place, dusted off our hands and departed.

[knarf]

OR ... how grateful might SOME of these women be to marry an American ?

[Blood of Tyrants]

What the hell were are we saving these savages from?

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks mojito. Meanwhile, the UN demands that the Vatican immediately fire all the *accused* pedophile priests, almost as if the UN were already under the thumb of Islamofascism.

Vatican blasts UN report on pedophile priests, abortion, gay marriage
• Vatican blasts back at UN report on pedophile priests, abortion
• Victims urge UN to challenge Vatican on child abuse
• Kicking the [Catholic] Church Out of the UN
• European Parliament Votes on Report to Condemn Catholic Church

[Little Ray]

The war in Afghanistan should have been an extinction event for tribes of Afghaninstan.

[Dalberg-Acton]

[LurkedLongEnough]

The horrible words “what difference at this point, does it make?” ring in my ears and anger me even more.

This is total foreign policy failure made worse by deaths of all (Americans, Afghans, all) concerned, in the past, now and in the future.

Where has America gone?