COUNTRY OF ORIGIN INFORMATION REPORT AFGHANISTAN 18 FEBRUARY 2009 UK Border Agency COUNTRY OF ORIGIN INFORMATION SERVICE AFGHANISTAN 18 FEBRUARY 2009 Contents Preface Latest News EVENTS IN AFGHANISTAN FROM 26 JANUARY TO 13 FEBRUARY 2009 REPORTS ON AFGHANISTAN PUBLISHED OR ACCESSED BETWEEN 26 JANUARY AND 13 FEBRUARY 2009 Paragraphs Background Information 1. GEOGRAPHY........................................................................................1.01 Maps .............................................................................................. 1.08 2. ECONOMY............................................................................................ 2.01 3. HISTORY.............................................................................................. 3.01 Overview to December 2001........................................................ 3.01 Post-Taliban.................................................................................. 3.02 Presidential election 9 October 2004 and the new Cabinet...... 3.08 Parliamentary and provincial elections 18 September 2005 .... 3.10 Afghanistan Compact 31 January 2006...................................... 3.13 4. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ..................................................................... 4.01 5. CONSTITUTION..................................................................................... 5.01 6. POLITICAL SYSTEM .............................................................................. 6.01 Overview ....................................................................................... 6.01 The Executive Branch.................................................................. 6.03 The Legislative Branch ................................................................ 6.04 Afghanistan politics in general ................................................... 6.06 Provincial councils ..................................................................... 6.06 Political parties............................................................................. 6.10 Human Rights 7. INTRODUCTION..................................................................................... 7.01 8. SECURITY SITUATION ........................................................................... 8.01 Overview ....................................................................................... 8.01 Security situation in different regions........................................ 8.16 Kabul.......................................................................................... 8.16 List of security incidents in and around Kabul city ..................... 8.22 The West and Herat................................................................... 8.39 Central ....................................................................................... 8.45 South, south-east and east ....................................................... 8.47 North and north-east.................................................................. 8.73 Border region – Afghanistan/Pakistan ....................................... 8.78 9. SECURITY FORCES............................................................................... 9.01 Developments following 11 September 2001............................. 9.01 Police............................................................................................. 9.04 Structure and reform.................................................................. 9.04 Afghan National Police (ANP)......................................................... 9.09 Afghan Uniformed Police (AUP) ................................................ 9.23 Afghan Border Police (ABP) ...................................................... 9.24 Afghan National Civil Boarder Police (ANCOP)......................... 9.25 Standby Police........................................................................... 9.26 ii The main text of this COI Report contains the most up to date publicly available information as at 25 January 2009. Further brief information on recent events and reports has been provided in the Latest News section to 13 February 2009. 18 FEBRUARY 2009 AFGHANISTAN Afghan Highway Police (AHP) ..................................................... 9.27 Counter Narcotics Police of Afghanistan (CNPA)...................... 9.28 Afghanistan National Auxillary Police (ANAP) .............................. 9.29 Torture ....................................................................................... 9.31 Extrajudicial killings.................................................................... 9.33 Armed Forces ............................................................................... 9.36 Other Government Forces........................................................... 9.39 National Directorate of Security (NDS) (Amniat-e Melli)............ 9.39 International Forces ..................................................................... 9.43 International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs)........................... 9.44 The role of Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs)................ 9.47 Avenues of Complaint ................................................................. 9.50 10. MILITARY SERVICE............................................................................. 10.01 11. ABUSES BY NON-GOVERNMENT ARMED FORCES................................. 11.01 Overview ....................................................................................... 11.01 Warlords and commanders ......................................................... 11.03 War crimes and human rights abuses prior to 2001................. 11.08 Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme (DDR).................................................................... 11.13 Disbandment of Illegal Armed Groups (DIAG)........................... 11.15 Anti-Government and Anti-Coalition Forces (ACF)................... 11.19 Overview ....................................................................................... 11.19 Taliban/neo-Taliban ................................................................... 11.22 Former Taliban members .......................................................... 11.31 Haqqani network........................................................................ 11.37 Hizb-e-Islami (Hisb-e-Islami/Hezb-e-Islami/Hizb-i-Islami).......... 11.38 Former Hizb-e-Islami members ................................................. 11.43 Al Qa’ida (Al-Qaeda).................................................................. 11.46 Jamat Sunat al-Dawn Salifia...................................................... 11.51 12. JUDICIARY ......................................................................................... 12.01 Organisation ................................................................................. 12.01 Independence ............................................................................... 12.05 Fair trial ......................................................................................... 12.07 Code of Criminal Procedure........................................................ 12.09 13. ARREST AND DETENTION – LEGAL RIGHTS......................................... 13.01 14. PRISON CONDITIONS.......................................................................... 14.01 15. DEATH PENALTY................................................................................ 15.01 16. POLITICAL AFFILIATION...................................................................... 16.01 Persons with links to the former Communist regime ............... 16.01 KHAD (KhAD) (Former Security Services) ................................ 16.01 Treatment of former KhAD members......................................... 16.08 Former members of the PDPA (Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan)............................... 16.13 Freedom of Association and Assembly ..................................... 16.22 17. FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND MEDIA....................................................... 17.01 Overview ....................................................................................... 17.01 Media law ...................................................................................... 17.08 Newspapers, radio, Internet and television ............................... 17.10 Journalists .................................................................................... 17.17 Night Letters ................................................................................. 17.26 18. HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS, ORGANISATIONS AND ACTIVISTS ......... 18.01 Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) ..................................................................................... 18.01 The main text of this COI Report contains the most up to date publicly available information as at 25 January 2009. Further brief iii information on recent events and reports has been provided in the Latest News section to 13 February 2009. AFGHANISTAN 18 FEBRUARY 2009 Domestic and international Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) ............................................................. 18.05 Afghans working for international organisations and international security forces ........................................... 18.08 Women’s rights activists ............................................................. 18.10 19. FREEDOM OF RELIGION...................................................................... 19.01 Background and demography ...................................................