01/12/21
In a decree issued a day earlier on November 22, the Taliban put the AIBA under the control of its Justice Ministry, stripping the organization of its independence. Taliban Justice Minister Mullah Abdul Hakim also declared that only Taliban-approved lawyers can work in their Islamic courts, effectively revoking the licenses of some 2,500 lawyers in Afghanistan. His order has raised deep concerns about the impartiality and fairness of criminal trials under the Taliban, which seized control of the country in August after toppling the internationally recognized government. Those fears have been exacerbated by the Taliban’s brutal form of justice. Under their tribal interpretation of Shari’a law, Taliban judges have routinely ordered public executions and amputations for convicted criminals. Legal experts say the Taliban’s decree flouts international norms meant to ensure that people accused of crimes have access to impartial legal assistance in order to receive a fair trial. “The [Taliban’s] grip is tightening,” says Samiullah Hamidee, a civil activist from the southern province of Helmand who founded the Organization for Social and Economic Development (OSED) before the Taliban takeover. “Access to independent legal [assistance] will soon become a thing of the past.” “[The] lines are blurring,” Hamidee warned on Twitter. “A lawyer, prosecutor, and judge can be the same person at the same time.” The Brussels-based Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE) says the moves means that all women are now excluded from the legal profession in Afghanistan, as well as “any lawyer with a legal education that is not in line with Shari’a or with the Taliban regime.” […] https://gandhara.rferl.org/a/ https://www.barandbench.com/ https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/ https://focustaiwan.tw/
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IAPL Article: Judge, Jury, And Executioner: Taliban Brings Afghanistan’s Justice System Under Its Thumb
Dozens of Taliban gunmen stormed the offices of Afghanistan’s Independent Bar Association (AIBA) in Kabul last week and ordered its staff to stop their work.
