January 9th, 2009/API
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AFGHANISTAN: Butchered in the name of honour
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| Confirming Maryam’s tragedy, the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) said it had registered over 2,000 cases of violence against women in the past 10 months - a marked increase on previous years. “We’re particularly worried about the worsening nature and characteristics of violence against women,” Soraya Rahim Subhrang, a women’s rights commissioner at the AIHRC, told IRIN, adding that women and girls were often victims of “horrific crimes”. A widespread culture of impunity and lack of support for victims of gender violence has further exacerbated the situation, Subhrang said, adding “The culture of violence has increased because there is no fear of the law.” The AIHRC called on the government to bring the man who raped Maryam as well as her mother and brother to “transparent and unbiased” justice. ad/at/cb source.www.irinnews.org |