The Open Society Institute Middle East & North Africa Initiative hosted a panel discussion, "Negotiating Human Rights in the Afghan Context."
Human rights advocates in Afghanistan must navigate a careful balance when promoting global human rights standards in a conservative Muslim society recovering from decades of conflict and extremism. Those charged with protecting human rights in Afghanistan must work in a context where Taliban and militia forces are resurgent, a powerful constituency of hardline conservatives support strict and narrow interpretations of Islamic law, and American-led forces continue to resist the application of international legal standards to their own detainees. A local court’s recent decision to levy the death penalty against a journalist accused of blasphemy further highlights the challenges of implementing human rights in Afghanistan today.
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Voices
Negotiating Human Rights in the Face of Repression in Afghanistan
Human rights advocates working in Afghanistan addressed the challenges of promoting global standards in a conservative Muslim society recovering from decades of conflict and extremism.
Inside Open Society
Time to Revive Asia’s Tradition of Openness
Premesh Chandran has personal experience of the struggle to share ideas freely in a highly regulated media environment. Now he leads Open Society’s work in a politically diverse region that stretches from Pakistan to the Pacific.
The K-Quarantine
Care Workers Deserve Credit for South Korea’s COVID-19 Response
South Korea’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has been cited as a model in the international press. While their technology has been celebrated, the essential role care workers played in avoiding a larger crisis continues to be ignored.