AIHRC paints grim picture of children in Afghanistan

KABUL (SW) – The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (IHRC) has expressed concerns about the human rights situation of children in Afghanistan.

It said in a report the total number of civilian casualties registered with the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) in year 2020 reached 8,500 people, including 2,019 (23.8%) children.

According to the findings of this study, in the fiscal year 1399 (2020), 126 children were involved in the conflict in the ranks of the armed forces, including government forces and anti-government armed groups, of which 20 (15.9%) were in the ranks of government forces and 96 others (76.2%) were in the ranks of anti-government armed groups. The other 10 (7.9%) did not answer to this question.

In the fiscal year 1398 (2019), the number of children participating in the ranks of government armed forces and anti-government armed groups reached 90, which was 28.58% less than in 1399. (2020).

The information also reveals that, in addition to the children participating in the conflicts, 13 other children served as workers in government military and security units as well as in checkpoints of anti-government armed groups.

According to the report, in the fiscal year 1399 (2020), of the 5,318 children included in the study, 1,391 (26.2%) were victims of violence, while in 1398 (2019), 535 (10.2%) of the 5,248 children included in the study were victims of violence; thus, in 1399 (2020) incidents of violence against children increased by 16%. Among 1,391 children who were victims of violence, 948 (68.2%) were boys and 443 (31.8%) were girls.

In 1399 (2020), 628 (45.1%) of children included in the study, were victims of psychological violence, 606 (43.6%) were victims of physical violence, 44 (3.2%) victims of economic violence and 34 (2.4%) were victims of sexual violence; and 79 (5.7 ٪), were victims of other types of violence that are not listed under verbal-psychological, physical, economic and sexual violence.

Findings of this study showed that 34 children included in the study were victims of sexual violence, 16 incidents (47.1%) of rape, four incidents (11.8%) of forced prostitution, two incidents (5. 9 ٪) of forced sodomy, seven incidents (20.6%) of sexual harassment, four incidents (11.8%) of forced marriage and one incident (2.9%) of forced pregnancy.

Of 1,391 children who were exposed to violence, 511 (36.7%) incidents were perpetrated by police officers, 241 (17.3%) by family members, 111 (8%) by employers, and 81 (5.8%) by teachers, 55 (4%) by other children and 392 (28.2%) by other people.

The Commission’s data showd that out of 5,318 children included in the study, 2,874 (54.8%) confirmed that they had an ID card, while 2,367 (45.2%) others stated they did not have an ID card. The remaining 17 (0.3%) did not express their opinion in this regard.

Among those stated that they did not have an ID card, 67 (3%) of them living in orphanages stated that they could not obtain an ID card, because their parents’ identities were not clear and that they were essentially denied to have access to this right.

ENDS

 

Share: