1. Introduction

The rights and status of women in Afghanistan became an issue of global concern prior to the military intervention by a US-led coalition that led to the end of the Taleban regime in November 2001. The international community, including members of the coalition, made repeated undertakings that their intervention would support women in realising their rights. Colin Powell, US Secretary of State, declared that, "The recovery of Afghanistan must entail the restoration of the rights of Afghan women. Indeed, it will not be possible without them. The rights of the women of Afghanistan will not be negotiable".(1)

During the rule of the Taleban, the women's movement, Amnesty International and other human rights organizations repeatedly highlighted serious concerns regarding the situation of women in Afghanistan. The rigid social, moral and behavioural codes imposed by the Taleban included severe restrictions on women's freedom of movement, expression and association.(2) Widespread human rights abuses committed during the same period by regional commanders of the Northern Alliance were little publicized outside Afghanistan. Many of those commanders today hold powerful positions in the regions and in central government.

Two years after the ending of the Taleban regime, the international community and the Afghan Transitional Administration (ATA), led by President Hamid Karzai, have proved unable to protect women. Amnesty International is gravely concerned by the extent of violence faced by women and girls in Afghanistan. The risk of rape and sexual violence by members of armed factions and former combatants is still high. Forced marriage, particularly of girl children, and violence against women in the family are widespread in many areas of the country. These crimes of violence continue with the active support or passive complicity of state agents, armed groups, families and communities. This continuing violence against women in Afghanistan causes untold suffering and denies women their fundamental human rights.

The criminal justice system is too weak to offer effective protection of women's right to life and physical security, and itself subjects them to discrimination and abuse. Prosecution for violence against women, and protection for women at acute risk of violence is virtually absent.

Those women who overcome powerful barriers and seek redress are unlikely to have their complaints considered, or their rights defended.

In certain regions of Afghanistan, women accused of adultery are routinely detained, as are those who attempt to assert their right under Afghan law and international standards to marry a spouse of their choice.

The criminal justice system will have to play a central role if women are to realize their rights in Afghanistan. The role of an effective, functioning criminal justice system is to provide remedy to victims of human rights abuses and to bring accused people to justice in accordance with international standards for fair trial. In Afghanistan, these two roles are not clear and may lead to the criminalization of victims themselves. Impunity and the failure to provide justice and protection from abuse perpetuate violence against women as the perpetrators do not consider themselves as criminals.

Legal reform and the rebuilding of the police force and judicial system with international support are currently being taken forward in Afghanistan. Such measures offer a significant opportunity to build capacity to protect the rights of women and girls. Amnesty International is, however, concerned that despite certain positive steps this vital opportunity will be missed. No clear strategy appears to be in place to ensure that discrimination against women within the existing structures will be ended or the capacity to protect the rights of women built. Key donors supporting reform of the police and judiciary have failed to ensure that their intervention will support protection of women's rights. In certain instances, international intervention may even be perpetuating and condoning gender discrimination. Protection and shelters for women at risk have not been created, and legal aid provision remains entirely inadequate.

In both planning and implementation, donors funding the reconstruction of the justice system have displayed an alarming lack of attention to the specific needs of women who come into contact with the justice system as well as to violence against women. These issues are key to human rights protection and development in Afghanistan.

The UN Security Council has expressed its commitment to giving gender equality a central place in post-conflict reconstruction and peace operations through the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on "Women Peace and Security". Resolution 1325 and the Namibia Plan of Action on "Mainstreaming a Gender Perspective in Multidimensional Peace Operations" (Namibia Plan of Action) outline measures to protect the rights of women that should be integrated in such operations.(3) The particular need for law enforcement activities and judicial and legal reform to ensure protection of women's rights is detailed in the UN study on implementation of Resolution 1325.(4) The international community's involvement in Afghanistan is an important test case for seeing whether the will and resources to ensure such commitments are in fact implemented.

In early 2003, the ATA made a legally binding commitment to respect and ensure respect for women's rights through ratifying the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).(5) Afghanistan is a party to other important human rights treaties and has thus undertaken to guarantee that the rights contained in these instruments are afforded to all Afghans without discrimination.(6)

The ratification of CEDAW was a major development. Afghanistan has made a specific commitment to address women's rights in law and practice; in public, political, social and cultural life; as well as in personal status laws, education, health and work. The ATA has also ratified the Rome Statute for the International Criminal Court (ICC), which contains gender sensitive definitions of crimes and procedures to protect vulnerable victims and witnesses. This constitutes a model for domestic legal reform.

Amnesty International recognizes the difficulties facing Afghanistan as it seeks to recover from over 23 years of conflict. However, it is vital that measures to protect the rights of women are built into legal and constitutional reform, and integrated into policing and criminal justice processes.

A system of justice that meets the need of women and merits their trust will be essential if this critical challenge is to be met. Amnesty International believes that the rebuilding of the criminal justice system in Afghanistan must be designed with the intention to protect women from violence and to create the capacity to offer justice to victims.

Amnesty International calls on the ATA and the international community to act with urgency to protect women from violence, and to build a criminal justice system that is able to defend women's right to live free from violence. The organization believes that international standards offer Afghanistan a strong and coherent framework to undertake this essential task.

2. Background

The framework for the transitional process under way in Afghanistan was established by the Agreement on Provisional Arrangements in Afghanistan Pending the Re-establishment of Permanent Government Institutions (the Bonn Agreement), signed on 5 December 2001. The process initiated by the Bonn Agreement is intended to lead to the establishment of a "broad-based, gender sensitive, multi-ethnic and fully representative government". The ATA, established by an Emergency Loya Jirga convened in June 2002, is mandated to govern until general elections planned for 2004 conclude the process of transition.(7)

A process of judicial and legal reform has been initiated as part of the transitional process in an attempt to rebuild Afghanistan's shattered legal system.(8) A Constitutional Commission has prepared a draft constitution and is carrying out public consultations in preparation for a Constitutional Loya Jirga, which is expected to be held in late 2003. Delegates to this gathering will discuss the work of the Constitutional Commission and adopt a new constitution for the country. While the draft constitution has not been formally made public, Amnesty International understands that extensive and sustained efforts by women in civil society and government have secured provision for the equal rights of women.

The Judicial Reform Commission (JRC) was established in November 2002 and has been mandated, as set out in the Bonn Agreement, to rebuild the domestic legal system "in accordance with Islamic principles, international standards, the rule of law and Afghan legal traditions". The JRC is responsible for preparing drafts of new Criminal, Criminal Procedure and Family Codes, and for surveying the existing judicial system in Afghanistan. It has also been involved in the establishment of training for judges. The JRC has consulted with the Ministry of Women's Affairs (MoWA) over provisions for women's rights to be included in these draft laws. However, the vital task of securing the necessary legal framework will be a considerable challenge.

The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) established in June 2002 has a large mandate that includes investigating and monitoring human rights abuses and implementing a program of human rights education. The AIHRC has integrated the issue of women's rights as one of its priority areas for action, and its headquarters in the capital Kabul and its seven provincial offices will monitor abuses.

The ATA remains reliant on international support. Planning and coordination of the work of the ATA and of international intervention is carried out through a mechanism of consultative groups on thematic issues. The process is led by the ATA, with relevant ministries chairing these groups. Each area of intervention and consultative group also has a contributing country as a lead donor. Of particular relevance to the work of Amnesty International on reconstruction of the criminal justice system are the consultative groups on police, judicial reform and human rights.

Specific capacity to address issues of gender equality and women's rights within the ATA is provided by the MoWA, which is also responsible for gender mainstreaming the work of the ATA and leads the Gender Advisory Group.(9) The lead donor on gender issues is UNIFEM (the UN Development Fund for Women). Departments of the MoWA have been opened in many provinces of Afghanistan. However, the work of the MoWA and international intervention on gender issues has been subject to criticism. Intervention has been described as symbolic rather than substantial and strategic. An assessment by a non-governmental organization (NGO) of the situation of women in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taleban considered that UN Security Council Resolution 1325 "lies dormant at the time when Afghanistan provides an opportunity for positive use of the principles of the resolution."(10) Despite the work of the Gender Advisory Group and the mechanism of consultative groups, it was reported that the ATA has so far failed to incorporate gender effectively into the national budget or the policy calculations of line ministries. Gender focal points appointed by the ATA in ministries have little authority to shape planning and policies.(11)

In March 2002 the UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) was established. It was mandated to assist the ATA with the implementation of the Bonn Agreement and is headed by the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative, Lakhdar Brahimi. UNAMA is active on issues of human rights and women's rights.(12) The structure put in place by UNAMA to provide for human rights and coordination of human rights and rule of law issues has been subject to criticism. The UNAMA staff structure includes a post of Senior Gender Advisor that has been vacant since late 2002. The focus of UNAMA gender activities is on intervention in individual cases of abuse, with the mission also attempting to support the MoWA in the political and legal aspects of its work.

Women seeking to realize their rights do so in a context of continuing insecurity and threat of violence. The ATA has been unable to establish control outside Kabul, where insecurity results from the existence of private armed groups under the leadership of powerful regional commanders and factional fighting between some of these armed groups. A number of reports have highlighted the specific effects on women of the lack of security and effective law enforcement in many parts of Afghanistan, and the failure to curtail abuses by powerful regional commanders.(13)

Women and girls are vulnerable to rape, sexual violence and abduction. The burning of a number of girls' schools has demonstrated the threat to provision for the realization of the rights of women. Many organizations have drawn attention to the insufficient international security provision, and the problems surrounding the response by ATA law enforcement. The UN-mandated International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), which has been credited with improving security in Kabul, does not have a mandate to work in other parts of the country although this is being discussed.(14) Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs), consisting of between 50 and 100 civilian and military officials, have been deployed to some provinces to engage in civil-military and humanitarian activities.(15) A national process of disarmament of armed groups has not begun.

The prevailing insecurity has directly impacted on attempts by women to engage in political activities and ensure integration of women's rights in the process of reconstruction. Women delegates at the Emergency Loya Jirga were subject to intimidation, and activists have articulated a deep concern that their participation at the Constitutional Loya Jirga will be similarly threatened.

The question of the rights of women is central to the nature of Afghanistan's future government and society. Progress and emancipation have been characterized by some political forces as unIslamic and contrary to Shari'a (Islamic law). The history of Afghanistan demonstrates resistance to central government attempts to change traditions relating to women's status in the family and community. Women in civil society and government in Afghanistan however strongly assert that progressive formulations of law must be created and implemented to protect the rights of women.

The progress made on women's rights in Afghanistan following the Bonn Agreement in December 2001 has been significant in the face of unparalleled challenges. The issue has gained visibility, which has begun to encourage women to come forward to seek assistance in cases of violence. The development of draft constitutional provisions for equal rights for women and the development of a vigorous NGO sector provide real potential for change.

3. Amnesty International in Afghanistan

This report is the last of four reports by Amnesty International produced as part of a year-long project focusing on the reconstruction of the criminal justice system in Afghanistan. Amnesty International established a field presence in Afghanistan in June 2002 in order to facilitate reporting and campaigning on human rights. Earlier Amnesty International reports on policing, prisons and the judiciary included a focus on treatment of women within the criminal justice system.(16) This report is based in part on research conducted for those reports, which included interviews with women detainees and with law enforcement professionals on issues of women's rights.

Additional research for this report was conducted in April and May 2003. Research was conducted in Kabul, Mazar-e Sharif, Bamiyan, Herat and Jalalabad. Amnesty International delegates met representatives of the MoWA, AIHRC, UNAMA, UNIFEM, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), donor governments and international and national NGOs.

Amnesty International researchers investigated the needs of women for justice, security and redress which are unmet by the existing criminal justice system. The organization researched patterns of violence against women and obstacles faced by women in seeking access to justice. Direct testimony on issues of violence against women is difficult to obtain. Statistical data on levels of violence against women is also lacking. Amnesty International therefore used a methodology involving discussion groups, referred to in this report as focus groups, to provide initial information on the scale of violence against women and its most prevalent forms. Research on violence against women was designed to provide a basis for structural recommendations for the reconstruction of the criminal justice system.

Focus groups of women were assembled in each location visited by Amnesty International. These groups provided a forum for discussion where women of different ages were able to talk in confidence. Participants were drawn from village communities or urban neighbourhoods with the cooperation of international agencies, in particular UN Habitat (UN Human Settlements Programme).

Amnesty International is grateful to all those who assisted the organization through sharing their views, ideas and experiences. Due to the potential risk to individuals, names and in many cases locations are not identified in the illustrative cases.

4. International obligations to protect women's rights

Afghanistan is a party to a number of important human rights treaties, including the ICCPR, the ICESCR, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), the CRC, CEDAW and the Rome Statute of the ICC. By ratifying these international human rights treaties Afghanistan has undertaken to guarantee that the rights they provide are afforded to women on a basis of equality with men and without discrimination. The principle of non-discrimination is established in all such human rights treaties, and is defined in Article 1 of CEDAW.(17) International standards provide the ATA with an indispensable resource of measures proven to be effective in improving the status of women.

State parties to CEDAW must respect and ensure respect for the rights of women. To give effect to their obligations they must undertake comprehensive measures to end discrimination against women through laws, policies and commitments by state institutions.(18) State parties are required to "modify the social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women, with a view to achieving the elimination of prejudices and customary and all other practices which are based on the idea of inferiority or the superiority of either of the sexes or on stereotyped roles for men and women".(19)

State parties to CEDAW are bound to ensure the equal protection of women by the law. Article 2(c) requires states "to establish legal protection of the rights of women on an equal basis with men and to ensure through competent national tribunals and other public institutions the effective protection of women against any act of discrimination".

The ratification of CEDAW creates an obligation on the government of Afghanistan to take comprehensive measures to combat violence against women, whether the perpetrators are family members, state officials or members of armed groups. In its General Recommendation No. 19, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women stated that, "The definition of discrimination includes gender-based violence, that is, violence that is directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately".(20) The obligation of state parties to address violence against women includes violence perpetrated by "any person, organization or enterprise".(21) Measures which the state must take to meet the requirements of international law are comprehensive, and are established by the standard of due diligence: "State parties should ensure that laws against family violence and abuse, rape, sexual assault and other gender based violence give adequate protection to all women, and respect their integrity and dignity. Appropriate protective and support services should be provided for victims. Gender-sensitive training of judicial and law enforcement officers and other public officials is essential for the effective implementation of the Convention".(22) Comprehensive and coordinated measures should include criminal sanctions for acts of violence against women. The particular efficacy of penal sanctions has been articulated by the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences (Special Rapporteur on violence against women) who noted that such measures can secure reduction in violence within a generation.(23) The Rome Statute of the ICC includes provisions for the gender sensitive treatment of women victims and witnesses.

Afghanistan has ratified CEDAW without reservation. It is obliged by the terms of CEDAW and the ICCPR to ensure the equality of men and women with regard to marriage and to divorce. State parties must ensure "the same right to enter into marriage… the same rights and responsibilities during marriage and at its dissolution".(24) CEDAW also provides that marriage must be entered into only with free and full consent of both parties.(25)

Specific protections for girls are also established by CEDAW, including prohibition of underage marriage. Girls should be protected from the risk of sexual abuse. Article 16(2) of CEDAW prohibits state parties from giving legality to marriage of children and calls on state parties to "specify a minimum age for marriage and to make registration of marriages in an official registry compulsory". The Convention states necessary action shall be taken to specify a minimum age for marriage and to make registration of marriages in an official registry compulsory.

CEDAW and the ICCPR establish that appropriate legislation and other measures should be taken by state parties to prohibit discrimination against women. Such measures are vital to addressing structural discrimination, and may include special provision to ensure increased numbers of women are brought into public life and decision making, including law enforcement and judicial bodies.

Violence against women in the family has been recognized as a leading cause of death and suffering around the world. The UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women(26) and the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action(27) substantiate measures that states must take to eliminate all forms of violence against women, including violence perpetrated within the family. Efforts to eliminate violence against women must be sustained and subject to review to ensure their continuing effectiveness.(28) International standards and declarations provide to the ATA an indispensable resource of measures to improve the status of women.

Specific responsibilities to put gender equality and the rights of women at the heart of post-conflict reconstruction apply to the international community. These are established by UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on "Women, Peace and Security" and the Windhoek Declaration.(29) The adoption of these measures reflects concerns raised over the failure of previous international interventions to take the needs of women into account or address the specific impacts of conflict on women. Recent conflicts, including in Afghanistan, have included grave violations of the rights of women. UN Security Council Resolution 1325 applies to all parties engaged in peace-keeping, peace support operations and post-conflict reconstruction. It requires the integration of a gender perspective into peace-keeping operations, and training on the protection, rights and the particular needs of women of those engaged to ensure respect for women's rights.(30) It calls on all actors to take "measures that ensure the protection of and respect for the human rights of women and girls, particularly as they relate to the constitution, the electoral system, the police and the judiciary".(31)

Responsibility and accountability for measures to increase gender equality should be vested at the highest level. The Windhoek Declaration states that "accountability for all issues relating to gender mainstreaming at the field level should be vested at the highest level, in the Secretary-General's Special Representative, who should be assigned the responsibility of ensuring that gender mainstreaming is implemented in all areas and components of the mission."(32)

In the study on Women, Peace and Security submitted by the Secretary-General pursuant to Resolution 1325, specific measures required of the international community are laid out. The international community must "ensure that the principles of gender equality and non discrimination are considered during the formulation of constitutions in the post-conflict era; that legal reforms are based on gender analysis of civil and criminal law… and address criminalization of violence against women and girls, including sexual violence."(33)

Amnesty International believes that the international standards set out above provide the essential framework for developing national legislation and measures to uphold women's human rights. The government of Afghanistan has the responsibility under international human rights law, and must take every possible step to ensure that women's human rights are protected throughout all stages of the reconstruction process.

5. Combating violence against women and girls: a key challenge for the criminal justice system

Women and girls in Afghanistan are threatened with violence in every aspect of their lives, both in public and private, in the community and the family. Violence against women in the family including physical abuse and underage marriage is widely reported. Forced and underage marriage also occurs when women and girls are given in marriage as a means of dispute resolution by informal justice mechanisms. Rape of women and girls by armed groups continues to occur. The prevalence of violence against women and girls constitutes a grave threat to their right to physical and mental integrity. Amnesty International's research indicates there is a threat to the right to life of women and girls from violence in the family; women and girls have been killed and driven to suicide while the state has failed to take action.

Significant numbers of underage marriages, incidents of physical abuse in the family and other forms of violence were reported to Amnesty International. The vast majority had not been reported to the criminal justice system, and almost none had been subject to investigation or prosecution. Women were largely unsupported when suffering violence, and had very few means to leave violent situations.

Amnesty International's research indicates impunity for such violence on a vast scale. Such impunity perpetuates violence since perpetrators are free to consider their actions as normal and acceptable.

Further research on violence against women in Afghanistan is urgently needed. The findings of Amnesty International can only indicate the general scale of the problem and highlight some of the most common forms of violence that require the implementation of urgent measures by the ATA and the international community. Much more must be learned about the extent, patterns and types of violence against women and girls in Afghanistan.

5.1 Violence against women and girls in the family

5.1.1 Physical violence against women in the home

"If they didn't beat us, we wouldn't be afraid of them and do what they want."(34)

Violence against women in the home by husbands, male family members and, on rarer occasions, female family members was widely reported in the focus groups as well as by NGOs active on gender issues. Some women perceived violence as a means of control, while others saw it as caused largely by economic difficulties.

The issue emerged starkly in certain focus groups where some women spoke openly of routine abuse. In one focus group, women reported violence that was socially sanctioned. The participants described how a mullah(35) in a local mosque reportedly preached that it was acceptable for a man to beat his wife if she was behaving badly, but that he should restrain himself if she was behaving well.

Provincial departments of the MoWA and women's NGOs have also been approached for assistance by women experiencing severe domestic violence. An NGO outlined to Amnesty International the circumstances of a woman experiencing sustained violence from her husband. When the woman sought help, her husband attempted to injure her, tearing out her hair in order to prevent her leaving the house. The woman persisted in seeking help from the NGO who assisted her in taking her case to court, where a conviction of the husband and divorce were secured.

Few cases of abuse, however, are reported either to the authorities or NGOs. The extent of the problem emerges more clearly in hospitals than in any other state institution, when severely injured women seek treatment. According to one woman doctor interviewed by Amnesty International, "domestic and physical violence are normal practice – we have a lot of cases of broken arms, broken legs and other injuries. It is common practice in Afghanistan – it is not something we should say is not in our region because most Afghan men are using violence." A foreign doctor working in a hospital spoke of women victims of severe domestic violence undergoing hospital treatment at a rate of about one each week. No monitoring of domestic violence issues is undertaken in the hospital and the doctor stated that she believed domestic violence often went unrecognized as the cause of less serious injuries.

When asked about solutions to the problem of domestic violence, women in certain focus groups clearly perceived the impact of making such acts illegal and subject to punishment. As one focus group participant said, "Men would learn it is wrong and would stop beating us."

Amnesty International received reports of women and girls killed by family members. These included the shooting of a woman by her father for refusing his choice of husband. The district governor of the woman's village attempted to bring the alleged killer to justice, but was frustrated in his efforts when the alleged killer was given sanctuary by members of an armed group to whom he is reportedly affiliated. Amnesty International also received unconfirmed reports in focus groups of two 12-year-old girls killed by their husbands.(36)

Amnesty International's research indicated that in some parts of the country custom or tradition is used to legitimize the violent deaths of women. Amnesty International was repeatedly informed in Jalalabad, eastern Afghanistan, that where women and girls are alleged to have committed adultery or eloped, the family would deal with the situation by killing the girl or woman involved. In some parts of Afghanistan, adultery, "running away from home" and unlawful sexual activity are referred to as zina crimes and are subject to criminal prosecution. Some women in such circumstances are also at risk of being killed if released. The following quotes from women participants in focus groups indicate the diverse circumstances where women may be at risk:

"A man killed his wife when he found her with a cousin. No one did anything about the case because he had strong reasons."

"When a woman is killed [in a case of alleged adultery] it is the family of the woman who carries out the killing…These things are secret, they are happening inside homes."

"They [family members] will kill man and woman [in certain cases of rape]. If married she should go back to her father, because her husband will not keep her… If unmarried she will be killed."

"Where a father kills his daughter, he will never go to court, no one will be aware because it is a big shame and no one can bear it."

"If a woman or girl doesn't want to respect what her family is saying, of course she will commit suicide or her family will do this to her [kill her and make it appear as suicide]."

Physical violence against women in the family is an abuse of their human rights. The Committee on the Elimination of Violence against Women has stated, "Family violence is one of the most insidious forms of violence against women. It is prevalent in all societies. Within family relationships women of all ages are subjected to violence of all kinds, including battering, rape, other forms of sexual assault, mental and other forms of violence, which are perpetuated by traditional attitudes. Lack of economic independence forces many women to stay in violent relationships. The abrogation of their family responsibilities by men can be a form of violence, and coercion. These forms of violence put women's health at risk and impair their ability to participate in family life and public life on a basis of equality."(37)

5.1.2 Underage and forced marriage

"A girl should have her first period in her husband's house and not her father's house."(38)

The legal age for marriage in Afghanistan for men is 18 and for women is 16 years of age.(39) Clear data on actual marriage age is lacking as provisions to register marriage and birth are absent in many areas, and many people do not know their exact age. Age of marriage varies between urban and rural areas and according to ethnic background and economic circumstances.

However, a clear pattern of widespread underage marriage of girls emerges, particularly in rural areas. It appears relatively rare for girls to remain unmarried by the age of 16. Amnesty International asked focus groups of women about the typical age of marriage in their communities. All groups gave the age at which girls married as typically between 12 to 16 years. A women's shura (traditional Afghan decision making body) in Nangarhar Province in eastern Afghanistan reported marriage age for girls to be between 10 and 12 years in the region.(40)

On occasion, girls are forced into marriage below the age of puberty, sometimes at extremely young ages. Such cases include that of "Fariba", aged eight, who was given in marriage to a 48-year-old man.(41) The father of the girl reportedly received 600,000 Afghani for his daughter.(42) Fariba was reported to have suffered sexual abuse by the husband. A relative approached government officials and Fariba was removed from her husband's home and placed in an orphanage. However, at the time that this case was brought to the attention of Amnesty International, no criminal charges had been brought against either the girl's father or her husband, and a divorce had not been granted by the judge who heard the case to determine the status of the marriage.(43)

Few girls have the opportunity to express their distress. "Fatima", aged 17, is a rare example of a girl who fled a situation of underage marriage. Fatima related to Amnesty International how she was sold by her father into marriage to a much older man at the age of 14. Her father used the proceeds to buy a car. Her new husband lived far away and, since he was from a different ethnic group, spoke a language with his family that she could not understand. Fatima described how she had been given presents and clothes by her family but did not understand at first that she was to be married. When she realized she tore off the wedding clothes and protested, but could not prevent the marriage. She also related how she was raped by her husband.

Fatima left her husband and returned to her father's house. She is now in a desperate situation where her husband's family and father's family are negotiating over financial arrangements related to her marriage situation. Fatima told Amnesty International that she would definitely go to a shelter if there was one in her area, and wants to seek training to be able to support herself. She is being supported by a woman NGO leader who lives near her and whom she visits frequently.

Women in focus groups described marriage practices that denied them the right to choose a spouse. A husband would be chosen by the father or another close male relative, and the marriage imposed upon girls and women, if necessary in the face of protest and against their will. By the time of the formal ceremony of marriage, usually attended by three male witnesses, any resistance would have been progressively overcome, and a girl or woman would have great difficulty refusing. This oppressive process reflects in part the fact that girls and women are treated as an economic asset, with families receiving a price from the family of the groom on marriage in all communities where Amnesty International conducted research. They are also reflective of the pervasive control exerted by husbands and male relatives on women's lives.

Amnesty International considers that underage marriage amounts to denial of the right to physical and mental integrity, and may also amount to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. Underage marriage is a breach of Afghan law and Afghanistan's international obligations. Amnesty International considers that forced marriage of women is a denial of the right to mental and physical integrity. Forced marriage is also a breach of Afghan law and Afghanistan's international obligations. The ICCPR provides that no marriage should be entered into without the free and full consent of the intending spouses. "State parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in all matters relating to marriage and family relations and in particular shall ensure, on a basis of equality of man and woman: (a) the same right to enter into marriage; (b) the same right to freely choose a spouse and to enter into marriage only with their free and full consent".(44)

5.1.3 Consequences of violence in the family

"Every life matters, whether it be an American life or the life of an Afghan girl."(45)