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Handing over Night Raids

Afghanistan and the United States have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on ‘Special Operations’, ensuring that night raids will continue – with Afghans ordering and conducting them and US forces acting only in support. The agreement is a victory for President Karzai who has long insisted – up till now in vain – that […]

9 Apr 2012 Kate Clark • International Engagement

Farewell to the Boss? Mujaddedi resigns

It is still not clear whether the resignation of Hazrat Sebghatullah Mujaddedi from all government positions last week was meant to be permanent, or a political manoeuvre planned to improve his chances in moving to lead the High Peace Council. Nevertheless, it is worth a closer look, argues Thomas Ruttig, Senior Analyst at AAN (with […]

7 Apr 2012 Thomas Ruttig • Political Landscape

A Slippery Slope: What Happened to Women’s Rights in March 2012?

March was an interesting month for women’s rights in Afghanistan: President Hamed Karzai endorsed a statement by the National Ulema Council according to which women are worth less than men; the Afghan government launched its first report under the Convention on the Elimination on all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) that, while focusing on […]

6 Apr 2012 Sari Kouvo • Rights and Freedoms

On the Way to Chicago: Fighting Corruption – and Condoning It?

Networks of corruption in the Afghan administration are like the tentacles of a hungry octopus entangling its prey. It is difficult to make them let go. But is the Afghan government really trying? Despite the uncovering of various graft scandals in recent years, it has failed to bring their investigations to a satisfactory end. Meanwhile […]

4 Apr 2012 Gran Hewad • Economy, Development, Environment

Withdrawal in 2014? Myths and realities

A series of contradictory statements about a possible earlier start to the (mainly US) foreign troop drawdown and a quicker handover of security responsibility to Afghan forces, as well as debate over the likely form of NATO’s post-ISAF mission in Afghanistan has caused confusion in the media(1) and wider public sphere recently. Thomas Ruttig, Senior […]

2 Apr 2012 Thomas Ruttig • International Engagement

19 April 2012: Informal Briefing on Legal Aid in Afghanistan

The Swedish Embassy organised a discussion on 19 April surrounding the release of a new report by the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN): “Legal Aid in Afghanistan: Contexts, Challenges and the Future”. The report, that was released on Wednesday 18 April, discusses the historical, legal and political context of recent reforms in the field of legal […]

1 Apr 2012 AAN • admin • Events

The Road through Qatar: Chances for a political solution with the Taleban (not online)

Thomas Ruttig in: Orient (Berlin), II/2012 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig looks at the ‘long and winding road towards negotiations with the Taleban’, the US-Karzai controversy about who should have the lead in such contacts and the main hurdles that stand in the way of meaningful talks, in the light of the increasing disengagement of the West […]

1 Apr 2012 Thomas Ruttig • External publications

Afghanistan in World Literature (III): Kabuliwalas of the Latter Day

To inaugurate the new course of our Chat Mat column, here we resume our old series aimed at unearthing precious Afghan gems from the stockpile of world literature. Having presented some Victorian pearls earlier in the series, it is time to move to closer quarters, to India and to what was arguably its most anglicised […]

30 Mar 2012 Fabrizio Foschini • Context and Culture

18 April 2012: New AAN report: Legal Aid in Afghanistan: Contexts, Challenges and the Future

In this new AAN report, lawyer and legal aid expert Sarah Han looks at the historical, legal and political context to the provision of legal aid and describes the efforts of the international community over the past five years to developing funding streams for the accused. In doing so, the author commends the modest but […]

30 Mar 2012 AAN • admin • Events

‘Pashto Mashto? Nakhair, Chat Mat.’

Dear readers of Pashto Mashto, As you may have noticed already, with the new year has come a new name for this series, although the content will go on as usual. Here is why. The inaugural blog of this series, back in January 2010, has proven prophetic when it said the series would not, ‘try […]

29 Mar 2012 AAN Team • Context and Culture