JALALABAD—Members of Afghan legal rights departments and police from three Afghan provinces came together here and discussed the strategy for improving the legal system in the northeast region.
The rule of law conference, held at the Nangarhar governor’s palace in Jalalabad, focused on the provinces of Nangarhar, Kunar and Laghman. The morning was filled with briefings and presentations by U.S. and Afghan agencies and nongovernmental organizations operating in eastern Afghanistan, including representatives from the U.S. State Department, the Supreme Court of Afghanistan and the Afghan Justice Sector Support Program.
“The conference succeeded in bringing all of these key players together into one room,” “This was the first time all of these police and judicial leaders have gathered together for a regional conference” said US Army Maj. Jeffrey Thurnher.
One group discussed building ties between the formal and informal legal systems. In many remote areas of Afghanistan, local elders and community council members resolve disputes and pass judgment outside the formal legal system.
The second group discussed improving public awareness of legal rights, and the third worked on improving cooperation among prosecutors, police and courts to reduce arbitrary detentions.
—Agencies
|
