Afghan Human Rights Report on Kuchi-HazaraViolence:

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 KABUL 000249

DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A, EUR/RPM
STATE PASS TO AID FOR ASIA/SCAA
NSC FOR WOOD
OSD FOR WILKES
CG CJTF-101 POLAD

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV AF
SUBJECT: Afghan Human Rights Report on Kuchi-HazaraViolence:
Government Inaction Could Lead to More Clashes

Summary
--------------


1. The Aghan Independent Commission on Human Rights' (AICHR)
report on the Summer 2008 clashes betwee ethnic Hazarans and ethnic
Pashtoon Kuchi nomds in Wardak Province concludes that, absent
decisive government intervention to resolve this long running
dispute, violence is likely to flare up again in the summer of 2009.
The report states that the 2008 clashes resulted in 24 Hazarans
killed, 11 injured, over 6000 families displaced, and property
heavily damaged due to the looting of houses, destruction of
farmland, and the killing of animals. The report includes
unconfirmed reports that the Kuchi sufered 30 killed and 42 injured
(AICHR investigators were prohibited by Afghan security fores from
visiting the Kuchi camps or speaking directly with Kuchi involved in
the conflict). The report is critical of the Karzai government,
noting that no action has been taken to resolve the Kuchi-Hazara
dispute, despite increasingly violent clashes every year. The
unwillingness or inability of the Afghan National Army (ANA) to
effectively control the violence is also noted. Since the AICHR has
not posted an English version of its report on its website, Embassy
translation of the report is repeated here in its entirety, less an
appendix listing the names of casualties and locations of destroyed
property. (Note: while the report frequently refers to "settlers,"
it should be noted that the settlers in the areas discussed are
predominantly ethnic Hazaran.) End Summary.

Translation of Report
--------------


2. Begin translation: Afghan Independent Commission on Human
Rights' Report on dispute between Kuchi (Nomadic People) and locals
in the Hesaee Awal Beshood district, Hesaee Dow Behsood district
(first and second parts) and Dymirdad district of Maidan Wardak
province during the year 1387Af (2008)

Introduction

Throughout the history Afghanistan, some of the Pashtoon tribes who
hail from southern Afghanistan have been living nomadic life. They
move from one area to another in different seasons of the year. They
claim to own grazing land (pasture) and leisure sites in different
parts of Afghanistan.

To utilize the pasture land, the Kuchi reached areas in central
Afghanistan at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th
centuries. Right from the beginning, the arrival of Kuchi in the
central lands has been marked by violent clashes with locals. The
Kuchi caim that, due to the lack of grazing land in theEast, and
the suitable climate of the centralhighlands for grazing cattle in
spring and summer, previous governments have granted them permission
to utilize the pasture in these areas. But, local inhabitants
believe that it is the right of permanent dwellers to utilize this
pasture land. They say the decision of previous governments to grant
the Kuchi the right to utilize the pasture was discriminatory,
oppressive and politicized. On the other hand, irrigated land for
seasonal cultivation in this area is limited and the people depend
on animal husbandry to feed their families. To raise animals, locals
depend on the limited natural pasture that exists in the area.

Therefore, the current dispute between Kuchis and natives in these
areas has deep roots and a long precedent in the history of
Afghanistan. Unfortunately, in different epochs of the history,
rulers and various political circles used this quarrel to serve
their political interests. In fact, both Kuchi and local settlers
are the victims of this political gambling, which unfortunately has
kept their relations tense. But, it should also be noted that some
of the Kuchi families claim that they have legally purchased some
land from local people and have the official and informal documents
in hand proving their ownership. Apparently, locals have not
disputed these claims.

Kuchi did not move to the Hazarajat (central) areas during the Jihad
(resistance against the former Soviet Union) but returned to the
pasture of the central Afghanistan during the Taliban rule.
Although the dispute is not limited to the Beshood area, Behsood is
considered the gate to most of the central land, and the area has
witnessed heavy clashes between Kuchi and locals in recent years.
In 1382 Af (2003) locals agreed that Kuchi could stay in the area
for one year as their guest, but in 1383 (2004) a local was killed
as a result of dispute in the area. In 1384 (2005) another local was
killed. Although 1385 (2006) also saw clashes and disputes between
the rivals, causing displacements and heavy material losses of the
locals, no fatalities were reported. But in 1386 (2007),11 local
people were killed, and 1900 families were displaced. The Kuchi also
claimed that one of their own was killed during that year.

Despite the fact that this dispute has erupted every year since the
new government took office, and has claimed many lives, the Afghan
government has yet to take effective steps to permanently solve the
problem. That is why the tragedy was repeated this year as well.
Article 14 of the constitution obliges the Afghan government to
prepare and implement effective plans for the settlement of the
Kuchi. But despite its legal obligation, the government of
Afghanistan paid no attention to the repeated calls of the
Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) and the
consequences of the disputes during recent years. Still, still the
government has no plan for the fair settlement of the Kuchi. The
dispute intensified in 2008, which inflicted heavy human and
material losses. This report explains different aspects of this
year's dispute:

Details of the dispute in 1387 (2008)

Fighting first erupted in the Hesaee Dowum district of Behsud on
26/3/187 AF (15 June 2008) and on 17/4/1387 (07 July 2008) spread to
the Hesaee Awal and Dymirdad districts. Unfortunately, right from
the beginning, this war created human casualties and heavy material
losses which continued up to early Asad (Late July). The fighting
ended when the Kuchi left the area, obeying the decree of the
President issued to this effect. The last group of Kuchi pulled
back from "Fash" village of Dymirdad district on 12/5/1387 (2nd
August 2008). During the clashes and afterward, several fact finding
missions were sent by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights
Commission (AIHRC) to the said districts to examine the consequences
of the fighting. Following is the main point of their findings:

-- At least 24 (6 people from Hesaee Awali Behsood district, 12 from
Hessai Dowum Behsud district and 6 from Dymirdad district) local
residents were killed during the fighting. A 14-year old girl, two
students and two seventy year old persons were among those who lost
their lives in the fighting. Also, three people (a woman, a girl
and a man),all locals of Hesawee Awali Behsud lost their lives as a
result of a traffic accident while on their way to immigrate to
Kabul.

-- At least 11 people from Hesaee Awal and Hesae Dowum districts
were injured, including women and children.

-- In a meeting with the members of Afghanistan Independent Human
Rights Commission (AIHRC) on 10/5/1387 (31 July 2008) in the Besti
village of Heswaee Awal district, representative of the Kuchi
claimed that 30 Kuchi were killed during the fighting, with an
additional 42 injured. Commission delegates asked the Kuchi to prove
their claims, but they could not present any proof. Also, no
independent confirmation of the claim was available.

Displaced People

-- In two districts of Hesaee Awal and Hesaee Dowum, inhabitants of
over 400 villages (230 villages from the Hesaee Awal Behsood and 170
villages of Hesaee Dowm Behsood) left their homes and migrated to
other areas. Five to 30 families had been living in each of these
districts. Also, in Dymirdad district, 1,300 families have been
displaced. Totally, over 6000 families have been displaced in these
three districts.

-- The displaced families live in miserable conditions. The AIHRC
delegation saw families who had no food for one night. Also, the
commission saw villages where no house was left undamaged; they were
all burnt, or looted. The main problems faced by the displaced are:
no shelter, no food, no fodder for animals, no firewood or materials
for the winter, diseases of women and children, school closures and
fear of insecurity.

-- Although government delegations to some extent assessed the
damages in these three districts, the government has taken no action
to help displaced people. Particularly, no assistance was extended
to the displaced people of Hesaee Awal and Dymirdad districts.
(Except for very little assistance which has been extended to the
displaced of Kajab area).

Damages

-- Over 200 of the vacated houses located in Hessaee Awal and
Hessaee Dowm districts have been seriously damaged. In these
villages agricultural harvest has been wiped out, properties and
home appliances have been looted, fire materials and animal fodders
have been mostly burnt and in many places residential houses were
set ablaze.

-- In three districts of Hessaee Awal, Hessaee Dowum and Dymirdad,
84 houses, including 420 rooms, 3 mosques, 9 shops, 3 cars (one
police ranger and 3 private cars) were set on fire. It is worth
mentioning that these figures only apply to those houses which were
visited and photographed by the inspectors of the AIHRC. Many
houses were not inspected and surely the numbers of burnt house are
more than presented in this report.

-- During the fighting 35 high, middle and elementary schools had
been closed and over 8392 students were deprived from attending
their classes and their mid year exam. At least two schools had been
set on fire and 4 more were seriously damaged.

-- As fighting started, 7 health clinics stopped their operation,
depriving ten of thousands of people from health services.

-- Keeping in mind the intensity of damages such as heavy losses to
farmland, looted houses and lost animals, the AIHRC does not have a
clear account of all the losses.

Government Action

-- Even though the Afghan government sent several delegations to the
area since the start of the dispute, they have not been effective in
stopping the fighting. The most effective action by the government
was a presidential decree on 31/4/1387 (21 July 2008) calling on
Kuchi to leave the area for this year. As a result of the decree
fighting died down temporarily.

-- Local governments of the three districts have taken no action to
prevent the fighting or investigate the case. Local officials told
AIHRC that the problem is too big for them to solve so they can not
interfere.

-- The purpose of sending Afghan National Army (ANA) troops to
Hesaee Awal and Hessaee Dowum districts was to create a ceasefire
and protect a buffer line between warring factions in the war zone.
ANA soldiers were deployed in the area on 17 June 2008, but could
not protect the buffer zone. Following the deployment of the ANA, a
15-day truce was agreed on 5 Saratan (25 June, 2008) as a result of
mediation efforts by the first presidential delegation (Shahzada
Masoud and Amanullah Zadran) and some local representatives. The ANA
was tasked to install security post to protect the ceasefire, but
the cease fire was violated in the afternoon of the same day (25
June). Also, fighting took place on 17/4/1387 (July 7, 2008) in
Kharbid area of Hesaee Awali Behsood district, on 20/3/1387 (July
10, 2008) in Dahan Aoji in Hesaee Dowm Behsood district and on
26/3/1387 (July16, 2008) in Bad Asiab area. Kuchi entered other
parts of Hesaee Awal district as well. Consequently, fighting
continued until the presidential decree was issued on 21 of July,

2008. The AIHRC delegation eye-witnessed two clashes in Hesaee Awal
and Hesaee Dowum Behsud which occurred on 28 and 29 of Saratan (July
18 and 19, 2008). Surely, the killing of people in Hesaee Awal
district happened after the deployment of ANA in the area.
Therefore, keeping in view the performance of ANA units, it could be
said that either ANA favored one side and deliberately did not stop
the fighting, or completely ignored its responsibilities.

-- The Afghan National Police (ANP),since its deployment in the
Mirhazar area on 27/3/1387 (July 16,2008) kept the area secure until
the fighting ended. To some extent, they achieved their targets.
After the deployment of the ANP, there was no additional damages to
people's houses and farmland. Eye witnesses from the area even said
that on some occasions, police officers under the order of their
superiors irrigated farmlands in areas under their control for the
people's benefit. There is no comparison between the losses and
damages between areas under the control of the ANP (From Auji to
Mirhazar in Hesaee Dawm Behsood) and areas controlled by the ANA.
Most of the damages were inflicted to villages of Hesaee Awal
district which was under the control of the ANA.

-- Although the government sent a delegation to asses the losses and
it seems that the assessment has been completed, no assistance and
compensation was provided.

Conclusion

During the fighting this year, 24 people have been killed, 11 were
injured, over 6000 families have been displaced, over 84 houses were
set on fire and people suffered heavy material losses due to looting
of their houses, losing animals, destruction of their farmlands and
closure of their schools and health clinics. Also, Kuchi claimed
that they lost 30 people, while 42 of them have been injured.

Lack of government attention to last year's dispute, has worsened
the problem. As a result, the issue has become an ethnic dispute
with possible serious consequences. In addition, this has further
increased the sense of no confidence among the people about the
government. No doubt, this widens the gap between people and
government and consequently will seriously challenge the writ of the
government in these areas. If there is no permanent solution to the
dispute next year, the tension will be intensified and will have
disastrous consequences on a national level. Continuation of
fighting in the area will revive the culture of violence and
warlordism in the area.

In this case, the rights of living, rights of ownership, rights of
protection from forced immigration, right of access to education and
health services, and rights of personal security of many citizens of
Afghanistan have been violated. According to articles 6, 23, 24,
38, 40,43, and 52 of the constitution of Afghanistan, and in
accordance with other national and international conventions, the
Afghan government has the obligation to protect the rights of Afghan
citizens. But as the report indicates, the government has not taken
timely and effective action to protect the human rights of its
people.

Urgent and Short-term Suggestions

First - As indicated in the report, over 200 villages in two
districts of Hesaee Awal and Hesaee Dowum have been seriously
damaged. In several of these villages people's houses and fodder for
their animals have been set on fire, food stuff (such as wheat and
flour) had been destroyed, agricultural crops were devastated and
the whole livelihood has been diminished. Dwellers of these villages
who have slowly returned to their houses are in dire need of
assistance. Of course, any help to the returnees should be
fundamental to enable them rebuild infrastructure for their
livelihoods. Government, national and international humanitarian
organization should provide such support to these displaced people
as soon as possible so a human catastrophe can be avoided.

Second - The government of Afghanistan should asses the damages in
all these areas fairly, and accurately evaluate and calculate the
inflicted losses and take necessary measures for a fair compensation
to the losses.

Third - The government of Afghanistan should conduct an accurate,
comprehensive and neutral investigation about the behavior of Kuchi
with locals, and assure that violators will face legal prosecution
and losses to both sides will be compensated.

Fourth - In order to have a clear picture about the number of people
killed in this dispute, and to know how they were killed, the
government of Afghanistan should launch a comprehensive
investigation and use forensic science to prove the claims and
counterclaims of locals and Kuchi.

Fifth - For several years, many Afghan citizens have lost their
lives due to this dispute, but the government has not taken any
action to prosecute those behind the killings. This has further
strengthened the culture of impunity and undermined the rule of law.
Therefore, the government of Afghanistan should put an end to this
impunity culture and bring to justice those who are behind the
killing and other crimes.

Sixth - The government of Afghanistan should probe charges leveled
against the deployed units of the ANA in the area who reportedly
failed to bring security to the area and protect the ceasefire, and
inform the public about its finding.

Long-Term suggestions

First - The fundamental and permanent solution of this problem lies
in implementation of Article 14 of the Constitution of Afghanistan,
which obliges the government of Afghanistan to plan and execute
effective programs for the development of agriculture and livestock,
improvement of economic conditions and livelihood of farmers and
cattle raisers and for the resettlement of Kuchies. To eradicate
this problem, to prevent the culture of warlords and ethnic tension,
to avoid creation of a gap between government and people, to end the
culture of impunity, to strengthen rule of law and finally to
prevent gross human rights violations, it is once again recommended
to the government of Afghanistan to implement article 14 of the
Constitution. By doing so, both Kuchi and locals will avail their
due human and citizen rights.

Second - All official and unofficial documents of Kuchi and locals
which can prove private ownership should be referred to courts, so
they could be examined, and consequently the real owners of the
land who have legal documents in hand can get his/her due
humanitarian right of owning the land.

Third - In order to permanently solve this problem and prevent
violent clashes among Afghan tribes in the future, particularly
between Kuchi and locals, the government should start new projects
of distributing barren government lands and settling landless
farmers and Kuchi there, so they can get out of the miserable life
and, like the rest of the citizens, their children can have access
to education.

Fourth - To reduce 100% dependence of the people of rural areas on
the present level of pastures and wooded areas, the government must
create new job in other sectors, parallel to the agriculture sector
in all parts of the country, particularly in the mountainous and
isolated areas which are most affected by social and economic
poverty. The social and economic development projects for the
future should be undertaken as part of its Millennium Development
Goals and in accordance with the standards enshrined in Afghanistan
Compact to eradicate poverty and joblessness.

Fifth - Keeping in mind the effective role of the international
community and the United Nation in securing peace, stability and
development of Afghanistan, it is recommended that the international
community strongly and effectively support the government of
Afghanistan to fulfill its obligations towards the human rights of
its citizens and in implementing the long and short terms suggestion
offered in this report. End translation of report.

WOOD