Our Stakeholder report to Afghanistan’s Universal Periodic Review, led by Dr Alice Storey, makes specific recommendations to the government on the issue of domestic abuse experienced by women.
Researchers
Consultancy background
In October 2023, the UPR Project at BCU submitted a Stakeholder Report to Afghanistan’s fourth UPR cycle, led by Dr Alice Storey. This submission focuses on domestic abuse experienced by women. We make recommendations to the Government of Afghanistan on this issue, implementation of which would also see the country improving its human rights protection and promotion.
On 23 February 2024, the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights published its Stakeholder Summary Report for Afghanistan, which cited the UPR Project at BCU:
HRW recommended ending all bans on women’s access to public spaces like parks, baths, and gyms. (Para 44)
UPR-BCU noted that Women for Afghan Women shelter had significant successes prior to the Taliban regaining control. However, DFA shut it down, forcing women to return to their abusers or face homelessness, and sometimes harassing staff. It recommended re-opening domestic abuse support shelters, and fund healthcare and support services for women. AHR and UPR-BCU recommended reinstating the female judges and courts established by the 2009 Elimination of Violence against Women Law. (Para 46)
(Outcome of the review yet to be published)
About the UPR Project at BCU
The Centre for Human Rights (CHR) has been engaging with the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) since 2016. Under the auspice of the Human Rights Council, the UPR is an intergovernmental process providing a review of the human rights record of all Member States.
Through the UPR Project at BCU, the CHR we engage with the UPR through taking part in the UPR Pre-sessions, providing capacity building for UPR stakeholders and National Human Rights Institutions, and the filing of stakeholder reports in selected sessions. The UPR Project is designed to help meet the challenges facing the safeguarding of human rights around the world, and to help ensure that UPR recommendations are translated into domestic legal change in member state parliaments.
We fully support the UPR ethos of encouraging the sharing of best practice globally to protect everyone's human rights. The UPR Project at BCU engages with the UPR regularly as a stakeholder, having submitted numerous reports and been cited by the OHCHR.