Judges for Judges took notice with great concern of the recent developments in Afghanistan. Judges for Judges publicly supports the recent calls for international support by the International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ), by the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers and by the International Association of Judges (IAJ).
- https://www.iawj.org/content.aspx?page_id=5&club_id=882224&item_id=67819
- https://twitter.com/unindepjudges/status/1426950093425446917
- https://www.iaj-uim.org/news/call-for-international-support-in-afghanistan/
By serving as judges and helping develop the Afghan judicial branch, judges have helped establish the rule of law in their country, an essential pillar of a democratic state. We stand with the judges and especially the women judges in Afghanistan who live in fear for being targeted because of their work and for who they are. In the past few days there have been several publications in which Afghan women judges have expressed their genuine fear about what could happen to them after the fall of Kabul to the Taliban.
- https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1816655/afghanistan-talibans-kaboul-craintes-juges-femmes
- https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/afghanistan-as-taliban-gains-ground-female-judges-fear-for-their-safety
- http://www.forumuljudecatorilor.ro/index.php/archives/4498
With the IAJ we say it is our duty to support those in Afghanistan whose life & freedom may be at risk for seeking to apply the principles of the Rule of law & the Independence of the judiciary. These principles are fundamental to a free & safe life.
And we therefore together with the IAWJ and the UN Special Rapporteur urge governments to include in any case the Afghan women judges and their families, who are in such a desperate and precarious position, in the special measures (e.g. help with evacuation, visa ) extended to interpreters, journalists and other personnel who provided essential service to the foreign military forces in Afghanistan.