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Transparency International opens office in Afghanistan
Transparency Afghanistan has officially become the national contact of Transparency International in Afghanistan.
Alejandro Salas, head of the global movement, spoke at the launch event in Kabul on Tuesday via a video link, and said: “Transparency International recognizes Transparency Afghanistan as a contact office in Afghanistan and Transparency Afghanistan will become Transparency International’s national chapter subject to the fulfillment of Transparency International guidelines and procedures.”
“Amidst a very challenging landscape we have found many champions of anti-corruption among both in government and civil society in Afghanistan,” he said.
Transparency International is a coalition of chapters in more than 100 countries across the globe with an international secretariat in Berlin. Transparency International has been leading the fight against corruption for the last 27 years.
Joy Saunders, the Chairperson of Board of Directors of Transparency Afghanistan, stated: “It is a very big day for us as we become the national contact of Transparency International in Afghanistan. It is an international NGO that is well-respected around the world and has a huge amount of resources that we can use to build up our fight against corruption.”
According to Sayed Ikram Afzali from Integrity Watch Afghanistan (IWA), the move was facilitated by the IWA and the organization will continue to support it until it is fully established.
Suliman Assadullah, Interim Executive Director of Transparency Afghanistan, stated the organization proposes to focus on the transparency in procurements, advocate for transparency for business integrity, accountability of Afghan anti-corruption institutions, Afghan government anti-corruption commitments and access to information.
He also said: “We will hold broad consultation with stakeholders on the strategic priorities of the organization in Afghanistan for the next three to five years.”
Sayed Akram Afzali, head of Integrity Watch Afghanistan, meanwhile pointed a finger at the private sector and said it was riddled with corruption.
“The private sector is very corrupt because it is controlled by powerful men, and the powerful men are members of parliament,” he said.
However, business owners have rejected the accusations. Amin Babak, head of public relations for the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry said there was no truth in these remarks and if companies were corrupt then they should be investigated.
Afghanistan is listed as one of the 10 most corrupt countries in the world. In January, Transparency International released its annual survey and ranked Afghanistan as the seventh most corrupt nation out of 180 countries.
Following the concerns over terrorist threats from Afghanistan, the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) says in a report that terrorist threats against US interests from Afghanistan and Pakistan are steadily rising.
The report stated that “Afghanistan presents growing space for terrorist groups compared to the period before the U.S. withdrawal.”
“ISIS-K [Daesh] presents a rising threat with reach beyond the immediate region, greater than during the pre-withdrawal period,” the report reads.
It added that “The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorist group has also returned as a regional security threat.”
“The study group’s final report evaluated and put forth policy options to mitigate terrorist threats and safeguard U.S. interests in Afghanistan and Pakistan, while maintaining the current focus on strategic competition,” the report added.
“Unfortunately, the geography of Afghanistan and the relations of terrorist groups in the region have caused the countries of the region and the world to express concern about possible challenges. The Islamic Emirate should take measures to form an inclusive government so that the spirit of the regional fight against terrorism is practically strengthened and launched,” said a military expert.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate has called the report “baseless” and said that it has no relationship with al-Qaeda and that Daesh has been suppressed in Afghanistan.
IEA’s deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fetrat added that there is no terrorist group in Afghanistan and the government does not allow Afghan soil to be used against other countries.
“The Islamic Emirate has repeatedly said that Afghanistan’s soil will not be used against the interests of countries. Once again, we assure the countries of the world and the region that Afghanistan’s soil will not be used against their interests, nor is Afghanistan a threat to them,” Fetrat stressed.
An Afghan prisoner in Delhi stabbed another prisoner to death on Friday after a dispute over food, the Times of India reported.
The deceased was identified as Deepak Soni, who was 29-year-old.
The killer has been identified as Abdul Basir Akhundzada who is 44 years old.
Abdul Basir Akhundzadeh had been arrested in connection with a case of attempted murder in Lajpet Nagar area of New Delhi in 2019.
Soni had been arrested in connection with the case of robbery and murder in 2018.
Zakia Wardak, Afghanistan’s consul general in India’s Mumbai city, resigned on Saturday, following reports of gold smuggling.
The Times of India has reported that Wardak was caught at Mumbai airport with 25 kilograms of gold smuggled from Dubai.
While announcing her resignation, Wardak said on X that over the past year, she had encountered numerous personal attacks and defamation not only directed towards her but also towards her close family and extended relatives.
“These attacks, which appear to be organized, have severely impacted my ability to effectively operate in my role and have demonstrated the challenges faced by women in Afghan society who strive to modernize and bring positive change amidst ongoing propaganda campaigns,” she said.
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