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MPs slam govt’s move to include ethnicities in new ID card system

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Members of the Wolesi Jirga (Lower House of Parliament) on Wednesday voiced their displeasure over the recent decision by the National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) to categorize ethnic groups in the registration process of the new electronic ID card system.

Some MPs said this decision will create a new crisis in the country.

“The move by the NSIA is a risk to nation building; it will destroy unity among the people… the act is dividing tribes,” said one MP Khan Agha Rezayee.

“The government makes problems for people and divides tribes into categories. This is against the Constitution; it will fuel tribal discrimination. If government does not control this, the response will be very tough and uncontrollable, ” said Zalmay Noori, another MP.

“The NSIA’s decision is against the Constitution; 15 tribes are mentioned in the Constitution; the decision is against the law that we passed,” said Makhdom Abdullah Mohammadi, an MP.

However some MPs came out in support of the move.

“Some tribes want to see their tribe name on their ID cards,” said MP Niamat Karyab.

First deputy speaker of the house, Javid Jaihoon, meanwhile called on government to resolve the issue as soon as possible.

“We call on government to solve the problem based on the articles of the Constitution and to end concerns around this issue,” said Jaihoon.

According to MPs, government needs to encourage unity among tribes and avoid creating division.

This comes after the NSIA announced earlier this month that it had classified a number of ethnic groups and tribes into categories in the online registration form for new electronic ID cards.

Based on the list, all Pashtuns in Afghanistan are classified into one ethnic group but the rest of the groups such as Tajiks, Hazaras, and Uzbeks are each divided into several tribes.

Politicians are among those who believe the NSIA’s list “deliberately” fuels disunity among the people of Afghanistan especially as the organization has categorized ethnic groups based on their “villages, districts and tribes.”

Second Vice President Sarwar Danish said the list lacks “scientific and practical” elements and this in itself could lead to disputes in the country.

“Hasty decisions would question the government and create divisions and mistrust among our people,” Mohammad Hedayat, the head of Danish’s media office said.

Meanwhile, former Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani stated that the NSIA has intentionally planned to divide ethnicities based on districts and villages.

Atta Mohammad Noor, Chief Executive of Jamiat-e-Islami Party, claimed that the NSIA is not “aware of the difference between an ethnicity and place of residency.”

“This government organization is not yet aware of this important fact that there is a huge difference between an ethnicity and the residence of a group, and you can never count the name of the location as the ethnicity of a specific people,” said Ahmad Afzal Hadid, Head of Balkh Provincial Council.

Abdullah Abdullah, Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation, also spoke out against the NSIA’s decision and called the list a “mistake.”

Abdullah called on the organization to rectify the issue.

The NSIA, however, claimed that its decision was made at the request of the people.

“This decision was made as per the request of a number of tribal elders and the interpretation of the third part of Article 4 of the Constitution,” said Roeina Shahabi, the spokesperson for the NSIA.

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Iran steps up efforts to tighten security along border with Afghanistan, Pakistan

Tehran’s plan to block the eastern border will eventually consist of a 300 km-long wall along with the use of advanced technology and precise military drills

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Iran’s border security operations along its shared border with Afghanistan and Pakistan have been ramped up with 65 kms of the border wall already having been completed. 

According to Iran media, Tehran’s plan to block the eastern border will eventually consist of a 300 km-long wall along with the use of advanced technology and precise military drills.

On November 2, Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni said Iran would complete construction of a border wall along its eastern frontiers by the end of September next year.

The first phase of the border-sealing initiative spans approximately 90 kilometers and commenced at the end of June.

The border blockade includes physical barriers, such as barbed wire and cement walls as well as smart technology that include radar systems.

Last month, Tehran Times reported that during a visit to the city of Mirjaveh, the primary crossing point between Iran and Pakistan,Momeni said the first phase of the border-sealing initiative spans approximately 90 kms and work commenced at the end of June. 

He stated, "Based on our projections, this border-blocking project is expected to be completed in the first half of the next Iranian year." 

Momeni stressed that an unsealed border allows deported illegal immigrants to easily return. He said: “The plan to secure the border will tackle this issue and improve regional security.” 

Amir Na’mati, Deputy Commander of Iran’s Army Ground Forces, meanwhile gave more information this week and said significant progress will be made on the project by the end of the solar year (April).

Systems such as surveillance sensors, reconnaissance drones, and thermal cameras are set to be deployed, he said. Additionally, mobile assault battalions are tasked with maintaining constant border control.

Wanaen meanwhile reported that Iranian Army rapid reaction forces are currently conducting complex security drills which include tasks to identify terrorist gathering spots using advanced Mohajer-6 drones, destroying their command vehicles with highly explosive precision bombs (Qaem), and shelling enemy positions with artillery.

Amir Cheshk, Deputy Operations Commander of the Iranian Army Ground Forces, said: “Based on international agreements, any threatening gatherings that endanger the security of the Islamic Republic (Iran) will be met with a decisive response from the Army Ground Forces and Iran’s armed forces.”

In addition, special forces supported by Army Aviation helicopters, are dispatched to terrorist gathering locations and carry out high-precision clearance operations. 

 

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IEA supreme leader says vice and virtue law must be enforced

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Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada, the supreme leader of the Islamic Emirate, has ordered that the Law on Promoting Virtue and Preventing Vice must be enforced in order to preserve Afghanistan’s Islamic system.

The Kandahar media center said Monday that the IEA leader met with military and civilian officials, the Ulema Council, businessmen, and security forces in Spin Boldak in Kandahar on Sunday, where he also delivered a speech.

He said that great sacrifices were made over 20 years to attain the Islamic system and efforts should be made to preserve it.
He added that this can only be done through obedience, piousness, and following the advice of religious scholars.

The leader of the Islamic Emirate told scholars present to fully cooperate with the relevant departments in implementing the Law on Promoting Virtue and Preventing Vice and to explain to people every day in their mosques issues related to faith, belief, and prayer.

He also advised military and civilian officials in Spin Boldak district not to have disputes, to maintain full coordination and cooperation with each other, be committed to carrying out their responsibilities, and obey their superiors.

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IEA, Chinese company signs deal for Kapisa dam feasibility study

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The Ministry of Energy and Water on Sunday signed an agreement for feasibility, geophysics and geotechnical studies of the Baghdara Dam in Kapisa province with Metallurgical Corp of China (MCC), the contractor of Mes Aynak copper mine.

The agreement was signed between Abdul Latif Mansoor, Acting Minister of Energy and Water, and Song Wen Bing, director of MCC.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mansoor highlighted the importance of the Baghdara Dam project in providing the electricity needed for the Mes Aynak project in Logar province and emphasized that the implementation of the Baghdara Dam project will be a milestone in joint cooperation between Afghanistan and China.

He also emphasized the expansion and development of cooperation between China and Afghanistan and assured the Chinese ambassador and MCC officials that the environment is favorable for investment in Afghanistan and the Islamic Emirate is committed to cooperate in this regard.

 

 

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