Germany has a special duty to protect not only former local Afghan forces. This also applies to all people in Afghanistan who have worked for human rights and are now exposed to particular danger under the rule of the Taliban. This is the conclusion of a recent analysis by the German Institute for Human Rights.
Former local forces who worked for German ministries and organisations and their family members are particularly entitled to enter Germany for their protection. In the Institute’s view, this also applies to people whose particular vulnerability is due to the fact that they have stood up for human rights in Afghanistan through their activities or publicly expressed opinions. This includes, for example, journalists, judges, cultural workers, former security forces and members of the government, or particularly vulnerable girls and women who have come to public attention. According to the Institute, this legally binding duty to protect applies not only to Germany, but also to all other states that participated in the military mission in Afghanistan, which lasted more than twenty years.
The German Institute for Human Rights is Germany’s independent national human rights institution. It is funded by the German Bundestag and accredited according to United Nations principles. The Institute’s tasks include policy advice, human rights education, information and research on human rights issues, and cooperation with international organisations.
The analysis can be read at: States must continue to offer protection to particularly vulnerable Afghans | Deutsches Institut für Menschenrechte (institut-fuer-menschenrechte.de)
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Flughafen Stuttgart. Foto: tünews INTERNATIONAL / Mostafa Elyasian.
