Khan Mohammad and Taher smile as they peer out of a US military helicopter: After a year in prison as suspected supporters of al-Qaeda, they are nearly home.
The two men were heading back to eastern Logar Province for a shura ceremony that would see them return to their communities under a reintegration program the Afghan government says is essential to ending the war.
“This will have a positive impact for the general situation in Afghanistan,” said Brigadier General Mohibullah, head of the detainee reintegration program.
“Each guy belongs to a family, each family belongs to a tribe,” Mohibullah said.
There are 15,000 detainees around Afghanistan, including about 800 at Bagram air base near Kabul, where Mohammad and Taher were held, according to the US Department of Defense and the Afghan government.
SUSPECTS
Suspected militants have been rounded up in the country since the US-led invasion to topple the Taliban regime in late 2001 and were at first held without any review of their cases.
They have gradually been granted more rights, as Afghanistan attempts to reform its prison system and after the US Supreme Court ruled al-Qaeda suspects held at the notorious jail in Guantanamo Bay were entitled to hearings.
Afghanistan is now accelerating hearings after a landmark peace jirga — a council of elders and community leaders from across Afghanistan held in Kabul last month — called for the release of detainees held without charge.
NEW LEAF
To help gain prisoner releases, local leaders have promised to help them live peaceful, stable lives.
The prisoners must sign a document of allegiance to the Afghan government and enroll in a reconciliation program, renouncing violence and getting jobs.
The Afghan government and NATO forces say the initiative, which has so far released about 130 prisoners, is the first step toward reforming the country’s legal system, which has been plagued by allegations of abuse.
Rights groups say, however, the process does not address Afghanistan’s problems of arbitrary detention and that detainees are not given access to legal representation.
“We are very happy that the indefinite detention of these detainees is being addressed through this process, but we have concerns,” said Nader Nadery, of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission.
“A review process needs a longer period of time to get prisoners enough evidence to argue for release,” he said.
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