November 19, 2004 Overview UN hostage crisis remains unresolved The three UN election workers abducted more than three weeks ago in the Afghan capital Kabul remain in the custody of their abductors. There appears to be some confusion now as to who is holding the hostages. Afghan officials say that they now think armed bandits, instead of militants, are holding the hostages. Lutfullah Mashal, a spokesman for the Afghan Interior Ministry, told Reuters News that he did not believe the hostages were in the custody of the militant Jaishul Muslimeen (Army of Muslims) group that was demanding the release of Taliban prisoners. Afghan officials believe the militant group may have paid the real kidnappers for a video of 1
the hostages in captivity to negotiate the release of their comrades. Mashal said that if the militants were holding the UN workers, they would have released another video. Afghan officials also believe that the hostages were still in or around the capital. Philippine diplomat Angelito Nayan, British-Irish citizen Annetta Flanigan, and Shqipe Hebibi of Kosovo, who were all helping with the recent Afghan presidential elections, were abducted at gunpoint in broad daylight from a busy district in Kabul on October 28. Jaishul Muslimeen, a Taliban splinter group, later claimed responsibility for their kidnapping. The group initially called for the withdrawal of US-led coalition forces, the release of all Afghan prisoners from US custody in Afghanistan and at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and the suspension of UN operations in the country. They threatened to kill the hostages if their demands were not met. Recently, the group withdrew two of its key demands and is now insisting on the release of 15 of their comrades who were arrested ahead of last month s presidential elections in southern Afghanistan. Afghan authorities have suspected all along that the motive behind the kidnapping was financial extortion. Separately, Abdul Latif Hakimi, a Taliban spokesman, said yesterday (Thursday, November 18) that the Taliban was not involved in the kidnapping, and added that holding women hostage was against the teachings of Islam. Afghanistan's disarmament officials say nearly 40,000 ex-combatants remain to be disarmed Officials at Afghanistan s New Beginnings Program (ANBP), which is carrying out the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) program aimed at disarming nearly 70,000 Afghan militia forces across the country, say some 40,000 former combatants remain to be disarmed. According to ANBP, some 23,000 excombatants across the country have been disarmed since the DDR campaign began more than a year ago (October 2003). According to an ANBP press release, as of November 1, more than 20,440 individuals had entered into a reintegration package that includes a variety of reintegration options, including teacher training, agriculture, vocational training, demining, small business, joining the Afghan National Army or the Afghan National Police. More than 16,500 weapons have been collected, including some 88% of the 4,300 known working and repairable heavy weapons. In total, 3,835 heavy weapons have been collected and placed in secure compounds. Heavy weapons cantonment is now reportedly complete in Jalalabad, Kandahar, Gardez, Kabul City and its surroundings. Last month (October), ANBP, in cooperation with Afghanistan s Ministry of Defense, announced a Financial Redundancy Package (FRP) for commanders and senior officers of militia units in exchange for their disarmament and demobilization. Under the scheme, commanders and officers of the Afghan militia units would receive monthly payments of US$350-550 for a period of two years. UN officials at ANBP said that they were optimistic the incentives would help boost the DDR process. Japan, which is the main backer of the DDR program, has provided an additional US$2.5 million for the FRP initiative. ANBP has eight regional offices in Kunduz, Gardez, Kabul/Parwan, Mazar-e-Sharif, Kandahar, Bamiyan,Jalalabad and Herat. UN warning Afghanistan becoming 'narco-state'; urges US and NATO to get involved The Vienna-based United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is warning that Afghanistan is quickly becoming a narco-state, that if left unchecked, could lead to state failure. In its annual survey, The Afghanistan Opium Survey for 2004, jointly conducted in cooperation with the Afghan government, the UNODC notes that Afghanistan is the leading producer of opium, producing 3,810 metric tons (4,200 tons), that account for some 87% of the world s production. The cultivation of opium dramatically increased some 66 percent during 2004 to 323,708 acres (131,000 hectares), compared to 197,684 acres (80,000 hectares) last year. Despite a significant increase in the area under poppy cultivation, poor weather conditions and disease prevented a bumper harvest, resulting in an increase of only 17 percent in opium output over 2003. According to the survey, opium cultivation has now spread to all 32 provinces, making the illicit drug production the country s main engine of economic growth, valued at US$2.8 billion or some 60 percent of Afghanistan s official gross domestic product of US$4.6 billion in 2003. Antonio Mario Costa, executive director of the UNODC, said US-led coalition forces and international peacekeeping forces led by the 26-nation North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) currently stationed in Afghanistan, would have to get involved in combating drug trafficking. He said, It would be an historical error to abandon Afghanistan to opium, right after we reclaimed it from the Taliban and al-qaeda. Costa said, Dismantling the opium economy in Afghanistan with the instruments of democracy, the rule of law and development will be a complex process. The recent electoral accomplishments, in a climate of peace, are a fundamental premise. Counter-narcotics must now take the centre place in policy, front-loading the measures envisaged in the 10-year strategy and NATO forces currently in Afghanistan. 2
Movement Some 3.7 million refugees and IDPs returned since early 2002, with 3.2 million refugees returning to Afghanistan and 500,000 IDPs going home. 2.28 million refugees returned from Pakistan; 1 million returned from Iran. Returns are expected to stay low through the winter a few hundred a day at most. Early November has seen about 500 returns per day 200 from Pakistan and 300 from Iran. For 2004, UNHCR (UN High Commission for Refugees) plans on 1 million returnees: 500,000 to return from Pakistan and 500,000 returns from Iran. By the end of October, 830,000 refugees returned this year 380,000 from Pakistan, including 100,000 from urban centers. 455,000 came from Iran, including more than 75,000 spontaneous returns. Over 100,000 returned in each of May, June, and July and September; 160,000 refugees were assisted to return in August. Assisted returns in October fell to 27,500, with 7,000 from Pakistan and 21,000 from Iran. Estimates are that 800,000 refugees remain in Iran and 1.6 million in Pakistan. In Pakistan are over 100,000 in cities and one million in old camps. Pakistan to conduct Afghan refugee census and registration supported by UNHCR; the effort, which will go back to 1979, is tentatively scheduled to start December 2004. Emphasis in 2003 was on repatriation from old camps and cities in Pakistan to rural areas in Afghanistan. 70% of returnees from Pakistan were from cities and 30% from camps. Over a third returned to Kabul, another 10% went to other central provinces, and just over 20% returned to each of the north and east. The Southern region received 6% and the Western region 4%. The 2003 peak months were June and July. In 2002 over 2.3 million Afghan refugees returned with 2 million assisted by UNHCR. UNHCR repatriated 1.53 million Afghan refugees from Pakistan, including 125,000 from Baluchistan and 1.4 million from the North West Frontier Province. 82% were from urban areas; only 3% were from new camps. 265,000 refugees were assisted in returning from Iran; and 10,000 refugees from the central Asian republics. 17,000 IDPs have been assisted to return in 2004. UNHCR, the Afghan Ministry for Refugees and Repatriation, and IOM (International Organization for Migration) planned to assist 90,000 IDPs in 2004. There are 167,000 recorded, active IDPs, with the actual total being, perhaps, some 300,000. Active IDP numbers are 123,000 in the South, 18,000 in the West, 17,000 in the East and Southeast, and 9,000 in the North. Afghanistan Relief Efforts: United Nations Regions 3
Central Region IDP Movement NFIs -Shelter Central Region WFP; ICRC, IMC, MSF; IOM, UNICEF, UNOCHA, & OXFAM UNICEF New Zealand PRT in Bamiyan; Main phase of DDR on-going; East Central Region IDP Movement Non- Items - Shelter East Central Region UNHCR UN; WFP, IRC, Action Contre la Faim; CARITAS, MSF, IFRC, IRC, ICRC; UNHCR, ACTED, MSF, IRC, ICRC, IOM; Continued negotiations for release of three international UN election workers kidnapped in Kabul three weeks ago; Main phase of DDR in progress in Kabul; Heavy weapons removed from Kabul; US PRT in Parwan Province; DDR on-going in Parwan Province; ICRC; 4
Eastern Region IDP Movement Non- Items - Shelter Eastern Region UNHCR, International Islamic Relief Organization; 17,000 active IDPs in East UNHCR WFP, IRC MSF, IMC, WHO; ICRC, UNICEF CWS, UNICEF US PRT in Jalalabad; Main phase of DDR in progress in Jalalabad; Heavy weapons removed from Jalalabad; US-led coalition operations continue along border with Pakistan; US PRT in Gardez; Afghan National Army sets up second regional command in Gardez; Main phase of DDR in progress in Gardez; Heavy weapons removed from Gardez; US PRT in Kunar; US PRT in Ghazni Province; CARITAS; ICRC, UNICEF Northeastern Region Northern Region 9,000 active IDPs in North and Northeast Movement IDPs Non- Items (NFIs) -Shelter OXFAM, UNICEF, WFP, World Concern WHO, Merlin, UNICEF, MSF; ICRC UNICEF, ACTED, Refugees Int l, Mercy Corps DDR on going in Baghlan; NATO/German military-only PRT starting in Faizabad; DDR on-going in Takhar Province; 5
Northern Region Movement IDPs Non- Items (NFIs) Shelter Northern Region UNHCR, IOM 9,000 active IDPs in North and Northeast; 60,000 IDPs from North elsewhere in country; IOM WFP, ACTED, ACF, FOCUS, OXFAM, IOM, Save the Children; WHO, MSF, ICRC, UNICEF IOM, ACTED, Mercy Corps NATO PRT in Pul e Khumri, Baghlan Province; NATO PRT in Mazar e Sharif; Main phase of DDR in Mazar e Sharif; NATO/German PRT in Kunduz; Main phase of DDR in Kunduz; NATO PRT in Meymana, Faryab Province; UNICEF, ICRC Southern Region Movement of IDPs NFIs - Shelter Southern Region UNHCR 123,000 active IDPs in South mostly in Zhare Dasht and Panjwai camps International staff present and operating; Mercy Corps in southern Kandahar Province; CARITAS; WHO, ICRC, CARITAS, Mercy Corps UNICEF UNHCR, Mercy Corps US PRT in Kandahar; Afghan National Army headquarters in Kandahar; main phase of DDR in progress; Heavy weapons removed in Kandahar; US-led coalition operations continue along border with Pakistan; UNICEF 6
Southern Region IDP camps Type Zhare Dasht - South of Kandahar 6 camps IDP Camp Int l Save our Souls Camp Capacity 30,000; expandable to 60,000 45,000 Movement IDP NFIs - Shelter 8,500 IDPs relocated from Spin Boldak; WFP UNICEF, MSF; UNICEF Camps to remain; Support in Spin Boldak near border with Pakistan terminated; Western Region Locati on Movement IDPs Non- Items (NFIs) Shelter Western Region UNHCR; ICMC 18,000 active IDPs IOM WFP, IRC, CARITAS, UNICEF, World Vision, IOM, Action Contre la Faim WHO, MSF, MDM, Order of Malta, CHA, IbniSina, HRS; ICRC; UNICEF UNHCR, Iranian Red Crescent, UNICEF, IOM, Ockenden Int l, MSF, IMC US PRT in Herat; Main phase of DDR on-going; UNICEF 7
New Refugee Camp in Baluchistan, Pakistan Mohamed Kheil 1 & 2 (85 km southwest of Quetta) Type Refugee Camp UNHCR/Rotary Intl. Camp Capacity 80,000 60,000? Refugee Movement Non- Items (NFIs) - Shelter Refugees from post-sept 2001 new camps consolidated in Mohamed Kheil WFP, CRS, ARC UNICEF, MSF CRS Pakistani military operations and negotiations continue in Wana town, South Waziristan area IFRC, MDM All new camps except Mohamed Kheil closed; 8