AFGHANISTAN: National police to open first family response unit

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

KABUL, 17 Jan 2006 (IRIN) - In an effort to reduce violence against women, the Afghan National Police (ANP) is set to inaugurate the first ever Family Response Unit (FRU) in the post-conflict nation.

"Violence within the family is a matter of power and lack of accountability," Paul Greening, programme and staff development officer for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), which is supporting the endeavour, said in the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Tuesday. "Women know that being beaten is wrong but they need somewhere to go for support and for the law to be enforced. The FRU will fulfill that function."

But such a goal will prove a challenge. Traditional thinking dictates that most women, children and other vulnerable groups within the family accept physical and emotional violence as a normal part of life. Moreover, most do not even attempt to seek support or other forms of help.

UNFPA has already provided a fully furnished container office with a reception, bathroom, two interview rooms and a mobile emergency number in the new unit, which will be set up in a police station in District 10 in the capital. The Ministry of Interior will open the unit on Sunday.

Under the FRU's framework, police will be able to respond more effectively to acts of violence against women, family violence, children in trouble, kidnappings, interrogations, as well as provide security to female victims of crime.

In a survey carried out by the NGO Terre des Hommes (TDH) in 2003 through their Maternal and Child Health (MCH) programme, covering around 400 mothers, domestic violence occurred in 95 percent of all households in post-conflict Afghanistan.

"The Afghan constitution has declared that men and women are equal but in reality women are still second class citizens," Greening asserted.

In Afghanistan, the issue of abuse against females is closely related to early and forced marriage. Estimates suggest that between 30 to 50 percent of the country's girls and almost 10 percent of the boys were married between the ages of 15 to 19, according UNFPA.

Commenting on the FRU, Khalilullah Dastyar, police chief of the District 10 police station said that it would help family members to solve their problems in a short period of time.

"This would enable women to solve their family disputes as soon as possible without referring to the family court system which takes a long time," Dastyar said.

Echoing that view, Anar Kali Huneryar, assistant women rights officer for the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) added: "This is an historic step towards eliminating violence against women and will raise the awareness of women rights in our conservative society."

[ENDS]