Lack of justice and a culture of impunity have emerged as major grievances in Afghanistan, alienating the population from the government and creating an enabling environment for the insurgency. The Taliban have also begun providing “justice services” in areas under their influence: rapid adjudication of disputes accompanied by effective but brutal enforcement.

Since 2002, the Afghan government and the international community have made efforts to rebuild the formal justice system, including courts, police, prosecution, and detention – with increasing pressure to address corruption, narco-trafficking, and insurgency. Meanwhile, the vast majority of disputes continue to be resolved through customary dispute resolution systems at the local level. According to a recent Asia Foundation survey, two-thirds of the population view local justice mechanisms as fair and trusted versus half of survey respondents who considered state courts corrupt. This perception has resulted in low levels of public confidence in state institutions, and has increased reliance on local mechanisms for providing basic services.

Please join us for a discussion of informal and formal justice systems, and an overview of USIP’s justice projects that aim to strengthen linkages between these two sectors and address impunity.

Speakers

• Abdul Qader Adalatkwa
  Deputy Minister of Justice, Afghanistan
• Masood Karokhail
  Deputy-Director, The Liaison Office, Afghanistan
• Noah Coburn
  Traditional Justice Specialist, U.S. Institute of Peace
• J Alexander Thier, Moderator
  Senior Rule of Law Adviser, U.S. Institute of Peace