Since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, women protesting Taliban’s draconian policies have been forcibly disappeared, arbitrarily arrested, and detained and subjected to torture and other ill treatment. Manizha Seddiqi, a women human rights defender, was forcibly disappeared on October 9, 2023, and later found in Taliban custody. She was sent to prison on December 5, 2023. She does not have access to lawyers or regular family visits while in prison and is at risk of torture and other ill treatment. She has not been charged with any offenses. Manizha Seddiqi must be released immediately and unconditionally.
take action:
- Write a letter in your own words or using the sample below as a guide to one or both government officials listed. You can also email, fax, call or Tweet them.
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Contact information:
Mr. Abdul Haq Wasiq
Director of Intelligence
General Directorate of Intelligence
Chaharahi Zanbaq
Kabul, Afghanistan
Email: [email protected]
Note: There is no physical address available for this UA, so please take action through social media and email
No Domestic Postal Address
Email: [email protected]
Twitter/X: @MoFA_Afg
sample letter:
Dear Mr. Abdul Haq Wasiq,
I am concerned over the arbitrary arrest and detention of prominent woman human rights defender, Manizha Seddiqi, in Afghanistan. She has been arbitrarily detained simply for exercising her rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. Manizha Seddiqi, also a member of the Spontaneous Movement of Afghan Women, was forcibly disappeared on October 9, 2023, and found weeks later in the custody of the Taliban. She was sent to Pule-Charkhi prison in Kabul on December 5, 2023.
Amnesty International’s findings indicate that Manizha Seddiqi has been deprived of family visits, lacks access to lawyers and medical care, and her health is deteriorating. I am also deeply concerned that she is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. Between January 2022 and July 2023, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reported that half of the 1,600 human rights violations in Taliban prisons involved torture or other cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment. Additionally, people are often detained in undignified conditions and without access to the necessary medical care.
I call on you to immediately and unconditionally release Manizha Seddiqi. Pending her release, I call on you to ensure that her detention conditions meet international standards, and that she is provided with access to lawyers and medical care, and family visits.
Yours sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]
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