Case of appeal against death penalty of journalist Parvez Kaambakhsh ends in an unjust trial with sentence of 20 years imprisonment

The Society for Threatened Peoples (GfbV) termed as unjust the sentence of 20 years imprisonment against the Afghan journalist Parvez Kaambakhsh by a court of appeal in Kabul today Tuesday. "This is a day of infamy for the constitutional state of Afghanistan since the international reputation of the country is being gravely damaged by this arbitrary justice”, said the GfbV Asia consultant, Ulrich Delius. The young journalist is the victim of a struggle for power in Afghanistan. So it is not justice but a perversion of justice which was the basis of this case of appeal. Not only Afghan andinternational law but also traditional Islamic law, the Sharia, have been disregarded. The journalist’s lawyer announced after the sentence that he would not accept it, but appeal to the Supreme Court.

Delius also made grave accusations against the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai. The sentence against Kaambakhsh shows clearly that Karzai is no guarantor of democracy and constitutional legality. He has done nothing – as opposed to what he has frequently and in talks with German politicians said – for the release of the journalist. It seems clear that the President does not want to face the criticism of radical Islamic pressure before the elections in 2009.

Parvez was sentenced to death in a trial which was not in keeping with the principles of Islamic law. The charge was: "attacking and insulting the Holy Prophet and deliberately falsifying Koran verses”. He was charged with distributing a text insulting Islam among students of the Balkh University. Parvez denies this to the present day and says that his signature was forged. Reliable charges of torture have not been properly investigated either. The case against Parvez should in Afghan law have been concluded by the end of September 2008. On the basis of the charges brought against him a maximum of five years imprisonment should have been imposed.

The case against Parvez began in December 2007. The Council of Islamic Clerics of the province of Balkh recommended the death penalty. The GfbV has spoken out since his arrest on 27th October 2007 for a just trial and Parvez’ release because his case makes clear just how grim the prospects are for the development of a democratic constitutional state in Afghanistan.

The main purpose of the arrest and sentence of Parvez is to hit at his brother, Sayed Yaqub Ibrahimi, a renowned journalist and much-feared critic of the warlords and their arbitrary rule, said Delius.