Afghanistan’s Human Rights Ecosystem after the Taliban Takeover

Authors: Razia Sayad and Iavor Rangelov

The ecosystem for human rights promotion and protection that had developed in Afghanistan over the previous twenty years effectively collapsed in the summer of 2021.

A different kind of ecosystem has emerged in its wake, mainly focused on resettlement and protection of Afghan human rights defenders, which needs to be strengthened and expanded upon. Afghanistan’s emerging human rights ecosystem can be analysed through the conceptual lens of a ‘civic ecosystem’, highlighting a range of human rights actors and approaches across multiple sectors and geographies.

This publication is part of a series highlighting the work and analysis of the Afghanistan Research Network (ARN), a project convened by LSE / PeaceRep, and the Civic Engagement Project (CEP). The network brings together over 20 Afghan researchers (and several non-Afghans) with diverse expertise and backgrounds investigating a range of issues. This project aims to support Afghan researchers who were recently forced to leave Afghanistan; to ensure expert and analytical provision; inform contextually-appropriate international policies and practices on Afghanistan; and to deepen understanding of evolving political, security, and economic dynamics.

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