Freedom for Parvez! Germany must take energetic measures for the innocent yet condemned Afghan journalist

With a large gallows in front of the Brandenburger Tor the Society for Threatened Peoples (GfbV) drew attention to the fate of the Afghan journalist Parvez Kaambakhsh, innocently condemned to death six months ago. The GfbV together with exile-Afghans appealed to the German government to take more energetic measures for the release of the 23-year old. „The unjust trial of the journalist takes away all credibility from the reconstruction of a constitutional state in Afghanistan , which is being so vigorously advanced by Germany „, said the GfbV Asia consultant, Ulrich Delius. It is only international pressure which can help to secure his rapid release.

The GfbV welcomed the fact that Parvez was t aken up in June 2008 into the parliamentary protection programme of the Bundestag „Parlamentarier schützen Parlamentarier“ (Members of parliament defend members of parliament). But the delegates must now develop concrete initiatives for his rapid release. For Parvez‘ state of health is steadily deteriorating in prison. The journalist has several times reported of having been tortured. His appeal case is also being systematically delayed.

Sayed Parvez Kaambakhsh was sentenced to death on 23^rd January 2008 for „blasphemy“ in a hearing without legal representation lasting only four minutes. He was accused of downloading from the internet and distributing critical articles on the situation of women in Islam. The 23-year old denies this vehemently.

The arrest and sentencing of Parvez is a shocking case of making the family jointly responsible, said the GfbV Afghanistan coordinator, Tillmann Schmalzried. For the chief aim of the Afghan authorities is to strike his brother, the journalist Yacub Ibrahimi, who is one of the sharpest critics of the warlords, who are steadily gaining power in Afghanistan . It is on account of his courageous reports that Ibrahimi and his family are being harassed by the secret service and threatened with death by the warlords and the Taliban. On the prompting of the GfbV the Hamburg Foundation for the Victims of Political Persecution endowed Yacub with a scholarship for one year. After a short stay in the Hanse town of Hamburg he returned however to his homeland to work for the release of his brother. Although he is still in prison Parvez has now also been taken up into the scholarship programme of the Hamburg Foundation.