HRW examines Afghan rights commission

NEW YORK, Jan. 19 (UPI) -- The Afghan government is advised not to take actions that would undermine the effectiveness of its human rights commission, Human Rights Watch said.

The Afghan Constitution established an independent human rights commission as an entity within the federal government. It's an independent body though its commissioners are appointed by the president.

Brad Adams, Asia director for Human Rights Watch, said from New York the commission has played an important role in addressing a "challenging" human rights situation in Afghanistan.

The five-year term for all nine members of the human rights commission expired in December. Adams called on the government to ensure new appointees are credible and independent.

"New commissioners should be selected through a transparent process that strengthens confidence in the commission and in the government's commitment to human rights," he said in a statement.

"President (Hamid) Karzai should ensure his appointments are experts with a life-long commitment to human rights and reject out of hand anyone with a background of human right abuse."

Afghan election authorities found during formal auditing processes that Karzai's most recent re-election was attributed to fraud to a certain degree.