Mission Report, Afghanistan 2003

At the invitation of the EU Special Representative to Afghanistan, Mr. Francesc Vendrell, ILAC visited Afghanistan 11-20 February, 2003. The purpose of the visit was to explore if ILAC could be of any assistance in the implementation of projects resulting from the recent initiated judicial reform work.

Report from a visit to Afghanistan 11 – 20 February 2003

Introduction
This report is the result of a visit to Afghanistan 11 – 20 February 2003 at the invitation of the EU Special Representative to Afghanistan, Mr. Francesc Vendrell. The purpose of the visit was to explore if the recently initiated judicial reform work would offer any opportunities for involving ILAC´s member organisations in the implementation of reform projects. During the visit I met with the major players in the judicial system as well as with representatives of the international community, which are involved in the reform work. For a list of meetings, see Appendix A. Mr Vendrell´s office, and particularly his Senior Advisor for Human Rights and Gender Issues, Ms. Inger Axell, provided invaluable logistic support and gave me access to a wide network of important contacts. In addition, she served as a very valuable interlocutor and source of knowledge. The narrative parts of the report are based on interviews and perusal of various written materials.