Last month young Omidullah bid his three-month-old baby girl and his wife goodbye before driving off from his home in Ghazni province towards the Afghanistan capital of Kabul. Five days later, his dead body was found with multiple stab wounds in Ghazni’s sixth district.
According to sources, unknown men had kidnapped Omidullah robbed him, stabbed him and then took away his vehicle and drove off. The police under the Taliban still have no clue about the identity of the robbers.
Omidullah’s family is one among hundreds who have been victims of the surging crime rate in Afghanistan. Like Omidullah, many other victims were the only breadwinner of their families. Reports of robbery, loot and murder are now a common occurrence in Afghanistan which is facing extreme poverty, joblessness and increased crimes.
Criminal gangs posing as policemen lurk in the streets of Kabul in search of a worthy target to be robbed. Armed with knives and weapons, they terrorize, stab and murder their victims ruthlessly sometimes for as little as 100 Afghan Afghanis (mere 11 US Cents). From lone men to organized gangs kidnappings, lootings and murders crime in Afghanistan is on an upward spiral.
In the past three months, 144 bodies have been found in Kabul alone. Without revealing the details, Kabul Municipality official Nimatullah Barakzai said that 30 corpses were buried on Saturday in police district 21 after a proper forensic examination.
“The corpses that are unidentified or have no relatives are being buried by them as per complete Islamic tradition,” he said.
Many residents in Kabul have appealed to the Islamic Emirate under the Taliban regime to prevent these mysterious killings.
A resident of Kabul requesting anonymity said that when an individual cannot meet his needs in society, it causes him to go out and kill another human, adding, “We call on the Islamic Emirates to prevent these mysterious killings. If they don’t prevent it, the murdering will increase.”
Currently, the crime rate in Afghanistan is the fourth highest in the world. Jails are occupied to their full capacity in many provinces. Scores of men and women are locked up by the Taliban for crimes like robbery, drug trafficking and other activities dubbed “immoral” under the strict Sharia law imposed by the Taliban since its return to power in August 2021.
According to the Directorate of Prison Affairs, the inmate holding capacity of prisons is 20000. Taliban claims that they have released 15000 till now after scrutinizing their papers.
Around 14000 people still remain imprisoned in Afghanistan, the majority of them arrested for murder, drug trafficking and theft. Among them, more than 1000 are women.
Transparency in investigations is a big concern among the inmates who accuse authorities of bias and corruption towards rulings. Especially the women being held captive in Pul-e-Chakri prison fear the worst as abuse, torture and beatings under the Taliban is rampant. With no female jailers, the men treat the women inmates with extreme violence and torture.
Floggings, amputations and executions are being carried out publicly every day in Afghanistan. Many people say that these punishments are meted out without any fair investigations and fair trials.
Last month, the Taliban publicly chopped off the hands of four robbery accused in a football stadium in Kandahar.
Taliban authorities say that the Sharia law implementation deters people from committing further crimes and also serves as a deterrent for the rest of society. But many in Afghanistan disagree with the approach and accuse men in the Taliban to be part of criminal gangs.
Speaking to The New Indian, a man in Afghanistan – who fears for his safety and prefers to stay anonymous, said that street crime and drug trafficking were a major source of funding for the Taliban in the past. Since coming to power, they are carrying out these activities openly as there are no checks on them and no one can hold them accountable.
“They kidnap, raid houses, and snatch mobile phones from people and also forcefully occupy properties of common men under flimsy garb of accusing the victims of being anti-Islamic Emirates.”
He echoed the same sentiment regarding double standards being practised by Taliban authorities in punishing criminals.
“When a Talib gets caught, no punishment is given; while a common citizen gets his hand chopped off”, he further commented.
Another person, also claiming anonymity, said that while the common public is dying of hunger, the men under the Taliban are busy in loot and plunder.
Life in Afghanistan for a common citizen is unimaginable. With women literally locked up in their homes to men who are forced to indulge in petty crimes to make ends meet in absence of any jobs or livelihood prospects, the colossal human tragedy unfolding under the brutal Taliban regime has sadly no takers in the world.