In reaction to a recent decision made by the Law Committee on virginity test, Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) called for unconditional ban on virginity tests in the country.
In a tweet posted today, Thursday, September 03, the AIHRC considered the virginity test as both violation of human rights and scientifically invalid.
This comes after the Law Committee chaired by Sarwar Danish, second vice president, decided on Wednesday, September 02, that the virginity test without the consent of women and court order is illegal – making the two conditions compulsory for the testing. As per the decision, the perpetrator will be sentenced to imprisonment.
Previously, in the Afghan Penal Code, the virginity test was conditioned to either the woman’s consent or a competent court ruling.
The AIHRC voiced for the same ban on virginity testing in 2019 as well.
According to the press office of the Second Vice President, members of the meeting have made the two conditions compulsory in order to preserve the dignity of women and to observe human rights.
Meanwhile, VP Danish has instructed the Ministry of Justice to include the new conditions in the amendments to some articles of the country’s Penal Code and submit it to the Cabinet for finalization.
