Rights Watch Urges Karzai to Sideline Warlords

[maddezmom]

KABUL (Reuters) - A leading rights group urged Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Saturday to sideline warlords implicated in rights abuses and strengthen the rule of law when he announces a new cabinet after being sworn in next week.


Human Rights Watch also urged Karzai, elected for a five-year term in Afghanistan (news - web sites)'s first free elections on Oct. 9, to be more forceful in seeking greater assistance from the United States and NATO (news - web sites) to improve security ahead of April parliamentary elections.


In an open letter, the New York-based group further called on Karzai to take up the issue of U.S. military abuses in the battle against Islamic militants and to take stronger action to promote women's rights.


Karzai, interim president since U.S.-led forces overthrew the Taliban in late 2001, is to be inaugurated on Tuesday in Kabul. The government says he is expected to announce his new Cabinet within a week of the inauguration, which is to be attended by Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites), the most senior U.S. official to visit Afghanistan since the Taliban's overthrow.

more: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=586&ncid=586&e=9&u=/nm/20041204/wl_nm/afghan_cabinet_dc