TOLO News

The first Global Center for Economic Development of Afghan Women has started functioning in Kabul city.

This center has been constructed at a cost of five million Dollars with assistance from US. The center has been opened to increase Afghan women's contribution in the economic and social activities of the country.

The Global Center for Economic Development of Afghan Women will be a part of the American University in Afghanistan.

The Executive Director of the Center said that Afghan women are ready to contribute in developing Afghanistan's economy and this Center can help them reach their goals.

This center has been built near the Darulaman Palace. Increasing women's contribution in economic and social activities of the country and also efforts to increase their financial capacities are the main aims of this center.

Deputy Ambassador of US Embassy in Kabul said, "We are particularly pleased to support the Global Center for Economic Development of Afghan Women, another key event in the advancement of women in Afghan society and in the economic life of the country."

In recent years, Afghan women have got opportunities to participate in various economic activities. Still, women's contribution in the economy of the country is very less. With the opening of this center the issue could be solved soon.

Taliban's bomb blasts and suicide attacks in the country ahead of 2014 will badly affect the spirit of people, Afghan psychologists said on Saturday.

A number of psychologists at Kabul University said that insecurity and suicide attacks will badly effect on the normal lives of people. In fact, the attacks might turn out to be traumatic for some.
Insurgency attacks mostly target the civilians.

"Continuous suicide attacks reduce people's motivation to live and the number of productive activities also becomes less in the society,"
Psychology Lecturer at Kabul University, Zalmai Wafayar said.

Meanwhile, a number of traders expressed concerns over the lack of security and the increasing number of suicide attacks in the country.

"The withdrawal of foreign troops and the increasing suicide attacks is preventing investors from making investments in Afghanistan," Abdul Jabar Safi, a trader said.

Poverty and unemployment are the basic challenges for Afghans but currently the suicide attacks carried out by various insurgent groups calls for a different strategy.

General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Chief of Army Staff, Pakistani Army and General Joseph F. Dunford, Commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), met on Saturday as a part of the continuing effort to strengthen cooperation and regional stability.

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The Interior Ministry attributes Friday's attack in Kabul to certain terrorist networks which have the support from circles inside Pakistan.

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The Interior Ministry attributes Friday's attack in Kabul to certain terrorist networks which have the support from circles inside Pakistan.

The Ministry said that the attack in Shahrara area of Kabul city killed two civilians and one police personnel.13 others including three employees of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and one employee of International Labour Organisation (ILO) were injured in the gun-fire. Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Ban Ki- Moon, Secretary General of United Nations and the US embassy officials in Kabul strongly condemned the attacks on IOM and ILO offices and stressed that violence in Afghanistan should be dealt with at the earliest.

A suicide bomber driving a vehicle loaded with explosives blew himself up. Immediately after the explosion four extremists entered into the logistics office and open-fired on the IOM guards.

Kabul Police said that investigation is going on to find how the attackers managed to enter the guest house.

General Zahir Zahir, Head of Kabul Police's Criminal Investigation Department said, "We have started our investigations to find how they reached there, who probably helped them, from where they received the ammunition and how they hid the ammunition?"

One of the residents of the blast site said, "There were five people and all of them were injured. The situation of three of them is critical."

The gun-fire started at 4:00 pm on Friday and ended at midnight.

On the other hand, the Interior Ministry said that so far the identities of the attackers aren't known but the attack was planned in Pakistan.

Sediq Sediqi, Spokesperson of the Interior Ministry said, "They may have set up a strong network inside the cities and provinces of Afghanistan which provides them shelter. It's high time that these hide-outs and shelters must be found out."

Former Head of National Directorate of Security, Amrullah Saleh emphasized on mobilization of the Afghan security forces by the President to put an end to such attacks.

Amrullah Saleh said, "Our responsibility is to mobilise the military against Pakistan, we should fight back against the massacres."

Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, Leader of National Front said, "Afghanistan's enemies were trying to disrupt peace and lower the confidence of the security forces but our forces acted bravely, otherwise, there would have been more casualties."

The incident happened two weeks after Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hezb-e- Islami attacked a foreign convoy in the Shah Shaheed area of Kabul city.

A large number of Kabul University students are on a hunger strike for the sixth consecutive day in front of the Parliament building.

The students belong to the Social Science Faculty of Kabul University and are protesting against discrimination meted out by the officials of the faculty.

Dismissal of the Dean of the faculty and bringing reforms are some of their demands.

The students say that they will continue the hunger strike till their demands are accepted.

"Our hunger strike has entered into the sixth day and our aim is to bring reforms in the Social Science Faculty of Kabul University.

Eradicating racial discrimination, dismissal of the Dean and a lecturer of the faculty are our demands. These demands haven't been accepted till now," Zahra Naderi, a student said.

"We will continue our protests till our demands are accepted," Abdul Rahman, University student said.

It is said that many of the protestors were rushed to hospitals due to their deteriorating health vitals.

Meanwhile, some of the MPs said that the students' issue should be quickly solved.

"Some of their problems have been solved. Competitive evaluation of exam papers, getting a fourth chance in exam were some of the problems which stay solved. But dismissal of the Faculty Dean is not our competence," Head of Committee on Culture in Parliament, Hila Arshad said.

"The only way is to temporarily dismiss the Dean of the Faculty. After investigations if the accusations turn out to be true, the Dean will be dismissed permanently. Otherwise, the Dean stays," Member of Parliament, Shah Abdul Ahad Afzali said.

The students said that the hunger strike should be called a civil move for improving the life in University and it should not be termed as a political or racial move.

The Lower House of the Afghan Parliament due to differences between the MPs, failed to approve the Higher Education Law.

The Law contains seven chapters and 72 articles and was sent to the Lower House for approval.

The usage of the words: Pohanton and Dari Danishgah in article three of the Law caused some verbal and even physical confrontation between the MPs.

The Lower House discussed the Higher Education Law during which the MPs expressed their rejection over four provisions in the Law.

The first issue is- usage of the words Pohanton and Danishgah (University) in the Law. The second issue is regarding the procedure of ranking the university lecturers, which was mentioned just in Pashto.

The third issue of the Law is regarding the rules laid down for setting up a private university. It's mentioned that those who establish private universities, should have an Afghan citizenship and must be able to speak in one of the official languages. And regarding the forth issue, the Law states that university lecturers must be able to speak in two official languages. Among all the issues, the first one regarding the mentioning of the words Pohanton and Danishgah
(University) received maximum objections from the MPs.

Aryan Yoon, MP said, "All those who don't accept only one word of Pohenton (university), how can we accept all Dari words then how can democracy be realised."

Qazi Rahila Saleemi, MP said, "The word of Danishgah (university) is a Dari word and not an Iranian word, we have lots of words like Zaishgah (Maternity), Tafrigah (Recreation) and ....These words are not Iranian.The MPs are reacting for no reason."

A number of MPs requested to resend the Law to the Commission for its consultation.

A number of Parliamentarians believe that the words Pohanton and Danishgah (university) should be removed from this Law because it may create an opportunity for the enemies of the country to misuse it and the students may also face numerous problems.

Afghanistan's cultural and artistic opuses have been showcased at a three-day cultural festival in Turkey.

The organizers of the festival said that over 140 countries participated in the festival and showcased their culture and artistic works.

"We participated in the festival and displayed our artistic works. It was a great experience," an Afghan participant said.

The festival was inaugurated on 24th May, 2013 and will remain open for three days.

Afghanistan has been participating in this festival for the past 11 years.

"Afghanistan has been participating in this festival for 11 years and its cultural and artistic opuses are praised by all the visitors," Afghan-Turk School's Advisor in Afghanistan, Emaduddin Saraji said.

The visitors of the festival said that such festivals will benefit in strengthening cultural ties of the participating countries.

A visitor said, "Such festivals are a good way to learn about arts and culture. Because of such events we also get to know the similarities in the arts and culture of other nations."

The festival is organised every year in Turkey.

An explosion at a masjid in the Andar district of Ghazni province killed nine, which includes four Taliban on Friday. local officials said.

Mohammad Qasim Desiwal, District Governor of Andar said that the incident happened when a group of Taliban went to a masjid for prayers and blew themselves up.

This incident happened after 200 Taliban fighters assaulted a police convoy while they were getting back from their units in Shahrak district of Ghor province. Eight Taliban extremists including their commander Mullah Dastgeer were killed and three police personnel were injured.

Sayed Anwar Rahmati, Provincial Governor of Ghor said that this event took place on Friday in the Shahrak district. He confirmed that a local Taliban commander has also been killed.

Kabul once again witnessed a terror attack on Friday.

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Three huge explosions rocked the heart of Kabul city on Friday at 4 pm.

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Three huge explosions rocked the heart of Kabul city on Friday at 4 pm.

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A medical instrument that will be used in case the knee or elbow bone breaks has been invented by Dr. Mohammad Ismeal Wardak.

The invention has been registered in the American Inventions Book, which has over one million inventions in its records. But the American enterprise will give only three percent selling privilege for this invention.

The medical instrument is used in case of a breakage or wearing out of the bone in the elbow or knee. Presently, it is being used in most of the countries.

The inventor of the instrument said that Esmith and Refo American Corporation may produce this instrument on a large scale and make it available to the public.

Dr. Mohammad Ismael Wardak inventor of the medical instrument said, "Depending on the sales of the corporation two to three percent of the sales amount will be given to the inventor."

Meanwhile, a number of Afghan inventors criticised the Government and said that it doesn't support inventors and doesn't run any programme to encourage innovations.

Ghulam Sediq, an inventor said that he has invented more than 300 instruments for improving agriculture and cleaning of the cities but no agency has come forward to manufacture the instruments and make it available to the public.

He said, "I requested several times. The concerned authorities were even assured that this instrument is beneficial for the people but they failed to give any importance to my efforts. I had made an instrument for cleaning and washing flowers but the country's parks and flower growers are deprived of it."

Reza Jahangeer, Head of Intellectual Property in Afghanistan said, "Because of all the problems we have in Afghanistan, I don't think that Afghanistan should be held accountable for the support of the inventors."

However, a department does exist in the Ministry of Trade and Industry for registering intellectual properties. But so far no comprehensive law has been made on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR).

According to economic analysts, if attention is drawn towards inventions and their inventors, Afghanistan can become a giant producer of industrial products one day.

The medical instrument that will be used in case the knee or elbow bone breaks has been invented by Dr. Mohammad Ismeal Wardak.

The invention has been registered in the American Inventions Book, which has over one million inventions in its record. But the American enterprise will give only three percent selling privilege for this invention.

The medical nstrument is used in case of a breakage or wearing out of the bone in the elbow or knee. Presently, it is being used in most of the countries.

The inventor of the instrument said that Esmith and Refo American Corporation may produce this instrument on a large scale and make it available to the public.

Dr. Mohammad Ismael Wardak inventor of the Afghan Medical Instrument said, "Depeding on the sales of the corporation two to three percent of the number sales will be given to the inventor."

Meanwhile, a number of Afghani inventors criticised the Government and said that it doesn't support inventors and doesn't run any programme to encourage innovations.

Ghulam Sediq, an inventor said that he has invented more than 300 instruments for improving agriculture and cleaning of the cities but no agency has come forward to manufacture the instruments and make it available to the public.

He said, "I requested several times. The concerned authorities were even assured that this instrument is beneficial for the people but they failed to give any importance to my efforts. I had made an instrument for cleaning and washing flowers but the country's parks and flower growers are deprived of it."

Reza Jahangeer, Head of Intellectual Property in Afghanistan said, "Because of all the problems we have in Afghanistan, I don't think that Afghanistan should be held accountable for the support of the inventors."

However, a department does exist in the Ministry of Trade and Industry for registering intellectual properties. But so far no comprehensive law has been made on Intellectual Property Rights.

According to economic analysts if attention is drawn towards inventions and their inventors, Afghanistan become a giant producer industrial products one day.

Civil societies and the Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FEFA) on Thursday welcomed the approval of Election Law by the Afghan Lawmakers of the Lower House.

The Law was approved in the Lower House on Wednesday.

Even though the organizations called the approval of Electoral Law a positive step but feel that the organisations' and political parties'
demands have not been taken into not consideration.

It is said that one of the demands of these organisations was that 100 chairs should be given to the political parties but it was not accepted.

According to the law, seven elections will be held in Afghanistan.
Those elections are: the Presidential, Parliamentary, Provincial Council, District Council, Municipality, Municipality's Administrative Member's and Villages Council elections.

The Law specifies the conditions and dates for all elections.

Meanwhile, the suspension and delaying of the elections under certain emergency situations, which were offered by the Government, were not included in the law.

"We suggested that the nominees of Presidential and Parliamentary elections should at least hold a Bachelor's Degree and have some experience. But it was rejected by the Commission," the Chairman of Legislative Committee of Parliament, Qazi Nazir Ahmad Hanafi told TOLOnews.

The Election Law allocated 10 chairs for nomads and non-resident citizens in those provinces where they live.

According to the law, Electoral Complaints Commission is responsible to investigate frauds and deal with complaints.

"The next thing to be removed was the announcement of election results by the court. The Government suggested that the final results of election should be announced by the court, which we rejected," Qazi Nazir Ahmad Hanafi told TOLOnews.

But the Law has no clause mentioning that only literates can file nomination. This means that anybody whether literate or illiterate can contest in the Presidential elections.

"The Parliament received about five or six drafts. Government's draft, FEFA's drafts, the political parties' drafts and so on. The approved Law is an amalgamation of all these drafts," Member of Parliament, Mohammad Abdu said.

Apart from this, the Law states that one can nominate himself/herself provided they are not convicted for betraying the nation.

Moreover, the law says that two women from each province can join the Parliament even if they get fewer votes.

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President Karzai on Wednesday said that Afghanistan's neighbours are trying to split the country.

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A number of women activists in Herat province carried out demonstrations to support the Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW) Law.

The ladies emphasized that certain religious fundamentalists are trying to sacrifice the women for their ulterior motives under the pretext of Islamic Sharia law violations.

Several women support agencies labeled a number of MPs as the violators of women's rights and told that these individuals misuse of their authority in the Lower House.

Sharifa Shahab, a women activist said, "A number of women's rights violators don't want this law to be approved at any cost and so they are saying the law is in violation of Islam."

Maria Bashir, Chief Prosecutor, Herat Attorney General's Office said, "A number of individuals want to merge the issue of Islam and laws together but in reality the EVAW Law which has been signed by the President is not in violation of Islamic Sharia Law."

Gulsom Sidiqi, a women activist said, "Today's protest is aimed to support EVAW Law without bringing any change in it."

Meanwhile, an unknown gun-man opened fired at two women in Herat city and injured them on Wednesday afternoon.

The gun-men attacked in the Braman area of Herat city and police officials so far haven't been able to find any clue regarding the incident. The gun-men managed to escape from the scene.

Rahima, mother of one of the injured ladies said, "Yesterday two armed men assaulted my daughter while she was on her way home. She has been injured and we want justice."

Women activists emphasized that no matter how close 2014 gets the EVAW Law needs to be approved in order to protect the women from threats and increasing violence.

President Karzai on Wednesday said that Afghanistan's neighbours are trying to split the country.

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Baz Mohammad Johari, Deputy Minister of Defence said that for improving the security situation of the country and to thwart any aggression by external forces, some Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers have undergone training to fight combat missions.

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An 80-year-old Japanese climber reached the summit of Mount Everest on Thursday, becoming the oldest person to scale the world's highest mountain, his website and a Nepalese official said.

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