hans grüber

Afghanistan forced to admit secret execution
By Justin Huggler Asia Correspondent
28 April 2004
Afghanistan has carried out its first execution since the overthrow of the
Taliban, it emerged yesterday. Abdullah Shah, a former bandit, was last week
killed with a single bullet to the back of the head at a prison just east of
Kabul.

The US-backed government of President Hamid Karzai only admitted the
secretive execution after pressure from the human rights group Amnesty
International. President Karzai signed the death warrant.

Shah had a reputation in Afghanistan as a brutal and callous killer. During
the civil war of 1992 to 1996 he was known as "Zardad's dog", after his
commander. It was said that he set upon and savaged travellers like a dog on
the road between Kabul and Jalalabad. In 2002, an Afghan court found Shah
guilty of 20 counts of murder, including the killing of his baby daughter
and one of his wives.

But Amnesty said yesterday it feared Shah's execution "may have been an
attempt by powerful political players to eliminate a key witness to human
rights abuses". The organisation says Afghanistan's judicial system is
"currently incapable of fulfilling even the most basic standards for fair
trials". The execution was carried out despite a warning from a United
Nations representative that Afghanistan's judicial system could not meet
international safeguards.

Asma Jahangir, special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary
executions, who attended Shah's trial in 2002, called for a moratorium on
capital punishment in Afghanistan until the country's judicial system could
be brought up to international standards.

Under the Taliban, Afghan-istan carried out hundreds of executions, many of
them in public before vast crowds.

But Shah's execution was carried out secretly at Pul-e Charki jail on 19 or
20 April. Although the Afghan attorney-general's office said the execution
took place in front of witnesses, the government did not admit to the
killing until it was revealed in a protest e-mail by Amnesty yesterday.

Amnesty charged that Shah was not allowed defence counsel at his trial, and
was not given the opportunity to question witnesses. It said he was denied a
public hearing, and that he was kept in leg irons before a "special court"
which heard his case behind closed doors.

Shah claimed in court that he was forced to sign a confession, and tortured.
He allegedly displayed injuries to his teeth and hands, but his claims of
torture were never investigated.

Mr Karzai's office insisted yesterday that the Afghan President had signed
the death warrant reluctantly. A spokesman for Mr Karzai said he had ordered
a review of the case and delayed implementation of the death sentence.

Amnesty alleged yesterday that during his detention, Shah gave evidence
against regional commanders "implicated in serious crimes" against whom no
charges have been brought.

Meanwhile, suspected Taliban members attacked a government office and a
local charity in Panjwayi, in Kandahar province, in southern Afghanistan
yesterday, killing a soldier and two humanitarian workers. Local police
opened fire, killing two of the attackers.

It is the latest in a series of attacks, believed to have been staged by the
resurgent Taliban, that have raised concerns ahead of Afghan elections
scheduled for September


--
MACHIAVELLIAN OBSOLESCENCE

There are essentially two forms of obsolescence: Fashion and Mechanical.
Fashion obsolescence comes from things appearing outdated: the necktie is
too wide or narrow; the dress too long or short. Fashion obsolescence is
driven psychologically by peer review. Mechanical obsolescence, also
referred to as functional obsolescence, is caused by things wearing out to
the extent that they can no longer function in the required manner.
Functional obsolescence also applies to old technology being superceded by
the imperatives of the new.

Machiavellian obsolescence is a form of fashion obsolescence. It is a
stratagem by which technologically superior military powers retain hegemonic
domination over inferior powers by condemning (often on "moral" grounds),
the use of tactics or weapons that are easy to manufacture, by declaring
them to be horrific, uncivilized, barbaric, etc. Machiavellian obsolescence
is very self serving to the "peers." hegemonic opportunism; imperialism in
hypocritical overdrive; sophistry played on the world stage; fashion
propaganda

EXAMPLES: (A) Countries with nuclear bombs have summarily declared the use
of poison gas in warfare to be illegal.
NOTE: The use of nuclear bombs is obviously far more ghastly and appalling
than the use of poison gas due to the extremely long toxic life of nuclear
radiation as well as the enormous physical destruction caused thereby.

(B) Some technologically advanced countries use almost depleted (of
radioactivity) uranium in the bullets of their larger bore field
pieces-especially in tank cannon. The use of uranium-which has almost twice
the specific gravity of lead-causes the bullets' trajectory to be flatter,
and concentrates a greater mass on a smaller impact point which increases
its armor piercing capabilities-especially into other tanks. This is most
reprehensible: When the bullets break up on impact, radioactive material is
strewn about which contaminates the soil, and kills innocent people for
thousands of years (semi-eternal terrorism). The slight advantage gained in
ballistics, is more than offset by the extraordinary damage done to the
environment. This practice is truly criminal. See: HUMANITARIAN; EVIL

(C) Advanced countries have declared land-mines to be unfit for war because
they continue to kill people when the conflict is over. Compare A and B
above.
NOTE: Land-mines could readily be built with an internal spring that would
pop open the mine upon the deterioration of an outer rubber band. This would
expose the explosive to the elements (or a neutralizing chemical) and render
it, in time, inoperable.

(D) Suicide bombing and assassinations of civilians may be defined as acts
of terror and are invariably characterized as immoral by the target nation.
Countries without an adequate military will resort to using any tactic or