PESHAWAR: The Afghan Taliban have decided to temporary implement the almost 60 year old constitution of former king Zahir Shah’s era in Afghanistan.
Justice Minister Mawlavi Abdul Hakim Sharie has said that the constitution of former King Zahir will be temporarily implemented in the Islamic Emirate. The Taliban’s justice ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that the minister said this in a meeting with Chinese ambassador Wang Yu.
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In the meeting, the Minister of Justice said that the provision against shariah and principles against the Islamic Emirate will be expunged from the constitution. The Afghan news agency Khaama Press reported that Zahir Shah’s constitution was also enacted in the first years of former President Hamid Karzai’s rule.
Last month, Taliban spokesman Sohail Shaheen said there is need for new constitution for an independent Afghanistan that will also protect the rights of all. The Taliban had said they would implement a new constitution in accordance with Sharia law. Afghanistan’s current constitution was drafted in January 2004 after tiresome efforts by Afghan politicians and elders to create consensus through jirgas across the country. Afghans believe that the current constitution is in line with Islamic principles.
Earlier, one of the Taliban senior leaders, Mullah Nooruddin Turabi, said that the group would enforce punishments including hand imputation and execution in Afghanistan ‘according to the Islamic law.’ Turabi was the leader of “propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice” under the previous Taliban regime from 1996 to 2001 and enforced some of very strict Islamic laws. Turabi is of the view that those laws are still enforceable to maintain security.
Turabi said that there will be judges, including women judges, and cases would be heard, but the basis of Afghan law would be the Qur’an, and punishments would be granted accordingly. “Hand-cutting is essential for security and implementing laws.” He claimed that it has impacts and the cabinet will make policy whether to make the punishments public or not.