Kandahar governor faults UN report

KANDAHAR CITY (PAN (UNAMA) report on prisoner torture.

UNAMA released a report on Dec 20, saying that more than 50 percent of the 635 detainees it interviewed from October 2011 to October 2012 complained of torture and suffering.

But Governor Weesa told journalists the report was based on wrong information. During his four-year tenure, he said, there had been no private jail in the province.

As for the Kandahar central jail, the governor said, he had received no report regarding detainee abuse so far.

UNAMA representatives participated in weekly security meetings at the governor’s house, Weesa said. But they never voiced their concerns on the issue, he continued.

Weesa asked the UN mission to specify the time and location of the detention centres where inmates were subjected to torture.

While preparing such documents, the governor suggested, UNAMA should consult its regional staff. Even the mission could directly contact provincial government officials, he concluded.

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