R 171421Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 9545
INFO AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS KABUL 001558 
 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/A 
STATE PASS TO AID FOR ASIA/SCAA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV SOCI KCOR KJUS AF
 
SUBJECT: SUPREME COURT CONTINUES TO BACK KARZAI ON MEDIA LAW 
DESPITE SHAKY LEGAL GROUNDS 
 
¶1. SUMMARY: The Ambassador met with Afghan Chief Justice Azimi 
on June 7. Azimi stated that President Karzai had the 
authority to request judicial review of a portion of the Media 
Law after his veto was overridden, despite there being no 
obvious legal precedent.  Azimi reaffirmed his commitment to 
reducing corruption, but complained that delayed assistance 
and lack of security is hampering the CourtQs development. 
The Ambassador stated that difficulties in donor assistance, 
while certainly a concern, are no excuse for failing to meet 
the Afghan publicQs expectations of a functioning justice 
system, and that continuing corruption might negatively affect 
the U.S. publicQs ongoing support for the U.S. Afghan effort. 
END SUMMARY 
 
¶2. The Ambassador paid his initial courtesy call on June 7, 
2009, to Abdul Salam Azimi, Chief Justice of AfghanistanQs 
Supreme Court. Azimi opened by saying that he had seen the 
Ambassador on Afghan television the night before talking about 
peace, prosperity and justice during one of his provincial 
visits, and the Ambassador assured him that he would be 
emphasizing this message on more occasions. 
 
¶3. The Ambassador inquired about the Media Law and the CourtQs 
recent opinion supporting KarzaiQs rejection of the provision 
in the law that would require Parliamentary approval of the 
RTA Director.  Even though Parliament passed the law over 
KarzaiQs initial veto by a 2/3 majority, Azimi said that 
Karzai had the right to ask the Court to review the 
constitutionality of that provision under Article 121 of the 
Constitution. According to Azimi, the Ministry of Justice must 
now either gazette the law in accordance with the CourtQs 
opinion or re-draft the law from the beginning. The Ambassador 
said Parliament might demand another chance to review and 
consider the matter, but Azimi said that it was not clear what 
Parliament could do because there is no protocol for this 
circumstance. 
 
¶4. NOTE: Parliament does not accept the power of the Court to 
do such constitutional interpretations. Instead, Parliament 
has voted to give that power to the Independent Commission 
referenced in Article 157 of the Constitution. Karzai has 
refused to appoint the members of that Commission, whose 
approval by the Parliament is specifically required in Article 
¶157.  END NOTE 
 
¶5. On corruption, Azimi asserted that the Court has been 
active on anti-corruption issues, noting that 86 judges have 
been dismissed for corruption since he assumed office. Azimi 
said that salaries are also improving, but are still too low, 
and that a new law on judicial salaries is languishing in 
Parliament. The Ambassador stated that the Government of 
Afghanistan must improve its efforts to fight corruption. He 
expressed concern that rampant corruption and a lack of 
accountability could erode U.S. public support for the Afghan 
effort over the long term. 
 
¶7. On judicial security, Azimi said that the lack of security 
remains a critical problem, and that eleven judges were killed 
in the last year. He said that the Court appealed to the MOI 
for assistance, but without results thus far. A related 
problem, Azimi said, is transportation: most judges have no 
vehicles and are therefore easy targets while walking to and 
from their jobs. Azimi complained that Japan was moving too 
slowly in starting construction on a new Supreme Court 
headquarters building, and he expressed frustration at the 
pace of implementation of the World BankQs management of the 
ARTF-funded portion of the National Justice Program (NJP). 
Azimi complained that most justice sector expenditures are 
still coming from the Afghans and not from donors. 
 
¶8. The Ambassador noted that there were many more serious 
problems in the justice sector than the creation of a new 
headquarters.  He said that the justice sector had received 
too little attention in the past, and that the USG was going 
to increase its efforts in this sector, especially in the 
south and east. However, the Ambassador stressed, there is a 
failure on the GIRoAQs part to meet the publicQs expectations 
for justice. While acknowledging that the justice sector has 
suffered for too long with inadequate resources, he said that 
meeting those expectations is more important than getting new 
buildings. 
 
¶9. As one means of meeting the publicQs expectation for 
justice, as well as reducing corruption, the Ambassador 
encouraged the use of new computer technology. He said that an 
extensive architecture was unnecessary, and that basic 
internet usage and more public access are cost effective ways 
to reduce corruption by increasing transparency and 
simplifying administrative procedures otherwise vulnerable to 
bribery and extortion. Azimi said that the Court now has 
internet connectivity with its offices in Mazar, Kunduz and 
Jalalabad, and he hopes to extend connectivity to the regional 
centers and then to all provinces. 
 
EIKENBERRY