Chapter 7 Witness Protection

Witnesses That Will Receive Protective Measures
Article 54:

The prosecutor’s office and the court shall protect the following witnesses:

1– A witness or a relative of a witness whose security is at risk due to threat, menace or any other similar action.

2– A witness that has suffered serious physical or psychological trauma as a result of the crime.

3– A witness who suffers from serious psychological conditions. 4– A child witness.

5- The security forces are required to protect the witnesses mentioned in the above paragraphs based on permission of prosecution office and court until the removal of danger.

Chapter 7 Witness Protection

Application for Protective Measures for Witnesses
Article 55:

The witnesses set forth in article 54 of this law may request protective measures to be taken during the investigation and trial process from the prosecutor’s office and the court respectively.

The application shall be submitted to the prosecution office and court in a sealed envelope. Both the prosecutor’s office and court shall review the application and make a decision in their relevant areas. Disclosure of this information to others is forbidden.

Chapter 3 Legal Cooperation

Article Thirty Nine

Safety of the witness and expert

(1) Witnesses and experts who, based on the request for legal cooperation of the Afghan judicial entities, show up [for legal cooperation] shall not be subject to prosecution or detention for crimes previously committed inside the Afghan territory.

(2) Judicial authorities of Afghanistan commit to safety of the witnesses and experts under paragraph 1 of this Article. This safety [rule] shall be valid until 30 days after the date when a notice is issued stating that the witnesses and experts are no longer needed [for cooperation]. Circumstances outside their will shall be exception to this rule.