A/RES/57/234 (d) Should facilitate the urgent delivery of humanitarian assistance and the voluntary and orderly return, in safety and dignity, of refugees and internally displaced persons, (e) Should promote democracy and the holding of free elections, Recognizing that the accountability of perpetrators of grave human rights violations, and their accomplices, is one of the central elements of any effective remedy for victims of human rights violations, and recognizing also that a fair and effective national justice system is a key factor in ensuring the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms and, ultimately, reconciliation and stability within a State, Commending the activity of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan and the staff of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, Stressing the importance of ensuring the full and effective participation of women in all decision-making processes regarding the future of Afghanistan, Stressing also the importance of the economic reconstruction and development process and the need to ensure that it is accomplished in a coordinated and non-discriminatory manner, in a context of full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, 1. Welcomes the interim report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan,16 and endorses the recommendations contained therein; 2. Also welcomes the decision of the Transitional Authority to establish the Constitutional Commission to undertake, with the assistance of the United Nations, the task of drafting a new Constitution, which will reflect, inter alia, the commitment of Afghanistan to promote and protect human rights pursuant to its obligations under the international human rights instruments; 3. Warmly welcomes the establishment of the Independent Human Rights Commission, which has the primary responsibility for advising on the promotion and protection of human rights and developing a national programme for the implementation of the relevant section of the Agreement on Provisional Arrangements in Afghanistan Pending the Re-establishment of Permanent Government Institutions (the Bonn Agreement); 4. Invites the relevant bodies of the United Nations, in particular the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, within the framework of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan: (a) To assist in the full implementation of the human rights provisions of the Bonn Agreement and the National Human Rights Programme for Afghanistan, including through the establishment of an active human rights component in Afghanistan; (b) To contribute to the work of the recently established Independent Human Rights Commission, the responsibilities of which include the promotion of international human rights standards, human rights monitoring, the investigation of violations of human rights and the development of domestic human rights institutions that have dedicated personnel and operative plans; _______________ 16 See A/57/309. 3

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