Nichols House Museum Lecture: The Long Struggle for Human Rights in Afghanistan: Human Rights and the Conflict 1978 - 2011

Rose Standish Nichols’ subtle contribution to peace activism was to hold Sunday afternoon discussion circles, which would coax the guests into lively debate on international affairs. In this spirit of promoting discussion on world events, the Nichols House Museum has invited Michael Semple to present a lecture on human rights in Afghanistan.

Michael Semple will draw upon his own direct experience and observations from the different stages of the conflict to tell the story of human rights in Afghanistan. These experiences include his encounters with many of the Afghan key actors as well as his participation in some of the significant human rights investigations such as the investigation into the January 2001 massacre of Hazaras in Yakaolang. Semple will also draw upon the valuable documentation which has been done by researchers working for the Afghan Human Rights Commission as they have sought to catalogue all major human rights violations in the conflict. Semple will discuss why Afghanistan was so vulnerable to conflict in 1978, the hopes for reform during the American occupation, and what the prospects are for Afghan human rights beyond 2014.

Michael Semple is the Anna Lindh Research Fellow at Harvard's Kennedy School Carr Center for Human Rights Policy and a leading expert on the Taliban, the Pashtun tribes, and Afghan politics. His experience as development worker, political officer and conflict negotiator give him an unparalleled network into most elements of Afghan and Pakistani society.  He is recognized internationally as a key proponent of political approaches to dealing with the conflict in Afghanistan, and he is a regular commentator on CNN.