A group of journalists on Sunday criticized Afghanistan’s Supreme Court for not providing them essential information for their stories on certain cases, which, according to them, are important for the public to be aware of. 

The journalists said there are many cases that have been referred to the Supreme Court by the Attorney General’s Office over the past few years but the judicial body has “refused to comment on them” when it was asked to provide information to reporters. 

Among the cases cited is the former football chief Keramuddin Karim’s file, and the case of Tamim Shansab, the former head of a security company, whose guards fought against security forces in Kabul when their house was surrounded last year, and also the case of the transfer of funds from the government-owned central bank to the Ministry of Finance.

“We have faced problems while asking for information from the Supreme Court. I contacted its spokesman many times but I could not get information,” said Raza Shaheer, a journalist.

“They are not addressing all the journalists’ demands and reporters have faced problems in this regard,” said Mirwais Salamzai, a journalist. 

But a formal letter by the Supreme Court to the Oversight Commission on Access to Information on June 25 last year shows that the Supreme Court’s high council has stressed the importance of access to information by all courts in the country.

“The Supreme Court approved a resolution that it should publish information and provide it to the people, as well as send it to Afghanistan’s courts so that they should also share them with the people,” said Ainuddin Bahaduri, head of the Oversight Commission on Access to Information. 

The Supreme Court, however, did not comment on this report.