unclassified aguide to - wikileaks embassy kab.pdf · marriage documents ... passport. afghan...

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED

1SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED

A GUIDE TO

AFGHANDOCUMENTS

PUBLISHED BY:

THE FRAUD PREVENTION UNIT

U.S. EMBASSY KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

JUNE 2011



Table of Contents

Table of ContentsAn Introduction to Documents in Afghanistan ............................................................................................. 3

The Many Governments of Afghanistan – A Brief History............................................................................ 4

Tazkera: The Afghan National ID .................................................................................................................. 5

Daoudi Tazkera Exemplar ......................................................................................................................... 6

Communist Tazkera Exemplar .................................................................................................................. 7

Current Tazkera Exemplar......................................................................................................................... 8

Passports in Afghanistan............................................................................................................................... 9

Communist Passport Exemplar ............................................................................................................... 10

Taliban Passport Exemplar...................................................................................................................... 11

Current Passport Exemplar ..................................................................................................................... 12

Birth Certificates .........................................................................................................................................13

Birth Certificate Exemplars ..................................................................................................................... 14

Marriage Documents ..................................................................................................................................15

Marriage Certificate Exemplar ................................................................................................................ 16

Divorce Certificates.....................................................................................................................................17

School Documents ......................................................................................................................................18

School Transcript Exemplars................................................................................................................... 19

Police Certificates........................................................................................................................................ 20

Driver’s License ...........................................................................................................................................21

Driver’s License Exemplar ....................................................................................................................... 22

Bank Documents .........................................................................................................................................23

Bank Document Exemplars ..................................................................................................................... 24

Business Documents ...................................................................................................................................25

Business Registration Exemplars ............................................................................................................ 26

Titles & Land Documents ............................................................................................................................ 27



An Introduction to Documents in Afghanistan

Afghanistan has been torn apart by war for over thirty years. Many Afghans have been refugeesnumerous times in their life and the slow movement of development frequently gives way to corruptionand fraud. Identity is not a settled concept.

The culture of Afghanistan makes determining one’s identity difficult. Afghan naming conventions are aconcern in determining identity. It is not uncommon for Afghans to use different names for differentcircumstances. For example, an Afghan may be known by one name to family and friends, and anotherto his/her employer. Most Afghans identify themselves just by one name, and, occasionally, whatappears as a surname is either a father’s name or the last part of a long, single name that was brokenup. An Afghan man sometimes identifies himself by his first name and his father's first (or only) name.Sometimes, he chooses as his surname the name of his tribe, or his family's home region, or simply aword whose definition is a positive characteristic. It is not uncommon for an Afghan to invent asurname, often based on a word with characteristics the individual likes (such as excellence, religiousconnotations, etc.). Women before marriage follow the same naming practices. After marriage, awoman either replaces her last name (if she has one) with her husband's, or adds it after her originalsurname (if she had one), or does not take a surname at all. During the regime just before thecommunists took over (President Daoud's regime), it was illegal for Afghans to use their tribal name as asurname. When the communists took over (1978), many Afghans who wanted to use this affiliationreturned to it.

Most, if not all, Afghan documents are ripe for fraud. They remain handwritten, usually unsealed andquite commonly do not contain true information. For example, most places of birth on any national iddocument or passport are the father’s place of birth, not the actual person’s place of birth, whichsometimes may not have even been in Afghanistan. Most Afghans born before the late 1990’s do nothave a day of birth, only a year, and many will tell you that is simply an estimate. Although donorcountries continue to work with the Afghan government to improve their standard of documents, nomajor changes have been made since President Karzai came to power in 2001.

The most common Afghan identity document inside Afghanistan is the national id, or tazkera. Tazkerasare issued by local police stations. It is usually applied for when a child reaches school age but can alsobe obtained and/or modified throughout adulthood. Even if it is not obtained or modified fraudulentlythe tazkera is an unreliable identity document. Biometric information is limited to vague physicaldescription and it may not even include a photo. Biographic information is even more opaque. The dateof birth is usually a mere estimate and the place of birth is based on tribal origin, not the actual locationof birth.

The most common Afghan document that one is likely to see outside of Afghanistan is the Afghanpassport. Afghan passports lack lamination on the biodata page, which is handwritten, and can be easilyaltered with a pen. The photo page is overlaid with a simple laminate. When a legitimate change is madeto a passport there will be an official Ministry of Interior stamp on a page of the passport, sometimeswith a handwritten note relating the change to name or date of birth. While the Ministry of Interiorissues regular, student and trade passports, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issues official and diplomaticpassports. Frequently, official and diplomatic passports are issued to Afghans who are not governmentemployees.



The Many Governments of Afghanistan – A Brief History

1919 1933Pre Zahir Shah Era

August 19, 1919 – Afghanistan regains control of country from the British fromthe Treaty of Rawalpindi; led by King Amanullah Khan.

1923 – The first legally approved Afghan Constitution establishedJanuary 1929 – King Amanullah Khan was forced to leave the country by rebelsled by Habibullah Kalakani, who disagreed with Khan’s plan to modernize the

countryOctober 1929 – Khan’s cousin, Prince Mohammed Nadir Shah kills Habibullah

Kalakani and takes the throne as King Nadir Shah

1933 – 1973Reign of Zahir Shah

1933 – King Nadir Shah is assassinated; his son, Mohammad Zahir Shah takesover throne

1973 – 1978Reign of Daoud

Khan

1973 – While King Zahir Shah was on a diplomatic trip out of the country, hisbrother in law and Prime Minister, Daoud Khan, led a bloodless coup and took

over as Afghanistan’s First “President”

1978 1992Communist Regime

April 1978 – The People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan (Communist Party)accuses Daoud Khan’s government of killing one of their prominent members;they in turn assassinate him and his family. Communist leader Nur Mohammad

Takhari is named PresidentDecember 24 – 1979 – The Soviet Union invades Afghanistan to potentiallybolster support for the Communist government, which had been in the

crosshairs of U.S. funded “mujahedeen” fighters as part of the U.S.’ Cold Warstrategy

1989 – The Soviets withdraw from Afghanistan but continue to support theCommunist party through then President Mohammad Najibullah

1992 – 1996Civil War

March 1992 1996 After the collapse of the USSR and ongoing domesticturmoil, foreign interference leads to ongoing civil war and the growth of the

Taliban in the southern part of the country, led by Mullah Omar

1996 – 2001Taliban Regime

September 1996 2001 – the Taliban takes over Kabul; remain in power(although only recognized by a handful of countries) Fighting continues for

control of the northern part of the country, under the leadership of Ahmad ShahMassoud. Women are denied basic rights, including education.

2001 – NowKarzai Government

2001 – U.S. forces invade and topple the Taliban government, forcing remainingmembers into hiding in the Afghanistan Pakistan border, President Hamid

Karzai is put in power, he was re elected in 2009 for an additional 5 year term



Tazkera: The Afghan National ID


After Daoud Khan took power, he instituted a nationwide tazkera program, asdescribed below. All Afghans were forced to get a new tazkera, so those issued

during this period would not be considered valid.1933 – 1973Reign of Zahir Shah

1973 – 1978Reign of Daoud

Khan

The "Daoudi tazkera" was issued under the regime of President Daoud in the 1970's. This document is constructed of a slightly thicker cover of white paper and internal pages of a very flimsy, bad quality paper. The first page has the

seal of Afghanistan and some verbiage in Pashto. The entire document is printed in Pashto, however the entries that the clerk has handwritten are usually

in Dari (Afghan Farsi). The serial number of the Daoudi tazkera is on the last page of the booklet.


The Communist tazkera was issued from 1978 until 1990 or 1991. The outside of the booklet is made of thick, orange paper and the inside pages are white and fairly thin. The stamps in the document will say either "Democratic Republic of

Afghanistan" or "Republic of Afghanistan." The serial number of the Communist Tazkera is on the first page of the booklet. The third page of the booklet has basic biographical information, such as name, gender, estimated birth date,

father and grandfather's names, place of birth, and marital status. The handwritten information on the seventh page includes the location of the record

in the official record books of the government


Were issued during the period but are no longer considered valid and are notaccepted.


Were issued during the period but are no longer considered valid and are notaccepted.


The application for the current tazkera consists of a written statement from thefather, grandfather or uncle of the applicant as well as a copy of that familymember's own tazkera. If the applicant is an adult he will write his own

statement and include a copy of a male family member's tazkera. On the backof the application two government employed witnesses must certify that theapplicant is indeed who he claims to be and that he doesn't have a criminal

background. Usually these witnesses will stamp both their statement and theapplicant's photo on the front. The newly created tazkera is registered in thesame book and pages as the family member who submitted their own tazkera.

The recent (current) tazkera has a serial number stamped at the top of the seal.Province, county and district of the applicant are all handwritten on thetazkera. As with the previous tazkeras, the printing is in Pashto and the

handwriting is in Dari. It is important to note that the "village" listed on thetazkera is not necessarily the place of birth of the applicant because it is

generally taken from the tazkera of the father or grandfather. In the bottom,left corner of the tazkera is the listing of the page, row and book number inwhich the record is located in the official record books of the government.



DaoudiTazkeraExemplar



CommunistTazkeraExemplar



CurrentTazkeraExemplar



Passports in Afghanistan


Were not issued

1933 – 1973Reign of Zahir Shah

Not in circulation

1973 – 1978Reign of Daoud Khan

Not in circulation


There are two kinds of Afghan passports currently in circulation. The first kindof passport was printed in Russia or Eastern Europe and first came intocirculation in Afghanistan during the Communist regime. These passportswere used through the Taliban regime (1996 2001) and even into the currentadministration of President Karzai. In all Afghan passports the passportnumber is punched through the pages.

Passport numbers for Diplomatic passports start with 'D', Service passportswith 'SE', Student passports with 'ST', Trade passports with “TR”, and Regularpassports with 'OR’ or ‘OA’.

Toward the end of 2005 (approximately) the government began issuingpassports printed in London. These new passports, of which copies are alsoincluded below, are virtually identical to the previous batch of passports, savefor the fact that the serial number is now printed on page 48.

The format and paper quality of the Communist passport is the same as thecurrent passport. Only the signatures on the passport and the stamps aredifferent than on the current passport. Communist passports were only validfor one year unless extended officially. Business passports under theCommunist regime were valid for three years.

Passports issued during the Taliban regime had certain very strict guidelines.Men were required to have a long, natural beard and head covering in thephoto. Women were generally not issued passports within Afghanistan, but ifa Consulate abroad issued a woman a passport the applicant was required tocover her entire head except for the face. As the Taliban government was notrecognized by most other countries, the Taliban issued passport remainsinvalid for travel.

Currently, the Afghan government is “phasing out” the use of student andtrade passports to narrow all travel down to regular, official or diplomatic, butall of these kinds of passports are still in use in the general population.

Security Features: Watermark on passport visa pages will glow under blacklight. There are no black light security features on the biodata page.






CommunistPassportExemplar



TalibanPassportExemplar



CurrentPassportExemplar



Birth Certificates

Birth certificates in Afghanistan are rare. More recently, hospitals may issue them but the tazkera will bethe primary source of identification. Each hospital has its own style of certificate; there is no standardbirth certificate issued in Afghanistan. The largest maternity hospital in Kabul is Malalai MaternityHospital.



BirthCertificateExemplars



Marriage Documents

Marriage documents barely exist in Afghanistan. Arranged marriages are the norm, usually withindividuals marrying another family member, such as a close cousin. The bride and groom get engaged(“namzad”) which typically lasts for 6 months. The wedding ceremony, called the “nekah” is strictlyreligious in nature and is typically performed by the local religious leader. To register a marriage, oneneeds to register with the family court. The vast majority of Afghans do not register their marriages withthe government because the religious ceremony is considered sufficient for day to day activities. It isnot unusual for the bride and groom never to have seen each other before the wedding itself. In someregions of Afghanistan, polygamy is culturally accepted. When a couple weds, the bride and groommove into the home of the groom’s family.

Recently issued marriage certificates are green or white in color and will be folded into a booklet. It willhave the photos of the witnesses and information on the bride and groom, including the father’s andgrandfather’s name, tazkera numbers, photos and attorney information, if available.

For Afghans who wish to register their marriages long after the ceremony, they can do so by going to the“Document Court” to receive an affidavit of marriage, which is a legal document issued in the locallanguage on white paper in the portrait orientation with a stamp of the court.



MarriageCertificateExemplar



Divorce Certificates

Divorce is extremely rare, and is judged harshly in the culture. Usually, only a man is allowed to divorcehis wife. Under Sharia law, a man can say three times that he wants a divorce, and he is considereddivorced. The man may remarry immediately, however the woman must wait three months to makesure she is not pregnant. A woman can divorce her husband if he is impotent, cannot provide for her, ormore recently, if he abuses her. To be able to divorce for abuse, however, the woman must report it tothe police and go to a women’s shelter. She cannot return to her family; she will be arrested as she didnot get her husband’s permission to visit them. Given that so few marriages are registered, there areeven fewer divorces. The stigma is so strong, however, particularly in the conservative regions, thatmost will remain married, no matter how difficult, to avoid it. If a couple does divorce, they can obtain adivorce affidavit from the Document Court. Similar to a marriage affidavit, it will be a legal documentissued in the local language on white paper in the portrait orientation with a stamp of the court.



School Documents

The educational system in Afghanistan differs markedly by region and by economic class. Hundreds ofschools remain closed throughout the country due to security threats from the Taliban.

Recent school transcripts are usually two sided, one side in the local language and one in English. Therewill almost always be a photo of the student on the transcript. Scores are out of 100 but are set on aheavy curve. Between 1995 2001, under the Taliban, millions of Afghans fled the country to Pakistanand Iran. Some enrolled in local schools and many were “self taught” in refugee camps. For those whostayed, girls were forbidden from attending school during the period. Be highly suspicious of any femaleshowing a record of attending any school under the Taliban.

Although the majority of Afghans are illiterate, the majority are also bilingual or trilingual. Most canspeak the Dari (Persian) language, though another language, such as Pashto or Uzbeki may be theirnative tongue. English is gradually being taught in upper class schools, though most young peoplelearned their English during their time as a refugee in Pakistan.

All high school transcripts now go through the Ministry of Education, not through the schoolsthemselves. The transcripts are in the landscape orientation on one side and will contain a photo of thestudent and the student’s information written in Dari, Pashto and English. They are stamped with theMinistry of Education seal. The other side is in portrait orientation and will list the courses taken ingrades 10 12. It will be signed by both the Secondary Education President and the School Principal.

In high school, junior and senior year students take an exam to determine which subjects they shouldstudy in college. If they do not score high enough, they will not be accepted into a university.

The top universities in Afghanistan are:

Kabul University (Kabul)

Kabul Medical University (Kabul)

Kabul Polytechnic University (Kabul)

American University (Kabul)

Balkh University (Kabul)

Nangarhar University (Jalalabad – well known for its medical programs)

Herat University (Herat)

Kardan Higher Education Institute (Kabul)

Bakhtar Higher Education Institute (Kabul)



SchoolTranscriptExemplars



Police Certificates

Police certificates are, for the most part, completely unavailable. Some recent records may be available,but question the authenticity as corruption remains a major problem. If issued, the certificate wouldhave a stamp from the city’s police station, written in the local language on white paper. AfghanEmbassies and missions abroad apparently provide a “police certificates.” However, as these are issuedabroad, the authenticity is unclear.



Driver’s License

Getting a driver’s license in Afghanistan is similar to most other countries. One must be at least 18 yearsold to apply. Both men and women can obtain licenses. To obtain a license, Afghans take a 15 daycourse, and pass both a written and driving exam. They pay a license fee and take an eye exam.

The driver’s license itself is a three page booklet made out of blue paper with the words “Permis deConduire” on the front. The license is national, so a licensed issued in Mazar e Sharif will look identicalto a license issued in Kabul. The first page will have identifying features such as photo, name, father’sname, tazkera number, date of birth and blood type. It is unsealed. The second page consists of fivevehicle classes for the license; a check will be next to each class of vehicle that the person is allowed todrive. The third page is a “checker board” type card for violations.

In certain circumstances, a driver’s license can be proof of identification but usually only as a secondarysource to the tazkera itself.



Driver’sLicenseExemplar



Bank Documents

In the past decade, Afghanistan has become more reliant on banks. Many Afghans still prefer to keeptheir money in their homes or businesses, particularly in rural areas, where they may not have anotherchoice. Bank statements are readily available and Afghans can open accounts in the local currency(Afghani) or in another currency, such as U.S. dollars or Euros. Contractors and importers/exportersmake up a large portion of the Afghan economy and any bank statements from these professions willshow large ebbs and flows. Bank statements will always be computer generated and contain an officialstamp from the bank. A letter from the bank is common, explaining how long the individual in questionhas had an account and if it has remained in good standing. ATM cards are rare, but membership cardsare provided to all account holders.

The largest banks in Afghanistan are:

Afghanistan International Bank (AIB)

Kabul Bank (currently facing financial difficulties, many Afghans have pulled their money from it)

Azizi Bank

Afghanistan Bank (Afghanistan’s Federal Bank)

Al Fala Bank

Maiwan Bank

Ghazanfar Bank

Pashtonay Bank

Standard Chartered Bank

Bank e Mile



BankDocumentExemplars



Business Documents

There are many small businesses in Afghanistan, and many are related to the war, e.g. importingsupplies, construction, and logistics. Many businesses are informal and are not registered. In the pastfew years, the Afghan Ministry of Commerce has encouraged registration of all businesses. Theregistration is printed on a plain white sheet of paper with a landscape orientation, will be stamped, andwill have a photo of the owner and any partners. They are typically two sided, one in the local languageand the other in English. They are typically laminated. There will be a number that corresponds to aregistration, so these documents can be confirmed with the Ministry. However, there is no record ofwhether the company goes out of business or changes its name, partners, etc.



BusinessRegistrationExemplars



Titles & Land Documents

Land documents are almost always in a man’s name. The document will be portrait oriented and willtypically be in the local language, describing the location, square feet and number of bedrooms of theproperty. Translations, however, are readily available. As mentioned earlier, when a man marries, heand his wife move into his parents’ home. They will stay there until the parents pass away and the titlewill be transferred to the son. A small percentage of Afghans move out of their parents’ homes prior tothis. Land documents are similar to the marriage and divorce affidavits – a court statement issued onwhite paper in the local language.