Expelled female legislator seeks reinstatement in Afghan parliament

Expelled from the Afghan parliament in May 2007 for insulting fellow legislators, Malalai Joya has told reporters that she is ready to take her expulsion to court and be reinstated to her elected position, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported Monday.

Joya claims that the delay in her appeal was the result of security issues and the struggle to find a lawyer she could afford for what will be an uphill battle. But now that her counsel has been secured, she says she is ready to take her case all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary.

It was in a television interview given in 2007 that Joya compared her fellow legislators to animals, and accused them of punishable war crimes. Before their appointment to the legislative body, many of the members of parliament were warlords with histories of violent acts during the last several turbulent decades. Joya’s comments came in the wake of a March 2007 bill that had given the warlords immunity from war crime accusations.

To date, she has not apologized for her remarks, and is now more outspoken then ever.

“Instead of getting influential positions in the government and dominating parliament, the former warlords should be tried and punished for their actions,” Joya has said.

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