A/HRC/13/62 a space for civil society to demand justice for egregious human rights violations. In addition, UNAMA, jointly with the TJCG, facilitated a three-day workshop in October 2009 to equip civil society with advocacy skills related to the promotion of human rights and justice. Many representatives expressed frustration with the lack of political support, both national and international, for the Action Plan, recommending its urgent revision to reinvigorate its agenda, with particular emphasis on specific key actions, such as vetting and justice reform, to reinforce the rule of law. 32. UNAMA supported the setting up of victims’ groups, in particular the establishment of the Yakawlang Association of Victims in the central highlands, and provided technical support to broaden understanding of transitional justice processes. 33. The issue of securing mass graves was an important focus of the work of UNAMA during 2009. The AIHRC has registered more than 200 alleged mass graves in various regions of the country. Yet there is no effective system in place to secure these sites once uncovered, and official institutions mandated to protect and investigate them have not taken decisive action to date. UNAMA has endeavoured to promote mechanisms to fill this vacuum. As part of the follow-up to a memorandum of understanding signed in 2007 between UNAMA and the Ministry of Interior (MoI) and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the MoI, training was provided to strengthen the forensic capacity of a select number of officers assigned to the CID. 34. Numerous challenges constrain the protection of mass graves but in April 2009, financed and supported by OHCHR, UNAMA facilitated a mission by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) to conduct a preliminary assessment of a grave uncovered at the MoI compound. Subsequent to this experience, a project aimed at enhancing para-forensic capacity in Afghanistan, entitled “Securing Afghanistan’s Past: a Forensic Program to Enhance Transitional Justice and Promote Dialogue” was submitted to the United States Department of State and approved in October 2009. 35. Mass graves in Afghanistan remain at high risk of destruction. In 2009, of the four mass graves uncovered in the provinces of Bamyan, Kunduz and Kabul, three had been tampered with. In some cases, the victims’ families exhumed the remains of presumed relatives without any official oversight or control. In others, alleged perpetrators or their powerful allies attempted to destroy the evidence reportedly associated with these crimes. In July 2009, the United States Administration announced an investigation into the alleged killing of Taliban prisoners of war by forces of the United States-backed Northern Alliance at the end of 2001 in Dasht-e-Leili. PHR has previously reported findings of malicious destruction of this mass grave site, apparently aimed at destroying evidence of a war crime. 36. Within the reporting period, discussions were under way on the issue of national reconciliation and how to engage moderate elements of the Taliban in a negotiation process as part of the strategy to secure and stabilize Afghanistan. However, any negotiation process with the armed opposition should take full account of the principles enshrined in the Afghan Constitution and obligations which derive from international human rights treaties and customary human rights law, which preclude amnesty for grave crimes. V. Poverty and human rights 37. Afghanistan remains one of the poorest countries in the world with an estimated one third of its population living in absolute poverty and a further 37 per cent precariously situated just above the poverty line. Afghanistan was ranked 181 out of 182 countries in the 2009 Human Development Index. Poverty is a complex and multidimensional problem, compounded in the Afghan context by numerous factors, including conflict, weak governance, abuse of power, lack of accountability, and discrimination against women. 10 GE.10-10230