The presidential elections are more than a year away but it is already hogging the media spotlight.
On Jan 12, the Cooperation Council of Political Parties and Coalitions (CCPPC) issued a joint declaration for democratic elections.
On Jan 12, the Cooperation Council of Political Parties and Coalitions (CCPPC) issued a joint declaration for democratic elections.
The council declared support for the Independent Election Commission (IEC) and Election Complaints Commission. Under a new election law that was approved by the Council of Ministers in early December the Election Complaints Commission has ceased to exist and its powers reassigned to the Supreme Court. The council said the change in law was against the interests of free and fair elections.
In addition the declaration stated there must be no change to the election date, and any delay must be according to the provision of the constitution and with the authority of the National Assembly.
Reactions to the government’s decision to axe the Election Complaints Commission have shown a lack of coordination among the opposition. There have been suggestions including the call for an interim government andthe restoration of the Election Complaints Commission.
Ahmad Zia Massoud, the head of the National Coalition party, called for the establishment of a pre-election provisional government to oversee the election. Addressing a gathering of political parties and civil society groups in Kabul, he said, “If we really want to have transparent elections in Afghanistan, there should be provisional government before the elections are held.” He said that the process would strengthen democracy and the achievements of the last decade.
But Ajmal Baloochzada, a civil society activist, was categorical that an interim government to oversee the election would not be the right solution to the problem. “We (civil society) never want establishment of an interim government,” he said.
For a peaceful transition
Member of the Right and Justice Party, Hanif Atmar, said the government should implement parliament’s decision to set up a permanent commission for dealing with election-related complaints. He said President Karzai should keep his promise of transparency in the forthcoming poll.
The apprehension is that Karzai, who cannot run for a third term under the constitution, would seek to protect his interests by manipulating the election.On Jan 11, at a joint press conference with the US President Barack Obama in Washington, Karzai said: “At the end of my presidential round in 2014 I will leave my post and as (a) resigned president (I) would continue my efforts for transparent elections and continue my life.”
Political analyst Naweed Elham said the transition from Karzai to his successor must be peaceful because much was at stake. NATO troops in Afghanistan are due to pull out by the end of the year. In Washington, President Obama told Karzai that US troops would transfer all combat duties to Afghan military and police by “spring”.
Mustafa Rasooli, a journalist and political analyst, said the president would have a “great role in power transition and changes in the future”. It was essential that the coming elections should be conducted democratically and under the constitution, he added. “If legal and transparent processes are not followed the possibility of conflict between the government and parliament would be greater,” he said.
The outcome of the 2014 presidential election could pave the way for a peaceful transfer of power in Afghanistan for the first time, said Dr Sayyed Ali Kazemi, head of the Electoral Media Commission. According to Farzana Fayez, a civil society activist, fraud and conflict in the power transition would depend on the “establishment of impartial and legal powers for supervision of the election and their active action.”
