Afghans have not tired of the long-running election for a successor to President Hamid Karzai. Voting in the run-off between the two frontrunners is scheduled for June 14.
Afghans have not tired of the long-running election for a successor to President Hamid Karzai. Voting in the run-off between the two frontrunners is scheduled for June 14.Concerns about security are the only worry for voters, most of them still in their twenties.
Recently, the National Security Council (NSC) accused Pakistan of trying to sabotage the run off. The authorities said end-May, for over one week, 1,000 rockets were fired across the so-called Durand Line into border areas in the east, particularly Kunar. The attacks also involved airstrikes by Pakistani helicopters on some areas in the province.
Hundreds of civilians have fled the border areas, casting a shadow on prospects of peaceful polling in the affected areas in the upcoming second round of the presidential poll.
Killid had randomly polled voters in 10 provinces including Kabul, Balkh, Herat, Kunduz, Ghor, Paktia, Paktika, Nangarhar, Ghazni and Khost before the first round of election on April 5. The overwhelming majority – a high 96.8 percent – had put their faith in the ballot despite calls for a boycott by the Taleban.
Khushal Madani, a civil society activist from Shinwar district in Nangarhar, urged the authorities to permanently post security forces in villages to ensure security round the year, and not just at election time. “The presence of security forces in the first round had boosted voter confidence,” he said. “But people are worried because they know security forces will eventually pullout from the area, and leave them to the mercy of the Taleban,” he added. The Taleban have threatened to retaliate if anyone is found with ink on their finger – the mark made by election officials to identify people who have voted. “Fewer people would participate in remote areas,” warned Madani.
Concern about security has deepened since the recent shelling of border areas by Pakistan. Feroz Ahmadi, an activist in Baghlan, said security forces could be under “more pressure than in the first round” from the Taleban who can “easily sabotage the situation since the weather has warmed up and help is coming from other countries (read Pakistan) in the region”.
The worries about security have also sparked fears of fraud on election day. Ali from Nahoor district in Ghazni province said, “The lack of security is a big concern among voters. People fear what if their votes are not even counted!”
Can votes be bought and people terrorised to vote for one or the other candidate?
Arefa Olomi, who lives in Herat City and intends to vote in the runoff, has no doubt that when people are poor they can be tempted to sell their vote. “A weak economy and lack of security can be serious obstacles to a fair and free election, and transparency,” she said.
Keep the faith
Voters could quickly lose interest in exercising their franchise if they consider the process flawed, and not transparent.
Saboor Nezami, a student at the Law Faculty in Balkh University, observed transparency in the counting of votes could be as important as ensuring voting was free of fraud. “We hope security forces show their heroism in the runoff because people are worried about fraud in the counting,” he said.
Voters are “wary” of armed anti-government groups that are not counted among the Taleban. Nazar Mohammad Saqeb a resident of Sofak village in Ghor province said, “The Taleban exist in some parts of districts like Pasaband, Charsada, Dolina and Chekhcheran but we are equally wary of armed opponents who could gain entry into voting booths and tamper with ballot sheets.” While the Taleban have urged voters to boycott the poll, armed groups could skew the poll process to favour one or other candidate.
But without doubt the overriding sentiment among voters is of faith in democracy and the vote. Not one of those we interviewed said they had no intention of participating in the poll.
According to Naqibullah, a resident of Kandahar, “We vote to make corrections in the future of Afghanistan. The country cannot be built just by a president. Everyone should participate, and (we should) eliminate administrative corruption. If all this does not happen Afghanistan could be destroyed.”
Women and the vote
While women turned out to vote in large numbers in urban areas on April 5, there were few women to be seen, particularly in areas of conflict. Ali Niazi, a civil society activist in Khost, observed, “Women may participate in elections in the cities. But insecurity and restrictions on women in public continue to hinder their participation in elections in the interiors of the country.”
Tahera Bakhtiari from Jaghori in Ghazni province, blamed the government for not doing enough to support women’s rights. “Patriarchy has a strong hold in the provinces,” she observed.
Minister for Women’s Affairs Hussn Banu Ghazanfar had urged all provincial women’s affairs departments to ensure a high turnout of women on election day.
Unless women are assured of security they will not come out to vote, commented Parwana from Jaghatoo district, Ghazni province. Security is of paramount concern, she said. “Even the hint of security risk could affect women’s participation,” she believed.
