Drug Mafia, War Lords and Ex-jihadi leaders won the elections
The much delayed parliamentary elections in Afghanistan were finally held on September 18, but the official results would only become available by the end of next week. Though provisional results have been announced, the delay has fuelled doubts about the fairness of the polls and prompted defeated candidates to stage almost daily protests in the capital Kabul and elsewhere in the country. The conservatives have won the most of the seats in 249 member National assembly. The elections were held on non party basis, but different parties, groups and militias supported the different candidates. The drug barons invested heavily on the influential candidates. The elections for 34 provincial councils were also held on the same date.
Low Turn out:
The turn out was low compared to last years presidential elections in which Hamid Karzai emerged as the winner. On that occasion the turn out was almost 70% officially, but the real turn out was more than 50%. But a year later the official turn out is 53 % as only 6.8 million out of the 12.5 million registered voters came out to vote in the parliamentary elections. According to the independent observers the real turn out is around 38%. There were more than 6,000 candidates in the elections for 249 seats. Most of the political commentators were expecting much higher turn out in these elections due to the higher number of candidates in the elections. The main reasons of this low turn out are, the vast dissatisfaction with the performance of the president Karzai and his cabinet, candidature of many war lords and drug lords despite allegation of human rights abuses and corruption against them, at the lace of confidence of the electorate in the ability of the upcoming parliament to bring positive changes in the life of the poor working masses. Those apposed to the Karzai government and presence of US led foreign forces in Afghanistan were kept out of the electoral process are made a conscious choice not to vote. Generally the majority of the people have lost any hopes on the present setup. Majority of the masses know that Hamid Karzai is just a puppet in the hands of American Imperialism. The turn out in capital Kabul was only 27% which shows the disillusionment with Karzai government.
Fraud and Rigging:
The election organizers, comprising Afghans and UN officials, had promised to finalize the results by October 22 but yet another delay occurred when many candidates alleged fraud and demanded repolling or recount. The polls organizers, working from the platform of Joint Electoral Management Board (JEMB), argued that investigations into the allegations had slowed the count and delayed plans to announce the certified results of elections.
50 employees charged with organizing the “landmark” elections were fired for alleged fraud in different part of the country. Moreover, 680 ballot boxes, which made up 3% of the vote, were taken out of the counting process because of suspicions they were stuffed. The sacking of elections staff and admission of the organizers that some of the ballet boxes might have been stuffed also created wide spread doubts about the transparency of the elections. In many areas people were complaining that they were forcefully brought to the polling stations to cast their votes in favor of war lords. Despite the protest by losers, elections managers and Afghan government have rolled out the possibility of holding fresh elections in provinces where allegations of fraud were wide spread. Recount has been rolled out in view of the enormity of the task and delay it would cause in finalizing the results. It is, therefore, obvious that defeated contestants and their supporters would never accept the polls as fair and transparent and would continue to raise the issue at every available forum. There are no election tribunals and courts exist to challenge the election results. So the only option left with the losing candidates is to organize demonstrations on the streets, which they are doing every day.
Election Results:
The parliamentary polls were no-party but political parties and alliances campaigned for their candidates and devised strategies to win seats both in the 249-members Wolesi Jirga (house of the people or national assembly) and 34 provincial councils, one in each province. President Hamid Karzai campaigned for his elder and younger brother. His elder brother Abdul Qayyum Karzai, who on behalf of the Karzai family owned and ran Afghan restaurants in the US, won a seat in National assembly from his native Kandahar province by securing the highest number of votes (14,243) of all the candidates. The president younger brother Ahmed Wali Karzai captured a seat in Kandahars provincial council and garnered 16,854 votes to beat all the 15 winning candidates. Many other Karzai supporters have also won seats and there is already talk of forming a group in the parliament in support of the president. Opposition winners such as Muhammad Younus Qanuni, Haji Muhammad Mohqiq, Faiz-ullah-Zaki who is loyal to Uzbek war lord Abdul Rashid Dostum, Ismaili spiritual figure Syed Mansoor Naderi from Baghlan Province, etc, could also formed a alliance or block to challenge president Karzai in the parliament. Ethnic and regional politics would likely play a role in the formation of the parliamentary blocks with Pashtuns siding with the president and most non-pashtuns apposing him.
Those declared elected provisionally are an interesting mix of former warlords, clergymen, ex-communists, nationalists, liberals, ex-jihadi leaders, liberals and Taliban figures. Some accused of drug-trafficking and human rights abuses have also made it to the parliament, and so have non-political personalities with tones of money. Full- time politicians, fighters, businessmen, academics, mullahs, doctors, lawyers and journalists won seats. However, majority of the winners have a strong conservative background. There is abundance of mullahs and others religious leaders and teachers.
Former Mujahideen leaders winning seats include Ustad mohaqiq, Younus Qanuni, Professor Burhan-un-din Rabbani, who led the list of winners in his native Badakhshan with 24,422 votes, Professor Abdul Rab Rasool Sayyaf who polled an unimpressive 9,806 votes from Kabul province, Pir Syed Ishaq Galilani from Paktika, Haji Hazart Ali from Nangarhar, Ustad Muhammad Akbari from Bamiyan, Fazalullah Mojadeddi from Logar, Haji Mosa Hotak from Wardak, Haji Fareed from Kapisa, Haji Muhammad Umer from Kunduz, and Haji Badshah Khan Zadran from Paktia. Many others who emerged winners were second or third-ranked Mujahideen leaders and commanders.
6 former Taliban figures contested the election two score victories. One of the winners was Mullah Abdul Salam Rockti (the notorious kidnaper and criminal), who polled just 3,027 vote but still emerged the winner in Taliban strong hold of Zabul province where the trun out was lowly 21%. The other was Maulvi Muhammad Islam Muhammadi, who was Governor of Bamiyan during Taliban rule and was able to win a seat from his native Samangan province with 9,477 votes. The losers included former Taliban foreign Minister Wakil Ahmed Mutawwail, who can not move freely and needs government protection in Kabul after his release from US custody. He was reluctant candidate and was unable to campaign in Kandahar because of Taliban fear. Maulvi Qalamuddin, who earned notoriety as head of the Taliban religious police, also contested and badly lost from Logar province. Mullah Muhammad Khaksar, a Deputy Minister who defected just before the US invasion of Afghanistan on October 7, 2001, tasted defeat in Kandahar. Some other less known Taliban commanders also lost elections in Pashtuns provinces.
Some former Stalinist (communists) have done well in the polls and won seats. Among them is Noor-ul-haq Olumi, who is now head of a reformed progressive party, polled 13,035 votes in Kandahar and stand second in the list of successful candidates only behind president Karazai brother Qayyum Karzai. Another prominent winner is Syed Muhammad Gulabzoi, former Interior Minister who beat all other constants in Khost province by polling 15,423 votes. Babrak Shinwari who also served Deputy Minister in the communist period, was among the 14 winners for the National Assembly from Nangharhar province with 6,569 votes. Many former communist leaders failed to get good votes to be elected in the National Assembly. Most of the ex-communist won the elections from Pashtun dominated areas. All these left wing reformist ex-Stalinist leaders who have won the elections were standing on a pure reformist program. Few of them have become Pashtun nationalist. There is a clear and big vacuum exist in Afghanistan. Afghan working masses needs their own party which can fight for their rights. Small left groups does exist in Afghanistan, but they have no clear ideas, strategy, program and tactics. The formation of mass party of working masses in Afghanistan is a basic task for the left in Afghanistan.
68 female candidates were elected on seats reserved for women. The female representation in Afghanistan Parliament does not mean that it will alter or improve the worst conditions that exist in Afghanistan for women. Women are still facing the domestic violence, torture, honour killing, forced marriages and gender bias in male dominated Afghan society. Most of these elected female members of National Assembly belongs to rich and middle class families. There is no representation for working class women. The judiciary still dominated by the conservative Mullahs, so it is not easy to pass any legislation to repeal the anti women laws and traditions.
These elections, like the presidential elections will not solve any basic problem faced by the Afghan people. The poverty, unemployment, hunger, Ethnic and Nationalist tensions, increased violence, continued American occupation and other problems are not only exist but aggravated in last 4 years. Afghanistan is still as fractured and divided as it was before the American invasion in October 2001. all the dreams of prosperity, peace and batter life have become night mare for majority of Afghan masses. There will be no stability, peace, prosperity, democracy as for as American occupation will continue. Capitalism can’t solve any fundamental problem faced by the Afghan masses. Capitalism means wars destruction, lies and exploitation. Afghanistan is a clear example of how a capitalism can destroy the lives of millions of people for the interest of few rich.