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Afghans Prepare To Elect First Parliament in Decades

26 August 2005

More than 5,700 candidates vie for seats in national, provincial councils

By David Shelby
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington – Afghan voters will head to the polls September 18 to cast their ballots for the final component of Afghanistan’s first entirely democratically elected government.  The September parliamentary elections follow the October 2004 presidential election that placed Hamid Karzai at the head of the state, and will create a legislative body charged with exercising oversight over the executive and judicial branches of government.

In all, there are 2,707 candidates, including 328 women, competing for the 249 seats in the lower house of the national assembly, known as the Wolesi Jirga, or “house of the people.”  According to the Afghan constitution, the Wolesi Jirga must include at least two women representatives from each of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces.

Voters will also cast ballots for provincial council representatives.  A total of 3,025 candidates, including 247 women, are vying for seats on the 34 councils.  It will be the responsibility of the provincial councils and President Karzai to appoint members to the upper house of the national assembly, known as the Meshrano Jirga, or “house of elders.”  Each of the provincial councils will appoint members from its ranks to serve in the Meshrano Jirga, making up two-thirds of the total representatives, and the president will appoint the remaining one-third, half of which must be women.

Members of the government and the national assembly can initiate legislative proposals in the Wolesi Jirga.  Once the lower house approves a proposal, it is passed to the Meshrano Jirga, which has 15 days to accept or reject it.  If approved, the legislation passes to the president, who signs it into law.  The president has veto power that can be overridden by a two-thirds majority of the Wolesi Jirga.

In addition to its legislative responsibilities, the new national assembly will be charged with approving nominations for cabinet ministers and Supreme Court justices; approving the government’s economic, social, cultural and technological development plans; approving national budgets; and monitoring the work of the executive and judicial branches.

The provincial councils will set goals for regional development plans and provide advice to provincial administrators in pursuing those goals.

The official campaign period began August 17, after months of preparations.  More than 1.2 million new voters were registered during June and July, adding to the 10.5 million who were registered for the presidential election in 2004.

The Joint Electoral Management Body (JEMB) began printing millions of ballots for the various electoral races in early August and is distributing them to 6,000 voting centers around the country.  Out of respect for cultural traditions, men and women will cast their ballots at separate locations.

Afghanistan began experimenting with democracy in the mid-1960s.  In 1964, King Zahir Shah appointed a committee to draft a constitution, and later that year it was approved by a Loya Jirga, or “grand council,” which included representatives from all parts of the country.  The constitution served as the basis for democratic parliamentary elections in 1965 and 1969, but a coup in 1973 set the stage for a downward spiral in Afghan politics, leading to the 1979 Soviet invasion, civil war, and Taliban oppression.

The international community is providing both financial and technical support to Afghanistan for the elections and the establishment of the new legislature.  The United States, Japan, Canada and several European countries have made grants to support the work of the JEMB.  India is financing the construction of a new assembly building, and the U.N. Development Program plans to provide training to legislative representatives and their staffs.

The JEMB hopes to have the election results certified by late October, and the Meshrano Jirga should be appointed by mid-November.  The National Assembly is expected to begin its first session by late December.

For additional information on Afghan election process, see Democratic Afghanistan.  See also, Rebuilding Afghanistan, for more on the countries’ economic development and reconstruction efforts.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)