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Follow-up to Afghanistan National Assembly Elections
Sep 23, 2010
By Lauren Soelberg
Last week, PCR published a Critical Questions on the September 18th National Assembly Elections in Afghanistan. The original piece addressed four questions from the following categories: violence, corruption, democratic progress, and women in office. Below, you can find a brief update on each.
Violence
Violence was rampant on Election Day, as promised. According to the Montreal Gazette, at least 17 people were killed by Taliban explosions at polling stations. They also reported that countrywide, there were 1,600 campaign-period complaints of illegal tactics and at least 1,400 more complaints on Election Day. The Taliban kidnapped Abdul Rahman Hayat, a parliamentary candidate from Laghman province on Friday (the day before the elections) and another 18 election workers from Baghdis province. The Huffington Post reported there were an estimated 307 attacks throughout the country on Saturday in election related violence. These attacks were certainly not unexpected, and appear to have had a negative effect on the overall electoral process. Although, in a statement released by the National Democratic Institute (NDI), they said that the millions of Afghans who showed up to the polls on Saturday showed courage and resolve to move their nation toward a more democratic future.
Corruption and Fraud
Many expected that there would be fraud and other irregularities in this election cycle. The Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FEFA) reported serious concerns about the quality of last Saturdays elections. The group said it observed voting and counting with nearly 7,000 observers at nearly 60 percent of polling stations in 3,538 polling centers on Saturday.
CNN reported widespread claims Sunday of ballot stuffing, proxy voting, underage voting, fake vote cards, and repeat voting. The stipulations for this years elections required that voters fingers be marked by indelible ink. However, FEFA reported that in some polling centers, "the dark ink used to mark the fingers of voters and prevent repeat voting easily washed off. Washable ink was reported most extensively in Badakhshan, Balkh, Ghor, Herat, Kabul, Nimroz, Panjshir, Takhar, and Uruzgan." There were also instances of polls opening late, widespread absence of female staff, and lack of materials needed to vote, such as ballots. FEFA has made attempts to eliminate corruption and cover-ups following the election, urging "all state institutions, especially the president, to support the impartial and independent operation" of Afghanistan's Electoral Complaints Commission and asking that the body refer serious fraud, intimidation, and violence cases to the proper judicial authorities. However, it is unlikely that the government wont do what they can to portray the elections as successful.
Democratic Progress
Although many citizens did avoid the polls, threats of violence were not enough to keep an estimated 3.5 million voters away. This suggests that many people are still pushing for a functional democracy. Of course, corruption and violence occurred. Reaching democracy is a process, as many Western countries can attest to. There are certainly more steps to be taken along the path, but every path has its own obstacles. It is unrealistic to expect Afghanistan to have reached the Western mold of democracy just nine years after the overthrow of the Taliban.
The fact that voter turnout has been estimated by the IEC at 40%, and the highest voter turnout the US has had in any election is 48%, shows the country is making significant progressespecially for such an early stage in democratic development. That anyone in Afghanistan even came to vote under these conditions attests to the legitimacy of the electoral system and their perceptions of democracy.
Regardless of these successes, the truth remains that nearly a million fewer votes were cast last Saturday than in the national election a year ago. That may mean that more votes were faked during the last election, but it may also mean that people are becoming disillusioned with the process. Though difficult to predict, if that is true, it could mean that Afghanistan is actually receding in progress, and counteract all statistics about high voter turnout and overall approval of democracy.
Women in Office
In a record high for Afghanistan, 413 women ran for parliament. In 2005, the number of female candidates was 335, showing a significant increase. Women faced several more threats of violence than men during this election, but were not deterred from participating nonetheless. Naheed Ahmedia Farid, a 24-year-old in Herat said "I want to be a voice for women," when asked why she is running for office by an ABC reporter. "Because there was about 30 years, 31 years that women didn't have any voice. I think we have to change the situation for women and I want to be a member for that reason." The results are still inconclusive in regards to how many women will be seated.
Nepotism?
These were not the only interesting findings from the elections, however. The AAN released an article relaying that nepotism was an influential factor in who ran for office. In many cases, the last names of the candidates were more famous than the candidates themselves. In an election without political parties, widespread advertisement, or campaigning, it is difficult to know much about any particular candidate. Those candidates with famous last names, however, are easily identifiable.
Candidates with ties to famous and powerful Afghan elite have increased dramatically. Due to the extremely complicated tradition of names in Afghanistan, it is sometimes difficult to know who is related to whom, if they share the same family name or simply the same tribe name. Some candidates have even resorted to putting pictures of other people (for example, powerful family members) on their campaign signs. When reports of exactly who has won are finalized, they can be compared to the list of relatives of the powerful running for parliament, produced by AAN, to give a more concrete understanding of how important this trend may be.
While much of the focus for these and past elections has been on security and fraud, it will be interesting to see (especially as Afghanistans democracy progresses) who the 3.5 million Afghans voted for and why. Are proximity to power and wealth the most important indicators? Do policy issues play a role at all? How are people selecting candidates, and what does that say about the future of Afghanistan as a democratic country?
Sep 23, 2010
By Lauren Soelberg
Last week, PCR published a Critical Questions on the September 18th National Assembly Elections in Afghanistan. The original piece addressed four questions from the following categories: violence, corruption, democratic progress, and women in office. Below, you can find a brief update on each.
Violence
Violence was rampant on Election Day, as promised. According to the Montreal Gazette, at least 17 people were killed by Taliban explosions at polling stations. They also reported that countrywide, there were 1,600 campaign-period complaints of illegal tactics and at least 1,400 more complaints on Election Day. The Taliban kidnapped Abdul Rahman Hayat, a parliamentary candidate from Laghman province on Friday (the day before the elections) and another 18 election workers from Baghdis province. The Huffington Post reported there were an estimated 307 attacks throughout the country on Saturday in election related violence. These attacks were certainly not unexpected, and appear to have had a negative effect on the overall electoral process. Although, in a statement released by the National Democratic Institute (NDI), they said that the millions of Afghans who showed up to the polls on Saturday showed courage and resolve to move their nation toward a more democratic future.
Corruption and Fraud
Many expected that there would be fraud and other irregularities in this election cycle. The Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FEFA) reported serious concerns about the quality of last Saturdays elections. The group said it observed voting and counting with nearly 7,000 observers at nearly 60 percent of polling stations in 3,538 polling centers on Saturday.
CNN reported widespread claims Sunday of ballot stuffing, proxy voting, underage voting, fake vote cards, and repeat voting. The stipulations for this years elections required that voters fingers be marked by indelible ink. However, FEFA reported that in some polling centers, "the dark ink used to mark the fingers of voters and prevent repeat voting easily washed off. Washable ink was reported most extensively in Badakhshan, Balkh, Ghor, Herat, Kabul, Nimroz, Panjshir, Takhar, and Uruzgan." There were also instances of polls opening late, widespread absence of female staff, and lack of materials needed to vote, such as ballots. FEFA has made attempts to eliminate corruption and cover-ups following the election, urging "all state institutions, especially the president, to support the impartial and independent operation" of Afghanistan's Electoral Complaints Commission and asking that the body refer serious fraud, intimidation, and violence cases to the proper judicial authorities. However, it is unlikely that the government wont do what they can to portray the elections as successful.
Democratic Progress
Although many citizens did avoid the polls, threats of violence were not enough to keep an estimated 3.5 million voters away. This suggests that many people are still pushing for a functional democracy. Of course, corruption and violence occurred. Reaching democracy is a process, as many Western countries can attest to. There are certainly more steps to be taken along the path, but every path has its own obstacles. It is unrealistic to expect Afghanistan to have reached the Western mold of democracy just nine years after the overthrow of the Taliban.
The fact that voter turnout has been estimated by the IEC at 40%, and the highest voter turnout the US has had in any election is 48%, shows the country is making significant progressespecially for such an early stage in democratic development. That anyone in Afghanistan even came to vote under these conditions attests to the legitimacy of the electoral system and their perceptions of democracy.
Regardless of these successes, the truth remains that nearly a million fewer votes were cast last Saturday than in the national election a year ago. That may mean that more votes were faked during the last election, but it may also mean that people are becoming disillusioned with the process. Though difficult to predict, if that is true, it could mean that Afghanistan is actually receding in progress, and counteract all statistics about high voter turnout and overall approval of democracy.
Women in Office
In a record high for Afghanistan, 413 women ran for parliament. In 2005, the number of female candidates was 335, showing a significant increase. Women faced several more threats of violence than men during this election, but were not deterred from participating nonetheless. Naheed Ahmedia Farid, a 24-year-old in Herat said "I want to be a voice for women," when asked why she is running for office by an ABC reporter. "Because there was about 30 years, 31 years that women didn't have any voice. I think we have to change the situation for women and I want to be a member for that reason." The results are still inconclusive in regards to how many women will be seated.
Nepotism?
These were not the only interesting findings from the elections, however. The AAN released an article relaying that nepotism was an influential factor in who ran for office. In many cases, the last names of the candidates were more famous than the candidates themselves. In an election without political parties, widespread advertisement, or campaigning, it is difficult to know much about any particular candidate. Those candidates with famous last names, however, are easily identifiable.
Candidates with ties to famous and powerful Afghan elite have increased dramatically. Due to the extremely complicated tradition of names in Afghanistan, it is sometimes difficult to know who is related to whom, if they share the same family name or simply the same tribe name. Some candidates have even resorted to putting pictures of other people (for example, powerful family members) on their campaign signs. When reports of exactly who has won are finalized, they can be compared to the list of relatives of the powerful running for parliament, produced by AAN, to give a more concrete understanding of how important this trend may be.
While much of the focus for these and past elections has been on security and fraud, it will be interesting to see (especially as Afghanistans democracy progresses) who the 3.5 million Afghans voted for and why. Are proximity to power and wealth the most important indicators? Do policy issues play a role at all? How are people selecting candidates, and what does that say about the future of Afghanistan as a democratic country?
