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AFGHANISTAN: HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION DISREGARDS UN
Aunohita Mojumdar
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/in sightb/articles/eav101909b.shtml
10/19/09
Afghani stan's political deadlock deepened October 19 as the Electoral
Complaints Commission (ECC) announced that it had invalidated a large
number of the ballots cast in the August 20 presidential poll. The
commission did not specify an exact number, but many experts now
believe the ECC's action will require a run-off between the incumbent,
Hamid Karzai, and his top challenger, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah.
The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), which will make the final
decision regarding the election, has received the full findings of
the ECC. IEC officials indicated that an announcement on the final
election results would be forthcoming within 36 hours. Unconfirmed
reports indicated that the final results would leave Karzai with less
than the 50 percent-plus-one-vote total needed to avoid a run-off.
Sources suggest that hectic back room negotiations on a power-sharing
deal between Karzai and Abdullah were continuing. [For background
see the Eurasia Insight archive].
Meanwhile, the sense of political discord in Kabul was reinforced
October 19 by the unilateral decision of Afghanistan's Independent
Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) to release an election-monitoring
report that had been jointly prepared with the United Nations. In
making its findings public, the AIHRC ignored the plea of the UN's
top official in Kabul, Kai Eide, to delay the report's release until
the completion of the electoral process.
The report was released without public fanfare on the AIHRC's website,
a manner of publication that suggests the UN's authority and prestige
in Afghanistan is eroding. The widely respected Afghan Independent
Human Rights Commission is considered an independent body with strong
critics in both the Afghan government and the country's parliament.
Some Kabul officials dislike the commission for its emphasis on human
rights and for calling to account those responsible for war crimes.
The UN and the AIHRC collaborated on two out of three monitoring
reports that covered this year's electoral process. While the
third was due to be made public earlier in October, the release was
reportedly held up amid the ongoing controversy over fraudulent votes
and the international community's role in the electoral process. [For
background see the Eurasia Insight archive].
The October 19-released report, the third in the series of monitoring
briefs, scrutinized the Afghan election process, covering the period
from August 1 to October 5. It focused on four issues: insecurity
and violence; participation of the Afghan people, with a particular
focus on women; electoral irregularities; and freedom of expression.
"Allegations of ballot-box stuffing are of a serious nature,
considering that if proven true and given the extent of the problem,
the integrity of the elections results could potentially be severely
affected," the report states. It went on to note that the overwhelming
number of complaints received by the UN and AIHRC pertain to ballot
stuffing.
In response to a question at an October 11 news conference, Eide
said the release of the third report was being delayed and went
on to express a clear preference that the report cover "the final
stage that we are in - it is a critical stage." He maintained that
by waiting and examining late-stage developments, the report would
enable officials and experts to "learn lessons that we can draw on
for subsequent elections."
"I think that's important," Eide stated. The leadership of the AIHRC
clearly thought differently. The commission's unilateral action means
that the report contains no late-stage analysis. It also indicates
that the AIHRC and UN may have been having trouble reaching consensus
on how to interpret the most recent developments. Some observers note
that the UN over the last few weeks became enmeshed in allegations and
counter-allegations concerning electoral fraud and the handling of the
vote count. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. AIHRC
representatives may have felt that the UN's direct involvement in
the controversy might influence the UN's monitoring of the final stage.
While the UN is likely to push all interested parties to accept the
ECC's decisions, the joint monitoring report notes that this may be
no easy task. "It remains to be seen whether the methodology agreed
upon by the IEC and the ECC to address the complaints of fraud will
pave the way to the certification of results that will be acceptable
by all parties, and above all the Afghan people," the report concludes.
Editor's Note: Aunohita Mojumdar is an Indian freelance journalist
based in Kabul. She has reported on the South Asian region for the
past 19 years.
Aunohita Mojumdar
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/in sightb/articles/eav101909b.shtml
10/19/09
Afghani stan's political deadlock deepened October 19 as the Electoral
Complaints Commission (ECC) announced that it had invalidated a large
number of the ballots cast in the August 20 presidential poll. The
commission did not specify an exact number, but many experts now
believe the ECC's action will require a run-off between the incumbent,
Hamid Karzai, and his top challenger, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah.
The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), which will make the final
decision regarding the election, has received the full findings of
the ECC. IEC officials indicated that an announcement on the final
election results would be forthcoming within 36 hours. Unconfirmed
reports indicated that the final results would leave Karzai with less
than the 50 percent-plus-one-vote total needed to avoid a run-off.
Sources suggest that hectic back room negotiations on a power-sharing
deal between Karzai and Abdullah were continuing. [For background
see the Eurasia Insight archive].
Meanwhile, the sense of political discord in Kabul was reinforced
October 19 by the unilateral decision of Afghanistan's Independent
Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) to release an election-monitoring
report that had been jointly prepared with the United Nations. In
making its findings public, the AIHRC ignored the plea of the UN's
top official in Kabul, Kai Eide, to delay the report's release until
the completion of the electoral process.
The report was released without public fanfare on the AIHRC's website,
a manner of publication that suggests the UN's authority and prestige
in Afghanistan is eroding. The widely respected Afghan Independent
Human Rights Commission is considered an independent body with strong
critics in both the Afghan government and the country's parliament.
Some Kabul officials dislike the commission for its emphasis on human
rights and for calling to account those responsible for war crimes.
The UN and the AIHRC collaborated on two out of three monitoring
reports that covered this year's electoral process. While the
third was due to be made public earlier in October, the release was
reportedly held up amid the ongoing controversy over fraudulent votes
and the international community's role in the electoral process. [For
background see the Eurasia Insight archive].
The October 19-released report, the third in the series of monitoring
briefs, scrutinized the Afghan election process, covering the period
from August 1 to October 5. It focused on four issues: insecurity
and violence; participation of the Afghan people, with a particular
focus on women; electoral irregularities; and freedom of expression.
"Allegations of ballot-box stuffing are of a serious nature,
considering that if proven true and given the extent of the problem,
the integrity of the elections results could potentially be severely
affected," the report states. It went on to note that the overwhelming
number of complaints received by the UN and AIHRC pertain to ballot
stuffing.
In response to a question at an October 11 news conference, Eide
said the release of the third report was being delayed and went
on to express a clear preference that the report cover "the final
stage that we are in - it is a critical stage." He maintained that
by waiting and examining late-stage developments, the report would
enable officials and experts to "learn lessons that we can draw on
for subsequent elections."
"I think that's important," Eide stated. The leadership of the AIHRC
clearly thought differently. The commission's unilateral action means
that the report contains no late-stage analysis. It also indicates
that the AIHRC and UN may have been having trouble reaching consensus
on how to interpret the most recent developments. Some observers note
that the UN over the last few weeks became enmeshed in allegations and
counter-allegations concerning electoral fraud and the handling of the
vote count. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. AIHRC
representatives may have felt that the UN's direct involvement in
the controversy might influence the UN's monitoring of the final stage.
While the UN is likely to push all interested parties to accept the
ECC's decisions, the joint monitoring report notes that this may be
no easy task. "It remains to be seen whether the methodology agreed
upon by the IEC and the ECC to address the complaints of fraud will
pave the way to the certification of results that will be acceptable
by all parties, and above all the Afghan people," the report concludes.
Editor's Note: Aunohita Mojumdar is an Indian freelance journalist
based in Kabul. She has reported on the South Asian region for the
past 19 years.