Afghanistan News September 15, 2005

September 15, 2005

Afghanistan rejects Pakistan’s fence proposal-via
Daily Times, Sept 14, 2005
ISLAMABAD: Afghanistan on Tuesday rejected a proposal by Pakistan to construct a security fence along its border with Afghanistan to prevent incursions by Taliban and drug smugglers.
President Pervez Musharraf had made the proposal on Monday in a meeting with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in New York.

“We want the border determined in accordance with international laws first,” Afghanistan Interior Ministry spokesman Lutfullah Mashaal told Afghanistan’s Pajwok News Agency. “The proposal is unacceptable before determination of the border.” He said Pakistan and Afghanistan could, however, form a joint commission for strict border monitoring. He alleged Pakistani security forces had advanced into Afghanistan at Ghulam Khan, Zazey and Babarak Thana. However, he praised Pakistan for its help in the upcoming Afghan presidential elections and hoped the same cooperation would be extended during the parliamentary elections in October.

Meanwhile, Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Naveed Ahmed Muazad said that Pakistan had not formally presented the fencing proposal to the Afghan government. “This is nothing but a proposal,” Muazad told the Pajwok News Agency. “Fencing will not have any benefit as people move across the border because of cordial relations.” -- NNI

Border fence plan divides press
BBC News / Wednesday, 14 September 2005
Pakistan's proposed construction of a security fence along its 1,500 mile border with Afghanistan has received a mixed reaction in the two countries' press. While there is general support for the plan in several Pakistani papers, some Afghan commentators are sceptical about the feasibility of the idea.

Pakistan's Mashriq - During his meeting with US Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice, President Musharraf suggested erecting a fence on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in order to stop militants from crossing from either side. We say it is in the interests of the US to erect such a fence along the border as soon as possible.

Pakistan's Ausaf - President Musharraf has presented a viable proposal to Dr Rice for ending the baseless accusations from the Afghan government. The proposed fence will not only end the accusations of cross-border infiltration but will also reduce the smuggling of drugs from Afghanistan into Pakistan. The fence could also halt interference in Pakistan by India's RAW [Research & Analysis Wing] secret agency.

Pakistan's Al-Akhbar - We have repeatedly said there has been no cross-border infiltration by militants from Pakistan into Afghanistan and that fences should be erected in all those border areas where Pakistan is blamed for infiltration.

Pakistan's Nawa-i-waqt - This proposal by President Musharraf is very strange: Pashtun tribes have relations on both sides of the border and frequently visit each other. Pakistan should avoid such a proposal and tell the US and Afghan governments that Afghanistan to resolve its problems by itself and not let Pakistan be dragged into issues relating to Afghanistan.

Pakistan's Frontier Post - Pakistan's offer to build security wall on vulnerable points along the border with Afghanistan is an eloquent manifest of its deep interest in its western fraternal neighbour's stability and security. How Kabul responds to it is to be seen. But will this offer silence compulsive detractors out there to malign Pakistan for Afghanistan's internal problems? Probably not.

Afghanistan's Erada - Mr Musharraf's remarks are actually aimed at disguising Pakistan's interference in Afghanistan. It is clear that terrorism and fundamentalism are the main planks of Pakistan's foreign policy... Although Musharraf's plan appears as a solution to the problem, in fact it is impossible to put into practice.

Afghanistan's Eslah - Any measure to diminish terrorist activities ahead of the parliamentary elections will help stability and security in Afghanistan... but it is not very effective to fight terrorism by building strong, high fences. America, Kenya, Saudi Arabia and Britain are geographically distant from Pakistan... but terrorists can target those countries wherever they want, even though they are thousands of miles away... The Afghan, US and Pakistani authorities should draw up practical plans to help curb terrorist activities.

BBC Monitoring selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaus abroad.

US backs Pakistani-Afghan border fence
· 1,500-mile barrier meant to stop insurgents
· Kabul leader says UN help needed even after polls
Randeep Ramesh, south Asia correspondent Wednesday September 14, 2005 The Guardian (UK)
Washington is backing a plan to build a 1,500-mile fence along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan to prevent Islamic insurgents and drug smugglers slipping between the two countries.

Pakistan's president, General Pervez Musharraf, yesterday made the proposal during a 75-minute meeting with the US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, ahead of Sunday's parliamentary election in Afghanistan. The run-up to the vote has been marred by outbreaks of violence.

The cordon, officials said, would deter infiltration in both directions and there would be arrangements for controlled crossings. A spokesman for the US state department, Sean McCormack, told reporters that Washington thought it was "important that Pakistan and Afghanistan take up this idea".

Details of the fencing are sketchy although the Pakistani president said his country could not afford to construct the fence through mountainous terrain and a deeply conservative region "by itself". "We could do selective fencing," he said, as an alternative to an unbroken barrier.

Aware that the security situation could deteriorate in the run-up to the Afghan elections, Pakistan announced last week that it was sending 9,500 more troops to its border regions. Underlining the fragile peace in Afghanistan's southern cities adjoining Pakistan, Britain's defence secretary, John Reid, said in London that several thousand extra Nato troops would be needed in the volatile region.

Britain currently has about 900 troops in Afghanistan, mainly deployed around Kabul. Mr Reid said some British troops would move to a base in southern Helmand province, which has suffered several insurgent attacks in recent weeks and borders Pakistan.

Gen Musharraf, who is in the US to attend the UN general assembly, has been keen to stress that Pakistan is committed to stopping al-Qaida and the remnants of the Taliban using the rugged territory as a base. Pakistan's foreign minister rejected suggestions that the country was reluctant to confront Islamists in its semi-autonomous northern regions or the tribal leaders possibly sheltering them.

"We don't ever want anybody to say Pakistan is not doing enough," the foreign minister, Khurshid Kasuri, said. "Pakistan has nothing to hide. And we are fed up with people who say Pakistan has to do more to counter terrorism."

Pakistan claims to have broken the back of al-Qaida in Pakistan's towns and cities and its soldiers have rounded up 700 Islamic insurgents. The army has also been involved in bloody skirmishes in the valleys and mountains on the Afghan border.

Topping the list of US concerns is the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden, still on the run four years after the 9/11 attacks. US intelligence officials have indirectly accused Pakistan of not vigorously pursuing Bin Laden. However, speaking to the New York Times, Gen Musharraf said Bin Laden's influence had waned considerably while he was "on the run, hiding". If Bin Laden is on the Pakistan-Afghan border, the president said, he is switching sides "wherever he sees danger".

Although the Taliban are a much-reduced force in the country they once ruled, Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai, has called on the international community not to forget the country once elections are held. "The international community should not immediately think Afghanistan's work has been done and it's over and let the Afghan people forge ahead with their work with their own resources," he told officials in Herat, western Afghanistan. President Karzai's comments echo sentiments voiced by the UN, which said last week that Afghanistan's political transition was far from secure and long-term international commitment was needed.

Voting for a national assembly and provincial councils in Afghanistan mark the formal end to a four-year process of international support launched in Bonn after US-led forces overthrew the Taliban. Donors are to meet in London in January to chart a new programme of help.

Europeans Oppose U.S. Plan for NATO in Afghanistan
New York Times 09/13/2005 By David S. Cloud
BERLIN - Germany, supported by France, Britain and other European countries, said today that they strongly opposed an American plan for NATO to become involved in counterinsurgency operations in Afghanistan.

Meeting with NATO defense ministers here at the start of a two-day conference, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said he would urge the military alliance to expand its role beyond security and peacekeeping to consider joining combat operations against the Taliban-led insurgency.

Although Mr. Rumsfeld emphasized that American troops would continue to handle the counterinsurgency mission "for a time," he said that NATO should consider deploying troops to Afghanistan's eastern border region, where much of the fighting is occurring. He added that, "over time, it would be nice if NATO developed counterterrorism capabilities, which don't exist at the present time."

But Germany's defense minister, Peter Struck, said that merging NATO's peacekeeping mission with the American combat operation would fundamentally change NATO's role in Afghanistan and "would make the situation for our soldiers doubly dangerous and worsen the current climate in Afghanistan."

Britain, too, is reluctant to merge the two missions. The British defense secretary, John Reid, supports a "synergy" in which they could complement each other. The real issue was "about NATO's long-term role and how it can adapt to the needs of the 21st century and the new threats," a British defense ministry official said. France, which has special forces working alongside United States troops in Afghanistan, said today it opposed the merging of the two missions. "The two missions were completely different," a French defense ministry official said . "If you suddenly merge special forces or heavy counterterrorism units with stabilizing forces, which is NATO's role in Afghanistan, then you completely undermine NATO's role."

NATO took over the command of the International Security Assistance Force in August 2003, the first time that the American-led military alliance took on a mission "out of area" from its base of Europe. Its primary role has been to maintain security, expand the authority of President Hamid Karzai outside the capital of Kabul, and assist in the reconstruction of the country.
Meanwhile, American troops have maintained a separate operation with 20,000 troops aimed mainly at defeating the insurgency, which has seen a surge in violence since the spring. With NATO's mandate scheduled to expire next spring, American officials are urging the alliance to take on an expanded role, in part because the Pentagon would like to lessen the American troop presence.

At least initially, Mr. Rumsfeld told reporters traveling with him, NATO would not replace American troops in a combat role, but instead handle security and other noncombat duties, as they do elsewhere in the country. He then expressed the hope that, over time, NATO would develop counterterrorism capabilities.

A senior Defense Department official declined to provide the American's preferred timetable for NATO to take over the Afghan operation. But this week's meetings in Berlin are aimed at overcoming its resistance to a combat role in Afghanistan.

American military officials say they envision a joint NATO command structure in which countries willing to contribute troops to the counterinsurgency mission would be under one commander, while allies wanting to continue conducting peacekeeping and other noncombat roles would answer to a separate officer.

A single NATO commander in charge of all activity in Afghanistan would be in overall command of both operations, the officials say. German defense ministry officials said Mr. Struck's comments had nothing to do with Germany's federal election that takes place on Sunday. The radical Left Party of former East German communists and former members of Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's Social Democratic Party, have called for the withdrawal of all German troops from Afghanistan and other countries. Germany has 1,816 soldiers in Afghanistan.
Mr. Struck's position was clear, a ministry spokesman said: "NATO is not equipped for counterterrorism operations. That is not what it is supposed to do." Mr. Struck, a Social Democrat, is considered a strong candidate to continue as defense minister should there be a "grand coalition" led by Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, with the Social Democrats as her junior partner.

The United States wants NATO, already situated in the north and west of Afghanistan, to move into the south of the country under a more robust military mandate. Britain, with assistance from Canada and the Netherlands, has already agreed to take over the NATO command in the south, where the majority of the 20,000 American troops in the Operation Enduring Freedom mission have been fighting Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters, in particular along the eastern border with Afghanistan. Judy Dempsey of The International Herald Tribune contributed reporting for this article.

U.S. Said to Maintain Role in Afghanistan
By LOLITA C. BALDOR, Associated Press / September 14, 2005
BERLIN - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld pledged Wednesday that U.S. military forces "will continue to play a strong role" in Afghanistan even after NATO allies expand their peacekeeping operation across the country next year.

At the conclusion of a two-day NATO meeting, Rumsfeld took reporters' questions about the American presence there but stoutly avoided getting into any specifics about force levels.

"U.S. forces will of course continue to play a strong role," he said.

Asked about reports the Bush administration wants to slash the U.S. military presence there by as much as 20 percent, Rumsfeld told a news conference that "the only people who are going to increase or decrease U.S. forces in Afghanistan will be the president of the United States or me."

Rumsfeld said that U.S. officials are constantly assessing and reassessing troop levels and said that they have been raising or lowering the U.S. military presence as required and necessary.

"If and when there's any decision to decrease forces," he said, "I will announce it."

Both The New York Times and The Washington Post reported in Wednesday's editions that the administration was considering cutting the troop strength there by as much as 20 percent.

The alliance plans to expand slowly its peacekeeping role and eventually take primary responsibility for security in the country. Thirty-five countries have troops in Afghanistan, including a number of non-NATO nations.

"All allies are strongly committed to expanding NATO's role," Rumsfeld said.

On Tuesday, he said NATO should ultimately take over anti-terrorism operations and drug interdiction in Afghanistan, now handled by the U.S.-led coalition, but he refused to set a timetable for drawing down American troops.

More detailed talk was stifled by fears about increased violence accompanying parliamentary elections in Afghanistan scheduled for this coming weekend, as well as the upcoming elections in Germany, where some have openly opposed any increased combat missions for NATO.

Rumsfeld dismissed as "much ado about nothing" reported divisions among the alliance countries over whether NATO should work toward a unified peacekeeping and military command structure.

During the meetings, Rumsfeld urged his defense counterparts to find ways to increase the military flexibility of NATO's forces and the financing for the alliance. Several countries put limits on the military activity their forces can engage in as part of NATO, such as limiting where they can go or what type of combat force they can use.

"I personally am encouraged by the enduring effort to make the alliance a more flexible and more capable force," Rumsfeld said.

There will be a "unity of effort if not a unity of command," he said.

Afghanistan's elections come four years after the U.S. invaded the country to overthrow the Taliban. Insurgents have vowed to disrupt the balloting.

NATO has 11,000 mostly European troops providing security in northern and western Afghanistan. Around 19,000 U.S.-led troops cover the south and east.

Under the NATO plan, German troops will take the lead role in the north, Italians in the west, British in the south and Americans under NATO command in the east. French and Turkish troops will lead in Kabul — working alongside Afghanistan's fledgling army and police.

Meanwhile, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said the U.S.-led coalition needs to reconsider the way it is fighting Taliban-led rebels. His comments came after six months of fierce battles that have left more than 1,200 dead. He suggested combating the problem where "terrorists are trained" but declined to elaborate.

Afghan officials say many insurgents train in secret bases in neighboring Pakistan, despite denials from Islamabad.

Five suspected militants, including three Pakistanis, arrested in eastern Afghanistan
KABUL, Afghanistan - (AP) Afghan forces arrested five suspected militants, three of them Pakistanis, in an eastern province, as authorities stepped up security to prevent rebel attacks ahead of landmark elections over the weekend, officials said Wednesday.

The army and police gave conflicting accounts of the arrests Tuesday at a checkpoint as the five traveled by car through Khogyani district of Nangahar province.

Defense Ministry spokesman Gen. Mohammed Saher Azimi said the men were posing as journalists and had explosives hidden inside cameras along with a remote control device.

However, the Nangahar police chief, Khalil Ziay, said the men, two Afghans and three Pakistanis, claimed to be businessmen on a trip to sell chewing gum. He said the men had three cameras, but denied explosives were found inside. It was not immediately possible to explain the discrepancy in the officials' accounts. The men are still under investigation.

Four years ago, Ahmed Shah Masood, the head of the U.S.-backed Northern Alliance that fought the former ruling Taliban regime, was killed by two suspected al-Qaida assassins posing as journalists who had planted explosives inside a camera. Afghans go to the polls on Sunday in the first parliamentary and provincial elections since the Taliban's ouster in late 2001 by U.S.-led forces.

Afghan warlord backs abuse probe, says not guilty
By David Brunnstrom
PAGHMAN, Afghanistan, Sept 14 (Reuters) - A former mujahideen leader accused of war crimes said on Wednesday he supports an investigation into abuses during Afghanistan's long civil war.

But Abdul Rabb Rasoul Sayyaf, whose Ittihad-i-Islami faction battled Soviet occupiers in the 1980s and helped U.S.-led forces to oust the Taliban in 2001, denied wrongdoing and defended his right to stand in Sunday's parliamentary elections.

"If there was some proof that I had committed some crimes, then I will be responsible for that, but I am sure that we have worked for the freedom of the country," he told reporters during a campaign rally in Paghman, a district west of Kabul.

"We have struggled against crimes and didn't commit crimes," he said. "These are only the claims of those who are against us and against the freedom of this country."

Sayyaf said he supported the punishment of criminals, but investigations needed to be done impartially.

"We want a pure and clear and sincere investigation," he said. "We want the facts to be uncovered. We want the facts to be well known to the nation."

Sayyaf rejected charges from critics who say he and other mujahideen (holy warrior) commanders accused of rights abuses should not have been allowed to stand in the elections, the next big step in Afghanistan's difficult path to stability.

"When we were rescuing the world from the dangers of the Red Army -- in that time, where were the objections? In that time we were heroes, and now we are criminals?

Sayyaf is an ethnic Pashtun and a key supporter of U.S.-backed President Hamid Karzai. Sporting a long grey beard, a turban and traditional robes, he is among the most conservative Islamist figures standing in the elections.

A Human Rights Watch report in July accused Ittihad of widespread killing and abduction of rival ethnic Hazara civilians during battles for control of western Kabul in the 1990s and said Sayyaf was directly implicated in the abuses.

"STRONG PROOF"
Sam Zarifi, deputy director for Asia for the rights group, welcomed Sayyaf's support for an investigation, but said he himself had a lot to answer for.

"There is very strong proof, including reporting by Human Rights Watch, that Mr Sayyaf's forces were involved in crimes against humanity and war crimes in Kabul between 1992 and 1995, especially," he told Reuters.

"It's not just him -- there are lot of others, but we hope from what we heard today that there is a commitment on the part of the government to start looking for justice."

Zarifi said there were also allegations that, since the overthrow of the Taliban, Sayyaf and other warlords had been involved in intimidation of political rivals, contributing to a prevailing atmosphere of fear.

He said it was telling that armed militiamen, including a machine-gunner posted on the roof of the mosque where Sayyaf was speaking, had attended the campaign rally in Paghman.

"It really raises questions. There is no threat directed at Mr Sayyaf, certainly not in this area. The presence of armed troops at what is ostensibly a campaign rally says a lot about the intimidating presence of such people on the electoral rolls."

A total of 45 candidates have been barred from the elections, most for links to illegal armed groups, but no prominent figure is among them, raising concerns that the polls will help institutionalise a culture of impunity.

This week, Karzai defended the fact that Sayyaf and others accused of rights abuses had been allowed to run in the polls, saying it was in the interests of national reconciliation.

He said voters had the choice of who to vote for and, if there was a tribunal to prosecute abuses, parliament could decide whether to lift the immunity of anyone elected.

Many ordinary Afghans have been bemused by the presence of warlords' names on poll lists, but from Paghman at least it appears Sayyaf can expect a solid show of support.

Nineteen-year-old student Rahifullhah, walking past Paghman's jewel-blue Qarghar Lake, said Sayyaf was respected as a jihadi (holy war) commander who worked for the good of the people. He dismissed the idea that he had been responsible for war crimes.

"I don't agree with that," he said. "People can decide for themselves who they want to vote for, but I don't want to hear that people are saying that."

Former Taliban leader supports democracy in Afghanistan
KANDAHAR, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- A former Taliban leader and election candidate Mullah Abdul Samad Khaksar termed the election as a significant step towards democracy.

"It is my right to contest the election, it is the right of all Afghans to run for the parliamentary polls and strengthen democracy in the country," he told Xinhua at his home province Kandahar Wednesday.

Khaksar, who served as Deputy Interior minister during the Taliban reign, claimed that he has received threat from his former friends warning him to withdraw the contest or face the music.

"Neither the government nor foreign troops have threatened me but the Taliban who vowed to eliminate me if I contest the polls,"he added.

However, the bearded Khaksar who runs independently the elections downplayed the warning and said, "Let them kill me but I will not withdraw from the race as I like to serve our people through parliament."

"Our people have suffered a lot. Enough is enough. Any one, either it is Taliban or others, wants to sabotage the peace process is the enemy of the country," the ex-Taliban official noted.

Commenting on the US military presence in Afghanistan, the turbaned Mullah said the coming parliament should decide over it.

About his possible link with the Taliban movement, Khaksar said that he had already severed all kind of relations with the militia.

Khaksar, who is one of the nine former Taliban leaders contesting the legislative polls, said any Afghans irrespective of their political affiliation can stand for the elections

Criticizing his former colleagues, the 48-years old Khaksar said, "It is the time to rebuild our war-ravaged country jointly."

Asked if he was satisfied with government's performance, the former Taliban dignitary responded cautiously.

"Though I have some complaints and reservations but in general I am satisfied that a government is ruling the country and the reconstruction process even it is slow is going on," he stressed.

Taliban regime during its six-year reign which collapsed by US military invasion in late 2001 had banned girl schools, confined women to houses, shutdown music and outlawed all political groups.

"I am sure that with the strengthening of the central government security will be improved and democracy will be boosted," the ex-fundamentalist Mullah hoped.

Taleban 'kill voters in ambush'
Wednesday, 14 September 2005 BBC News
Taleban rebels have shot dead seven people carrying voter cards ahead of the Afghan parliamentary elections on Sunday, local officials say.

The killings took place when a vehicle was ambushed in central Uruzgan province on Tuesday.

A Taleban spokesman said they carried out the attack but that the men were policemen, not civilians.

The Taleban oppose the polls and have stepped up violence, with about 1,200 people killed in the past six months.

Forces increased

Uruzgan governor, Jan Mohammed Khan, said those killed in the ambush in Gizab district were all men.

They were found in their vehicle on a main road, carrying voter registration cards.

Mr Khan told Associated Press: "The Taleban are doing these terrorist activities and killing innocent Muslims. I don't know what kind of Muslims they are, finding voter cards and killing Muslims."

A Taleban spokesman, Abdul Latif Hakimi, told Reuters: "We killed seven policemen in Gizab, not voters."

US and Nato forces have been increased in the run-up to the elections.

About 2,800 people are running for parliament and another 3,000 competing for 34 provincial assemblies.

Five candidates are so far known to have been killed in attacks officials blame on the Taleban.

On Tuesday, President Karzai said a new approach might be needed to "defeat terrorism" and bring peace to Afghanistan.

"I believe we have to go to the sources of it, where terrorists are trained, where terrorists are prompted up," he said.

Nato defence ministers are currently in Brussels reviewing the deployment of the 11,000-strong International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) in Afghanistan.

The US also has about 18,000 soldiers in the country.

Afghanistan's women candidates brave threats
by Waheedullah Massoud
HERAT, Afghanistan, Sept 14 (AFP) - The number that appeared on Gheida Tavaen Afif's cellphone was unfamiliar, but she answered it anyway. "Step down or you'll be dead," a gruff voice barked.

It was the latest in a string of threatening calls made from payphones and cellphones to the 26-year-old, who is standing for parliament in Afghanistan's western city of Herat, but she ignores them.

"Why should I step down? Because I am a woman? No, never," she said at her campaign office, which situated in her family compound.

Afif says her father is supporting her financially, along with her brother and sister who both live overseas, although the family did not report the calls to the police because they were powerless to stop the harassment.

"Even if I risk getting killed, I will still struggle and push my way ahead because someone needs to stop this stupidity," she adds.

Hundreds of women like her are defying threats, instability and conservative attitudes to stand in the parliamentary polls on September 18, the country's first for 30 years and the next step in its tough path to democracy.

In the south and east they face a situation that has barely changed since the time of the Taliban, the hardline Islamic regime that banned women from studying, working or leaving the house without being covered by a burqa.

The region is also in the grip of an increasingly bloody insurgency waged by remnants of the hardline Islamic militia.

Meanwhile in much of northern and western Afghanistan, rights groups say, local warlords who helped lay waste to much of the country during a bitter civil war in the 1990s are now intimidating candidates.

Nevertheless, 328 women are standing for parliament's lower house, where 68 of 249 seats have been set aside for females. Another 237 are running for seats on provincial councils.

Only five seats reserved for women on provincial councils will stay empty because not enough women have stood for election, all of them in the conservative, ethnic Pashtun southern provinces where the Taliban were spawned.

The quotas have given an incentive for otherwise conservative tribal elders and powerful political families to put their normally sidelined sisters and daughters on the campaign trail.

And independent female candidates have found innovative ways around the intimidation.

Shukria Barikzai, 33, who is standing for parliament in the capital Kabul, has received a stream of death threats over the phone and by email.

Instead of planning rallies or meetings, she drives around the city and stops at crowded locations like bus stations to make speeches and distribute leaflets to passers-by.

Election observers say tradition remains a formidable obstacle for women planning their campaigns, because it is almost impossible for them to travel unaccompanied by a male relative, especially in rural areas.

"How can you campaign with a burqa over your head?" said one western election expert.

Money is another problem because few women have independent financial means to pay for leaflets, phone bills and office expenses.

"Women in general are financially dependent on their husbands or male family members, and rarely have good jobs so they have problems campaigning," said Mahboba Jamshidi, a 28-year-old parliamentary candidate.

Jamshidi was lucky, travelling to villages around the city with her father or brother, but in the conservative southeast other candidates face insurmountable obstacles.

Parliamentary candidate Gharghashta Katawazai has not been able to make a single campaign trip to Paktika province, where Taliban insurgents have killed six US soldiers so far this year.

"But I plan to go with the will of God despite the security concerns," she said.

At least one candidate in Paktika withdrew her candidacy after receiving death threats, and other 50 women across the country have stepped off the campaign trail, according to UN election officials.

But even in the south, more women are coming out to vote, with women making up 44 percent of the voters who have registered since the Afghan presidential election in October 2004.

In Ajristan district in conservative southeastern Ghazni province, where no women registered to vote last year, 13,000 have put their names on registers.

And female candidates will need their votes.

In this traditional Islamic culture, it is anathema for Afghan men to vote for a woman, which means they have a much narrower pool of supporters than their male competitors.

"Men cannot see women representing them," Jamshidi said. "We went to a village to campaign, but the elders asked why they should vote for women when there are male candidates."

Afghan voters can trust result, say organisers
By Robert Birsel
KABUL, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Organisers of Afghanistan's elections said they were confident extensive preparations to ensure the transparency and integrity of Sunday's voting would produce a result everyone could trust.

Afghans will vote for a new national assembly for the first time since 1969. Councils in all 34 of the country's provinces will also be elected.

The vote comes almost a year after a presidential election won by Hamid Karzai. That vote was marred by controversy over indelible ink meant to mark voters' fingers that in some cases was discovered to be easily washed off.

"We're confident that the extensive measures we've put into place for these elections will allow voters to have faith in the process and faith in the results," Richard Atwood, chief of operations for the joint Afghan-U.N. election commission, told a briefing on Wednesday.

Taliban insurgents have denounced the vote and claimed responsibility for killing several candidates.

Security, especially in the south and east of the country where the Taliban are most active, has been the main worry but Afghan and U.S. military officials say they are confident polling can be held safely.

About 160,000 polling staff have been trained and equipment has been delivered across the country.

Ballots and ballot boxes -- in some inaccessible areas loaded on camels and donkeys -- were on the final leg of their journey to 6,300 polling centres, Atwood said.

"DAUNTING CHALLENGE"
"Because of the focus on last year's ink we've put particular attention on the inking this year to ensure there's no confusion," he said.

"We've developed a strict inking methodology which will be applied uniformly across the country. The ink itself has been tested extensively to make sure it stains voters' fingers properly."

But concern remains about the complexity of the process, with voters, many illiterate, having to choose between numerous candidates on two ballot papers -- one for the parliamentary vote and one for the provincial vote.

The votes are being held on a non-party basis with all candidates running as independents. The 5,800 candidates are identified on ballot papers by name, photograph and personal symbol.

But the sheer number of candidates means long ballot papers.

The parliamentary ballot paper in Kabul province, for example, has nearly 400 names, is seven pages long and the size of a tabloid newspaper.

Delays at polling stations are a big worry.

"The large number of candidates is a direct result of choosing an electoral system that is not based on parties but on candidates," said Peter Erben, the commission's chief electoral officer. The system was chosen by the government.

"It is a daunting challenge for the voters of Afghanistan to vote on these two ballots. We've done the best we could to provide help with this and we hope it will work out well on Sunday," he said.

Zaeef accuses Pakistan of breaching promises
Pajhwok Afghan News 09/13/2005-By Mohammad Hasan Haqyar
KABUL - Former Taliban ambassador Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef has accused the Pakistan government of handing him over to the US in violation of promises made to him. "The Pakistan government, which gave me a diplomatic visa, had formally allowed me to live there after the Taliban government's fall in 2001," claimed Mullah Zaeef, who has just returned home after his release from the US naval detention centre at Guantanamo Bay.

In an exclusive chat with Pajhwok Afghan News in Kabul on Tuesday, Zaeef alleged Islamabad had yielded him up to the Americans in defiance of all diplomatic norms, international law and firm assurances held out to him.

The 37-year-old from Panjwai district in the southern Kandahar province, who spent four years in captivity in Cuba, said the treatment of prisoners at the infamous Guantanamo Bay camp had recently improved.

Many detainees at the fifth camp, deprived of basic human rights, were suffering from psychological disorders, said Zaeef, who was palpably in good health. Late Monday night, the ex-ambassador appeared on the state-controlled television along with National Reconciliation Commission Chairman Sibghatullah Mujaddedi.

Mullah Zaeef had held senior positions in the ministries of defence, transport and industries during the Taliban regime. In the late 2002, he had been arrested and handed over to the US military.

A day earlier, Taliban foreign minister Wakil Ahmad Mutawakil described Zaeef's release as propitious moment for an ongoing national reconciliation campaign. He stressed political issues could be best resolved through negotiations and showing magnanimity to political foes.

The Afghan national television said the Mujaddedi-led commission had intervened to win Zaeef's release that came six days ahead of parliamentary elections.

US officer: Bin Laden in ”poor health”
Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com) / September 14, 2005
The US intelligence has reports that Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden is in poor health and is looking to get medical treatment, the London-based al-Hayat newspaper quoted on Wednesday an American officer in Afghanistan.

"Osama bin Laden is trying to obtain medical attention," Colonel Don McGraw, director of operations at the Combined Forces Command in Kabul, told a group of reporters.

"He (McGraw) refused to say what al Qaeda leader is suffering from or whether it is the same kidney disease which Pakistani officials said in the past he was suffering from," the newspaper added. McGraw also refused to say if Bin Laden is looking to get the medical treatment in Afghanistan or Pakistan.

Pakistan-Afghan Relations in Murky Waters
Paknews, Pakistan 09/13/2005 By Farooq Hasnat
In June and July the American troops and the Afghan government functionaries, came under a series of armed attacks, shattering the comparative calm in Afghanistan. These vicious and daring assaults indicate that the much awaited parliamentary elections in September will not be free from trouble, and that the menace of Taliban still exists, as a potential future challenge. Contrary to what was the forecast in the past, these assaults specify that the war against terrorism in Afghanistan is far from over. The latest resistance inflicted a number of causalities on the American troops, raising the total of dead to 150, since 2001. There are nearly 15,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, with an additional battalion poised for that war torn country.

The heavy reliance on the American forces indicate the lack of organized Afghan security structure, i.e., even after more than four years of the elimination of the Taliban administration and the Afghan army remains far from adequately trained. President Hamid Karzai largely depends on the U.S. commandos for his personnel security and his opponents taunt that he is just a Mayor of Kabul, as his authority does not extend beyond that city. Although Karzai is a Pashtun but his government is dominated by much detested and suspected Uzbeks and Tajiks, minorities. Afghanistan still remains ethnically subjected as well as a competitive society with blocks of authority in various ethnic regions of the country. The law and order in Afghanistan has always been far from satisfactory and the pace of development remains extremely slow. According to an opinion, "this remained an area where, unfortunately, the Karzai government and the International Security Assistance Force have failed to deliver, as security beyond Kabul is virtually non-existent." In particular, the Zabul Province and the adjoining areas of Kandahr and Uruzgan Provinces have become strong holds of the militants. It is estimated that in these areas, the Taliban are much organized with no shortage of men, weapons and finances. The situation in Afghanistan is described by some as, "one of barely managed chaos".

Before the attacks, it was estimated by the U.S. sources and the Afghan government that insurgency had faded away and that the Taliban had lost their clout in the country. The main reason given was that last October, Presidential elections took place without hindrance and that during the winter of 2004-5, there was little or no activity from the Taliban. However, since April of this year 45 U.S. military personnel were killed by the suspected Taliban, while hundreds of Afghan soldiers and civilians died in armed clashes. It was said that the Afghan militants were using the same tactics of attack as the Iraqi insurgents. These activities panicked the fragile Afghan government, as well it exposed its vulnerability.

Accompanied by the hype in militancy, came a volley of direct and indirect blames on Pakistan. Included, in that rhetoric was the statement of Afghan-American U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalizad. He vehemently said that Mullah Omar and Osama bin Laden were somewhere in Pakistan. He however, could not substantiate his allegations with details and evidence. His claim that the militants have infiltrated from Pakistan, in an organized manner, was termed as baseless and irresponsible by Pakistan. Ambassador Khalizad's charge was followed by statements by the Afghan government officials, the official controlled news media and President Karzai, himself. In Pakistan the reaction was sharp and forthcoming. Apart from a strong statement from government representative, terming these charges as irresponsible and without evidence, the un-official electronic and print media started to question the rationale of Pakistan's complete commitment towards war against terrorism, in this part of the world. One of the leading Pakistani daily remarked, "It's time Pakistan should rethink its policy of cooperating in the War on Terror and being rewarded only with slurs".

The present crisis was defused with the intervention of President Bush, who persuaded both the countries to focus more on war against terrorism, than finding faults with each other. These developments further confirmed that bilateral ties between the two neighboring countries have become a matter of triangular relations, aggravating with the spread of global terrorism - becoming more problematic, with every reversal. Pak-Afghan relations remain a matter of serious concern for the United States strategic planners, as long as militancy continues to dominate the region.

Pakistan maintains around 80,000 troops in the tribal and adjoining areas, with Afghanistan. The borders are completely sealed, with latest reconnaissance devices and the Taliban entering Afghanistan in an organized manner is inconceivable. The main weakness lies with the Afghan security apparatus itself. A glaring example is the escape of four Afghan prisoners from Bagram jail, a facility that is heavily guarded and is under the direct control of the American troops. The escape was not possible without the cooperation of the Afghan soldiers, on duty. Till now there has been no trace of the escapees, who were known for their hardened ideology and considered extremely dangerous. It is easier for the Afghan administration to blame Pakistan for their security lapses, as little efforts are made by Kabul administration to establish its control in areas that are beyond the city of Kabul. Apart from that the Pashtun population is kept alienated by the Tajik-Uzbak alliance in the government. All Taliban might be Pashtuns but all Pashtuns does not confer to the ideology of the Taliban. In the close knit tribal society of Afghanistan, it is difficult to make a clear distinction between the two. Sometimes it is deliberately done so, to keep the majority of the Pashtoons, who are more than fifty per cent of the Afghan population, away from the mainstream politics.

Since the 1980s, Afghanistan is coupled with Pakistan in a number of ways. The basis being that no matter what happens in Afghanistan it has direct fallout on the Pakistani society, whether as a result of regional compulsions or so chosen by the Pakistani establishment. The flurry of attacks on the Afghan government troops and the American military deployments during these months raised many new questions. These were not only in regard to Afghanistan's internal security but also relates to the fragile relations between the two neighboring countries. At least, as a part of a policy pronouncement, Kabul recognizes that its security is closely allied with that of Pakistan. On the eve of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz's one day official visit to Kabul on July 24, these sentiments were reflected in Afghan Foreign Ministry statement saying that "friendly relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan were "in the national interest of both countries and an essential component to promote stability in the region". On several occasions, similar statements have also been made in the past. But, when pressures increases, the level of relations between the two countries come back to a naught.

The Afghan government continues to suspect Pakistan for being supportive of the militants in their country and in the present circumstances, there is little chance that Kabul could be convinced otherwise. The focal point of these relations remains around the conflict between Taliban and the Afghan security setup. Pakistan is dragged in the Afghan quandary, when it fails to manage the operations of Afghan related militant groups in its own society. Therefore, when it comes to Afghan militancy, the part of the problem comes from within Pakistan. Musharraf's government is seen by many as ineffective, as well indulging in dubious policies, whether sectarian or otherwise. The General's July 21 address to the nation vowed to eradicate militancy in Pakistan, but is regarded by observers as nothing more than his January 12, 2002 declaration to take charge of extremism and militancy in the country. The present "awakening" of Musharraf is attributed to July 7 London Bombings, in which the suicide bombers were alleged to have visited a Pakistani madrassa.

On its part, the Afghan society always presents itself in a package, carrying with itself a variety of dynamics and variables, which most of the time is difficult to manage by normal means. The past experience shows that the Afghans have yet to learn, solving their conflicts and accommodating the other point of view while running the government affairs. They have no experience in the modern concepts of legislative bodies, political parties or a structured judicial system. Whatever little they have, is confined to Kabul. In sum, there does not exist a political culture on whose foundations a modern society could be constructed. More so, with the brain drain since 1979, that went on unabated, the Afghan society lacks an indigenous expertise to manage their country. Experience has proved that a divided Afghanistan, devoid of any functional institutions, is incapable of reaching any political solution. As a reaction, the Kabul administration starts' looking for a scapegoat and Pakistan is invariably there to be singled out.

There is little hope that the forthcoming September parliamentary elections would provide a substantial betterment of the overall situation. Pakistan would continue to receive the fallout of the Afghan mismanagement, unless the government takes immediate strict measures to eradicate the Afghan linked militants. The noted aspect is that Pakistan has lost its creditability to perform any meaningful role in the divided and volatile Afghan society. Because of intense past interference in the Afghan factional conflict, Pakistan has conceded most of its neutral ground and is branded as an active partner in the existing militancy. In fact the Pakistani establishment is visualized as a major part of the problem. This view is also shared by some American officials, who regard Musharraf not doing enough to stop the recruitment of the Taliban cadres. After all, Ambassador Khalizad is nothing more than a mouthpiece of the Bush administration.

In the circumstances, it is required that Pakistan makes drastic adjustments in its Afghan related attitudes and put its own house in order. That would provide an opportunity to depart from its defective perceptions of the past and set the record straight. Pakistan has got another chance to amend its follies. It still has an opportunity to exit from the "Afghan muddle" that it had partly created for itself.

Afghanistan one of major antibiotic users
KABUL, September 13 (Pajhwok Afghan News): Struggling with the aftermath of 25-year strife, Afghanistan is one of the biggest antibiotic users in the world, a senior Health Ministry official said.

Dr Ahmad Shah Shokohmand, a high-ranking official at the Public Health Ministry said this at a three-day workshop on Monday. A new health policy promoting hygiene was on the anvil, he added.

The workshop was arranged by the Afghan Public Health Ministry in collaboration with the United Nation Agency for International Development (USAID).
"If we keep clean our surroundings, there will be no need for using antibiotics," he said, adding high doses of the drugs were prescribed only in a polluted and harmful environment.

Dr Abdul Salam Jalali, director of the Indira Gandhi Child Health Hospital, told Pajhwok Afghan News nearly 70 percent of the people had no access to potable water and 86 percent of the environment polluted.

He urged the municipality, public health and housing ministries as well as the public at large to play an effective role in keeping the environment clean in the interest of hygiene.

Afghan village mirrors national plight
Wednesday, 14 September 2005 BBC News
The BBC's Soutik Biswas spent Tuesday in an Afghan village, linking ordinary people there with BBC News website readers from all around the world who sent their questions on daily, rural life. Here he reflects on the day.

In seven hours sitting under a burning sun with only a slight wind blowing from the Hindu Kush mountains, replying to questions from strangers all over the world, Rahmat Gul - devout Muslim, father of seven children, teacher and vineyard owner - had not lost his cheeky sense of humour.

When a reader from Turkey e-mailed in asking what single thing he would wish for if he had a magic wand, Mr Gul quipped: "I would like to marry an English woman. I am ready for a new wife."

Mr Gul was one of six residents of Asad Khyl, an arid, brown village of high-walled mud homes, cracked culverts, dry streams and shrubby vineyards in the rolling Shomali plains north of Kabul, whom I had chosen to take part in our live One Day in Afghanistan project.

We had lugged a laptop, a satellite dish, a generator, a table, a few chairs, garden umbrellas and miles of cables from Kabul to Asad Khyl to hook up live with the world so that our readers could have a live pow-wow with Afghan villagers.

Mr Gul's infectious humour, along with a sumptuous lunch feast, helped keep us going.

"Soutik brother, listen to me," he said once midway through the programme with a mischievous smile.

"Why is it so that I am only receiving questions from women around the world?"

Strong views

The Sunni Muslim Pashtuns, who make up some 42% of Afghanistan's population, are conservative and fiercely protective of their traditions and ethos.

So when I drove over a rocky road to Asad Khyl last week to try set up the programme with the villagers, I expected cynical responses and resistance.

Instead, I discovered a Pashtun village with a varied, interesting mix of resilient, outspoken and vibrant people, most with a great sense of humour.

There was the wise elder, practitioner of Islamic law, judge and a vineyard owner Haji Abdullah Saleh, a proponent of conservative Islam but also a strong believer that the nation will unite and prosper only when all of Afghanistan's men and women are educated.

"Poverty can be no excuse for not getting educated. If you have a will and you are talented, you can make it anywhere in the world," he said.

Mr Saleh spoke freely on Islam, terrorism, development, tradition, the economy, and warlordism in his country.

Only when a reader asked whether Osama bin Laden had given his country a bad name did Mr Saleh break into a big smile to ask: "Do you want me killed?"

There was the bright 18-year-old boy, Shukrullah, who dreams day and night of becoming an engineer to build roads.

There was the shy 14-year-old Shaista who told me that if she did not become a doctor, life might not be worth living.

And in one small mud home, I found Lal Bibi, who looked infinitely older than her 45 years.

Her gnarled hands trembled as she spoke from behind a veil. Her husband went to war 12 years ago and vanished. They had been married for five years.

She said she would like to sew or wash clothes for a living, but nobody in the village could afford that. So she stayed home looking after her ageing mother.

"I don't think I am an unfortunate woman," he told me. "We believe in destiny. This was written in my destiny."

Unstable lives

Most of the 300 families who live in this bleak dun-coloured village are still depending on destiny to rebuild their lives, four years after the departure of the marauding Taleban and the end of the war.

Asad Khyl was a victim of the Taleban's infamous "scorched earth" policy and part of the fiercely fought battles between the advancing Taleban and the Northern Alliance in the late 1990s.

The entire village fled northwards to Panjshir valley or to the fetid Kabul slums when the Taleban razed their homes, mined their irrigation systems and uprooted their vineyards and fruit orchards.

Shukrullah and Shaista go to rundown schools where there aren't enough tables, chairs, books or teachers.

Lal Bibi wants to work for a living, but there isn't any.

Gul Khan is lucky if he finds work 10 days a month after standing in the local bazaar.

No reward

In a way, Asad Khyl is a mirror to the flawed and skewed development of Afghanistan after the war.

With enough water, electricity, better schools and clinics, this could have been built into a model village. Wild vines, mulberries, and willow grow here; the breathtaking landscape would have been a tourist lure.

But there simply isn't enough water - the irrigation canals have not been repaired, the canals remain dry.

Then there is no electricity - very few villagers can afford to rent a line from a creaky generator which fires up once a day.

A lack of infrastructure and teachers means the local school must work in multiple shifts to accommodate the growing number of students.

There seem to be no rewards for such villages in Afghanistan.

"We never grew poppies, we never courted the Taleban, we lived by the law and our minds and lives were burnt by the war. Still, the international community just keeps giving money to poppy growers and criminals to win them over.

"What is the incentive for villages like us?" asks Haji Abdullah Saleh, as a hazy, brown dusk sets on the village.

What, indeed?

Russia to open drug control office in Afghanistan
RIA Novosti, Russia
MOSCOW, September 14 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Federal Drug Control Service (FSKN) said it might open an office in Afghanistan in early 2006.

"This will help us to work with our Afghan counterparts and with representatives of those countries that are fighting drug trafficking in the region, including with U.S. law enforcement agencies," FSKN Director Viktor Cherkesov said.

Cherkessov said the amount of Afghan-produced drugs seized by Russia had significantly increased since the withdrawal of the Russian border guard from the Tajik-Afghan border. He said Tajik border guards were less trained and equipped to handle the influx of narcotics.

According to the UN Office for Drug Control, illegal crop areas of opium poppy grew 63% to 130,000 hectares last year over 80 hectares in 2003. Opium production hit 4,200 tons in 2004.

Afghanistan's infotainment revolution, thanks to India
By Gurinder Randhawa / NewKerala.com, India / September 13, 2005
Kabul: The hills of Afghanistan are resounding with Indian film songs and more than two-thirds of songs broadcast are from Hindi films. The dozen-odd cinema halls in the capital screen Hindi films daily, all shows.

As a result, Bollywood stars are household names in Afghanistan. Afghans follow Indian cinema so passionately that people voluntarily shut all mobile telephones for 10 minutes to mourn the demise of actor Amrish Puri earlier this year.

From a total gag on information and entertainment during the oppressive Taliban days, Afghanistan is today witnessing a communication and entertainment revolution. And Indian assistance is being seen as a crucial factor in helping Afghanistan evolve a knowledge-based society.

Every third person now carries a mobile phone and the landline network is expanding fast, alongside the introduction of wireless telephones and Internet services.

"The Afghan government and the people can never forget the Indian help in restoring totally destroyed infrastructure for information dissemination by providing both hardware and training to our producers, artistes, choreographers and journalists in India," Afghanistan's Information and Culture Minister Makhdom Rahin told IANS.

"We did not have even simple musical instruments like harmonium, tabla and sitar since they all were destroyed by the Taliban. Even the ceremonial band of the president's guard had to be provided with musical instruments by the Indian government," he added.

As a part of the $550 million reconstruction assistance provided by New Delhi to Kabul, India has set up a new earth station at the Afghanistan Radio and TV Centre here and provided a free transponder on the INSAT-3-A to transmit Kabul TV signals to 10 provincial TV centres where Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Ltd. (BECIL) have installed downlink facilities.

The remaining 23 provinces will soon get the facility with the completion of the downlink set up as a part of the $550 million reconstruction assistance provided by India to Afghanistan.
"Uplink and downlink facilities executed by India will bring the country together like nothing before," said Abdul Rehman Panjshiri, director of international relations at the Afghan Radio and TV.

"The 100-KW short-wave transmitter with seven antennas being installed by India at Yakatoot in Kabul is being completed this month. It will enable Kabul Radio programmes to be heard in South East Asia, South Asia, Africa and Europe.

"The people in remote areas in Afghanistan who remain cut off during the harsh winter months will now be able to follow the happenings in Kabul and other areas of the country through the programmes beamed on this short-wave transmitter," Panjshiri added.

BECIL has also set up a full-fledged TV studio with ultra-modern facilities at the Jalalabad TV centre to produce quality programmes and local news and encourage talent of Nangarhar and neighbouring provinces of Kunar, Nooristan and Loghar.

India is also replacing the existing low power TV transmitter in Jalalabad by a high power one with a 1,000-watt capacity, which will enhance the signal quality and enlarge the TV coverage area enormously.

TV relay stations are also being set up there to extend coverage to the shadow areas in the second most populated province after Kabul.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the two countries provides for setting up a film academy with India's support and training for Afghan nationals in Indian academies in script writing, cinematography, editing and sound recording.

The pact also aims at providing free flow of information, newspapers, periodicals, books and other publications, besides facilitating movement of journalists, increased cooperation among news agencies and holding of regular conferences of editors and working journalists of two countries.

The government-level cooperation is reflected in the private sector, too, as four private TV channels and a number of FM radio stations source their content from India's private producers in the entertainment sector.