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A10 WORLD NEWS
Saturday 20 OctOber 2018
A look at Afghanistan’s parliamentary elections on Saturday

By RAHIM FAIEZ President Ashraf Ghani councils were supposed army. Officials say elections may Wesa, who was initially
Associated Press and Chief Executive Of- to take place at the same won’t be held in 10 districts reported wounded.
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) ficer Abdullah Abdullah, time as parliamentary that are completely under ___
— Afghanistan is holding but none can be consid- elections but the Indepen- Taliban control, including POSTPONEMENT OF ELEC-
parliamentary elections on TIONS IN KANDAHAR
Saturday despite deep se- After Thursday’s attack,
curity concerns and ongo- the Independent Election
ing fighting in as many as Commission postponed
20 out of the country’s 34 the elections in Kandahar
provinces. for a week, to give voters
The vote comes amid a who might have stayed at
particularly vicious cam- home on Saturday over se-
paign by the Taliban and curity fears the chance to
the Islamic State group, vote.
which have been staging ___
near-daily attacks. On the TALIBAN WARNINGS
eve of the balloting, vot- The Taliban, who have
ing in Kandahar province been fighting Afghan and
was postponed for a week, NATO forces for more than
following a deadly attack 17 years, have condemned
there Thursday that killed at the elections and warned
least two senior provincial candidates and Afghan
officials, including its pow- security forces they would
erful police chief. The Tal- be targeted. They have
iban claimed responsibility. In this Tuesday Oct. 16, 2018 photo, a bus is covered with posters for candidate, Alhaj Abdul also warned teachers and
Hossain Hossainzada, ahead of parliamentary elections, in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Besides the security chal- Associated Press students not to participate
lenges, there have also in the elections and not to
been concerns over the ered major players as most dent Election Commission five in southern Helmand allow schools to be used as
transparency of the vote candidates in the vote are delayed that vote be- province, a Taliban heart- polling centers.
and for the first time, the running as independents. cause only a tenth of the land. The other five districts ___
election commission has Afghanistan’s parliament country’s 400 districts had include two in northeastern CIVIL SOCIETY AND ELEC-
equipped polling stations includes both a lower and enough male and female Badakhshan province and TON OBSERVIERS
with biometric identifica- an upper house, but only candidates step forward to one each in northern Bagh- More than 400,000 civil soci-
tion systems. members of the lower run in district races. Security lan, Sari Pul and southern ety activists, independents
Here is a look at the elec- house are directly elected. fears and violence are top Zabul province. and members of political
tions, the figures and key is- The upper house consists reasons why so few want- ___ parties, as well as national
sues in the vote: of a mixture of parliamen- ed to run for district seats. VIOLENCE AHEAD OF ELEC- and international observers
___ tarians chosen from local Other reasons include high TIONS and representatives from
HOW MANY SEATS, HOW councils and those ap- illiteracy rates among Af- There have been deadly media outlets will follow the
MANY CANDIDATES AND pointed by the president, ghans living in districts. attacks against candidates polling day.
POLLING STATIONS? as well as members elect- ___ and campaign rallies, both ___
There are 2,565 candidates ed in district elections. Leg- ELIGIBLE VOTERS by the Taliban and Islamic WHAT IS AT STAKE?
vying for 249 seats in the islature passed in the lower Around 8.8 million people States militants. Since the The Afghan government is
lower house of parliament, house has to be approved have registered to vote. 20-day campaign period keen to prove it’s capable
including 417 women can- by the upper chamber. Though there hasn’t been began, at least two candi- of holding these elections
didates. Voters will be able ___ a census for more than 30 dates and over 34 civilians despite prevailing secu-
to cast ballots at more than DISPUTE IN GHAZNI PROV- years, Afghanistan’s popu- have been killed in such rity challenges. The vote
19,000 polling stations in 33 INCE lation is estimated to be attacks, including suicide was originally scheduled
provinces. Of those, the Elections will not take place more than 30 million. Of bombings, motorcycle for 2015 but the situation
elections commission says in eastern Ghazni prov- the registered voters, 64 bombs and drive-by shoot- was too unstable at the
as many as 11,667 polling ince amid an ongoing dis- percent are men and 34 ings. In the run-up to cam- time. Politically, there was
stations are reserved for pute over how to divide its percent are women; the paigning, five candidates a crisis following the 2014
men and 7,429 for women, electoral constituencies to remaining 2 percent are were killed and two were presidential elections, and
while 46 will serve Afghan ensure a more balanced Kochis, Sikhs and Hindus. abducted, their fates un- NATO forces had only just
nomads, known as Kochis, ethnic representation. Law- ___ known. Also, Afghan securi- handed over security to Af-
and 22 will serve minority makers elected from Ghaz- SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS ty forces accidentally killed ghan forces at the end of
Sikhs and Hindus. The Ko- ni in 2010 will retain their More than 50,000 mem- three bodyguards of an in- 2014.
chis have 10 parliament seats until the province is bers of the Afghan secu- dependent candidate dur- Now, the government
seats reserved for them able to hold a vote. In the rity forces will be deployed ing a raid on a house near wants to send a message
while the Sikhs and Hindus last elections, eight years to secure polling stations. his residence. to the Taliban — who are
jointly have one seat. ago, minority Hazaras won Afghan officials have an- On Thursday, Kandahar’s engaging in separate ne-
However, security fears all the seats from Ghazni, nounced three levels of se- powerful police chief Gen. gotiations with the United
have forced the election leaving majority Pashtuns curity belts at each polling Abdul Raziq and at least States on a possible po-
commission to close about and also Tajiks without center. Police and mem- one other senior provincial litical settlement — that its
2,000 polling stations. representation as voting bers of the intelligence official and two policemen institutions are functioning,
___ wasn’t held in their areas, force will make up the first were killed when an Af- and that if the Taliban de-
MAJOR PLAYERS AND PO- which are mostly controlled two belts, covering a dis- ghan guard opened fire at cide to come to the nego-
LITICAL PARTIES by the Taliban. tance of 3 to 5 kilometers a meeting with U.S. officials tiating table, they will have
A few parties have ___ (1.8 to 3 miles) from polling to discuss security ahead of to deal with a government
emerged in opposition to NO DISTRICT COUNCIL centers. The third security the vote. There were con- and a political process
the current national unity ELECTIONS THIS TIME? belt will be patrolled joint- flicting reports on the fate that’s acceptable to the
government of Afghan Initially, elections for district ly by police and Afghan of Kandahar governor, Zal- majority of Afghans.q