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Pastimes : Rarely is the question asked: "is our children learning" -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John Sladek who wrote (1517)	12/13/2003 8:35:25 PM
From: John Sladek	Respond to of 2171

12Dewc03-Sayed Salahuddin-Crucial Afghan Assembly Postponed Amid Wrangling By Sayed Salahuddin Reuters Friday, December 12, 2003; 11:21 AM KABUL, Afghanistan -- Vote buying and intimidation have marred a landmark assembly in Afghanistan supposed to decide on a new constitution, boding ill for elections supposed to be held next year, Human Rights Watch said Friday. The start of the Loya Jirga, or Grand Assembly, was delayed until Sunday, amid protracted wrangling over sweeping powers demanded by President Hamid Karzai. But the whole process could be undermined by regional strongmen and warlords who have used fraud and intimidation to get their supporters elected, the New York-based watchdog warned. "Candidates told us about being threatened and strong-armed and some were bribed to drop their candidacies," said John Sifton, Afghanistan researcher for Human Rights Watch. Afghan soldiers, foreign peacekeepers and American forces have thrown a tight security blanket around the polytechnic compound where 500 delegates -- including Islamists, democrats and federalists -- will gather. The delegates will sit in a large tent within the compound, perhaps for several weeks, to debate the document supposed to guide war-battered Afghanistan to its first presidential elections in June. But the process has already come in for criticism. Diplomats said the draft was drawn up with too little popular consultation, and there are mounting fears that Karzai will try to force it through the assembly without a proper debate. Karzai, installed in 2001 after the fall of the Taliban and still widely seen as the only leader capable of keeping Afghanistan together, has said he will only stand in next year's elections if delegates vote for a strong presidency. But analysts believe regional strongmen and warlords are trying to wring concessions from him on greater autonomy or a stronger role for Islamic law in return for backing this bid. ORIGINALLY SET FOR WEDNESDAY The meeting was originally supposed to start Wednesday and was first postponed until Saturday. Farooq Wardak, head of the constitutional commission secretariat, told Reuters some of the 50 delegates Karzai appointed at the last minute had not yet reached Kabul. "We expect them to arrive here by tomorrow, but the opening will now, Inshallah (God willing), be Sunday," Wardak said. Privately, some delegates said the main reason for the delay was that Karzai had been having to work harder than expected to convince delegates to back him. Another reason for the latest delay, some officials said, was that former monarch, Mohammad Zahir Shah, who now has the title "father of the nation," considers the 13th an unlucky day. The meeting is taking place as U.S.-led forces wage a massive campaign against remnants of the Taliban and their al Qaeda allies in the south and east. Taliban guerrillas, who have stepped up attacks in recent months, have vowed to disrupt the assembly and said anyone attending deserved to die. Human Rights Watch said faction leaders had used widespread fraud and intimidation to influence the election of delegates, and warned that their proxies would dominate the meeting. Sifton said it appeared U.S. officials had been negotiating behind the scenes with factional leaders to ensure the draft envisaging a strong presidential system was pushed through. But some analysts said Karzai might have to make concessions. "We too want a presidential regime," said Qazi Abdul Sattar, a delegate from the eastern province of Kunar, before heading over to the place to lunch with Karzai. "But we would like to have a parliament that can supervise the president." Afghan expert Ahmed Rashid said there were several distinct blocs, including one in the north seeking greater regional autonomy and another group of religious hard-liners seeking a stronger interpretation of Sharia, or Islamic law. "Karzai should carry the day," he predicted, "but the opposition will very strong and the next few days will be all about deal making and pressure." washingtonpost.com