July 28, 2019

Afghanistan’s future through ballots, not bullets

topic:	Humans
located:	Afghanistan
editor:	Shadi Khan Saif

Amid the gloomy news emerging from Afghanistan over all these years, there are some good ones, as well. The unity government elected through the 2014 presidential polls has completed its term and is set to hold fresh polls to nurture democratic principles in the war-riddled country.

With the beginning of the official campaign for the 2019 presidential elections, men and women across the mountainous country can pick and choose their future leaders based on their promises and track record.
In spite of all the glitches associated with the balloting process in Afghanistan, it is no doubt much better than imposing will on the people through bullets.

Elections in a democratic system do not end miseries of a nation overnight anywhere, but they provide a stepping stone for a systematic and peaceful transfer of power along with mechanisms for check and balance with the voters at the heart of it.

The Afghans have demonstrated in the recent parliamentary elections – and even before that – just how much they appreciate the sense of empowerment they get through this type of democratic practice.

In the case of Afghanistan, the main opponents to the peoples’ say in electing future leaders are the Taliban. Their principle remains that the country is under ‘occupation’ and the government is orchestrating elections only to legitimise the occupation further.

The counter-argument here is that where does the Taliban get their legitimacy from? There were no so-called legitimate polls when they were in power (1996 - 2001) and in fact, a phenomenal number of Afghans expressed their opposition toward the Taliban by leaving the country.

There is no denial of rigging, technical glitches and issues of inclusivity associated with some of the elections Afghanistan has had since the fall of the Taliban regime, but the peoples’ determination to participate, despite deadly threats by the Taliban, outshines that.

In its special report titled '2018 Elections Violence', the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) noted last year that the Taliban launched a deliberate campaign of violence and intimidation to disrupt elections. The report verified a total of 435 civilian casualties (56 deaths and 379 injured) during the process.

For the sake of the country and its people, the warring sides need to immediately ceasefire so that the Afghans can choose their future leaders in peace.