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Election:Afghanistan

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Election:Afghanistan

Islamic Republic of Afghanistan has presidential elections on 20 August, 2009. The President is elected by direct vote to serve a 5-year term.

The President serves as the head of state and the Command-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Afghanistan. The Independent Election Commission (IEC) has the authority and responsibility to administrate and supervise all kind of elections; as well as refer to general public opinion of the people. To read further click here.

In the House of People (Wolesi Jirga) 249 members are elected by direct vote to serve 5-year terms. In the House of Elders (Meshrano Jirga), 34 members are elected from within the Provincial Councils to serve 4-year terms, 34 members are elected from within the District Councils to serve 3-year terms and 34 members are appointed by the president to serve 5-year terms. To read further please visit ACE Project: The Electoral Knowledge Network.

Region
Theme

Diane Bailey prepared the report for UN radio on women participation in the elections in Afghanistan. She highlighted that "there are even two female presidential candidates. Afghan women and those supporting them are happy with this progress, even as women voters and candidates alike face serious obstacles."

To read the complete report please visit UN Radio.

Thu, 08/27/2009 - 09:29 Permalink
theresa.delangis (not verified)

In recent press conference, the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Afghanistan pointed out that the upcoming elections in Afghanistan are the most complex he had ever confronted. And indeed the efforts to hold credible and inclusive elections are fraught with challenges that can be little imagined in other settings.

In particular, the insecurity that grips the country, especially in its southern tier, has gendered impacts that have been barely anticipated and little planned for by the official mechanisms set to oversee the elections. So how to include women in the upcoming elections—when their mobility is severely restricted by both insecurity and customary practices, their access to finances controlled by men, and their possession of public power prohibited by traditional roles for women?

Indeed, in light of these obstacles, it is a tribute to the courage of Afghan women that they have come out in records numbers to stand for elections at all. As part of an on-going program to provide support to these women candidates, UNIFEM Afghanistan is administering around-the-clock support through a women and elections hotline telephone number, supported by an Urgent Response Fund meant to extricate women political actors from dire security situations. The women call the hotline with a variety of issues—from access to information to the need for technical assistance—and what they receive is, above all else, validation that their candidacy matters, their running is a contribution to democratization in Afghanistan whether they win or lose a seat.

Through the hotline we are able to hear women’s unique stories—many of which are security related and all of which demonstrate their determination to participate in building a better Afghanistan. There are women who are receiving death threats from their own families (for ‘dishonouring’ the family name by claiming public space and public power); there are women who arrive to their offices in the morning to find it plastered with ‘night letters’ that warn them to drop their campaign or face death; there are women who have fled their home provinces for safer territory, too afraid to campaign in the open for fear of reprisal.

The Urgent Response Fund is a second tier response to these situations, and meant to work in tandem with the established institutions whose mandate it is to provide women protection and recourse—the Electoral Complaints Commission, the Ministry of Interior, the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission. The Fund is designed to supplement these efforts, as we know that for some women facing direct and targeted violence the provision of taxi fare can be the difference between life and death, danger and a safe place. Yes, this is a complex to run an election, especially if women are to be counted and accounted for. Yet, thus far, no women provincial candidate have informed us she is leaving the race as a capitulation to security threats—and in fact many, despite threats, continue to actively and publicly campaign—and for that the prospect of a rejuvenated Afghanistan is stronger.

Mon, 08/10/2009 - 13:23 Permalink

A recent news story from Afghanistan's upcoming election worth following is the political path of Ms. Shahla Atta and Ms. Frozan Fana. With just around 2 weeks away from the first round of presidential elections in Afghanistan, we invite similar stories to this from the country and efforts by women's groups to rally to support the prospect of a woman president.

Thu, 08/06/2009 - 10:14 Permalink
Region
Theme

Diane Bailey prepared the report for UN radio on women participation in the elections in Afghanistan. She highlighted that "there are even two female presidential candidates. Afghan women and those supporting them are happy with this progress, even as women voters and candidates alike face serious obstacles."

To read the complete report please visit UN Radio.

Thu, 08/27/2009 - 09:29 Permalink
theresa.delangis (not verified)

In recent press conference, the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Afghanistan pointed out that the upcoming elections in Afghanistan are the most complex he had ever confronted. And indeed the efforts to hold credible and inclusive elections are fraught with challenges that can be little imagined in other settings.

In particular, the insecurity that grips the country, especially in its southern tier, has gendered impacts that have been barely anticipated and little planned for by the official mechanisms set to oversee the elections. So how to include women in the upcoming elections—when their mobility is severely restricted by both insecurity and customary practices, their access to finances controlled by men, and their possession of public power prohibited by traditional roles for women?

Indeed, in light of these obstacles, it is a tribute to the courage of Afghan women that they have come out in records numbers to stand for elections at all. As part of an on-going program to provide support to these women candidates, UNIFEM Afghanistan is administering around-the-clock support through a women and elections hotline telephone number, supported by an Urgent Response Fund meant to extricate women political actors from dire security situations. The women call the hotline with a variety of issues—from access to information to the need for technical assistance—and what they receive is, above all else, validation that their candidacy matters, their running is a contribution to democratization in Afghanistan whether they win or lose a seat.

Through the hotline we are able to hear women’s unique stories—many of which are security related and all of which demonstrate their determination to participate in building a better Afghanistan. There are women who are receiving death threats from their own families (for ‘dishonouring’ the family name by claiming public space and public power); there are women who arrive to their offices in the morning to find it plastered with ‘night letters’ that warn them to drop their campaign or face death; there are women who have fled their home provinces for safer territory, too afraid to campaign in the open for fear of reprisal.

The Urgent Response Fund is a second tier response to these situations, and meant to work in tandem with the established institutions whose mandate it is to provide women protection and recourse—the Electoral Complaints Commission, the Ministry of Interior, the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission. The Fund is designed to supplement these efforts, as we know that for some women facing direct and targeted violence the provision of taxi fare can be the difference between life and death, danger and a safe place. Yes, this is a complex to run an election, especially if women are to be counted and accounted for. Yet, thus far, no women provincial candidate have informed us she is leaving the race as a capitulation to security threats—and in fact many, despite threats, continue to actively and publicly campaign—and for that the prospect of a rejuvenated Afghanistan is stronger.

Mon, 08/10/2009 - 13:23 Permalink

A recent news story from Afghanistan's upcoming election worth following is the political path of Ms. Shahla Atta and Ms. Frozan Fana. With just around 2 weeks away from the first round of presidential elections in Afghanistan, we invite similar stories to this from the country and efforts by women's groups to rally to support the prospect of a woman president.

Thu, 08/06/2009 - 10:14 Permalink