Wednesday
Aug122009
State Dept. Official Warns Of Challenging Afghan Election
Wednesday, August 12, 2009 at 1:52PM
Richard Holbrooke, the State Department’s special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, is one of the many international figures keeping a close watch on the political situation in Afghanistan in the lead up to the country’s presidential election, but concedes that despite attempts to ensure legitimacy, the election results will not satisfy everybody.
“Will there be challenges in this election? There are in every other democracy. I think we should assume those,” Holbrooke said Wednesday during a panel discussion with his interagency task force.
“Holding an election in a war time situation is always difficult, holding one when the enemy said it was going to disrupt it is even more difficult,” Holbrooke said.
While Afghan President Hamid Karzai sought to hold elections in April, in accordance to the country’s constitution, an election commission moved the date to August 20th to prepare for security, budgetary, and technical concerns. 38 presidential candidates are currently running.
The special representative urged patience following the polls’ closing, explaining that it will take time to determine the winner.
“We aren’t going to know on the evening of August 20th who won. CNN is not going to call this election,” Holbrooke said. “There will be disputes as there are in American elections.”
While Afghanistan’s election commission would likely have an important role in declaring the election legitimate, Holbrooke stressed the importance of the media in analyzing the the results.
“You take the three most obvious examples [of contested elections]: Iran, Kenya, and Zimbabwe. No one knows what actually happened there. What you know is what you think you know, thanks to the media.”
Holbrooke touched upon the larger focus of the U.S. mission in Afghanistan, and Although the representative did not give a clear definition on what factors would signal success in Afghanistan from an American perspective, he promised “we will know it when we see it.”
“Will there be challenges in this election? There are in every other democracy. I think we should assume those,” Holbrooke said Wednesday during a panel discussion with his interagency task force.
“Holding an election in a war time situation is always difficult, holding one when the enemy said it was going to disrupt it is even more difficult,” Holbrooke said.
While Afghan President Hamid Karzai sought to hold elections in April, in accordance to the country’s constitution, an election commission moved the date to August 20th to prepare for security, budgetary, and technical concerns. 38 presidential candidates are currently running.
The special representative urged patience following the polls’ closing, explaining that it will take time to determine the winner.
“We aren’t going to know on the evening of August 20th who won. CNN is not going to call this election,” Holbrooke said. “There will be disputes as there are in American elections.”
While Afghanistan’s election commission would likely have an important role in declaring the election legitimate, Holbrooke stressed the importance of the media in analyzing the the results.
“You take the three most obvious examples [of contested elections]: Iran, Kenya, and Zimbabwe. No one knows what actually happened there. What you know is what you think you know, thanks to the media.”
Holbrooke touched upon the larger focus of the U.S. mission in Afghanistan, and Although the representative did not give a clear definition on what factors would signal success in Afghanistan from an American perspective, he promised “we will know it when we see it.”
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