Elections Snapshot from Northeastern Afghanistan

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SUBJECT: Elections Snapshot from Northeastern Afghanistan

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Electioneering in Badakhshan Leads to Criticism
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1. Controversy ensued in Badakhshan when Zalmay Mojaddedi, a Member
of Parliament (MP) close to Karzai, used two GIRoA helicopters to
personally distribute emergency assistance items such as tents,
blankets and cash to flood victims in his home district of Jurm and
neighboring areas in mid-June. According to the Provincial Council
(PC) members, Mojaddedi did not coordinate the distribution with
UNAMA, the province's Disaster Response Committee, or with any other
local officials. The PC publicly cried foul as sees this lack of
coordination as blatant politicking and misuse of government
property for campaign puposes. Waqef Hakimi from Dr. Abdullah
Abdullah's campaign team discussed his concerns about the incident
on Tolo TV's talk show "Election 88." POLoffs have discussed the
incident with the Yaseni, Abdullah, and Ghani campaigns and have
encouraged them to report it to the Electoral Complaints Commission
(ECC) if they feel it was a serious violation of electoral law.


2. PRTOff in Kabul met with Badakhshan Provincial Council member
Gulali Akbari, a female incumbent who is running for reelection.
Akbari is known as one of the most active PC members and has pushed
forward many projects in support of women's employment. She thanked
the United States for its continuing support for a large girls'
school opening this week in Badakhshan. Of the elections, Akbari
noted that the field is competitive, and that 120 candidates for the
province's 10 seats are "wealthy." She said she hopes voters in the
province, especially women, will recognize the hard work she has
done for them. Nevertheless, she was worried that she would not
receive a large number of votes simply by virtue of the number of
candidates.

Flood Damage May Have Effect On Voting In Takhar
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3. Lotfollah Azizi, a PC member for Takhar Province, has advised
residents in Takhar's northern districts not to vote out of protest
unless the Kokcha River Bridge, destroyed by the recent floods, is
reconstructed. In what is perhaps the most dramatic example of the
recent flood damage in the province, the steel framed Kokcha Bridge
was washed out May 5, cutting off approximately 347,000 residents
from the provincial capital. Last week, Governor Ibrahimi visited
Kabul partly to drum up donors for rebuilding the bridge, which may
take up to three years to complete. The United Nations Office for
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) blames 17 deaths and
1740 destroyed houses in Takhar Province alone on flooding.

Rallies Begin in Baghlan
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4. An estimated 1000 supporters of Mirwais Yaseni gathered at a
public hall at the textile factory in Pul-i-Khumri on June 22 to
rally support for their candidate. Other public rallies have taken
place for President Karzai and Dr. Abdullah Abdullah within the past
week. According to political insiders, Dr. Abdullah seems to have
the most support in the province, possibly due to Atta's support.
Other top runners include Karzai, Yaseni and Ashraf Ghani.


Behind the Scene Politicking Continues in Kunduz
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5. Elders, local commanders and Governor Omar were all in Kabul
this week for a wide range of political and security meetings.
Early in the week, Karzai met with prominent local elders to discuss
politics and security. This was followed by a meeting of 60 Kunduz
commanders called by Minister of Interior Atmar and organized by
Deputy Minister of Interior Daoud Daoud, who retains extensive ties
to northern commanders. It is still unclear what the ramifications
of this high level politicking will be. As such, though
presidential political allegiances may be crystallizing, most local
political figures have yet to publicly declare their allegiances.
One commander told PRTOff that while President Karzai has been
working for the Afghan people for the past five years, Dr. Abdullah
seems to be working harder.

IEC In Kunduz Meets With Parties and PC Candidates June 24
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6. Over 90 political party representatives, PC candidates,
political figures and local press attended the information session
by the Provincial Election Office. Kunduz has 124 PC candidates,
including 12 women. Twenty-two candidates are formally aligned to a
political party. Although 131 PC candidates had originally
registered themselves, four subsequently withdrew their nominations
and three failed to qualify due to membership in illegally armed
groups. Some PC candidates expressed their concern about overall
security in the province. Both the Deputy Governor and the Deputy

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Police Chief addressed these concerns stating that all ANSF were
working to ensure security at the polling stations. One PC
candidate voiced frustration at the restrictions placed on
campaigning at public buildings such as schools and mosques, and
demanded public television air time. "If you cannot campaign at
schools, mosques or other public places, what are you supposed to
do, stop cars at the traffic circle?"


7. As previously reported, at least one female PC candidate in
Kunduz withdrew her application after local intimidation. Media
reported that some PC candidates were afraid to put up posters with
their photographs due to deteriorating security in the province.
However, public comments at the event indicated that many PC
candidates simply cannot afford campaign posters. A few posters of
Abdullah Abdullah and President Karzai have begun to appear in
Kunduz city.

EIKENBERRY