by Peter Wonacott and Anand Gopal
KABUL — Afghanistan is expected to put its rough-edged new democracy on display in a televised debate between candidates vying to lead one of the world’s poorest, most turbulent countries.
But only three of the 41 presidential candidates were asked to appear for the event Thursday evening, and only one looked certain to show up, reflecting the disarray of a nascent system that still lacks political parties and general ground rules for debates.
On Wednesday evening, a spokesman for the heavily favored incumbent, President Hamid Karzai, said the president wouldn’t participate because he didn’t have enough notice and more candidates weren’t invited.
Two former senior government officials were slated to take part: Abdullah, 49 years old, an ophthalmologist and former foreign minister, and Ashraf Ghani, a 60-year-old academic and ex-finance minister who has hired U.S. political strategist James Carville as an adviser. Both candidates were expected to lambaste the record of 51-year-old Mr. Karzai, their former boss.
But after Mr. Karzai’s pullout, an aide to Dr. Abdullah said the candidate would review his commitment to participate. Mr. Ghani couldn’t immediately be reached for comment late Wednesday. In an earlier interview, he said he will direct his criticism to an empty lectern if the president doesn’t show.
Under Mr. Karzai’s leadership, he says, Afghanistan’s development has sputtered, the opium trade has boomed and corruption has spiraled out of control. “President Karzai has been an extremely bad president,” says Mr. Ghani. “He hasn’t delivered.”
The Karzai campaign spokesman, Waheed Omar, said the criticism was typical of candidates who overlooked the progress the country had made in the past eight years. “All they want to do is take credit for the achievements and blame President Karzai for the shortcomings,” said Mr. Omar.
Despite the nation’s long list of economic and security woes, the debate also is expected to showcase the growth of Afghanistan’s young democracy. The election, set to take place Aug. 20, has helped to foster a nascent civil society of political activists and interest groups. Women’s and veterans organizations have caught the attention of candidates and elevated their grievances. A raft of presidential challengers — more than 40 — has spotlighted other problems, from police corruption to the effectiveness, or lack of it, of billions of dollars in foreign aid.
Afghanistan faces the formidable task of holding an election when swaths of the country are at war. July has been the bloodiest month for foreign troops since the war against Afghanistan’s Taliban began in late 2001. Taliban guerrillas continue to operate freely in large parts of the country’s Pashtun-dominated south, and there are growing concerns that insurgents will disrupt next month’s polls.
Mr. Karzai has led Afghanistan since the U.S. and other North Atlantic Treaty Organization countries toppled the Taliban in late 2001. He was chosen then to head Afghanistan’s interim government. In 2004, he won the first direct presidential elections in the country’s history, but the results were marred by allegations of fraud by his opponents, though the charges never went to court.
This time, Mr. Karzai has been able to strike deals with regional commanders who earlier opposed him. Such support has tipped him as the election favorite, though many experts say the race has tightened in recent weeks.
A big question mark is voter turnout. There have been problems with voter registration. And without paved roads in much of rural Afghanistan, thousands of donkeys will be needed to deliver election materials to polling sites, according to Margie Cook, the chief electoral adviser for the United Nations Development Program.
It is also unclear how widely the campaigns of various candidates are followed. Only 7% of rural Afghanistan has electricity, thereby limiting Thursday’s debate mainly to an urban minority. The private Tolo television channels will host the broadcast.
Mr. Ghani says he is targeting young people — about 70% of the country is under 30 years old — and women. He promises programs that will spawn one million jobs and provide wider access to education. He also has used social networking on the Internet to recruit 8,000 volunteers around the country, he says.
For political polish, Mr. Ghani has hired Mr. Carville, the strategist for Bill Clinton’s 1992 campaign for the U.S. presidency. Mr. Carville has focused partly on toning down the candidate’s intellectually haughty reputation. “He’s telling me not to be too smart,” says Mr. Ghani, arching a dark eyebrow. “Great advice,” he adds.
Mr. Carville says he is urging Mr. Ghani to play to his strengths, including an expertise in development, so he can connect to those who worry about food, electricity and jobs.
Dr. Abdullah, who goes by one name, is taking a different tack. The former diplomat has sought to highlight his Pashtun heritage and his past as a mujahedeen fighting the Soviet Union.
Most of the 40 candidates running against Mr. Karzai — almost double the number that contested the last presidential election — have virtually no chance of winning.
Tags: elections, government
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