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December 13, 2010 Special Dispatch No. 3441

Afghan Opposition Leader Dr. Abdullah Describes President Karzai as the 'Main Obstacle' to Building Democracy in Afghanistan, Says: 'The Opposition is Not Really Weak… At the Last Elections We had More Than 30 Percent of the Vote'

December 13, 2010
Afghanistan | Special Dispatch No. 3441

Former Afghan Foreign Minister Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, who was the main contender against President Hamid Karzai in the August 2009 presidential election, has emerged as the country's main opposition leader. Over the past year, he has spoken out against corruption in the Karzai government and has campaigned for instilling democratic norms in Afghan government institutions.

Following the September parliamentary election in Afghanistan, Dr. Abdullah hoped that he would get the support of enough lawmakers to evolve an opposition alliance against the Karzai government. In a recent interview with London-based newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, Abdullah said: "We hope to have a good number of the opposition [lawmakers] in parliament; and hopefully this will be the foundation of the future, both inside the parliament and outside of the parliament as well." The interview was published before the final results of the election were declared by the Independent Election Commission (IEC) of Afghanistan.

When the IEC began announcing preliminary results for the 249-seat Wolesi Jirga (the lower house of Afghan parliament), public protests, legal disputes and prosecution of election officials began over allegations of voter fraud and disqualification of candidates. However, the last batch of election results was declared on December 1, 2010, by the IEC in Ghazni province, where 11 members from the minority Hazara community were declared winners, much to the discomfiture of President Karzai, who survives on support from the majority Pashtun tribes. However, IEC's Fazl Ahmad Manawi defended the poll results, saying: "President Karzai's concerns are understandable, [and] I wish the law had given us the right to address all the concerns, but we are not in a position to do anything other than what we have done."[1]

Afghanistan is passing through a critical phase in which the legitimacy of the Karzai government is being questioned publicly. In the Al-Sharq Al-Awsat interview, Dr. Abdullah stressed that President Karzai has emerged as a divisive figure in Afghanistan, stating: "When you are in the first phases of nation building, what the leader of the country does sets the trend. Unfortunately, Afghanistan was harmed in the very first stages of nation building of a democratic state by having a leader that does not believe in the principles of democracy."

The following are excerpts from the interview:[2]


"[President Karzai] is Intending to… [Amend the Constitution]; I Know This for a Fact; It is His Intention to Go for a Third Term [in Power]"

Q: "What kind of work are you doing these days?"

Abdullah: "There are two main issues that I am busy with. In politics, there are the parliamentary elections and all of that happening; we are busy with parliamentary issues and we hope to have a good number of the opposition [lawmakers] in parliament; and hopefully this will be the foundation of the future [Afghanistan], both inside the parliament and outside of the parliament as well.

"The [second issue] is charity and that is the Massoud Foundation, which is a large project involving the library, museum, and everything; which is directly under my supervision. The other part of the Massoud Foundation is sometimes educational and health programs, humanitarian assistance, and so on. We also have a school… where orphans are being taught… there are courses for computers and language and so on and so forth…"

Q: "Does the Afghani constitution allow for a president to serve two terms in office?"

Abdullah: "Yes, if somebody abides by the constitution, he is allowed to serve twice. But if he manipulates the parliamentary elections and has a majority in parliament then he can amend the constitution. He [Karzai] is intending to do that, I know this for a fact. It is his intentions to go for a third term.

"Unfortunately, he doesn't see himself in any role other than president; so that is an issue. But he is not going to have the majority in parliament unless he ignores the constitution and everything else; so there is no chance for him to be president for a third time; he will nevertheless try his best [to achieve this].

"We will stay in the opposition throughout this period; and then… hopefully we will be able to mobilize the public; so for the people of Afghanistan the choice is not between a corrupt government and the Taliban; or a combination of the two which is even worse. The people of Afghanistan have a choice."

"Mr. Karzai has Become the Main Obstacle to Our Process of Building a Democracy; This Affects Every Activity [in Afghanistan]"

Q: "What is the reason behind the weakness of the Afghanistan political opposition?"

Abdullah: "First of all, the democratic process here started just a few years ago, and when you are in the first phases of nation building, what the leader of the country does sets the trend. Unfortunately Afghanistan was harmed in the very first stages of nation building of a democratic state by having a leader that does not believe in the principles of democracy.

"Mr. Karzai has become the main obstacle to our process of building a democracy. This affects every activity including the activities of the opposition. But even if you take a country like Afghanistan, the opposition is not really weak when you consider that at the last elections we had more than 30 percent of the vote…

"But the problem is that our system is very centralized; one person [i.e. the president] decides. This is an obstacle now, but we will not let this be the future of the country. In the parliamentary election we have done very well, that is why the government is now interfering; in order to manipulate the results of the parliamentary election. I will not talk about the numbers because we still don't have the final results… the opposition is not weak. The question that must be asked is: how can we impact the situation? …"

"The People of Afghanistan are United on a Few Principles; They Want a Moderate Islamic Country; They Want the Rule of Law and Equal Rights"

Q: "How do you view the government's talks with the Taliban, and the role being played by Saudi Arabia?"

Abdullah: "There are many issues with the negotiations and talks with the Taliban. The first is that the Taliban's view and what they are calling for in the negotiations today with regards to a return to an Islamic Republic or Islamic State does not go together. They think that Afghanistan should go back to the days of the Taliban, and that is not acceptable. A nation cannot survive under those circumstances.

"The next issue is their links with terrorist organizations whilst the third point is the presence of… [terrorist] sanctuary outside of Afghanistan; mainly in Pakistan. These are the three main obstacles.

"In terms of opportunity I would say that the people of Afghanistan are united on a few principles. They want a moderate Islamic country, they want people's participation in terms of electing the government, they want a united Afghanistan; they want the rule of law and equal rights. As for the developmental process, they want this to be fair for everybody and for everybody to benefit from this."

"[A] Door has to be Open for Negotiations [with the Taliban], But Certain Issues have to [First] be Addressed, Like What will Happen to the Terrorist Organizations that are Linked to the Taliban?"

Abdullah: "In theory, the leader or the leadership of the country should unite the people around this common vision, and isolate those who want to fight to the end or destroy everything that has been built in this country in terms of values, whether this is principles of physical things like schools, hospitals, roads, bridges.

"This way you will unite the people and isolate those who will fight for international terrorist organizations; and then welcome those who give up violence… Unfortunately what Mr. Karzai is doing is implementing policies that are divisive rather than unifying... The people of Afghanistan are confused, for everyday on the television they hear that '50 Taliban have been killed' or that '20 Taliban have been killed' and every day they hear that people have been killed in explosions, and then Mr. Karzai says that the Taliban are our brothers and we must talk with them. This is very confusing.

"My idea is that the door has to be open for negotiations, but certain issues have to [first] be addressed, like what will happen to the terrorist organizations that are linked to the Taliban? What about the violent operations that they resort to? What about the Constitution of Afghanistan that is based upon Islam but also incorporates the ideals of our civilization?"

"Whether 2014 is the Right Time to Withdraw [U.S. Troops from Afghanistan] and for a Full Transition, We Don't Know; One Negative Factor is the Failing [Karzai] Government"

Q: "What about your opinion on the Saudi role?"

Abdullah: "I think they can play a constructive role, but at the same time I agree with their condition that the Taliban must denounce terrorism, which I think is the right condition for the interests of Afghanistan. It is not just in the Saudi Arabian interest that we stick to this condition, because without this Afghanistan will be a source of trouble for everybody; for its own people as well as the rest of the world."

Q: "What is your opinion of the American announcement that they will withdraw from Afghanistan by 2014?"

Abdullah: "In theory I am in favor of transition. I am in favor of Afghans taking responsibility for themselves; we are all in favor of that. At the same time the goals of stabilizing Afghanistan and building a place where people can live in peace with one another as well as with the rest of the world shouldn't be compromised.

"In theory I am in favor of this [withdrawal]. Whether 2014 is the right time to withdraw and for a full transition, we don't know. One negative factor is the failing government that is being led by Mr. Karzai, which is not making things easy. I think were there a government that had the support of the people this [stabilization] would have materialized. This Afghanistan would have been achieved today. So, my concern is that this government's failure in providing for the people will make withdrawal even more difficult."

Q: "Do you have anything to say to the people of Afghanistan who voted for you and expected you to become president at the last elections?"

Abdullah: "My point is that the struggle for freedom and the struggle for dignity, and the struggle for what is right will not be achieved in one shot. It is continuous. They may see the presidential election [of August 2009] as a setback, but I would say that in that the people of Afghanistan have learned very valuable lessons and experiences from this. The people of Afghanistan participated, they gave their verdict, and of course the conditions were not fair and we will continue to pursue those ideals and principles and values. In that sense I think it was an experience…"

Endnotes:

[1] www.tolonews.com (Afghanistan), October 1, 2010.

[2] Asharq Al-Awsat (London), November 21, 2010. The text has been lightly edited for clarity.

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