13:35
10.6.2014
13:33
10.6.2014
More details from Radio Free Afghanistan:
Mohammad Salem Ehsas, head of the Election Security Commission, said 813 polling stations will be closed on election day due to “security threats.” In total, there are 7169 polling stations nationwide.
Ehsas, speaking at a press conference in Kabul today, said the polling stations that will be closed are in the provinces of Herat, Nimroz, Kunar, and Badakhshan. All these provinces have experienced a recent uptick in violence.
Mohammad Salem Ehsas, head of the Election Security Commission, said 813 polling stations will be closed on election day due to “security threats.” In total, there are 7169 polling stations nationwide.
Ehsas, speaking at a press conference in Kabul today, said the polling stations that will be closed are in the provinces of Herat, Nimroz, Kunar, and Badakhshan. All these provinces have experienced a recent uptick in violence.
13:32
10.6.2014
13:09
10.6.2014
Radio Free Afghanistan reports: “813 polling stations to be closed on election day.”
12:12
10.6.2014
"It is not important whether Dr. Abdullah or Ashraf Ghani wins. What I want is peace and development in the country."
-- unidentified Afghan trader speaking to Kabul-based Ariana TV on June 8
-- unidentified Afghan trader speaking to Kabul-based Ariana TV on June 8
12:05
10.6.2014
Babrak Noorzad, in this opinion piece for Khama Press, notes the lack of women participating in the electoral campaign.
Noorzad writes that "lack of women's participation in the election campaigns results in uniformed voting, likely based on the wishes of the men in the house."
The assessment that the issue is "a common phenomenon across the world" and that in the United States "if the husband is a Republican the wife will most likely vote Republican and the Democrats also follow suit" is questionable.
But Noorzad gives a general rundown of some the factors that could prevent women from going to the polls, such as societal and cultural sensitivities, violence, and the electoral commission's failure to address the problem quickly enough.
Noorzad writes that "lack of women's participation in the election campaigns results in uniformed voting, likely based on the wishes of the men in the house."
The assessment that the issue is "a common phenomenon across the world" and that in the United States "if the husband is a Republican the wife will most likely vote Republican and the Democrats also follow suit" is questionable.
But Noorzad gives a general rundown of some the factors that could prevent women from going to the polls, such as societal and cultural sensitivities, violence, and the electoral commission's failure to address the problem quickly enough.
11:37
10.6.2014
11:35
10.6.2014
11:34
10.6.2014
Describing the runoff vote as "an unprecedented event for Afghanistan's democracy," the United Nations Assistance Mission for Afghanistan has stressed the importance of continuing to improve electoral process and reassuring the Afghan people that their votes will count.
"Elections are both a technical and a political exercise," Jan Kubis, special representative of the secretary-general for Afghanistan, said in a June 10 press release. "The electoral institutions must learn and implement lessons from the first round to reassure all those who want to vote that they will be able to do so, as well as to improve transparency and communication in the management of the results and complaints. But technical improvements alone will not result in a better election without the political will of candidates to respect the process and its results and to disavow fraud by their supporters, as well as for government officials to remain impartial."
The entire message can be found here.
"Elections are both a technical and a political exercise," Jan Kubis, special representative of the secretary-general for Afghanistan, said in a June 10 press release. "The electoral institutions must learn and implement lessons from the first round to reassure all those who want to vote that they will be able to do so, as well as to improve transparency and communication in the management of the results and complaints. But technical improvements alone will not result in a better election without the political will of candidates to respect the process and its results and to disavow fraud by their supporters, as well as for government officials to remain impartial."
The entire message can be found here.
11:17
10.6.2014