Afghan Youth Debates: Nangarhar Official Says Voter Registration "Massive"

The number of voters in the eastern Nangarhar province registering to take part in the Afghan elections is exceeding expectations, officials say.

Sadullah Fetrat, regional spokesman for the Independent Election Commission (IEC), told a December 24 debate run by IWPR in Jalalabad, that more than 186,000 people had already obtained their voting cards and that the figure was rising daily.

Significantly, in a country where turnout among women has traditionally been low, some 40 per cent of those who applying for voting cards were female. Although he was unable to give a figure for the total number of eligible voters in Nangarhar, he said “massive participation” in the registration process indicated the extent of people’s interest in the elections.

"The IEC is completely prepared – logistically, technically and operationally – for the upcoming presidential and provincial council elections," Fetrat told the assembled students.

Fetrat said great care had been taken to deliver security on polling day, and encouraged people who had failed to register as voters to do so.

Nangarhar province, which shares a border with Pakistan, has suffered from frequent attacks by Taleban militants since the United States-led invasion in 2001. The main road linking Kabul with Jalalabad and the border is particularly dangerous. Suicide bombers often target NATO convoys and Afghan National Army checkpoints. Last month, an American soldier was killed in a rocket-propelled grenade attack.

Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, spokesman for Nangarhar’s provincial governor, told students that the security services were "absolutely" prepared for election day, and that any attempts to derail the process would fail.

"The IEC has provided us with a list of 484 electoral centres and discussions are in progress about the security of these sites. The appropriate security measures have been adopted for all of themm and consultations are in progress to improve these measures,” Abdulzai said. “The same security that was provided for the voter registration process will be in place on election day."

Abdul Basir Sabawun, regional spokesman for the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, reminded undergraduates of the significance of the vote process in cementing democratic values.

"Although these elections may not be entirely democratic, it’s better to hold them than not to hold them," he said.

Meanwhile, Zabihullah Zemarai, a spokesman for Nangarhar provincial council, urged voters to assist election officials by reporting any instances of fraud. He alleged that a number of his fellow-councillors were elected through corrupt means in past polls.

"They haven’t raised their voices on people’s behalf during the past few years," he said. "People must be vigilant this time."

Mohammad Fazel is a student at Nangarhar University and an IWPR trainee.

This report was produced as part of Open Minds: Speaking Up, Reaching Out – Promoting University and Youth Participation in Afghan Elections, an IWPR initiative funded by the US embassy in Kabul.