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In a report about the launch of the 2010 election campaigns released on its website, the Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FEFA) detailed illegal actions of candidates, increasing attacks against candidates and campaign workers, and widespread intimidation of women.

Electoral regulations ignored

Throughout the country, FEFA’s observers reported incidents of candidates violating campaign regulations and using government resources for personal gain.

Candidates used government cars to transport their campaign staff to events, organized campaign events in government offices, and distributed government property to supporters. Most reports of these offenses named candidates who were former officials or relatives of current officials.

Campaigning in public schools and mosques, both prohibited campaign venues under Afghan law, was also widely reported. Where public schools were used for campaign activities, teachers and administrators were often relatives of candidates, or were candidates themselves. In one case reported by FEFA observers in Takhar province, a principal urged her staff to vote for her in the election and then distributed voter registration cards to underage students.

FEFA has called on the Electoral Complaints Commission and its provincial offices to sanction candidates abusing state resources, and urged the president and his cabinet to stop ministerial officials and provincial governors from giving illegal assistance to candidates.

“The ECC must be more active from now on,” said FEFA executive director Jandad Spinghar, “Many of these violations are happening right in front of the ECC’s provincial offices. The president must also take action to stop governors and ministry employees from using state resources to get candidates elected.”

An election under the gun

As Election Day moves closer, election-related violence is escalating.

FEFA’s field reports from Logar province provided grim illustrations of the deteriorating security situation. Five civilians were killed by the Taliban for taking part in campaigns there in early July. The dead included a campaign volunteer and his brother shot in a house raid, and a shopkeeper killed for displaying a campaign poster in his window. After killing the shopkeeper, Taliban warned Logar residents that anyone visibly supporting the elections would meet the same fate.

Elsewhere, insurgents focused on intimidation, distributing night letters warning voters, candidates and election workers to abstain from the elections or face violent targeting. According to FEFA’s observers, Taliban in one district of Nangarhar province went door to door threatening that anyone caught with a voter registration card would have her or his right hand cut off.

Campaigning local powerbrokers, many of them commanders of illegal militias, waged their own intimidation campaigns to repel challengers. A powerbroker in Ghor threatened violence against candidates seeking to campaign in districts effectively under his control, and a commander in Takhar promised weapons to his supporters and exchanged death threats with a rival candidate.

Women threatened from many sides

Women faced special risks in the rapidly worsening security environment.  Out of the ten threats FEFA observers reported directed at specific candidates, nine targeted female candidates. After receiving death threats from members of the Taliban, a female candidate in Ghor was forced to suspend her campaign and move to Kabul.

In other provinces, women candidates were inundated with threatening telephone calls, often late at night, from both insurgents and anonymous individuals believed to be political rivals and community members opposed to women in public life.

Women’s campaigns were barely visible in the most insecure provinces in the south and southeast of the country, and female candidates complained of government indifference to their security concerns.

In its report, FEFA called on the Afghan security forces to take special measures to ensure the safety of female candidates, including introducing them to points of contact in every province.

Candidates frustrated with security forces

Both male and female candidates expressed frustration with the provision of security by local law enforcement, FEFA observers reported. In many provinces, candidates complained that police were unresponsive to their requests for protection, or provided security only to candidates favored by local officials.

A favored candidate in Nangarhar was provided two police cars full of officers for his campaign, while other candidates were refused any police protection, and a nearly identical case was reported in Jawzjan province.

Disregarding the prohibition on their participation in campaigns, members of the security forces in Ghor province took part in campaign events organized by a notorious local powerbroker, and observers in the provinces of Jowzjan, Kabul, Paktia, Samangan and Takhar reported uniformed police officers participating in campaigns and police commanders urging residents to support specific candidates.

“Election related violence and threats are increasing, and the security forces need to prioritize the protection of everyone involved in the electoral process,” said Spinghar. “We need the MOI [Ministry of Interior] and the police to seriously investigate all threats against candidates and provide security to threatened individuals in an objective manner as soon as possible, because the situation is already very dangerous.”

The Campaign Period

The campaign period of Afghanistan’s 2010 parliamentary elections kicked off on June 23 and will run until September 16. FEFA’s long-term observers were present in the capitals of all 34 provinces to observe the campaigns directly at the provincial level and indirectly at the district level through volunteer district observers. During the first 3 weeks of campaigns, observers reported electoral violations and abuses of state resource by candidates, campaign staff, and government employees.

Observers also used a combination of open source reports and interviews with candidates, electoral workers, and citizens to monitor the overall security situation in their provinces, and reported specific threats against individuals involved in the electoral process.

This report should be viewed as an illustrative snapshot of the launch of the 2010 campaign season at the provincial level.

Security Environment

Negative security trends reported during earlier phases of the electoral process worsened during the early weeks of the campaign period in the southern, southeastern and western regions of the country, as well as some areas of the north. Threats by insurgents postponed, disrupted and prevented campaigning in these areas and individuals involved in the electoral process were directly targeted for violence and widespread, systematic intimidation.

Fear of insurgent violence forced many candidates to modify their campaign strategies, and campaign more quietly, to reduce the risk of becoming high-profile targets. Candidates interviewed by FEFA observers in Kunar said Taliban would kill any candidate who ventured beyond her or his home district to campaign. FEFA observers in Paktia and Kandahar reported that security conditions were so dire in those provinces that candidates were not intending to openly campaign at all. In Farah, candidates chose to conduct private meetings with tribal elders instead of campaigning among the general population. Similar situations were reported in Maidan Wardak and Uruzgan, where campaigns began with minimal outreach to voters, and female candidates were told by tribal leaders and local government officials to avoid public campaigning altogether. After receiving death threats from Taliban in her area, a female candidate from Ghor moved to Kabul, and two campaign staff in Kunduz were detained and assaulted by Taliban in Amam district.

In Logar, campaigns turned deadly for at least 5 people involved in them during July. FEFA’s Logar observers reported that a shopkeeper in Baraki Barak district was killed by Taliban for displaying a campaign poster in his shop. After the murder, local Taliban distributed night letters warning the general population to remove all campaign posters or suffer the shopkeeper’s fate.  According to observers, the population immediately complied with the Taliban demands. Two brothers killed in a nighttime house raid were among 4 other civilians killed by Taliban for taking part in campaigns. Logar Taliban also kidnapped the brother of a candidate.

Night letters, threatening phone calls and in-person threats against candidates, campaign staff, voters and the general population were reported by FEFA observers in 16 provinces during just the first three weeks of the campaign period.

Table 1 Threats against candidates, campaign staff, voters and members of the general population reported by FEFA observers between June 23, 2010 and July 15, 2010.

Thought it should be emphasized that the vast majority of candidates countrywide conducted their campaigns peacefully, rivalries between a minority of candidates and the illegal behavior of local powerbrokers running for office posed additional security risks. Incidents reported to FEFA during the first three weeks of the campaign period included the following:

• Death threats were exchanged between two candidates in Takhar, and a different Takhar candidate promised to distribute guns to voters who swore on the Holy Quran they would support him on Election Day.

• A female candidate in Badakhshan received word of an assassination plot orchestrated by one of her opponents.

• Threats of violence were exchanged between rival candidates in Daikundi.

• In Ghor, a campaign manager was beaten by supporters of a rival campaign and a local powerboker running for election threatened and harassed rival candidates.

• A female candidate in Faryab and her campaign staff were threatened by a local powerbroker. This candidate told FEFA that her bodyguards and the bodyguards of a rival candidate clashed violently, resulting in the female candidate’s expulsion from the district she was campaigning in at the time.

Inadequate security in campaign launch venues was raised as a concern by candidates in 14 provinces – Badghis, Balkh, Farah, Ghor, Helmand, Kandahar, Kunduz, Logar, Nangarhar, Nimroz, Paktika, Parwan, Uruzgan and Zabul.  And frustration with the provision of security by national security forces was expressed to FEFA observers in Ghor, Nangarhar, Uruzgan and Zabul. Candidates in these provinces complained to observers that the local police were unresponsive to their requests for protection, or provided security only to candidates favored by local security officials.

FEFA observers in Nangarhar reported that one favored candidate in that province was provided two police cars full of officers for his campaign, while other candidates were refused any police protection. A nearly identical case was reported by observers in Jawzjan. In Ghor, security forces took part in campaign events organized by a notorious local powerbroker, and observers in Jowzjan, Kabul, Paktia, Samangan and Takhar reported uniformed members of the security forces participating in campaign events and local police commanders urging residents to support specific candidates.

Women’s Participation

Women continue to face disproportionate obstacles to their political participation in the 2010 elections. Widespread, organized intimidation efforts targeting women involved in the elections, and grave risks to women’s physical security were reported by observers at the outset of the campaign period.

Of the 10 threats directed at individual candidates reported by FEFA observers, 9 targeted women.  Female candidates were subjected to persistent, threatening phone calls, often late at night, verbal threats, and night letters warning them to cease campaigning or face violent retribution. Threats against women’s participation in general were also reported.

Taliban either claimed responsibility for or were widely known to have issued about one third of all reported threats against female candidates. The majority of other reported threats lacked claims of responsibility, but were generally attributed to a mixture of local powerbrokers, rival candidates, and community members opposed to women’s involvement in public life.

Observers also reported other forms of harassment of female candidates and their campaigns.  Female candidates in Herat and Badghis were attacked with stones and women’s campaign posters were torn down or defaced in several provinces.

In much of the country, the ability of female candidates to carry out campaigns at all was seriously limited by not only insecurity and harassment, but also by systemic inequalities. Women candidates faced greater obstacles funding their campaigns and struggled more than their male counterparts finding venues for campaign events and obtaining access to media.

Electoral Violations

Government employees, including governors and ministerial officials, were observed campaigning for candidates in Badghis, Balkh, Daikundi, Helmand, Jowzjan, Kabul, Khost, Nuristan, Paktia, Panjshir, Takhar and Uruzgan during the first three weeks of the campaigns. Abuses of state property and resources generally accompanied the involvement of government officials in campaigns. At a campaign rally in Balkh, a public health official distributed insecticide to supporters of his favored candidate.  In Jowzjan, a Ministry of Education official allowed his office to be used for campaign activities. A candidate in Heart distributed grain from the Ministry of Agriculture to internally displaced persons in an attempt to buy votes, and candidates in Nimroz used cars from the provincial governor’s office for campaign travel.

Abuses of state property, premises and resources were most prevalent among candidates who formerly served in official positions and candidates with family ties to government authorities, according to observer reports. Common violations included use of government vehicles for campaign travel, recruitment of state employees, and use of government offices and materials for campaign activities.

Campaigning was conducted in mosques and schools in the face of bans on the use of both venue types for campaign activities. Observers reported that mosques and schools were used by candidates to launch campaigns and rally supporters in Balkh, Daikundi, Faryab, Ghazni, Ghor, Kabul, and Kapisa. Where public schools were used for campaign activities, teachers and administrators were often relatives of candidates or were candidates themselves. In a particularly serious case reported by FEFA observers in Takhar, a public school principal urged her staff and students to vote for her in the election and distributed voter registration cards to underage students.

Under Afghanistan’s Electoral Law, the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) and Provincial Electoral Complaints Commissions (PECCs) have jurisdiction to “consider issues within their jurisdiction on their own initiative and in the absence of a formal complaint of challenge.”[1] Yet, despite the public nature of many electoral violations, The ECC and PECCs have not demonstrated willingness to sanction candidates for abusing state resources, campaigning in prohibited venues, or illegally involving government officials and members of security forces in their campaigns.

FEFA’s Recommendations

To the Security Forces and Institutions

1. Direct threats and violence against individuals involved in the electoral process are multiplying and will likely continue to escalate as Election Day moves closer. FEFA calls on the Afghan National Police and Ministry of Interior to promptly and thoroughly investigate all threats against individuals involved in the electoral process, including threats made by local powerbrokers, and provide security to threatened individuals and institutions throughout the remainder of the electoral process.
2. Women candidates are particularly at risk in many parts of the country, and are being targeted for gender-based intimidation and violence. FEFA calls on the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police to take additional measures in providing security support to female candidates, including introducing candidates to points of contacts at the provincial level.
3. Insecurity is worsening countrywide and threatening prospects for clean elections and broad participation. FEFA encourages Afghan and international security forces to increase their efforts to protect civilians and areas where civilians will be taking part in election activities during all phases of the electoral process and in the weeks immediately following its conclusion.

To the Afghan Government

1. The widespread abuse of state resources by candidates is undermining the integrity of the electoral process. FEFA calls on the electoral institutions to exercise their legal authority to combat abuses of state resources and to promptly sanction candidates found to have abused state resources in their campaigns.
2. Government employees have been instrumental in allowing candidates to abuse state resources nationwide. FEFA calls on the president and cabinet to issue new instructions to government employees generally, and to provincial governors and heads of ministerial departments specifically, instructing them not to employ government resources in favor of candidates.
3. Women’s participation and political rights are still under threat nationwide, as the intimidation of female voters and candidates during the campaign period illustrates. FEFA encourages the electoral institutions to increase their efforts to recruit female staff and take all other necessary measures to ensure women’s participation and uphold women’s political rights throughout the electoral process.

The Independent Election Commission, considering the ordinances of the Constitution and articles of the Electoral Law, has the responsibility of managing and supervising electoral processes across the country; considering the big responsibility, the IEC has always done its best efforts to provide its countrymen and women with the necessary facilities for the purpose of their active participation as both candidates and voters. The IEC, through approval of 2010 Wolesi Jirga Elections timeline, made a decision on 03rd June, 2010 to apply renewal of voter registration on provincial levels from 12th June, 2010 to 12th August, 2010 for two months; following this, the Commission, in a meeting held on 14th July, 2010, verified the issue of voter registration and then decided as follows:

(As the Voter Registration Process was already applied extensively throughout the country for Presidential and Provincial Councils’ Elections of 2009, by taking into consideration the operational plan of 2010 Wolesi Jirga Elections and not of the having the required technical facilities and sufficient budget, increasing the Voter Registration Centers and dispatching the Mobile Voter Registration Teams is far from possibility.)

The Electoral Complaints Commission, through an official letter has recently requested the IEC to increase Voter Registration Teams and if possible to extend the process; the IEC, in deference to the reasons of ECC, based on the increase of Voter Registration Teams and extension of the process, but by taking note of the decisions made already and the electoral timeline, officially announces the completion of the Voter Registration Process on country level.