Recent statements made by Juma Khan Hamdard, the Governor of Paktia province, during a rally for presidential candidate Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai in Balkh have received condemnation from political leaders, civil society groups and the general public.
Abdul Rasheed Dostum, the First Vice-President of Dr. Ghani, and Juma Khan Hamdard, Paktia's Governors and a senior member of his campaign team, told voters in Balkh that if they do not show favor for Ghani's team the country will see greater instability. Governor of Paktia called on two specific ethnic groups, Pashtuns and Uzbeks, to vote for the team.
“I call on Pashtuns in the North that owe the people! What was your role in the past 13 years? I call on you to support this group and vote for this group to end this slavery," Juma Khan said.
General Abdul Rasheed Dostum, a famous Uzbek military leader who has been accused of human rights violations by the international community, said that he would not accept defeat, even if it cost him his life.
“Under the leadership of Dr. Ashraf Ghani, you have people, including myself, who do not accept failure, even if my blood is shed," General Dostum said.
Dostum was a controversial choice for Ghani, receiving harsh rebuke from human rights activists and media outlets around the world. But the authority he carries in much of northern Afghanistan is well known.
The statements made by the two men have inspired a host of strong reactions from Afghan leaders and activists who have tried to keep ethnic politics out of this year's presidential race.
“Uzbek, Tajik and all ethnicities, including Dr. Abdullah, are my brothers; if has been nice to us, then we have been cooperative," tribal elder and Arghestan People's Council head Malek Kamal said. "We respect Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai as well," he added.
Local leaders were especially quick to repudiate Ashraf Ghani's team and encourage voters to support leaders across ethnic lines if they so desire.
“Ethnicities and languages cannot be discussed at any cost," Balkh Provincial Council member Abdul Rasheed said. "Everyone can vote freely, Turkman can vote for Pashtun or Uzbek can vote for Tajik, it is not important at all."
In Kabul, the Chairman of the House of Representatives also admonished Ghani's campaign.
“Presidential campaigns should run in a way so they don’t offend any of the candidates’ supporters, it is not in the interest of Afghanistan,” Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi said.
A number of MPs joined their chamber's leader in response to the statements, some a bit more bluntly.
“Whoever starts tribal, linguistic, regional or ethnic problems is a enemy of Afghanistan," one MP from Nangarhar said.
The Independent Election Commission (IEC) has asked the presidential campaign teams to refrain from using sensitive and discriminatory speech. Officials appreciate the gravity of this year's election, Afghanistan's first democratic transition of power in history, and are expected to do everything in their power to ensure a clean process.
Election monitors called on the presidential candidates to be patient, advising them to prepare for victory or loss.
“Winning and losing is something very normal during elections, we hope that both presidential campaign groups will accept that fact, so one of the groups wins at the end,” Free and Fair Election Foundation (FEFA) spokesman Fahim Naeemi said.
Meanwhile, residents of Kabul also expressed dismay at the comments made by Hamdard and Dostum.
“As a youth, I ask all residents of Afghanistan to vote for their favorite candidate without considering the ethnicity or language,” a resident of the capital named Bashir Ahmad Kawish told TOLOnews.
“My message to all Afghans is to go and vote, only the character and capacity of a candidate matters," another resident Rukhsar said.
In the first round of this year's presidential election, both candidates received votes from every major ethnic group in the country.
Source/Fuente: http://www.tolonews.com/elections2014/strong-backlash-paktia-governors-e...
