Suggestions of reforms on political activities in Afghanistan

11/12/2012 – Reporter: Qiam Noori | A number of parliamentarians, representatives from justice and finance ministries, delegation of high directorate on monitoring and campaigning against the corruption, representatives from civil society and journalists in September 2011 visit Philippine for presenting a series of suggestions for reforming the election law in order of creating more and more transparency in electoral campaigns of election candidates and other financial resources of political activities of political parties inside Afghanistan. The working group was including:

1. The finance ministry representative, Rahimullah Hedayet
2. The justice ministry representative, Mohammad Ehsan Hayel
3. The high  High Office of Oversight and Anti-Corruption representative, Nader Mohseni
4. The parliamentarian, Farkhunda Zahra Naderi
5. The parliamentarian, Shenkia Karokhial
6. The parliamentarian, Khalid Ahmad Oryakhail
7. The Free and fair election foundation CEO, Jandad Spenghar.

The working group in a summit with the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) presented a package of 10 distinguished suggestions for reforming the election law of the Afghanistan and bringing more transparency in the campaign affairs of candidates, removing the guarantee fees from female candidates and more transparency in activities and financial resources of the political parties around the country.

A number of the group’s members presented the suggestion package to the legal and judicial commission of the lower house, to review the suggestions and include them in the electoral election of the country.

It’s mentionable, the efforts regard creating more and more transparency in all political activities across the country has been started since 2004, but most time the suggestions being ignored.

The participants alongside of presenting new suggestion for political activities transparency reviewed the suggestions of 2009 and 2010 for such kind of reforms.

The current election law except of the 7^th article which bans the candidates of using state resources for political campaigns and the 63th article which declared the selling and buying the votes illegal, have not imposed any other single limitations over circumstances of candidates political campaigns.