Senate concerns about jirga removed: Yazidyar

KABUL, or upper house of Parliament, on Sunday said its concerns regarding the traditional tribal assembly’s authority and decisions had been resolved.

Prior to the event, romours circulated that delegates would make key decisions on the strategic pact with the US, the deputy chairman of the Meshrano Jirga said.

Addressing a Senate session, Mohammad Alam Yazidyar explained the forum was consultative and its recommendations had removed lawmakers’ concerns.

He urged President Hamid Karzai to send the jirga, lower house, for approval.

The four-day assembly concluded on Saturday with the endorsement of the strategic agreement with the US. In the declaration, the delegates backed the creation of American bases in the country for a decade.

But Gul Ahmad, a member of the Senate, pointed to Article 32 of the declaration that says an American committing a crime in Afghanistan should be tried under the law of the land. No country had so far been able to prosecute an American national for any offensive on its soil, he said.

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