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Enemies want to derail presidential vote: Tanin

Enemies want to derail presidential vote: Tanin

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20 Sep 2013 - 09:52
Enemies want to derail presidential vote: Tanin
author avatar
20 Sep 2013 - 09:52

WASHINGTON (PAN want to derail next year’s presidential vote, the country’s envoy to the United Nations told the Security Council on Thursday, a day after the assassination of a provincial election head, Amanullah Aman.

“Our enemies want to derail the process, as made evident by the assassination of the head of the Independent Election Commission (IEC) office in Kunduz province. But let it be known, no such acts will prevent a successful electoral process from taking place,” Afghan Ambassador to UN Zahir Tannin told the Security Council.

Addressing the powerful 15-member body of the United Nations, Tanin said that Afghanistan was preparing for its third presidential elections, an accomplishment that demonstrated the increased maturity of Afghanistan’s emerging democracy.

“The last decades were characterised by decisions made with violence, problems solved through war and power solidified with weapons rather than votes. Electing a new president is an important symbol that bloody struggle for power in our country belongs to the past,” he remarked.

He said the coming elections were seen by all as crucial to the success of the transformation decade, the trust of Afghans and the continuing support of the international community. “The Afghans know this deeply, and this is why Afghans from all walks of life are actively engaged in the process and debate before the elections.”

A robust electoral framework had been established: new members of the Independent Election Commission (IEC) and Independent Election Complaints Commission (IECC) appointed, a chairman of the IEC has been elected, a national security strategy has been arranged and two new pieces of legislation signed into law.

“As Afghanistan looks towards a brighter future, the enemies of Afghanistan — the enemies of peace — continue their violent campaigns against civilians, soldiers, civil servants, men, women, children and foreign forces. If they see brutality as the measure of their power, they are wrong; it is a measure of their weakness,” he asserted.

Tanin said the first attempts at peace negotiations were undermined by the Taliban‘s determination to take Afghanistan back to the past. “But the Afghan people do not want to return to the past. They want the violence to end. This is why, despite the atrocities, Afghanistan’s leadership has not lost faith in a political solution,” he concluded.

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