Clash over warlords delays Afghan vote

Delegates to the Afghan grand council argued yesterday over the presence of warlords, delaying a vote on a new head of state ­ an election that the interim leader, Hamid Karzai, is expected to win.

The passionate debate ­ praised by the Foreign Minister, Dr Abdullah Abdullah, as part of the democratic process ­ threw the council, or loya jirga, further behind schedule. The loya jirga opened on Tuesday, a day late because of a controversy over the role of the former king.

Some delegates have questioned the participation of warlords and former commanders, widely reviled for having plunged the country into civil conflict.

"We were told that this loya jirga would not include all the people who had blood on their hands," said Safar Mohammed, drawing applause from his fellow delegates. "But we see these people everywhere. I don't know whether this is a loya jirga or a commanders' council."

Former guerrilla commanders rose to the defence of those who they said had waged jihad, or holy war, against the Soviet Union. "We should distinguish between mujahedin and a gunman," said Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, whose Ittehad-e-Islami party was notorious for its attacks on minority Hazara Shia Muslims after Soviet troops were driven out in 1989. "These people who had guns defeated the Russians. This loya jirga is a result of their actions."

Klaus-Peter Klaiber, the European Union's envoy to Afghanistan, said he was disappointed by the presence of warlords. "I was amazed to see in the first and second rows these so-called warlords sitting together," he said. "It tells me only one thing: the interim administration has decided to try to integrate former warlords into policy-making in Kabul. If they succeed, that will be an achievement."

The number of delegates rose to 1,550 last week when the loya jirga commission added 50 seats for provincial governors and others appointed by the interim government. The council is expected to finish choosing a new government by Sunday. (AP)