2003 Loya jirga
A 502-delegate loya jirga convened in Kabul, Afghanistan, on December 14, 2003, to consider the proposed Afghan Constitution. Originally planned to last ten days, the assembly did not endorse the charter until January 4, 2004. As has been generally the case with these assemblies, the endorsement came by way of consensus rather than a vote. Afghanistan's last constitution was drafted for the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan in November 1987. Because of strife within the assembly, the 2003 Loya jirga was dubbed, by some Afghans, the "loya jagra" ("big fight"). The U.S. held the power of veto over the entire document.
Contents |
Issues addressed
Issues involving substantial debate included whether Dari or Pashto should be the official language, whether former king Mohammed Zahir Shah should maintain the title "father of the nation," how to address women's rights, whether Afghanistan should be a free market economy, and whether higher education should be free.
The most pressing issue, however, was the question of centralized power. Interim President Hamid Karzai supported a constitution draft outlining a strong president and stated that he would not run for the office in 2004 if the draft was not approved. Members of the Tajik-dominated Northern Alliance accused Karzai of buying off opponents with promises of influential positions in a post-election government. On January 1, the loya jirga broke down when close to half of the assembly, consisting mostly of Uzbek, Tajik, Hazara and Turkmen minorities, boycotted the first and only ballot, forcing chairman Sibghatullah Mojaddedi to call for a 2-day adjourning.
Election of chairman, controversy
The Loya jirga convened beneath a large tent on the grounds of a Soviet-built university. In the opening ceremonies of 14 December, former king Mohammad Zahir Shah addressed the assembly after a dozen children in diverse ethnic outfits, waved Afghan flags, and sang songs of peace, which included verses such as "We are doves, waiting for peace, we are tired of fighting." Later that day in a second vote, Mojaddedi was elected the chairman by a majority vote of 252. Hafiz Mansour had garnered only 154 votes (not a majority) in the first vote.
The election of Mojaddedi as chairman produced outrage from many of the 114 female delegates. To appease their concerns, Mojadedi selected Safia Sediqi for the fourth deputy position, and he named two other women as deputy's assistants, but the move did not pacify the women. Also that day, claiming the support of 241 delegates, the Northern Alliance demanded that 50 delegates picked by Karzai be denied voting rights; however Mojaddedi rejected the idea.
Some government and supreme court officials, as well as members of legal and human rights commissions, were allowed to attend but only allowed to participate when asked for their opinions by an elected delegate. Provincial governors and top-ranking police, administration and military officials were barred from the proceedings.
On the third day, Malalai Joya [1], a female delegate from Farah Province was temporarily thrown out when she complained that the same warlords of the past would still be in charge of the new government. Her microphone was turned off when she suggested that some of the leaders should be tried in an international court. She remained under U.N. protection for a number of days because of death threats.
Ms. Joya set off controversy when she condemned the allocation of positions of influence at the council given to faction leaders such as former president Burhanuddin Rabbani and Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, a deeply conservative Islamist.
Malalai Joya's Historical Speech
On December 17, 2003, Malalai Joya, 25, from Farah province delivered the following speech which overshadows all coming proceedings of the Loya Jirga and had a very huge coverage in the world media:
"My name is Malalai Joya from Farah Province. By the permission of the esteemed attendees, and by the name of God and the colored-shroud martyrs of the path of freedom, I would like to speak for couple of minutes.
My criticism on all my compatriots is that why are they allowing the legitimacy and legality of this Loya Jerga come under question with the presence of those felons who brought our country to this state.
I feel pity and I feel very sorry that those who call Loya Jerga an infidel basis equivalent to blasphemy after coming here their words are accepted, or please see the committees and what people are whispering about. The chairman of every committee is already selected. Why do you not take all these criminals to one committee so that we see what they want for this nation. These were those who turned our country into the nucleus of national and international wars. They were the most anti-women people in the society who wanted to [makes pause] who brought our country to this state and they intend to do the same again. I believe that it is a mistake to test those already being tested. They should be taken to national and international court. If they are forgiven by our people, the bare- footed Afghan people, our history will never forgive them. They are all recorded in the history of our country."
Process dissatisfaction
Some delegates, such as Abdolkabir Ranjber complained that the process had no specific criteria. Delegates were not properly prepared or educated about the issues. Malalai Joya also criticized the nature of the Loya jirga because almost all war criminals in Afghanistan such as Burhanuddin Rabbani, Sayyaf, Rashid Dostum, Mohaqia, Siddique Chakari, Hafiz Mansur and other fundamentalist leaders were presence in the Loya Jirga which according to Malalai Joya "they first of all should appear in the National and International court of justice for their crimes against Afghan people."
RAWA Remarks on the Loya Jirga
Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) writes in one of its statements about the Loya Jirga:
"The fake nature of the constitutional Loya Jirga and freedom of speech were clear to all the people of Afghanistan and the world by the cheap attacks of the assembly speaker, Sibghatullah Mojadadi, Sayyaf and elements of Fahim and Rabanni's forces on the women delegates, Malalai Joya and Anar Kali. Malalai Joya had the courage to call the fundamentalists "criminals", and asked for their national and international trial. But we saw that the treacherous murderers and their elements in the Jirga became so outraged that according to the confession of Sibghatullah Mojadadi, if they were not leashed what would they have done to Malalai Joya?! Our people know that in 1992 the Pakistani Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif gave 10 million to establish the Mujahadeen government and that Mojadidi distributed this cash to his relatives. Our people and the world also know that Rabanni, Sayyaf, Mansour, Chakari and others are symbols of blood, treason, and aggression. Not only had they occupied the front row of the assembly once more but with the gesture of the $10 million assembly speaker, were posing and speaking so shamelessly that they seemed to be the bride or kingpins of the assembly, not criminals that had infected the whole tent. The rude bullying of Sayyaf proved how much the Loya Jirga and its speaker had been infected by the germ of fundamentalism. What could be expected from such an infected assembly? To approve a democratic constitution that guarantees the elimination of the "Northern Alliance", Taliban, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and Al_Qaida terrorism? And what happened? We now have a constitution that has nothing to guarantee the trial of warlord criminals, allows the misuse of religion, and has not abolished the various crimes against women in the name of religion and tradition. The Constitution is just a piece of paper that gives legitimacy to the tyrannical rule of warlords." [2]
Delegate selection
The selection process for the loya jirga began July 16, 2003 when president Karzai issued a decree calling for 500 delegates. 344 delegates were elected by 15,000 district representatives who were chosen in the May 2002 loya jirga. 64 female delegates were chosen by Afghan women. 42 delegates represented refugees, nomads, displaced people, minorities (Hindu and Sikh). 50 delegates were appointed by Karzai.
Delegates (an incomplete list of the delegates)
- Kabir Ranjbar, head of Afghan Lawyers Association
External links
Categories
2003 | History of Afghanistan | Politics of Afghanistan