Sher Malang
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Afghanistan Presidential Elections: Aftermath
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Sher Malang
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Sher Malang
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UK PM's tweet in Pashto for Afghan elections and the reactions lol
Sher Malang
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Preliminary vote counts:
Kabul's District 2:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani 1587
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah 378
Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf 54
Dr. Zalmai Rassoul 81
Qutbudin Hilal 48
Kabul Pule-Surkh:
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah: 1151
Dr. Ashraf Ghani 287
Dr. Zalmai Rassoul : 228
Kabul Karti Naw Sarak Nanwayee:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai = 922 Vote
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 223 Vote
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 102 Vote
Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf = 54 Vote
Urozgan Province, Trinkot:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 177
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah 108
Dr. Zalmai Rassoul 72
Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf 8
Qutbudin Hilal 7
Nangarhar Province, Behsood:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 1134
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 18
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 0
Bamyan Province, Shahristan:
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 920
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 347
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 45
Paktia, Ibrahim Khil village in Gardiz:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 1011
Invalid: 9
Nadir Naim: 1
Nangarhar Province, Mawlawi khalis:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 600
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 70
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 0
Nangarhar Province, Etefaq Mosque:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 1508
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 8
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 12
Kabul's District 2:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani 1587
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah 378
Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf 54
Dr. Zalmai Rassoul 81
Qutbudin Hilal 48
Kabul Pule-Surkh:
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah: 1151
Dr. Ashraf Ghani 287
Dr. Zalmai Rassoul : 228
Kabul Karti Naw Sarak Nanwayee:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai = 922 Vote
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 223 Vote
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 102 Vote
Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf = 54 Vote
Urozgan Province, Trinkot:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 177
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah 108
Dr. Zalmai Rassoul 72
Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf 8
Qutbudin Hilal 7
Nangarhar Province, Behsood:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 1134
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 18
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 0
Bamyan Province, Shahristan:
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 920
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 347
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 45
Paktia, Ibrahim Khil village in Gardiz:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 1011
Invalid: 9
Nadir Naim: 1
Nangarhar Province, Mawlawi khalis:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 600
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 70
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 0
Nangarhar Province, Etefaq Mosque:
Dr. Ashraf Ghani = 1508
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah = 8
Dr. Zalmai Rasool = 12
Sher Malang
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Afghanistan presidential election hit by unexpected problem – too many voters 
Country braced for fraud and Taliban violence but failed to anticipate Afghans flocking to elect Hamid Karzai's successor
In anxious preparation for a historic presidential election, Afghanistan fortified its cities against attack, primed observers to detect fraud ... then was blind-sided by a problem no one had even dared to imagine – unprecedented voter enthusiasm.
Defying Taliban threats and the more mundane challenge of rainy weather, Afghans flocked to the polls in such high numbers that ballots were running out in some places by midday. Soon, more than a third of provinces were reporting shortfalls, and as the scale of the problem emerged election organisers scrambled to respond.
"I don't know how I will bear it if I don't get to vote," said 22-year-old Atifa Sultani, who had her finger marked with indelible ink – designed to stop repeat voting – at a station in west Kabul before being told that ballots had run out. "As a citizen it's my right to choose our leader, but I can't try anywhere else, because from my finger it seems I already voted."
Afghans are choosing a successor to President Hamid Karzai after 12 years, and if the handover is smooth it will be the first peaceful, democratic transfer of power their country has ever seen.
For months Kabul was filled with rumours that Karzai would seek to delay or cancel the vote so that he could hold on to power. But he kept his promises to hold the poll on time with an early-morning trip to a polling station near his palace.
"Today is a vital day for us, the people of Afghanistan, that will determine our future," he said after casting his ballot and urged other voters to come out . They did so in numbers and with a determination that surprised even optimists, and even after ballots ran out. Seven million Afghans cast votes, said election organisers, nearly two and a half million more than the last presidential poll, and about 60% of all eligible voters.
In the Kabul station that ran out of ballots, Sultani waited three hours until a last-minute batch arrived, sending organisers who had been muttering darkly about government conspiracies scrambling to reassemble the polling station.
A 77-year-old man who had ignored family warnings about going out in the rain was first in line. "It is my joy to vote," Qamber Ali said, echoing the sentiments of thousands who stood patiently in well-disciplined lines even through downpours. Younger voters posed for photos with their inked fingers and uploaded them to Facebook and Twitter. "Have voted for the future of my country," wrote artist Shamsia Hassani. Hassani was joined by hundreds of thousands of other women, many students and professionals who have come of age during Karzai's rule and were voting for the first time. Ballots ran out particularly fast at voting centres for women, who also made up more candidates than ever before.
Male and female polling stations are separate because many in the conservative country frown on the mingling of the sexes in any context outside of the family. "Of course the massive turnout of women voters is a big slap to all those who want to block us to contribute. Feeling proud to be a woman," said activist Samira Huria, who had returned to Afghanistan to take part in the poll.
It was not all good news. The election in some rural areas dominated by insurgents sounded like another vote entirely, with villagers steering clear of voting stations after the Taliban warned them to stay away, commanders taking ballot-boxes to stuff at their leisure, and rocket, bomb and gun attacks.
At least one person was killed, several others injured and more than 200 polling stations closed at the last minute because of security threats. But multiple rings of tight security, with Kabul virtually shut down for days before the election, appear to have prevented any major Taliban attacks.
The insurgents had denounced the elections as a sham, warned that anyone who worked on them or took part was risking their lives, and mounted a high-profile campaign of attacks in the runup to the vote. The bloodshed cut short some international election monitoring missions and prompted many foreigners to evacuate ahead of the poll. In Kabul alone gunmen shot dead nine people, including a prominent Afghan journalist and his wife and two young children as they ate dinner in a city centre hotel, stormed the guesthouse of a landmine removal charity, and attacked two election offices and a ministry in less than two weeks.
Afghan intelligence sources said several squads of suicide attackers were preparing more spectacular attacks on polling day. In response the government declared four days of holiday, sent workers home, shut down all roads into the city and promised people it would guarantee their safety with more than 300,000 police and soldiers deployed around the country.
Kabul voters spooked by the string of attacks said they were unsure if the security cordon would hold but had come to the polls anyway. "I am 100% worried about security, but this is about the destiny of our country," said 23-year-old Aslan, an election monitor who by 10am had already spotted a man who had scrubbed his inked finger and was trying to vote twice.
He was part of a 200,000-strong squad of election observers, mostly tied to individual candidates, who kept a far closer eye on polling than five years ago when the vote that returned Karzai to power was marred by widespread fraud and more than a million ballots were thrown out.
It would be foolish to call the election overall a success at this stage. Reports of fraud in 2009 trickled in slowly at first, and even if this poll proves cleaner there is certain to be controversy about which areas were short of ballots, and whether it affected some candidates more than others.
Election organisers reacted fast to the high turnout, extending voting hours, sending out more ballots, and trying to explain their miscalculation to the angry masses of would-be voters. "We surveyed each area, and sent ballot papers based on population," said Ziaul Haq Amarkhil, chief electoral officer for the Independent Election Commission. "If we had sent more papers everywhere [to start with], it could have offered opportunity for fraud."
Not all the shortages were resolved, though, and monitors said they would investigate whether any stations ran out because of early-morning ballot-box stuffing. Any complaints will certainly be joined by other cases of abuse. Officials have already made arrests for attempted ballot-box stuffing and voter fraud, when four people were found with over 1,000 voter identity cards.
Even if results are declared clean, they will only be final if one candidate gets more than 50% of the vote. Anything lower triggers a second round runoff, and with strong competition between the top three candidates another polling day seems more likely than not.
Still, Afghans celebrated their extraordinary success in holding a day of voting where the focus stayed mostly on people casting their ballots, not the ones trying to stop them.
"Huge, huge day for Afghanistan. A historic event ends peacefully with millions casting their votes," said Saad Mohseni, the businessman owner of Tolo TV, one of the country's biggest channels. "A massive victory for our people, and a massive kick in the face for the Taliban."
Afghanistan presidential election hit by unexpected problem – too many voters | World news | The Observer
Country braced for fraud and Taliban violence but failed to anticipate Afghans flocking to elect Hamid Karzai's successor
In anxious preparation for a historic presidential election, Afghanistan fortified its cities against attack, primed observers to detect fraud ... then was blind-sided by a problem no one had even dared to imagine – unprecedented voter enthusiasm.
Defying Taliban threats and the more mundane challenge of rainy weather, Afghans flocked to the polls in such high numbers that ballots were running out in some places by midday. Soon, more than a third of provinces were reporting shortfalls, and as the scale of the problem emerged election organisers scrambled to respond.
"I don't know how I will bear it if I don't get to vote," said 22-year-old Atifa Sultani, who had her finger marked with indelible ink – designed to stop repeat voting – at a station in west Kabul before being told that ballots had run out. "As a citizen it's my right to choose our leader, but I can't try anywhere else, because from my finger it seems I already voted."
Afghans are choosing a successor to President Hamid Karzai after 12 years, and if the handover is smooth it will be the first peaceful, democratic transfer of power their country has ever seen.
For months Kabul was filled with rumours that Karzai would seek to delay or cancel the vote so that he could hold on to power. But he kept his promises to hold the poll on time with an early-morning trip to a polling station near his palace.
"Today is a vital day for us, the people of Afghanistan, that will determine our future," he said after casting his ballot and urged other voters to come out . They did so in numbers and with a determination that surprised even optimists, and even after ballots ran out. Seven million Afghans cast votes, said election organisers, nearly two and a half million more than the last presidential poll, and about 60% of all eligible voters.
In the Kabul station that ran out of ballots, Sultani waited three hours until a last-minute batch arrived, sending organisers who had been muttering darkly about government conspiracies scrambling to reassemble the polling station.
A 77-year-old man who had ignored family warnings about going out in the rain was first in line. "It is my joy to vote," Qamber Ali said, echoing the sentiments of thousands who stood patiently in well-disciplined lines even through downpours. Younger voters posed for photos with their inked fingers and uploaded them to Facebook and Twitter. "Have voted for the future of my country," wrote artist Shamsia Hassani. Hassani was joined by hundreds of thousands of other women, many students and professionals who have come of age during Karzai's rule and were voting for the first time. Ballots ran out particularly fast at voting centres for women, who also made up more candidates than ever before.
Male and female polling stations are separate because many in the conservative country frown on the mingling of the sexes in any context outside of the family. "Of course the massive turnout of women voters is a big slap to all those who want to block us to contribute. Feeling proud to be a woman," said activist Samira Huria, who had returned to Afghanistan to take part in the poll.
It was not all good news. The election in some rural areas dominated by insurgents sounded like another vote entirely, with villagers steering clear of voting stations after the Taliban warned them to stay away, commanders taking ballot-boxes to stuff at their leisure, and rocket, bomb and gun attacks.
At least one person was killed, several others injured and more than 200 polling stations closed at the last minute because of security threats. But multiple rings of tight security, with Kabul virtually shut down for days before the election, appear to have prevented any major Taliban attacks.
The insurgents had denounced the elections as a sham, warned that anyone who worked on them or took part was risking their lives, and mounted a high-profile campaign of attacks in the runup to the vote. The bloodshed cut short some international election monitoring missions and prompted many foreigners to evacuate ahead of the poll. In Kabul alone gunmen shot dead nine people, including a prominent Afghan journalist and his wife and two young children as they ate dinner in a city centre hotel, stormed the guesthouse of a landmine removal charity, and attacked two election offices and a ministry in less than two weeks.
Afghan intelligence sources said several squads of suicide attackers were preparing more spectacular attacks on polling day. In response the government declared four days of holiday, sent workers home, shut down all roads into the city and promised people it would guarantee their safety with more than 300,000 police and soldiers deployed around the country.
Kabul voters spooked by the string of attacks said they were unsure if the security cordon would hold but had come to the polls anyway. "I am 100% worried about security, but this is about the destiny of our country," said 23-year-old Aslan, an election monitor who by 10am had already spotted a man who had scrubbed his inked finger and was trying to vote twice.
He was part of a 200,000-strong squad of election observers, mostly tied to individual candidates, who kept a far closer eye on polling than five years ago when the vote that returned Karzai to power was marred by widespread fraud and more than a million ballots were thrown out.
It would be foolish to call the election overall a success at this stage. Reports of fraud in 2009 trickled in slowly at first, and even if this poll proves cleaner there is certain to be controversy about which areas were short of ballots, and whether it affected some candidates more than others.
Election organisers reacted fast to the high turnout, extending voting hours, sending out more ballots, and trying to explain their miscalculation to the angry masses of would-be voters. "We surveyed each area, and sent ballot papers based on population," said Ziaul Haq Amarkhil, chief electoral officer for the Independent Election Commission. "If we had sent more papers everywhere [to start with], it could have offered opportunity for fraud."
Not all the shortages were resolved, though, and monitors said they would investigate whether any stations ran out because of early-morning ballot-box stuffing. Any complaints will certainly be joined by other cases of abuse. Officials have already made arrests for attempted ballot-box stuffing and voter fraud, when four people were found with over 1,000 voter identity cards.
Even if results are declared clean, they will only be final if one candidate gets more than 50% of the vote. Anything lower triggers a second round runoff, and with strong competition between the top three candidates another polling day seems more likely than not.
Still, Afghans celebrated their extraordinary success in holding a day of voting where the focus stayed mostly on people casting their ballots, not the ones trying to stop them.
"Huge, huge day for Afghanistan. A historic event ends peacefully with millions casting their votes," said Saad Mohseni, the businessman owner of Tolo TV, one of the country's biggest channels. "A massive victory for our people, and a massive kick in the face for the Taliban."
Afghanistan presidential election hit by unexpected problem – too many voters | World news | The Observer
waz
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Afghanistan presidential election hit by unexpected problem – too many voters
Country braced for fraud and Taliban violence but failed to anticipate Afghans flocking to elect Hamid Karzai's successor
In anxious preparation for a historic presidential election, Afghanistan fortified its cities against attack, primed observers to detect fraud ... then was blind-sided by a problem no one had even dared to imagine – unprecedented voter enthusiasm.
Defying Taliban threats and the more mundane challenge of rainy weather, Afghans flocked to the polls in such high numbers that ballots were running out in some places by midday. Soon, more than a third of provinces were reporting shortfalls, and as the scale of the problem emerged election organisers scrambled to respond.
"I don't know how I will bear it if I don't get to vote," said 22-year-old Atifa Sultani, who had her finger marked with indelible ink – designed to stop repeat voting – at a station in west Kabul before being told that ballots had run out. "As a citizen it's my right to choose our leader, but I can't try anywhere else, because from my finger it seems I already voted."
Afghans are choosing a successor to President Hamid Karzai after 12 years, and if the handover is smooth it will be the first peaceful, democratic transfer of power their country has ever seen.
For months Kabul was filled with rumours that Karzai would seek to delay or cancel the vote so that he could hold on to power. But he kept his promises to hold the poll on time with an early-morning trip to a polling station near his palace.
"Today is a vital day for us, the people of Afghanistan, that will determine our future," he said after casting his ballot and urged other voters to come out . They did so in numbers and with a determination that surprised even optimists, and even after ballots ran out. Seven million Afghans cast votes, said election organisers, nearly two and a half million more than the last presidential poll, and about 60% of all eligible voters.
In the Kabul station that ran out of ballots, Sultani waited three hours until a last-minute batch arrived, sending organisers who had been muttering darkly about government conspiracies scrambling to reassemble the polling station.
A 77-year-old man who had ignored family warnings about going out in the rain was first in line. "It is my joy to vote," Qamber Ali said, echoing the sentiments of thousands who stood patiently in well-disciplined lines even through downpours. Younger voters posed for photos with their inked fingers and uploaded them to Facebook and Twitter. "Have voted for the future of my country," wrote artist Shamsia Hassani. Hassani was joined by hundreds of thousands of other women, many students and professionals who have come of age during Karzai's rule and were voting for the first time. Ballots ran out particularly fast at voting centres for women, who also made up more candidates than ever before.
Male and female polling stations are separate because many in the conservative country frown on the mingling of the sexes in any context outside of the family. "Of course the massive turnout of women voters is a big slap to all those who want to block us to contribute. Feeling proud to be a woman," said activist Samira Huria, who had returned to Afghanistan to take part in the poll.
It was not all good news. The election in some rural areas dominated by insurgents sounded like another vote entirely, with villagers steering clear of voting stations after the Taliban warned them to stay away, commanders taking ballot-boxes to stuff at their leisure, and rocket, bomb and gun attacks.
At least one person was killed, several others injured and more than 200 polling stations closed at the last minute because of security threats. But multiple rings of tight security, with Kabul virtually shut down for days before the election, appear to have prevented any major Taliban attacks.
The insurgents had denounced the elections as a sham, warned that anyone who worked on them or took part was risking their lives, and mounted a high-profile campaign of attacks in the runup to the vote. The bloodshed cut short some international election monitoring missions and prompted many foreigners to evacuate ahead of the poll. In Kabul alone gunmen shot dead nine people, including a prominent Afghan journalist and his wife and two young children as they ate dinner in a city centre hotel, stormed the guesthouse of a landmine removal charity, and attacked two election offices and a ministry in less than two weeks.
Afghan intelligence sources said several squads of suicide attackers were preparing more spectacular attacks on polling day. In response the government declared four days of holiday, sent workers home, shut down all roads into the city and promised people it would guarantee their safety with more than 300,000 police and soldiers deployed around the country.
Kabul voters spooked by the string of attacks said they were unsure if the security cordon would hold but had come to the polls anyway. "I am 100% worried about security, but this is about the destiny of our country," said 23-year-old Aslan, an election monitor who by 10am had already spotted a man who had scrubbed his inked finger and was trying to vote twice.
He was part of a 200,000-strong squad of election observers, mostly tied to individual candidates, who kept a far closer eye on polling than five years ago when the vote that returned Karzai to power was marred by widespread fraud and more than a million ballots were thrown out.
It would be foolish to call the election overall a success at this stage. Reports of fraud in 2009 trickled in slowly at first, and even if this poll proves cleaner there is certain to be controversy about which areas were short of ballots, and whether it affected some candidates more than others.
Election organisers reacted fast to the high turnout, extending voting hours, sending out more ballots, and trying to explain their miscalculation to the angry masses of would-be voters. "We surveyed each area, and sent ballot papers based on population," said Ziaul Haq Amarkhil, chief electoral officer for the Independent Election Commission. "If we had sent more papers everywhere [to start with], it could have offered opportunity for fraud."
Not all the shortages were resolved, though, and monitors said they would investigate whether any stations ran out because of early-morning ballot-box stuffing. Any complaints will certainly be joined by other cases of abuse. Officials have already made arrests for attempted ballot-box stuffing and voter fraud, when four people were found with over 1,000 voter identity cards.
Even if results are declared clean, they will only be final if one candidate gets more than 50% of the vote. Anything lower triggers a second round runoff, and with strong competition between the top three candidates another polling day seems more likely than not.
Still, Afghans celebrated their extraordinary success in holding a day of voting where the focus stayed mostly on people casting their ballots, not the ones trying to stop them.
"Huge, huge day for Afghanistan. A historic event ends peacefully with millions casting their votes," said Saad Mohseni, the businessman owner of Tolo TV, one of the country's biggest channels. "A massive victory for our people, and a massive kick in the face for the Taliban."
Afghanistan presidential election hit by unexpected problem – too many voters | World news | The Observer
The Taliban must be crying their eyes out. Serves these medieval bafoons right. I hope it goes all well. I would love to see Afghanistan prosperous, democratic and most importantly happy.
Sher Malang
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I hope it goes all well. I would love to see Afghanistan prosperous, democratic and most importantly happy.
Haha yeah they have lost everything which they had among people every cause from Northern Alliance to US occupation. The only way now they could people accept them is through peace.
I personally thank every Pakistani brother too who supported Afghan elections today coz I was also watching some Pakistani channels and from all their hearts they were happy for Afghans
Millions of Afghans 'voting with their lives' in elections
Hundreds who have turned out to vote in the Afghan elections are "literally voting with their lives", Chatham House Afghan Researcher Hameed Hakimi told ITV News.
Mr Hakimi said that the big turnout, in which an estimated seven million people came out to vote, will "help put pressure on the establishment to respond to people's expectations".
Video here:
Millions of Afghans 'voting with their lives' in elections - ITV News
farhan_9909
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I hope,Ashraf Ghani will make it to the president.And it seems like he already is doing
waz
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Haha yeah they have lost everything which they had among people every cause from Northern Alliance to US occupation. The only way now they could people accept them is through peace.
I personally thank every Pakistani brother too who supported Afghan elections today coz I was also watching some Pakistani channels and from all their hearts they were happy for Afghans
Millions of Afghans 'voting with their lives' in elections
Hundreds who have turned out to vote in the Afghan elections are "literally voting with their lives", Chatham House Afghan Researcher Hameed Hakimi told ITV News.
Mr Hakimi said that the big turnout, in which an estimated seven million people came out to vote, will "help put pressure on the establishment to respond to people's expectations".
Video here:
Millions of Afghans 'voting with their lives' in elections - ITV News
I'd like to thank you for your kind words and I'd like to pass on my salam, blessings and prayers to all of Afghanistan's people on this day. I hope your dreams come true. I have a special affection for the people of Samangan province where I have set up extensive water facilities.
Dem!god
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wow..great news and cheers for Afghanistan election.......
its a pleasing sight to see the long line of voters and especially the female voter turn out.....
hope this govt. do enough for the afghani people.......I know situation will take time to improve...
but the gov. have to act accordingly......
hope this new gov. will enough for the people...
Sher Malang
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April 05 polls: Leaving the dark past behind
We did it. We defied the odds and chose to exercise our suffrage. The world was stunned by the unexpected turnout of Afghans who braved persistent security threats and thrashed malice of certain repressive forces who despise democracy and egalitarianism. Voters flocked to polling stations across the country on this watershed and historic day—April 05. This day will be remembered in the modern history of Afghanistan. The adrenaline and excitement to elect a new president and to make the democratic transfer of power, for the first time, grew to overwhelm the fear of insecurity. With such a mammoth and tremendous turnout of voters, we, as a nation, embarked on a substantial stage of a political transition.
Afghanistan’s decade-long democracy will have a new leader. The incumbent Karzai proved it right that he doesn’t tend to stick to power anymore, disproving rumors that he had plotted to delay the polls to extend his tenure. Now history has been made. A tremendous history. International combat troops are withdrawing Afghanistan. By the end of 2014, only a residual force will stay for advisory and training mission, on the condition that Karzai’s successor signs a Status of Forces Agreement with the US, a deal which hit snags after President Karzai refused to sign it.
Elections in 2014 differed from the previous elections. Unlike 2009 polls, foreign interference didn’t occur. Afghan security forces succeeded in maintaining tight security, creating a conducive atmosphere for the masses to vote. So many voters partook that some polling stations ran out of ballot papers. We sent a message to the world that Afghans are no different from the world’s leading and democratic nations, once they are shielded from foreign interferences and provided with opportunities. We can think beyond ethnicity, tribalism and militancy and be part of the modern world. We dared all security threats and odds. Many Afghan women, mothers, sisters and social activists made it viral on social media that they casted their votes with no fear. We voted with pride and excitement and proved to the world that once given there is a chance to show verve for change, we cannot be subdued by the forces of oppression and those with a diehard mindset.
Retrogression has no room in this society anymore. Those who attempted to sabotage the polls failed utterly. Now they should surrender and take responsibility for the massacre of innocent Afghans in bazaars, mosques, schools, roads, graveyards and festivals. We voted to stop repetition of the past. We don’t want history to be repeated, rather we will make a new history that can successfully repudiate our dark past. We voted so that the next generation will not go through the hardships we have gone through. We voted to take pride in being a citizen of a country which once had grandeur, with a bloody near past, and a promising future. We voted to feel and sense the power and sovereignty of an individual in hammering the destiny and future of the nation, a nation which desperately needs a competent and shrewd leadership.
We voted for Afghanistan and for its beautiful tricolor flag, with a wish and dream in mind this flag will remain hoisted indefinitely. We voted to repudiate militancy, and throw away the mindset of violence. We voted to say no to Taliban and militancy. Those who were intolerant towards these historic polls learnt it they will go soon as a dark force in history forever and we proved we are filled with passion and love for change and development. We touched and sensed the moment on April 05 for which we have lived the entire history. It was a great pleasure to see voters swelling out in front of polling stations. Our unity is dignity and our dignity is our unity. We voted with dignity and courage. At the same time we should not forget to appreciate our armed forces, Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police for making this happen.
AFGHANISTAN TIMES
We did it. We defied the odds and chose to exercise our suffrage. The world was stunned by the unexpected turnout of Afghans who braved persistent security threats and thrashed malice of certain repressive forces who despise democracy and egalitarianism. Voters flocked to polling stations across the country on this watershed and historic day—April 05. This day will be remembered in the modern history of Afghanistan. The adrenaline and excitement to elect a new president and to make the democratic transfer of power, for the first time, grew to overwhelm the fear of insecurity. With such a mammoth and tremendous turnout of voters, we, as a nation, embarked on a substantial stage of a political transition.
Afghanistan’s decade-long democracy will have a new leader. The incumbent Karzai proved it right that he doesn’t tend to stick to power anymore, disproving rumors that he had plotted to delay the polls to extend his tenure. Now history has been made. A tremendous history. International combat troops are withdrawing Afghanistan. By the end of 2014, only a residual force will stay for advisory and training mission, on the condition that Karzai’s successor signs a Status of Forces Agreement with the US, a deal which hit snags after President Karzai refused to sign it.
Elections in 2014 differed from the previous elections. Unlike 2009 polls, foreign interference didn’t occur. Afghan security forces succeeded in maintaining tight security, creating a conducive atmosphere for the masses to vote. So many voters partook that some polling stations ran out of ballot papers. We sent a message to the world that Afghans are no different from the world’s leading and democratic nations, once they are shielded from foreign interferences and provided with opportunities. We can think beyond ethnicity, tribalism and militancy and be part of the modern world. We dared all security threats and odds. Many Afghan women, mothers, sisters and social activists made it viral on social media that they casted their votes with no fear. We voted with pride and excitement and proved to the world that once given there is a chance to show verve for change, we cannot be subdued by the forces of oppression and those with a diehard mindset.
Retrogression has no room in this society anymore. Those who attempted to sabotage the polls failed utterly. Now they should surrender and take responsibility for the massacre of innocent Afghans in bazaars, mosques, schools, roads, graveyards and festivals. We voted to stop repetition of the past. We don’t want history to be repeated, rather we will make a new history that can successfully repudiate our dark past. We voted so that the next generation will not go through the hardships we have gone through. We voted to take pride in being a citizen of a country which once had grandeur, with a bloody near past, and a promising future. We voted to feel and sense the power and sovereignty of an individual in hammering the destiny and future of the nation, a nation which desperately needs a competent and shrewd leadership.
We voted for Afghanistan and for its beautiful tricolor flag, with a wish and dream in mind this flag will remain hoisted indefinitely. We voted to repudiate militancy, and throw away the mindset of violence. We voted to say no to Taliban and militancy. Those who were intolerant towards these historic polls learnt it they will go soon as a dark force in history forever and we proved we are filled with passion and love for change and development. We touched and sensed the moment on April 05 for which we have lived the entire history. It was a great pleasure to see voters swelling out in front of polling stations. Our unity is dignity and our dignity is our unity. We voted with dignity and courage. At the same time we should not forget to appreciate our armed forces, Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police for making this happen.
AFGHANISTAN TIMES
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Viva Afghanistan, democracy is really getting its roots well planted in Afghanistan 
Some polling station are still open due to long queues!
@Sher Malang where did you get those stats about the counting?
Some polling station are still open due to long queues!
@Sher Malang where did you get those stats about the counting?
