The mandate of the UN mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) should be extended for another year to help ensure credible elections to religitimise government authority, UN chief Ban Ki-moon said in a report released here Friday. Ban recommended that the UNAMA mandate, which expires March 23, be extended for a further 12 months, pointing out that support for the election process in the strife-torn country "is particularly relevant over the coming months."
In a show of commitment, the United Nations has doubled its budget for Afghanistan this year to 150-160 million dollars, allowing an increase of its staff there from 1,500 to 2,000 and more offices opened. "At stake over the next six months is the relegitimisation of the (Afghan) governments authority through credible (presidential and provincial council) elections" scheduled for August 20, said the UN secretary general, who visited Kabul last month.
He warned that these polls were likely to take place "during a period of intensified fighting," a reference to the resurgent Taliban insurgency. The report, however, stressed that the polls "must be held in as secure an environment as possible, where the freedoms of expression, media and assembly that democracy requires are guaranteed as much as possible."
Bans report underscored the fact that Afghanistans Independent Election Commission earlier this month reaffirmed its decision to set August 20 as the poll date. Last month, Afghan President Hamid Karzai had issued a decree that was interpreted by some as meaning the elections should be held before his term ends on May 22 so as to avoid a vacuum of executive authority. The balloting is expected to be a key test of Karzais rule as well as seven-year-old US- and Nato-led efforts to stabilise Afghanistan.
Nearly 70,000 foreign troops under Nato and US command have been fighting a Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan since late 2001. The United States recently announced the deployment of 17,000 extra troops, mainly to the south where the insurgency is at its worst, but those soldiers are unlikely to be fully in place until July, under current planning.
Bans report was issued as he prepares to open a high-level ministerial conference on the future of Afghanistan hosted by the Dutch government in The Hague on March 31. "The security situation continues to deteriorate. Elections are coming," Ban told reporters Thursday. "Therefore we need to address all these issues from a comprehensive perspective." In his report, Ban cautioned that "the insecurity caused by those who oppose the government cannot be addressed by military means alone."
"Reconciliation needs to be part of an inclusive political process beyond elections" that should be "Afghan-led, enjoy a broad consensus of key Afghan and international stakeholders, respect the constitution and pursued from a position of military and political strength," he noted.
He also called for a "more robust commitment to supporting Afghanistans development strategy in a more co-ordinated way." The UN boss welcomed the increased attention and resources Afghanistan has received in recent months but said the funds must be used intelligently in line with the co-ordinated plan agreed at a Paris conference last June.
That plan provides for specific efforts to improve aid effectiveness, build Afghan capacity and institutions, focus on prioritised development needs, improve aid delivery to the provinces and promote regional cooperation. "While there are many reasons to believe that security in Afghanistan will worsen in 2009, there are also reasons for medium-term optimism," Ban said. "A judicious deployment of additional international troops, with its primary goal being the security of the Afghan people, will be a welcome development."
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