Afghanistan has begun registering voters across the war-torn country as it tries to ensure that long-delayed legislative elections scheduled for October are seen as credible and fraud-free. In an operation that began at the weekend and will last for two months, authorities hope to register up to 14 million adults at more than 7,000 polling centres - an ambitious goal in a country where militants control or contest much of the territory.
"The main challenge is insecurity, particularly in rural areas," Abdul Badie Sayad, chairman of the Independent Election Commission (IEC), told AFP recently. In addition to the Taliban and the Islamic State group terrorising swathes of the population, "local powers, illegal militias and strongmen will try to interfere" in the parliamentary and district council elections, Sayad predicted.
A shortage of female staff at polling centres, particularly in conservative rural areas, could also impede participation by women in the polls, seen as a test run for next year's presidential election. "Women won't be given permission from their families to reach the registration centres, where they may be asked to remove their burqa to show their faces," Sayad said.
In Kabul on Saturday, police stood guard at a school being used as a registration centre but only a handful of men showed up. Mohammad Hussein, a 54-year-old shopkeeper, said he wanted to vote for a candidate "able to bring about change in this country".
"I voted in 2010 but I made a mistake - the MP didn't bring any change. This time I need to vote for someone who works without taking bribes," Hussein told AFP. The turnout was no better on Sunday when AFP returned to the registration centre, but IEC employee Abdul Samin said it would improve. "I am sure once public awareness increases through the media and advertisements, then the registration process will get busier," Samin said.
The October 20 polls were originally set to be held in 2015 following presidential elections the previous year, but were repeatedly pushed back due to security fears and logistical problems within the fragile unity government. If held, candidates will contest the 249 seats in the National Assembly for five-year terms. The country will also hold regional elections in tandem in hundreds of districts across Afghanistan - some of which are outside Kabul's control.
Over the coming weeks the IEC hopes to register 13-14 million people at centres where they will later be required to cast their vote, a move which officials hope will reduce the risk of ballot-box stuffing. A television advertising campaign has been launched to persuade people that their votes will count - a challenging task after a disputed presidential election in 2014.
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