The Ministry of Interior reported on Friday that review of voting center security around the country has been completed and provided some encouragement, with much changed from when the preparation process first began last year.
Security of the upcoming elections is considered the top priority for many government officials, who fear insecurity could undermine oversight of the elections, opening the door to fraud, or simply discourage Afghans from showing up to the polls.
According to the Independent Election Commission (IEC), further preparations, including the transportation of voting materials to the centers around the country, depends heavily on what is submitted by security officials in the final election security report this week.
“All the reviews have been finalized and we are planning to share them with the IEC tomorrow,” MoI spokesman Sediq Sediqi said on Friday. “There has been a great improvement and our reviews show that conditions have completely changed compared with the past.”
The security report, if submitted on Saturday, will come six days after the deadline the IEC had originally given security institutions to finish their assessments. Sediqi did not divulge any details of the report, but evinced confidence.
“With the help and support of the people, wide spread elections will be held, and most of the sites of the IEC’s list will be secured,” he said.
A list of some 7,000 voting centers was submitted to the IEC 14 months ago. At the time, over 250 of those centers were said to be under serious threat.
Many are concerned the April vote could turn out like the 2009 Presidential elections, in which there were rampant and well-documented improprieties that took place.
“The years are not comparable, we unfortunately had problems in 2009, we didn’t have good experience, quantity and quality wise,” Sediqi said regarding security operations surrounding the national elections. “Our biggest achievements for the year 2014 are that quantity wise, we are at a good point, and quality and capability wise, we have had good improvements.”
The Afghan security forces assumed the majority of operation responsibilities around the country in 2013 as they prepare for the full withdraw of NATO coalition troops at the end of the year. Despite suffering immense casualties, the Afghan forces were applauded by NATO officials for their performance during last year’s fighting season.
Ultimately, the perception of security is thought to be as critical to the elections’ success as the actual presence of security. If people do not feel safe, the logic goes, they will not show up to the polls to cast ballots.
In addition to spurring heightened concerns for security, the possibility of a low turnout has sparked major registration and Get Out The Vote campaigns led by government and election officials.
The Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs has said that an announcement would soon be made in mosques to encourage people to vote. The Ministry also said that two books have also been published explaining the elections from the perspective of Sharia law.
“We have programs in all mosques regarding the elections, and God willing, as the elections get closer, our activities will increase in this regard,” Deputy Minister Dai-ul-Haq Abid said. “This is a national necessity and we must have a part.”
IEC officials said they consider the role of Islamic scholars and the Ministry in building awareness of the upcoming elections important.
“We hope for continuous cooperation from the Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs,” IEC Commissioner Sareer Ahmad Barmak said. “Our clerics should perform their responsibilities all over Afghanistan so that people of Afghanistan can select their leader.”
Tolonews
Tags: Election, final, Security
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