TheTimes, UK
12/14/2003
By Catherine Philp

THE giant white tent is up, the dormitories prepared and the tea urns set to provide a flow of refreshments to the delegates flown or bussed in from all across Afghanistan. After months of delay and open revolts, Kabul is once again ready to host a Loya Jirga, or grand assembly, which could either set the country on the road to national unity or further expose the deep divisions within.

Afghanistan's new draft constitution will be the subject of intense debate, with delegates hoping to avoid a repeat of the chaos and backroom dealing that undermined the first assembly last year. Under the peace process mandated by the UN, the constitution must be ratified before elections can proceed next year. But behind almost every article lies the explosive potential to divide the assembly, and the country, along ethnic and factional lines. Conservatives complain that it is too secular, while progressive groups have complained that its emphasis on Islam's sacred position does not protect the rights of women or minorities.

Perhaps the most divisive issue is the proposed strong executive system that gives sweeping powers to a President who is directly elected and not answerable to Parliament. That proposal is seen by many as the work of President Karzai and his American backers. Despite widespread disillusionment with his rule, he is still in a strong position to become the country's first elected President.

It was announced yesterday that the delayed assembly would be put off for another day, until tomorrow. Pashtuns from the south appear overwhelmingly to support a return to the monarchy, but they have accepted that this is highly unlikely.

Former Mujahidin commanders from the ethnic groups in the north, many of whom were excluded from the assembly by rules banning warlords but who are well represented by their own delegates, remain split.

Many delegates stand accused of pursuing personal interests. Dari speakers from the north are unhappy with the stipulation that the national anthem be sung in Pashto, while Pashtuns from the south are reluctant to accept Dari as a second national language.

Religious conservatives are demanding full-blown Sharia. "We want an eye for an eye, a life for a life," said Zaidullah Ghyace from Wardak province, whose delegates include senior members of the hardline Hezbi Islami movement.

But diplomats in Kabul have given warning that such a stance could have far-reaching consequences. "Can you imagine the reaction of Western donor nations when they realise they have backed a process that produces Sharia?" one diplomat said. "The aid money could stop coming."

How representative the delegates are of the Afghan people is also questionable.

Although warlords were excluded, scores of their representatives will

be present after suspiciously sweeping electoral victories. In progressive Kabul province, the ultra-conservative Adbul Ras Rasul Sayyaf and Hezbi Islami secured an astonishing ten out of fourteen seats. A Western diplomat said: "That election was clearly bought."

The assembly is scheduled to last ten days, but is expected to drag on much longer.