AFGHAN CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION SET
October 6 was the last day to register as a candidate in the 2014 Afghan Presidential election. A total of 27 candidates received the required 100,000 signatures to qualify for consideration and the leading contenders are: Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, second place finisher behind President Hamid Karzai in the previous election; Dr. Zalmai Rassoul who has held multiple positions in the Karzai government and is the candidate expected to receive Karzai’s endorsement; former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani who is another returning candidate; Qayum Karzai who is President Karzai’s elder brother; and Abdul Rab Rasoul Sayyaf, arguably the most controversial of the candidates. Sayyaf has a history of Islamist extremism and fought with the mujahideen during the Soviet occupation. He also offered Osama bin Laden assistance to re-enter Afghanistan after he was deported from Sudan in the 1990s. The 9/11 Commission Report cites Sayyaf as mentor of Khalid Sheik Mohammed (KSM), the alleged mastermind of the September 11 terrorist attacks. (ABC News, October 6, 2013) (Reuters, October 3, 2013)
KARZAI LASHES OUT
In an interview with the BBC, President Hamid Karzai lashed out at the U.S. and NATO, accusing them of “caus[ing] Afghanistan a lot of suffering, a lot of loss of life, and no gains.” Karzai’s term ends in six months and he is under pressure to sign a military cooperation agreement that would allow western forces to remain in the country after the current mandate expires at the end of 2014. In the interview Karzai also welcomed the Taliban back into Afghan government and encouraged them to participate in elections, insisting that women’s rights would not be adversely affected. He also deflected blame for corruption in his government by insisting that the “big corruption” came from “foreign” sources. Finally, said that the Coalition got the war effort wrong by conducting it inside Afghanistan and causing civilian casualties when it should have been conducted “in the training grounds beyond Afghanistan.” (BBC, October 7, 2013)
BARADAR STILL UNDER HOUSE ARREST
Expectations were running high earlier this month when Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar (the former Taliban second-in-command) was released from Pakistani prison, sparking hopes of a new round of negotiations between the Afghan government and the Afghan Taliban. However, in the intervening weeks optimism has diminished as no senior Taliban leaders have agreed to meet with Baradar to discuss any type of peace proposal because he remains in Pakistani military custody. Pakistani officials insist he is free to engage in negotiations but he remains under house arrest in Karachi and it is unclear how much his former allies in the Afghan Taliban trust him after years of captivity. (Reuters, October 3, 2013)
KAYANI’S FUTURE
Pakistan’s powerful Chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Kayani, is scheduled to retire at the end of November but he may not be going far. Some are predicting that Kayani will move horizontally to head a newly- restructured and empowered Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (JCSC), with the blessing of Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Largely a ceremonial body now, the Sharif government may seek to transform the institution into a “central defense body” with new powers and operational command over the entire military establishment. However, recent public statements suggest Kayani may wish to retire from public life entirely. His successor as Pakistan’s all-powerful army chief has yet to be chosen. (Reuters, October 4, 2013)
OPPOSITION TO TELANGANA STATE CONTINUES
Protests continue against the creation of a new Telangana state in southeastern India. The new state, with roughly 35 million people, would be carved out of Andhra Pradesh, receiving 10 of the state’s 23 districts where there are majority Telugu-speaking populations. The decision caps off a 50-year campaign for separate statehood by the people of Telangana, and has given impetus to other movements for separate statehood across India. Hyderabad, the state’s most prosperous city (and India’s sixth largest), would be located in Telangana but would serve as the joint capital of both states for the first 10 years. Several federal ministers from Andhra have threatened to resign and labor strikes have persisted in other parts of the state, crippling its power grid. (BBC, October 4, 2013) (The Indian Express, October 8, 2013)