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Progress and Pitfalls of “Peace-Building”
in Afghanistan
continues....
Some also remain hesitant to accept opposition parties that constitute key
element of electoral democracy. Although political parties are central to
democracy, people are seldom positive about political parties even in
established democracies. The Afghan people also share these doubts. Less
than half of the Afghan public (47 percent) express great or fair trust in
the parties, most Afghans say that they do not trust parties at all or not very much.
While the public broadly endorses democratic attitudes, political
conflicts within Afghanistan can limit the willingness to express and act
on these opinions. Successful democratic reform has to be built upon
public support for the democratic ideal that will sustain new political
institutions. To assess public support for democracy, the 2006 Asia Foundation survey asked Afghans whether they agreed with the Churchillian statement: “Democracy may have its problems, but it is better that any other form of government’.
A huge percent of Afghans
agree with the statement, which is a positive sign of democratic aspirations. Moreover, Afghan experiences of the alternatives to democracy (from the Zahir Shah regime to the Taleban) have not been satisfying. In the words of a rural Pashtun, “I have heard that democracy
gives freedom, it is very different in our own country, where all depends
on guns.”
At the same time 11 percent of the public do not favour
democracy. In the lead up to the 2004 election, there were indications
that many Afghans were still uncertain about democracy and the electoral
process, but the latest surveys show that democratic awareness has grown
substantially as experience with elections and public education programmes have increased. 84 percent of the public defines democracy in terms of liberal political rights- freedom, rights and law, elections and government by the people. Although the identification of democracy with peace and stability (38 percent) and economic prosperity (17 percent) has increased over time, these remain as secondary meanings of democracy.
To be continued.......