One word holds up constitution

2004-01-03 18:04

Kabul - A dispute over one word stood in the way of Afghanistan's grand assembly agreeing on a new draft constitution on Saturday with delegates unable to reach a consensus on the country's official language, an official said.

At the close of the loya jirga assembly on Saturday, Sebghatullah Mujadadi said the issue of national languages was the only one still to be resolved.

"Unfortunately I would say that we could not reach final agreement today and we failed to reach a final agreement. The session is delayed until tomorrow.

"We have reached an agreement on the whole constitution but there is only one word remaining," he said.

The director of the secretariat for the loya jirga, Farooq Wardak, said the word in dispute was "official".

While the Uzbek ethnic grouping thinks its language should be the country's third official language after Pashtu and Dari, other delegates said it should only be the third official language in those areas where it was widely spoken.

Representatives from across Afghanistan were meeting UN special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, US ambassador Zalmay Khalizad and members of the Constitutional Commission to finalise the landmark document that will pave the way for the country's first democratic elections.

"The major things have been resolved," Safia Siddiqi, deputy chair of the loya jirga, or grand assembly, told reporters.

President Hamid Karzai called on hundreds of delegates who have boycotted a vote on the new constitution to work towards consensus, in a move aimed at dampening bitter ethnic rivalries.

"The purpose is to have a constitution that reflects the views and considerations and interests of all the people of Afghanistan.

"Therefore, it is important to have a constitution that comes with near consensus, if not total consensus," Karzai told reporters at the presidential palace.

Heated debate

Most of the draft's 160 articles have been agreed without opposition. But after nearly three weeks of heated debate, more than 200 of the 502 delegates boycotted Thursday's vote on five contentious articles in the draft constitution.

The boycott forced an adjournment of the loya jirga, which has been dubbed the "loya jagra" ("big fight") by some Afghans.

Delegates from the Uzbek, Tajik, Hazara and Turkmen minorities refused to vote, worried they would be sidelined under the proposed constitution that has been largely supported by the Pashtuns who account for about 40 percent of the country's multi-ethnic population.

On Saturday, delegates resolved a dispute over whether ministers should be allowed dual citizenship, finally deciding that ministers would be able to hold two passports for the next five years.

Dual citizenship had been a contentious issue because key figures in Karzai's adminstration such as Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani and Interior Minister Ali Ahmed Jalali returned after spending years in the US, although it is not known if they now hold American passports.

- AFP