AFGHANISTAN PARLIAMENTARY ASSISTANCE PROJECT Legislative Newsletter 23 March 2008 Vol. 1, No. 1 Calendar The Wolesi Jirga is scheduled to consider the Electoral Law this week. The Wolesi Jirga Central Audit and Oversight Committee plans a tentative hearing on confiscation of public property with Ministry of Interior representatives, the Mayor of Kabul, and police representatives. The Meshrano Jirga plenary is scheduled to consider the Road Tolls, Political Parties, and Cooperatives Laws this week. On Tuesday, the Wolesi Jirga Committee for Tribes, Nomads, Refugees, and Displaced People will summon the Minister for Labor, Social Affairs, Martyrs and Disabled on Kuchi rights. The Meshrano Jirga International Affairs Committee will host a meeting to form a committee geared toward developing partnerships with foreign parliaments. National Assembly weekly schedule: Sunday and Tuesday: Wolesi Jirga committees and Meshrano Jirga plenary meet. Saturday, Mondays, and Wednesday: Meshrano Jirga committees and Wolesi Jirga plenary meet. Legislation National Budget On 15 March, the Wolesi Jirga approved the 1387 National Budget, 125 to 25. Six MPs left the session in protest of budget contents. Heated discussions on issues including distribution of provincial budgets and allocation of ministerial funds occurred during the debates. Responding to MP demands, Minister of Finance, Anwarulhaq Ahadi, increased funding for mosques by 5 million USD and added 15 million USD for development in 5 provinces. In a compromise, the National Assembly rescinded its request for a 10 million USD addition to its annual budget. 1
Electoral Law The law establishes the electoral system and will regulate electoral issues including voting centers/polling stations, observers, election campaigns, candidacy, and counting. Changes to the previous law in the Government s draft include reducing the size of the largest constituencies, allowing political party affiliation on the ballot, and increasing the signature threshold for candidacy to 1,500. The Electoral Law Subcommittee of the Wolesi Jirga Legislative Affairs Committee has amended the draft to include 100 seats for political parties based on proportional representation. The remaining seats would be selected under the current Single Non-Transferable Vote system. The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs sent the Electoral Law draft to the Wolesi Jirga on 17 February. The committees are scheduled to consider the draft during the coming week. The Independent Election Commission (IEC) Structure Law The law will outline the funding mechanism, structure, duties, authorities, procedures, and staffing of the body. The draft law has arrived in the Wolesi Jirga. The IEC and Electoral Law Subcommittee of the Wolesi Jirga are collaborating to include technical amendments in the draft. The amendments are subject to review by the Taqnin, the legislative drafting unit of the Ministry of Justice. Statistics Law The Statistic Law addresses the duties, authorities, and organization of the Independent Central Statistics Department. The law establishes a central office for coordination and integration of all statistical activities at the country level. The draft calls for conducting a census every 10 years and issuance of national ID cards. On the 3 March, the Wolesi Jirga reviewed and approved the draft after amending 9 articles and sent it to the Meshrano Jirga for review. After review by the Public Welfare Committee, the Law will be included in the Meshrano s plenary agenda. Higher Education Law On 5 March, the higher education draft law arrived in the Wolesi Jirga. Minister of Higher Education, Dr. Mohammad Azam Dadfar, introduced the bill, explaining that it had been drafted with the support of 230 universities, national and international experts, and officials from the Ministry of Higher Education. The draft is under consideration by the committees. 2
Medicine Law The Medicine Law regulates the production, import, stocking, and distribution of medicine and medical equipment. Last week the Wolesi Jirga reviewed and approved the bill before sending it to the Meshrano Jirga on the 17 th. Law on Gatherings, Protests and Demonstrations The law addresses management of gatherings, protests, and demonstrations on the national level. On March 11, 2008 the Meshrano Jirga debated the bill article by article, including Wolesi Jirga amendments, made further amendments, and sent the draft to the Legal Research Unit which will review it before sending it back to the Wolesi Jirga. Cooperatives Law The Cooperatives Law aims to regulate creation, registration, organization, and development of cooperatives and cooperative unions. In its 16 March plenary, the Meshrano Jirga discussed the Cooperatives Law and amended Article 18 to mandate Afghan nationality for cooperative membership. The Meshrano will continue its debate in upcoming plenary sessions. Political Parties Law The law will regulate political parties creation, activities, and rights and responsibilities. The draft law has been reviewed by the Legislative and Justice Committee of the Meshrano Jirga and is included in its future agenda. Road Toll Law The Road Tool Law will regulate the taxation of the vehicles using national highways. The law is on the Meshrano Jirga agenda. 3
News -On 2 March, Wolesi Jirga MPs approved Habibullah Qaderi as Minister of Transport and General Khodayai Daad as Minister for Counter Narcotics. -During its 3 March plenary, the Wolesi Jirga condemned reprinting of the Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed (Peace Be upon Him), the release of a Dutch MP s film on Islam, and Israel s attacks on the Gaza Strip. The Wolesi Jirga issued a declaration condemning the acts in the strongest terms and is calling on the Afghan government to bring diplomatic pressure to stop the film s release and voice its objection to the cartoons. In the deliberations, Shukria Barikzai, MP from Kabul, stated that freedom of expression should be limited with regards to others religion, but called on religious leaders to promote peaceful means of protest to the cartoons and film. While condemning the republication as an insult to Islam, Speaker Qanooni distinguished between an individual s creation and the actions of the Danish government. Honorable Alum Gul, while also referring to the war in Palestine, voiced his concern that a war against the Muslim world was in the making. Honourable Tarakhail warned that he feared a time when Afghans may be forced to rise against their State and international forces as they had the former Communist regime. -The electoral timeline debate continues. The Wolesi Jirga indicated in February that it supports separate Presidential and Parliamentary elections. An apparent level of scepticism exists among members about the government s motives for combining elections. In the meantime, District Council elections are now being discussed alongside Presidential, Parliamentary, and Provincial Council elections, making a single joint election challenging due to cost, logistical, and voter capacity constraints. Spokespersons for both houses refuse to comment on the ongoing debate. -On the 15 th, in anticipation of a Taliban spring offensive, the Meshrano Jirga Internal Security and Defense Affairs Committee questioned Ministry of Defense spokesperson, General Azimi, on the Afghan National Army s readiness and ANA/NATO coordination. Azimi s responses indicated that all military operations are conducted in close coordination with NATO forces. According to Azimi, the ANA will achieve 70,000 soldiers and officers by spring. -The Meshrano Jirga Complaint Committee last week reviewed complaints of Shibar residents who had gone unpaid for snow removal services. After conveying the grievance to the Governor of Bamyan, the Governor assured the Committee that funds are available to pay for the services. -On the 15 th, the Meshrano Jirga celebrated International Women s Day. The heads of departments of the Ministry of Women s Affairs and the head of the Meshrano Jirga Gender Committee took part in the event. Female employees of both houses received gifts of 1,000 Afs. The Ministry also distributed sewing machines to disabled women. -On 17 March, APAP distributed certificates to graduates of its one month management class for 36 male and 6 female Meshrano Jirga Senators. Representatives of UNDP, NDI and APAP participated in the ceremony. The Meshrano Jirga issued a certificate of appreciation to APAP. 4
-Members of the first female Afghan parliamentary delegation spent a week in Ottawa meeting Canadian officials, parliamentarians, NGOs, media and donor community representatives. The delegation included Safia Sediqi (Nangarhar), Fawzia Koofi (Badakhshan), Fariba Ahmadi Kakar (Kandahar), Safura Elkhani (Bamyan), Nasima Niazi (Helmand) and Sabrina Saqib (Kabul). 5