Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy

Kabul: Saturday, 19 May. Everyone in the UN aircraft breathes a sigh of relief when the pilot has touched the plane down safely. After an extremely turbulent descent, we have finally landed at Kabul International Airport. That’s right, the airport that not one single Western airline dares to fly to proudly calls itself an international airport.

Our delegation consists of NIMD chairman Ben Bot, Dutch MPs Mariko Peters (GroenLinks – Green Party) and Angelien Eijsink (PvdA – Labour Party), NIMD board member Willem Haitsma, my colleague Will Derks and myself.

Two men are waiting for us at the fence: the new ambassador Hans Blankenberg (just four days on the job so far) and Australian security officer Tim, who will be accompanying us for the rest of the week.

Two armoured Jeeps are ready for us. Bullet-proof vests lie ready on the back seat. We are kindly requested to put the vests on during every ride. I immediately hoist the ponderous vest over my head, but I also catch the grumbles from experienced Afghanistan visitors Ben Bot and Mariko Peters. "If the bullets go through this armoured vehicle, this vest truly isn’t going to stop them either," Ben Bot says dryly. It is characteristic of the yawning chasm throughout the week between the strict but inconsistent security regime enforced by Tim and the pragmatic attitude of the delegation representatives that puts matters into perspective.

Relaxed atmosphere

During the ride to our hotel, I see children everywhere: school children in uniform (the girls in black robes with a white headscarf, the boys in dark blue pants and a good shirt), children on flat donkey carts, on the back of bicycles, holding their father or mother’s hand, playing football or other games. Eighty per cent of the population is younger than 25. No wonder that they dominate the street scene.

What I also notice is that Afghans are working hard to rebuild their capital city. New residential neighbourhoods are being resurrected. Government buildings are being restored using aid from Indian, Iranian, German or other donors.

I only count three women in burqas on the way. I see many more later, all under the same light blue, ribbed fabric. I have a tendency to evaluate the progress of the woman’s position in society by the number of burqas on the street. But is that accurate? I hear that many women actually feel more comfortable under their blue cloth.

During this first ride through Kabul, I am surprised by the relaxed atmosphere that prevails there. This is not a conflict area; this city and its 4.5 million inhabitants are alive and bustling! The people are better dressed and better fed than some time ago, according to what I hear. I see a man lying in the grass on the roundabout reading a book, while another man catches a nap beside the wares spread out for sale. I see people buying their shopping from the many tiny stalls selling bananas, mangos and gigantic melons. I see heavily laden mules, buses crammed with people and a gesticulating traffic policeman trying to prevent congestion. I do not have the impression that fear rules here.

But there is also another reality. During the week, there is an attack by a suicide bomber in a suburb of Kabul; he drags a policeman and a passer-by to their deaths with him. After a major peak in the number of suicide bombings in Kabul in September, the number has stabilized now, according to our security guards: one serious incident per month on average. These types of incidents cause foreigners to hide behind high, blast-proof walls. And that is why we are driving around in armoured cars with an armed security guard. But does this really lower our risks of falling victim to the small group of extremists? I doubt it.

No new electoral legislation

Our over-full agenda starts on Sunday. It is an ordinary working day in Afghanistan; Friday is the day of rest here. For four days we talk to political leaders, government ministers, representatives from civil society organizations, the European Commission, the UN and NATO.

Over and over, we ask the same questions: is there a need for NIMD support for the formation of political parties and for democratization? If so, how should we approach that need? And who should be our partners in these efforts?

The topics we discuss include electoral legislation and possible reforms. The current electoral system of a single, non-transferable vote (the SNTV system) does not promote the formation of political parties in Afghanistan. All the representatives in the Wolesi Jirga are chosen on an individual basis, not on the basis of party candidate lists. This has resulted in a fragmented and paralyzed parliament.

Despite the serious objections to this electoral system, our dialogue partners soon make it clear to us that there is little interest in sweeping reforms. Even the proponents of a system based on proportionate representation, which would offer more room for political parties, tell us, "Leave the electoral system alone for now. What Afghanistan needs now is political stability and continuity." There is no more room left for negotiations; the most favourable scenario would be for the parliament to ratify a bill proposing a hybrid system of SNTV and proportionate representation.

Former rulers

Partnering with political parties will be difficult. There are officially 87 political parties on the books, but many of them exist in name only. Besides the old parties, dating back to the war with the Russians or arising from the communist party, new parties were founded after the fall of the Taliban.

The old Mudjaheen parties hold a great deal of power: in the government, the parliament and the opium trade. Many of them got their hands dirty in the civil war at the beginning of the 1990s. The new parties are small, disorganized and powerless. Some may successfully grow stronger and present a democratic counterweight to the current rulers, but others will disappear from the political arena.

Because the landscape of political parties is still cluttered and will need time to resolve into a clear pattern, it seems impossible to work with parties directly at this stage. However, there may still be other ways that NIMD can contribute to building democratic parties in Afghanistan.

There is a great need for practical political education and awareness raising about democratic practises, particularly among the youth. They are the political leaders of tomorrow.

Recalcitrant

This has been a week of sharp contrasts: Between the luxury of the Serena Hotel where we were staying and the lack of facilities for the inhabitants of Kabul. Between the scenes that could have come straight out of the Old Testament of men with untamed beards and turbans and donkey carts and the spreading modernization. Between the people at the heart of power that say that Afghan democracy is working fine and that our help is not wanted, and those who are striving to achieve reforms and true democratization but have no resources to bring to the struggle. Between optimism and pessimism.

I am hopeful for democracy in Afghanistan, but the reality is recalcitrant. The people currently in power are not favourably inclined toward democracy and the development of political parties. Democratic reforms will have to come from within and that will take many generations.

But I am optimistic when I see the strength and perseverance of the youngest member of the Afghan parliament. She wants to put an end to the power that the warlords have in Parliament and risks her own life for a more democratic, just society. We cannot abandon the people who are investing so much in this critical period to create a more democratic Afghanistan.

Or, as Ben Bot said it: "We are on a tiny, swampy island surrounded by the raging waves. There are two things we can do. Try to shore up the ground beneath our feet and build the swampy island into solid ground. Or we can allow the sight of the rising water to convince us to be picked up by a helicopter. What choice will we make?"