Afghanistan: An election farce

Jason Thomas was regional manager for the Central Asia Development Group, implementing a USAID program in south-east Afghanistan.

With so-called elections coming up in Afghanistan this weekend, Thomas, writing an op-ed piece published in The Age, describes them as a farce - given the corruption of President Karzai, his cronies and the Afghan regime.

"The Afghan parliamentary elections this weekend should be a proud moment for the troubled nation. Yet democracy in Afghanistan is wasted because of President Hamid Karzai's refusal to tackle corruption. The fact is, the Taliban are out-governing the Karzai government, whose warlord and elite cronies continue to run their own corrupt fiefdoms in the provinces."

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"United States and Australian troops are not only fighting the Taliban, but also combating rampant corruption, thuggish Afghan National Police and a population that welcomes foreigners with open arms for as long as it is of value to them."

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