The United States is reportedly weighing to request Afghan government to postpone the upcoming presidential election. The Wall Street Journal has reported that Washington is mulling over an option how to urge Kabul to suspend the 2019 presidential poll. According to the report, two other options possibly on the table include creation of an interim government through a Loya Jirga or convening of a conference similar to that held in Bonn, Germany in 2001 that led to the establishment of a post-Taliban administration in Kabul. The idea, the report cites, has been floated by Zalmay Khalilzad, the US special envoy for peace in Afghanistan, who is trying to convince President Ghani, who has already announced his intention to run for re-election in the next year’s presidential ballot, to agree to the suspension of the poll. The Afghan government, however, has voiced opposition to the plan, with President Ghani’s close aides declaring soon after the report was released that the government was committed to holding the election as scheduled, and that election was the only way for transfer of power.
Election and the resultant peaceful transition of power from one administration to another is certainly the greatest achievement of the last 17 years. Afghan people, who had grown weary of the bloody coups and violent takeover of power, warmly welcomed the democratic and peaceful way of transfer of power, and election remains to be a redline for them, but peace is also a top priority for them at the same time. If there is no peace, the ballots happening under the bullets cannot well represent the will of the Afghan nation. The previous presidential and parliamentary elections are a real-world example of the flaw. Although there was an unexpectedly high voter turnout, not all eligible voters could exercise their right to participate in the elections on account of security threats and violence, meaning that an overwhelming number of people were divested of the opportunity to choose their leaders.
Election is the irreplaceable and most logical way for transfer of power; however, if its delay can contribute to the restoration of peace, it is illogical to reject the proposal diametrically. If Afghan government feels certain that a brief delay in the presidential election can satisfy the greatest hope of Afghan people — peace, any opposition to the proposition will mean “yes” to the continuation of the destructive war, and a huge injustice with Afghan people. This very government, which has expressed its categorical opposition to the delay in presidential election for the sake of peace talks, postponed the parliamentary poll for three years under the excuse of electoral reform. The United States that is now spearheading the peace initiative should also provide necessary guarantee that peace will come if there is a delay in election. Peace is the topmost priority, and all parties to the conflict must therefore show utmost flexibility to achieve it.
