Afghanistan: English Translation of 2010 Electoral Law Now Available

An unofficial translation of Afghanistan’s new electoral law was published today by Democracy International. The official authoritative language of the law is in Dari. On February 17, President Hamid Karzai acted on the basis of Article 79– which allows the President to issue a decree in case of an emergency, and also gives the Afghan National Assembly the power to reject decrees –and issued a presidential decree amending the country’s Electoral Law. Since only the lower house (Wolesi Jirga) and not the upper house of the National Assembly rejected the decree, Democracy International reports that “it is now widely acknowledged that the Article 79 Electoral Law decree forms the framework by which Wolesi Jirga elections will be held on September 18, 2010.” (Read the entire document as a pdf).