IN THE NEWS - Loya Jirga

IN THE NEWS
–
June 8, 2002: Loya Jirga

By Caty Weaver¹

This is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English program, In The News.

Next week, a traditional national council called a loya jirga will meet in the capital of Afghanistan, Kabul. About
one-thousand-five -hundred delegates will choose a new leader for Afghanistan and a temporary government.

The loya jirga tradition began hundreds of years ago. Tribal² leaders from all over Afghanistan would be called
together to accept or reject national policies, to settle disputes between tribes or to consider new constitutions.
Most loya jirgas in the past have been all male.

The loya jirga is a temporary decision-making group. It is not a permanent part of the Afghan government. The
loya jirga is a representative process although it is not considered fully³ democratic. Representatives of the most
honored or most powerful Afghan families choose the people who elect loya jirga members.

The current loya jirga process began in December of last year. Afghan groups agreed to set up a six -month
government following the ousting⁴ of Taleban rulers. That agreement also called for an emergency loya jirga to be
held at the end of the six-month term to appoint a longer-term temporary government.

In January, Afghanistan appointed an independent committee to establish rules and methods for the loya jirga.
The committee had to decide on a process for choosing loya jirga members. It also had to make sure that women
and minorities had representation on the loya jirga. One-hundred-sixty seats were guaranteed for female
delegates.

The process of choosing loya jirga members has gone through several steps. First, local leadership councils chose
electors. The number of electors for an area was based on population.

Then, last week, the electors went to Kandahar for the final voting. They chose the final group of loya jirga
members from among themselves. The process was not free of problems. There were reports of vote-buying.
There also were reports that electors had been threatened.

There were delays in the voting as well. The process was not completed until Friday, two days later than planned.

Afghanistan’s former King Mohammad Zahir Shah will open the loya jirga Monday. He returned to the country
recently after living in exile for more than twenty years. Zahir Shah ruled Afghanistan for forty years and is still
considered influential⁵ with many Afghans. However, his part in the loya jirga is ceremonial.

The loya jirga is to complete its work by June sixteenth. Many experts believe it will choose Hamid Karzai, the
current temporary leader of Afghanistan, to continue as its next leader. Mister Karzai says he will accept the
position if it is offered. The new temporary leader and government of Afghanistan will serve for two years. Then
the country hopes to hold free and fair elections to choose a fully representative government.

This VOA Special English program In The News was written by Caty Weaver. This is Steve Ember.

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1 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

2 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

3 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

4 ousting   

驱逐( oust的现在分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• The resulting financial chaos led to the ousting of Bristol-Myers' s boss. 随后引发的财政混乱导致了百时美施贵宝的总裁下台。
• The ousting of the president has drawn widespread criticism across Latin America and the wider world. 洪都拉斯总统被驱逐时间引起拉丁美洲甚至全世界的广泛批评。

5 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。