Elections in Afghanistan Mostly a Success

Turnout was high in Afghanistan's election, About 7 million Afghans voted in this Presidential election that will replace Hamid Karzai, despite violence prior to, and threatening the elections.

According to Voice of America, more than 3,000 voters complained to the election authorities about fraud and abuse."This figure compares to more than 2,000 complaints investigated during the 2009 elections, which were tarnished by fraud that led to more than a million votes being scrapped. Complaints against election commission staff made up 772 of  the 1,573 complaints backed by documents, with another 573 aimed at provincial council candidates, while presidential hopefuls faced 228 complaints.  Afghanistan held provincial council elections the same day."

Though there was some violence: "at least 16 security personnel and four civilians were killed over the past 24 hours, officials said. Eighty-nine Taliban militants were also killed, and 179 other fighters arrested," according to NBC news. "...there were close to 150 [security incidents] this year," compared to 625 in 2009, "including mortar attacks, small arms fire and bombings near polling sites. About 1,000 polling sites of the more than 7,100 remained closed because of security concerns as well as harsh weather in remote regions."

Nonetheless, the Afghan elections are considered a success. "World leaders have praised the April 5 vote as a success, because of the strong turnout of voters, estimated at 60 percent of the 12 million eligible, and the failure of the Taliban to stage high-profile attacks on the day."

"Expectations are growing that Abdullah Abdullah will face a runoff with Ashraf Ghani, a former World Bank official with a program of radical economic reform."

A columnist for Al Jazeera states: "More than 7 million Afghans voters, at least 35 percent of whom were female, sent a strong and clear message in support of democracy to the world, including to election spoilers, stressing that nothing can stop them from exercising their constitutional right to elect a new leader and, more importantly, that they rejected the Taliban narrative. Earlier this year, the Taliban issued statements denouncing elections and threatened to punish anyone associated with the process." 

From the NY Post: "Finally, the picture emerging from the election indicates much stronger support for close ties with the United States than one might think when listening to the buzz from Washington. The likely two top vote-getters, Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani, both support a treaty under which the United States would maintain a military presence of 10,000 to 12,000 troops in Afghanistan — a clear sign of consensus." 

"In Iraq, by choosing a cynical cut-and-run strategy, President Obama squandered much of the power and prestige that the United States had won by overthrowing Saddam Hussein. The question now is if he will make the same mistake in Afghanistan...That would be bad for the Afghans and for America. Premature US disengagement could turn Afghanistan into a battleground for regional rivals, among them such opportunist powers as Iran, Russia and Pakistan. That, in turn, would deny Afghanistan the time needed to strengthen its new institutions, gain experience by practicing democracy and emerge as an element of stability in one of the most dangerous parts of the world."

According to the WSJ: "Former World Bank executive Ashraf Ghani and opposition leader Abdullah Abdullah appeared to be the two front-runners in Afghanistan's presidential election, sidelining a candidate viewed as President Hamid Karzai's favorite, according to partial results tallied by news organizations and one candidate. A victory for Mr. Abdullah or Mr. Ghani could significantly reduce the influence of Mr. Karzai, who has ruled Afghanistan since the 2001 U.S. invasion. Both candidates say they will sign the bilateral security agreement, which is needed to maintain American aid and a limited U.S. military presence in Afghanistan once the international coalition's current mandate expires in December. Mr. Karzai has infuriated Washington by refusing to complete the deal."

"The Wall Street Journal tallied partial election results from visits to roughly 100 polling stations, out of more than 20,000 nationwide...At nearly all these stations, Messrs. Ghani and Abdullah were the clear leaders, according to counts posted by local poll supervisors. Mr. Karzai's former foreign minister, Zalmai Rassoul, trailed far behind...Diplomats, campaign insiders and election observers predicted a runoff [election] sometime in late May or early June."

"Former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah, who was Karzai's main rival in a 2009 election marred by widespread cheating, had promised his followers a knock-out victory if the government contained fraud...The main loser appears to be another former foreign minister, Zalmai Rassoul, a softly spoken moderate who was believed to be Karzai's preferred successor...The official result is not due for over two weeks. " ~ The Guardian.  
 

Ebola Outbreak in Guinea, Africa

According to Time magazine, 83 have died from the disease Ebola in Guinea, West Africa, and "So far 122 people have been diagnosed in this latest outbreak, in addition to six suspected cases in neighboring Liberia."

""Ebola has killed at least 1700 people since it was first identified in simultaneous 1976 outbreaks in Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan, but rarely has it reached urban centers, where cramped quarters can make transmission even easier. Conakry [Guinea's capital] has 13 suspected cases so far..."

"Where does it come from? The Ebola virus only hitches rides with human hosts as an afterthought. Its natural reservoir is thought to be in Africa’s population of wild fruit bats, though it is also prevalent in chimpanzees, gorillas, porcupines and forest antelope. That’s why health officials are encouraging locals to avoid eating so called “bush meat,” or any kind of animal found dead on the forest floor."

Could Ebola make its way to North America? The Time article says people are too ill to travel."One variation of Ebola found in China and the Philippines did make it to a U.S. laboratory via infected macaques, but according to the WHO, no illness or death in humans has ever resulted from that particular strain. Some countries are already taking precautions. Saudi Arabia has announced the suspension of visas for Muslim pilgrims from Guinea and Liberia."

According to Al Jazeera, "Foreign mining firms have locked down operations in Guinea and pulled out some international staff... Five new suspected infections were reported in the last 24 hours, the UN's World Health Organisation (WHO) said, bringing the total to 127."

According to USA Today, "This is the first time an Ebola outbreak has occurred in West Africa. Countries in central Africa, such as Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the virus is endemic, typically see outbreaks every two to three years."

According to a National Geographic article, "Patients normally receive supportive care consisting of balancing their fluids, maintaining oxygen and blood pressure levels, and treating other infections."

Doctors should try at least some natural remedies for dealing with the virus, such as eating and/or drinking garlic, ginger, and potentially curry spices, and potentially other spices and herbs.  Rumor is that garlic mixed with wine warded off the plague in the middle ages. There are foods with anti-viral properties that may help to protect people from the disease. Why try nothing at all?

China's Labor Force more than 4x that of USA

China's labor force, at 798 million people, is more than four times as large as the labor force of the USA, which is the forth largest labor force in the world, at 155 million people, behind India and the European Union - according to the CIA World Factbook. Russia, though very large in land, is relatively small in labor, at 75 million people.

EU to send troops to Central African Republic

The European Union is sending a 1000-people force, named EUFOR RCA, that will for 6 months work to restore peace and stability to the capital Bangui - The Sydney Morning Herald/AFP. There do exist peacekeeping forces in the country, 2,000 French and 6,000 African troops.

According to the NY Times, the United Nations warned that security in Bangui in the Central African Republic was deteriorating and appealing for more peacekeeping troops and police officers.

"An eruption of violence four months ago in Bangui...prompted the United Nations to declare the highest level of human rights emergency...

The conflict is largely between Christian militias and a Muslim minority. 

According to the NYT article, the Central African Republic has "virtually no functioning institutions" and the government is "unable to exercise authority outside of the capital." The UN called for $547 million in aid money, but only about one-fifth of that amount has been forthcoming. 

The Central African Republic has a relatively new President, Catherine Samba-Panza.