Afghanistan

The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is a country in central Asia. It is completely landlocked, sharing borders with seven other countries. To the west is Iran. In the north lie Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tadzikistan. In the East, there is a short border with China and the southern border is shared between India and Pakistan. Much of the land is high and mountainous. The central area, know as the Hindu Kush is a western spur of the Himalaya range. The south consists of high plateaus and sandy deserts. The northern plains are lower laying and more fertile, providing much of the countries agriculture.

The capital of Afghanistan is Kabul. The country has been ravaged by invitations and civil wars for decades. After the 2001 attacks of 9/11 in New York, the country was Invaded by an American lead coalition. There intentions were to remove the Taliban from power in the country and to destroy al-Qaeda who had been blamed for 9/11. A new interim government was setup in 2002 lead by Hamid Karzai. A new constitution was ratified and elections were held in 2004 making Hamid Karzai the President. The year 2005 saw the election of a legislature. This has brought some stability to much of the country and so the economy is now beginning to grow. However, guerrilla warfare does continue in many areas of the country.

Government

President

The President, two Vice Presidents and Cabinet ministers form the executive of the Afghan government. The current president is Hamid Karzai who was elected for a five year term of office in October 2004. The President is elected via direct general secret ballot of registered voters. He must achieve a quorum of 50% of the votes. Falling this requirement, a second round election, between only the two leading candidates, will be held within two weeks of the first ballot. The president appoints the cabinet ministers who are then approved by the National Assembly.

National Assembly

This parliament forms the legislative arm of the government. It consists of two houses. The lower house, know as the Wolesi Jirga (the House of People), is directly elected in a general secret ballot of voters. The Meshrano Jirga (House of Elders) is the upper house and is partly indirectly elected and partly appointed. Each of the provincial councils elects a representative to the Meshrano Jirga for a four year term. The district councils also elect a representative each for a three year term. The remaining seats in the house are filled by appointment of the President of which he must appoint two representatives of the disabled or impaired, two form the Kochis (Nomadic people) and of all the appointed representatives, at least 50% must be woman. The appointed members sit for a period of five years.

Grand Assembly

Know as the Loya Jirga, this body is the highest level of government. It is only convened on exceptional circumstances such as issues of national sovereignty, territorial disputes or to remove the president form power. The Loya Jirga also has the power to amend the constitution. The Loya Jirga is made up form the members of the National Assembly plus the Chairperson of each of the Provincial and District councils. The cabinet ministers, Chief Justice and members of the Supreme Court may take part in the Assembly proceedings but do not have voting rights.

Local government

Afghanistan is subdivided into 34 provinces. These are further subdivided into 398 districts. Each province and district elects a council. The city of Kabul has a mayor, directly appointed by the president. The city is administered independent form its surrounding province.

Geography & Natural History

Topography

Most of Afghanistan is high and mountainous. The Hindu Kush mountain range stretches across the centre of the country form east to west. The highest mountain, Nowshak, is 7,485 m and straddles the border with Pakistan.

Culture

Islam is the predominant religion in Afghanistan. A cloak worn by Muhammad is one of the country's Islamic relics. The cloak is kept within the Khalka Sarifa in the city of Kandahar. Hindu and Sikhs have a minority presence, mainly within the cities of Jalalabad, Kabul, and Kandahar. Historically, Buddhism has had a presence within the country. The Buddhas of the Bamyan valley, in the north west of the country, where the largest statues of the Buddha in the world until they were destroyed by the Taliban in the year 2001. Another UNESCO listed world heritage site, the Minaret of Jam is also considered to be in a critical condition. The Minaret dates to the 12th century and is located in the Hari Rud area.