Millions of Afghans vote, defy Taliban threats
(Reuters)
Updated: 2005-09-19 06:50

But the U.N.-Afghan election commission said voting in the first legislative elections since 1969 had been remarkably peaceful and the government hailed a victory over the insurgents.

"It went very well, beyond our expectations. After all their boasting, it's a big failure for the Taliban," said Interior Ministry spokesman Lutfullah Mashal.

Voting was held at over 6,000 polling sites from the deserts of the south to the towering Hindu Kush mountains of the northeast, one of the most difficult logistical operations ever undertaken by international electoral workers.

About 12.5 million Afghans registered to vote for a lower house of parliament and provincial councils for which about 5,800 candidates sought seats. Donkeys and camels transported voting materials to some remote districts.

Chief electoral officer Peter Erben described it as a "peaceful and good election" free of significant security incidents and said he believed turnout had been high, although election observers said it appeared fewer had voted than in last year's presidential election, which saw a 70 percent turnout.

A huge security operation was mounted to protect voters, involving 100,000 troops, about 20,000 from a U.S.-led force and 10,000 NATO-led peacekeepers, after more than 1,000 people died in violence in the months ahead of the election

The deaths included seven candidates and six poll workers.

"SO HAPPY, SO HAPPY"

The $159 million polls were part of an international plan to restore democracy after U.S.-led forces overthrew the Taliban in 2001 and followed October presidential polls won by Karzai.

In the 249-seat national assembly, 68 seats are reserved for women and election officials said there appeared to have been a high turnout of women in some conservative areas where their participation had been in doubt.

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