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Ex-King Exits Afghan Leadership Run
Tuesday, June 11, 2002
By Carol J. Williams
Los Angeles Times

But as the 1,500-plus loya jirga delegates from throughout Afghanistan began arriving here late last week, it became apparent that many had been urged by their constituents to vote for Zaher Shah rather than Karzai.

KABUL, Afghanistan -- LAT
Former king Mohammad Zaher Shah announced Monday that he wants neither to restore the monarchy nor be elected head of state, apparently pressured by President Bush's envoy to bow out of the volatile loya jirga political process that will choose Afghanistan's next leader.

The move by U.S. and other Western emissaries to delay the long-awaited grand assembly drew rebukes from democratic watchdogs and the king's supporters as clumsy interference in Afghan affairs and a hindrance to national reconciliation.

Although the swelling ranks of loya jirga delegates were eager to debate how best to rule and rebuild their war-battered country, the convocation was twice delayed at the suggestion of the foreign observers. Bush's envoy, Afghan-born academic Zalmay Khalilzad, said the delays were called after "confusion" arose about the king's role in the transitional government that will be chosen by the weeklong assembly.

"We have an interest in what happens in Afghanistan. We want this process to succeed," Khalilzad said, confirming that he had spent hours meeting with Zaher Shah late Sunday and Monday in search of "clarity" about his political ambitions.
(More: The Daily Camera News Source)
2002 © Los Angeles Times.

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