Karzai the statesman gives way to pressure over poll runoff

Western leaders rush to praise president after he accepts second vote but backers remain silent on fraud findings
Video no longer available

World leaders rushed to praise Hamid Karzai today after the Afghan president succumbed to intense international pressure and agreed to a second round runoff in Afghanistan's election.

Gordon Brown praised Karzai as "statesmanlike" after the Afghan president accepted the result of a UN-backed fraud investigation which stripped him of almost 1 million votes cast in August, taking away the absolute majority he required to win on a first round.

Speaking at the presidential palace today about the fresh vote scheduled for 7 November, Karzai made no mention of cheating committed for his benefit, saying the "election of the people of Afghanistan has been defamed".

He also said he was agreeing to a runoff because "I prefer the national interests of Afghanistan over my personal interest."

Jon Boone talks about Karzai's decision to accept a runoff Link to this audio

For days Karzai had flirted with a potentially catastrophic plan to reject the findings of the UN-backed Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC), leading to a president lacking a popular mandate and the possibility of civil unrest.

But today he committed himself to an election in less than three weeks after accepting a ruling earlier in the day by the Independent Election Commission (IEC), the Afghan organisation regarded as biased towards Karzai.

He was flanked by Kai Eide, the most senior UN official in the country, and John Kerry, the US senator who has been instrumental in heading the campaign by leading western countries to talk Karzai round.

Kerry made no references to the fraud in August's election which, according to the ECC, resulted in almost one third of Karzai's votes being suspicious, and said: "Today he [Karzai] showed statesmanship by deciding to move forward the country and by embracing the constitution and the rule of law."

Diplomatic sources said Karzai had to be forced into accepting the findings by world leaders threatening to withdraw their support for him if he attempted to ignore the Afghan constitution and challenge the ECC's orders.

In recent days White House officials have made clear that the US would not commit to sending thousands of extra troops to Afghanistan until a "credible partner" emerged from the election.

Barack Obama welcomed Karzai's statement. "This is an important step forward in ensuring a credible process for the Afghan people which results in a government that reflects their will," he said.

Brown acknowledged there had been flaws in the vote, but pointedly praised Karzai's "statesmanlike statement", saying "the international community too will join me in welcoming the leadership he has shown today".

Brown's officials were determined to focus on the expected runoff and insisted they would not become involved in finger pointing over election fraud. They said they expected a lower turnout in the runoff, and said contingency plans had been prepared to try to reduce ballot stuffing and intimidation.

Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, called Karzai "a statesman who can decide on what is essential, in the higher interests of his country and of the unity of the Afghan people".

Shortly before Karzai's press conference, the IEC announced its findings, saying he had received 49.7% of the vote – higher than the analysis accepted by most of Kabul's diplomatic community that the president got around 48%, but still below the 50% required to win the first round.

Despite Karzai's insistence that the runoff would go ahead, there are doubts that it will happen. Winter is closing in and it is unlikely the IEC can be reformed in time, following allegations that many of its officials were complicit in fraud.

The UN maintains that everything is ready, with all the necessary ballot papers, indelible inks and other materials available. But it is feared that the second round could be worse than the first, with high levels of fraud, violence and a lower turnout.

Many diplomats believe the exercise could be avoided if an agreement could be reached between Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, his main rival in the first round. "They both know that the only people who will benefit from a second round are the Taliban and they now have time to come to some sort of agreement," said one western official.

But both Karzai and Kerry denied the rumours of a deal between the two main contenders, including local media reports that 12 cabinet posts had been reserved for Abdullah's supporters.

"There is no place for coalition government in the law," Karzai said, adding that "we need a national unity government and not a coalition government".

He called on a group Pashtun elders, Afghanistan's biggest ethnic group of which he is himself a member, to help him deliver an outright win that would allow him to avoid any political compromises.

Ahmed Wali Massoud, a senior opposition leader, also said a deal was legally problematic because there is "no lawful framework for Abdullah to withdraw. Based on the law, it has to go to a second round. Any sort of a coalition has to be based on a programme, not on who gets what jobs or ministries," he said. "That doesn't work in Afghanistan any more.

Mr Karzai hasn't had a programme for the last five years, which is why his government failed, because it relied on personalities."

Today's best video

Today in pictures