First Afghan opposition party important: Karzai
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-04-02 14:43

Afghan President Hamid Karzai welcomed the formation of Afghanistan's first opposition party by his main opponent in last year's presidential vote as an important democratic step for the country.

"Hamid Karzai, President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, welcomes the creation of the Afghanistan National Coordination Front as the opposition to the government of Afghanistan," said a presidential statement on Friday.

"The president appreciates this initiative which aims to establish an opposition to the government, within the democratic political framework in Afghanistan, and considers it as an important step towards strengthening democracy and the rule of law in Afghanistan," the statement said.

Yunus Qanooni, the chief rival to Karzai during last year's presidential vote, said Thursday that he had formed the war-shattered country first opposition coalition.

Qanooni, who finished second to Karzai in last October's race with 16 per cent of the vote, said he had joined forces with several little-known political parties ahead of Afghanistan's parliamentary elections on September 18.

"The president believes that, in the same way that a parliament and the principle of peoples representation in the state are vital elements of a democratic system, an opposition committed to reform and the true application of law is also a crucial part of such a system," Karzai's statement said.

"As is common in other democracies in the world, the government and the opposition can have differences in views and policies, but are united in defending and promoting national interests which are above political interests," the statement said.

"The president wishes Mr. Yunus Qanooni and his colleagues at the Afghanistan National Coordination Front all the success, and hopes that the Front will play its historical role in strengthening and deepening democracy in Afghanistan by adopting policies that are positive, constructive and leading to reform," it said.

Qanooni on Thursday accused Karzai's administration of postponing the parliamentary vote, originally scheduled for June 2004, to serve its own political ends.

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