On Saturday the spread of democracy continued as Afganistan held it's first election in decades. The vote was initially at risk due to problems with ink that was supposed to indicate that a person had already voted. Reports stated that the ink could be washed off which may have led to repeat voting.
Today though many of the candidates that were planning to boycott the election have backed down and agreed to allow a UN monitoring body to investigate. For those unfamiliar with Afganistan's recent history this in and of itself is a very promising developement. The candidates have submitted their authority to the popular will instead of to guns and intimidation.
So what does the future hold for Afganistan? Lord knows. But for a country that has been so traumatized over the last 30 years it seems that they have embraced the idea of democratic representation. Afganistan is, a probably will be for a very long time, a nomadic and tribal society. But five years ago no one would have been able to predict that an election would be held in Afganistan this weekend. And no one would have predicted that it would occur with as little violence and intimidation as has been reported.
So congratulations to all Afgani's. Your children and your grand-children will surely thank you for what you have done this weekend.
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