Afghan President Karzai Promises 'Accountability'

Afghan President Hamid Karzai presented his cabinet nominations to the Afghani parliament on Saturday, where all nominees must receive votes of confidence.

Facing rising pressure from western nations who are pouring thousands of troops and money into the fractured country, President Hamid Karzai presented his nominations saying, "I can assure that all the newly introduced ministers, and those who have been with me in the past, will be held accountable on any issue related to corruption." The nominations are the first test for President Karzai's new administration, potentially revealing the level of seriousness President Karzai intends to pursue the corruption prevalent throughout all levels of Afghani government. "And I will be accountable before the nation of Afghanistan for preventing it (corruption) and for solving this problem", President Karzai told reporters at a press conference Sunday in Kabul. Despite his pledges for accountability, President Karzai elected to retain 11 ministers from his previous term, all of whom are well respected by the international community. One women was nominated, Husn Banu Ghazanfar for the position of minister of women's affairs. The nominations have drawn praise from NATO, but criticism from legislators who accuse President Karzai of failing to reform his cabinet. Two warlords, Mohammad Qasim Fahim and Abdul Rashid Dostum were nominated for positions, both have been implicated in numerous crimes and accusations of rights abuses. Mohammad Fahim and Abdul Dostum were rewarded for their early support of President Karzai during the election process. The two warlords lead small ethnic minorities in a nation already fractured by civil war. The situation in Afghanistan have become increasingly dire with news of resurgent Taliban and President Obama's decision to send 30,000 troops in hopes of quickly ending the violence. A regional diplomat told the Himalayan Times, "Karzai's government would not last 24 hours without the presence of international troops".