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Afghan Election - A Lesson In Democracy

If history tells us anything, democracy is a process. Case in point, the first ever elections held in Afghanistan last year which got off to a bumpy start with allegations of corruption and vote tampering. Afghan officials have committed to resolve these matters, but no resolutions have been reached yet.

The controversy revolved around the ink used to dye voters` thumbnails, a protection against multiple voting. Many Afghan voters claim that the ink was easy to erase, and by midday Saturday, 15 candidates declared the election invalid because of allegedly rampant multiple voting.

It was also reported that several candidates seemed to have to withdrawn from the race after a series of meetings of US ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad and nominees, and a promise of an independent inquiry. Now all eyes are back on the vote counting, a process that could take two to three weeks to complete.