State

State:

•    Executive
•    The Judiciary
•    The Legislature
•    Constitution of the islamic Republic of the Afghanistan
•    National Anthem

 

State:
The modern state of Afghanistan with its current administrative structure dates back to the efforts of King Abdurrahman Khan during the end of the 19th century (1880-1901). Until the middle of the 20th century, Afghanistan was ruled by the absolute power of the king. Two constitutions were promulgated, in 1923 and 1931, both affirming the power of the monarchy. The constitution of 1964, however, provided for a constitutional monarchy, based on the separation of executive, legislative, and judicial authorities.

The present day Constitution, agreed upon by more that 500 delegates from all across the country, was formally ratified by president Hamid Karzai at a ceremony in Kabul on January the 26, 2004. Article six of Chapter one states that

‘The state shall be obligated to create a prosperous and progressive society based on social justice, preservation of human dignity, protection of human rights, realization of democracy, attainment of national unity as well as equality between all peoples and tribes and balance development of all areas of the country.’

Furthermore, Afghanistan is to remain an Islamic Republic, independent, unitary, and indivisible state. Islam is the religion of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Followers of other faiths shall be free within the bounds of law in the exercise and performance of their religious rituals.

The Executive: Afghanistan is a Republic and the current Head of State is H. E. Hamid Karzai. The current Afghan cabinet (Council of Ministers) include the following. President Karzai's first cabinet which obtained the approval of Wolesi Jirga (Lower house) in March 2006, consisted of 25 members and were sworn in by President Karzai on May 2, 2006. President Karzai’s previous cabinet was appointed upon formation of the transitional government in 2002. The transitional cabinet was dissolved after the September 18, 2005 elections.
 

The current Vice Presidents:

- First Vice President: Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim

- Second Vice President: Mohammad Karim Khalili

The Current Ministries and Ministers:
•    Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Dr. Zalmai Rassoul
•    Ministry of National Defense: General Abdul Rahim Wardak
•    Ministry of Interior Affairs: Bismillah Khan Mohammadi
•    Ministry of Finance: Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal
•    Ministry of Economy:
•    Ministry of Justice:
•    Ministry of Culture and Youth Affairs: Sayed Makhdoom Rahin
•    Ministry of Education: Farooq Wardak
•    Ministry of Higher Education: Sarwar Danish (Acting Minister)
•    Ministry of Trade and Industries: Dr. Anwar- ul- Haq Ahadi
•    Ministry of Water & Energy:  Mohammad Ismail Khan (Acting Minister)
•    Ministry of Transport and Aviation: Eng. Nehmatullah Ehsan Jawid (Acting Minister)
•    Ministry of Women Affairs: Mrs. Hosn Bano Ghazanfar (Acting Minister)
•    Ministry of Hajj and Islamic Affairs:
•    Ministry of Public Works: 
•    Ministry of Public Health: Dr. Soraya Dalil
•    Ministry of Agriculture: Mohammad Asef Rahimi
•    Ministry of Mines: Waheedullah Shahrani
•    Ministry of Communication&Information Technology: Eng. Amirzai Sangin(Acting Minister)
•    Ministry of Rural Development: Jarullah Mansouri
•    Ministry of Labour,Social Affairs Martyrs and the Disabled: Amena Afzali 
•    Ministry of Borders & Tribal Affairs: Asadullah Khalid (Acting Minister)
•    Ministry of Urban Development:
•    Ministry of Counter/ Narcotics: Zarar Ahmad Moqbel
•    Ministry of Refugees:

 

The Judiciary:
The Judiciary is to remain an independent organ of the State. It shall be comprised of one Supreme Court, Courts of Appeal as well as Primary Courts whose organization and authority should be regulated by law. The Supreme Court is to be the highest judicial organ, heading the judicial power of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

The Supreme Court shall be comprised of nine members appointed by the President, with the endorsement of the Wolesi Jirga and in observance of the provisions of clause three of Article Fifty as well as Article One Hundred Eighteen of the Constitution.

Three members are to be appointed for a period of four years, three members for a period of seven years and three members for a period of ten years. Appointments made later shall be for a period of ten years. Appointment of members for a second term shall not be permitted.

The President should appoint one of the members as a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Supreme Court members are not to be dismissed until the end of their term except under circumstances stated in article One Hundred Twenty Seven of the Constitution.
Members of the Supreme Court are asked to take the following oath of office in the presence of the President:

"In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful, I swear in the name of God Almighty to attain justice and righteousness in accordance with tenets of the Holy religion of Islam, provisions of this Constitution as well as other laws of Afghanistan, and to execute the judicial duty with utmost honesty, righteousness and impartiality."

The Legislature:
On December 19th 2005, 351 new members of parliament were sworn in as the countries first democratically elected legislature in more than three decades. There were 2707 candidates, including 328 women, who competed for the 249 seats of the Wolesi Jirga or House of the People during the September 18th elections of 2005.

Each province is a constituency and has a varying number of seats, depending on population. Voters had a single non-transferable vote. People voted for candidates in their own province. Each Province has a number of representatives in Parliament, depending on the population. The Largest province by population is Kabul which has 33 seats (390 candidates, 50 female and 340 male).

The Meshrano Jirga or House of the Elders consists of an undetermined amount of members. One-third of the members were appointed by the President, while another third were elected by the provincial councils. Elections for the provincial councils were held simultaneously with those for the Wolesi Jirga. The remaining third were elected by the district councils.

Procedures for a Bill:
Any law has to be approved by both Houses of the National Assembly (NA), Wolesi Jirga as well as the Meshrano Jirga, and endorsed by the President. Proposals for drafting a Bill are made either by the Government or members of the National Assembly, or if related to regulating the judiciary, by the Supreme Court through the Government. A Bill is first submitted to the Wolesi Jirga (the Lower House or House of the People), which has one month to either approve or reject it by two thirds vote. The proposal is then referred to the Meshrano Jirga (the Upper House), which will decide its approval or rejection within fifteen days. If the President is to reject what the National Assembly has approved, he/she is required to send the Bill back to the Lower House within fifteen days outlining the reasons for the rejection. If the House of the People re-approves the Bill with a majority of two thirds then the Bill is considered endorsed and enforceable.

Proposals for drafting the budget and financial affairs law are only to be made by the government.

Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan:
A joint panel of Afghan and international scholars prepared the Draft Constitution, and it was then presented to the constitutional Loya Jirga in 2003. The Loya Jriga was Comprised of representatives of different groups such as tribal leaders, civil society, religious minorities, the Muslim clergy, Afghan intellectuals, leaders of political parties, Afghan refugees, women, disabled people so one. The Loya Jirga discussed the Draft Constitution over a three-week period and adopted the final Draft, which was different from the early draft on a number of points, paved the way for the subsequent presidential and parliamentary election.

The Constitution was adopted and came in force on the 3rd of January 2004.

The Constitution can be download from here.

National Anthem:
Afghanistan's new national anthem which was first played in Kabul on 14th May 2006. It was approved by a 40-member council chosen from diverse Afghan cultural backgrounds.

National Anthem Lyrics:

So long as there is the earth and the sky,
So long as the world endures;
So long as there is life in the world,
So long as a single Afghan breathes,
There will be this Afghanistan.
Whether we are Hazara or Baluch,
Pashai or Nuristani,
Uzbek or Turkmen,
Pashtun or Tajik,
Whatever ethnicity we are from,
We are all Afghans.
And children of one homeland.
Our chant is freedom,
peace and reconstruction,
development, and progress toward success.
This is our sacred call –
God is Great!
God is Great!
The National Anthem can be dowloaded from here.