Afghan President Hamid Karzai's strongest rival in October's election, Yunus Qanuni, has announced he is forming a new political party. Qanuni said his party will go under the name of New Afghanistan and will contest April's parliamentary polls. The ethnic Tajik politician said he had turned down a job as defense minister in President Karzai's new cabinet in order to form the opposition grouping.Correspondents say militia leaders have been sidelined in the new cabinet. Among those excluded is Gen Mohammed Fahim, a leader of the powerful, largely-Tajik Panjshiri faction, who was formerly Karzai's defense minister. President Karzai has said he will support Qanuni's new venture as long as it defines itself as a national, rather than an ethnic or regional party. "We need political parties because in [their] absence... politics will become ethnic or linguistic," he said.
| I consider this a wonderful sign. If Afghanistan's really lucky, this is the beginning of a two-party system. And Qanouni seems to be one of the good guys... |