Reform may be tough order for Afghanistan’s president
Corruption is not limited to the elite, officials warn

By The Associated Press Comments 0
Published: November 4, 2009

KABUL — President Hamid Karzai promised to stamp out corruption. The image suggested otherwise. Standing at Karzai’s side on Tuesday were his two vice presidents — both former warlords widely believed to have looted Afghanistan for years.

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Reform is a tall order in a country awash in drug money. Afghans pay bribes for everything from driver’s licenses to police protection, and the elite all too often treat state property as their own.

International pressure is mounting on Karzai to make clean government a top priority as he begins his second term after an election marred by fraud. President Barack Obama wants solid steps, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Tuesday.

In Kabul, Karzai said, "We will do our best through all possible means to eliminate this dark stain from our clothes.”

Karzai said corruption could not be erased simply by replacing certain officials. Instead, "we need to review the law, where we have problems,” he said.

The president also promised to strengthen a government commission established a year ago to fight corruption.

"We ought to be skeptical about promises from Karzai with respect to corruption,” said Mark Moyar, professor of national security affairs at U.S. Marine Corps University in Quantico, Va.

"He has promised to stamp out corruption on many previous occasions, in response to pressure from Afghanistan’s foreign patrons, and has consistently failed to deliver.”

A March report from U.S. Agency for International Development officials found that corruption had reached "an unprecedented scope in the country’s history.”