According to AFP, election officials said Sunday that about a quarter of the seats on the 249-seat parliament were reserved for women in this election, as were at least two seats on each of the 34 provincial councils. Meanwhile, around 10 percent of the 5,800 candidates nationwide are women.
Election officials also noted that women made up around 44 percent of registered voters within the nation, compared to 41 percent in the last vote.
"I was afraid to come," 38-year-old Lailoma told AFP. "The rebels said they will attack those who take part in the election. They threatened to kill me. But I will sacrifice my life for the reconstruction of Afghanistan."
Female electorate Khadija also stressed the importance of the time, telling AFP, "It is time that Afghans wake up and start respecting their rights through these democratic elections."
"In my time we were asleep," she said. "This is a great opportunity for the next generation."
AFP reported that despite of threats from Taliban insurgents, early estimates showed a turnout of just over 50 percent, out of the 12.5 million registered voters.
Peter Erben, the chief international election officer with the U.N.-assisted Joint Elections Management Board said that the turnout figure compared well with other post-war countries, though it was over 20 percent less than the October 2004 presidential poll won by Hamid Karzai, AFP reported.
"It's a day of self-determination for the Afghan people," Karzai said, according to the New York Times. "After 30 years of wars, interventions, occupation and misery, today Afghanistan is moving forward, making an economy, making political institutions."
In Operation World, the definitive global mission prayer guide, Christians are urged to pray for peace and reconstruction of Afghanistan, as well as an awakening to moderation and tolerance and a realisation that only the Good News of Jesus can provide the solutions to heal the land.
Currently, Christian leaders are also urging for believers to pray for the Afghanistan government, which says the counting of ballots will begin on Tuesday, with final results due in late October.
Eunice Or
Christian Today Correspondent
