June 7, 2002	Friday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 25,1423

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LANDI KOTAL, June 6: Babrak Shinwari, a former Khalq party leader, left for Kabul on Wednesday to attend Loya Jirga starting on June 10.

Babrak Shinwari was elected member of Loya Jirga by a council of elders from Nazyan Shinwari area of Nangrahar province.

He is also one of the founding members of Afghanistan-Pakistan People Friendship Society.

While talking to Dawn before his departure, Shinwari expressed his optimism that peace would be restored in Afghanistan after the formation of a national government by the Loya Jirga.

He was also supportive of the method adopted for the nomination of members for Loya Jirga and said that it was both democratic and according to the Afghan traditions.

Babrak Shinwari was head of youth affairs in the first PDPA government of Noor Mohammad Taraki and was later made deputy minister for tribal affairs.

Being a Khalqi, he was imprisoned by Babrak Karmal in December 1979, when Russian forces entered Kabul.

He remained in the infamous Pule Charkhi jail for 10 years when he was released by Dr Najibullah in 1989.

Shinwari migrated to Peshawar in the winter of 1992 when Sibghatullah Mujadidi was in power in Kabul.

He kept a very low profile as most of his party colleagues were either killed by rival factions or fled to Europe and the United States.

He went to Afghanistan some four months back, shuttled between Kabul and Jalalabad to muster support for his election to the Loya Jirga.

Shinwari brushed aside allegations that Pakhtoons were not given fair representation on the grand traditional council.

He clarified that elections to the jirga were held under the auspices of UN and he believed that 90 per cent delegates were elected in a fair and transparent manner.

Shinwari said that he did not foresee any role for the former king in the future set up of Afghanistan.