June 9, 2002	Sunday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 27,1423

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NEW YORK, June 8: The UN security council on Friday urged the Afghan tribal council - the Loya Jirga - to build democratic institutions when it meets in Kabul next week.

The 1,500 Afghan tribal representatives that form the Loya Jirga will hold their first meeting on Monday to decide on the future of Afghanistan, including appointing a provisional government leader, writing the constitution and organizing national elections.

The 15-nation council met to discuss the important development in Afghanistan and issued a statement to support the convening of the emergency Loya Jirga.

The council urged the “Afghan people and their leaders across the country to work together, within the framework of the Bonn agreement to build democratic institutions and to prepare in due course for national elections”. The Bonn agreement was signed last December by Afghan representatives to outline a future democratic government in Afghanistan after 23 years of civil war.

The Loya Jirga will meet under the heavy security of the international force, the Afghan National Guard and the US-led coalition forces.

Despite efforts to select true representatives for the Loya Jirga, organizers for the tribal council said there was no way they can keep ruthless Afghan warlords from taking part in it.

In Kabul, Ahmad Nadery, a member of a special commission for the convening of the Loya Jirga, said on Friday some of warlords were known for their crimes.

“If we had a proper court system like in the West then it would be easy to go in, check the records and find out that a person has been convicted,” Nadery said. “Here, everyone knows who committed these crimes but there’s no national or international human rights court that would allow us to proceed against those people.”—dpa