QUETTA, Sept 28: Abdul Jabbar Naeemi, the chief of Afghan President Hamid Karzai's election campaign here, said on Tuesday that Taliban's threats would not affect voter registration in Pakistan.

Speaking at a press conference with Afghan tribal elders, he said that despite the threats more Afghans had registered for the election in their country than the government had expected.

He said all steps were being taken for holding the election in a free, fair and transparent manner in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran. He said Afghans were fed up of civil war and foreign aggression and they wanted peace and development in their country.

Replying to a question, he said every Afghan had the right to live in Afghanistan and the Kabul government would welcome the return of refugees to their country.

He said three days were not enough for registration of Afghans in Balochistan, the NWFP and Islamabad. He asked the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to extend the registration in Balochistan for two days due to the scattered population of the refugees.

The IOM will launch from Oct 1 a three-day voters registration campaign in Balochistan for Afghan refugees. "We are establishing 557 registration and polling centres in the province for the election on Oct 9," IOM Director Richard Atwood said at a news conference on Tuesday. He said all possible steps would be taken to ensure the security of those who went to the centers for registration and voting.

He said the Balochistan government would make the security arrangements at the registration and polling centres. International and the Afghan observers would be invited for the polling, he said.

"The ballot boxes will be sent to Kabul for counting," he said. He thanked the government for allowing schools to be used as polling stations. He said 398 centres would be established in the provincial capital, 116 in refugee camps in Mastung, Loralai and Pishin districts and 43 in Chagai. "Half of the registration and polling centres will be for women," he said.

He said 118 teams of community mobilizers had been formed in the province to train voters and polling staff. He said 3,800 registration and polling personnel were being hired in coordination with the Afghan Teachers' Association and elders.