Rebel ties haunt Karzai

KABUL, Afghanistan, June 17 (UPI) -- Democracy observers in Afghanistan complain incumbent President Hamid Karzai is forming a consortium of warlords to run the country.

Afghanistan kicked off its official campaign season this week, with Karzai facing challenges from former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani and 40 other candidates, including two women.

Karzai in May sparked controversy when he chose Mohammad Qasim Fahim, a former rebel leader accused of war crimes, as his running mate for the August election.

In another move, Karzai has extended an invitation to Uzbek militant leader Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, who faces a wide range of charges of abuse and aggressive tactics.

Dostum was relieved of a top military position in 2008 following allegations he had kidnapped and tortured one of his rivals.

Observers described the latest moves by Karzai as an attempt to surround himself with rebel leaders, who may be better at fighting than leading the country, The Daily Telegraph reports.

"With these deals a lot of people have lost confidence in real participatory democracy," said Nader Nadery, the chairman of the Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan.

Afghans head to the polls Aug. 20 for their second-ever election. Karzai, who came to power in the wake of the overthrow of the Taliban regime in 2001, has emerged as the strongest candidate in the field.