Loya jirga (2003)

On December 14, 2003, a 502-delegate loya jirga convened beneath a large tent on the grounds of a Soviet-built university in Kabul, Afghanistan to consider the Proposed Afghan Constitution. 114 of the delegates were women. Former Afghan King Mohammad Zaher Shah addressed the assembly after a dozen children in diverse ethnic outfits, waved Afghan flags, and sang songs of peace, which included verses such as "We are doves, waiting for peace, we are tired of fighting."

A simple majority is needed to pass the constitution.

By a majority vote of 252, Sabghatullah Mujadidi was elected the chairman. The voting produced outrage from many of the female delegates. However, Mujaddedi selected Safia Sediqi for the fourth deputy position, and he named two other women as deputy's assistants. Before the Mujadidi, Hafiz Mansour garnished 154 votes for the position of chair.

Delegates from the Tajik-dominated Northern Alliance quickly emerged as interim President Hamid Karzai's main rival. Claiming the support of 241 delegates, they spoke in favor of a parliamentary system and against a strong presidency. They also demanded that 50 delegates picked by Karzai be denied voting rights; however Mujadidi rejected the idea.

Karzai supported a constitution draft outlining a strong president and stated that he would not run for the office in 2004 if the draft was not approved. Members of the Northern Alliance accused Karzai of buying off opponents with promises of influential positions in a post-election government.

Other issues that were debated included whether Dari or Pashto should be the official language, whether former king Mohammed Zahir Shah should maintain the title "father of the nation," whether Afghanistan should be a free market economy, and whether higher education should be free.