National Assembly candidate Mohammad Ashraf Ramazan was shot dead in Mazar-e Sharif on 27 September. Taliban guerrillas claimed responsibility, but the protesters blame the local administration.
Supporters of Ramazan, who belonged to the minority Shi'a Wahdat party, staged a peaceful protest yesterday before deciding to block the highway that runs through Mazar-e Sharif and links it to other northern cities.
About 2,000 vehicles and passenger buses were unable to use the road, witnesses and officials said.
Protests Against Killing of Hazara Candidate Spread To Kabul
Protests against the killing of Mohammad Ashraf Ramazan -- one of northern Afghanistan's key ethnic Hazara parliamentary candidates -- spread to the capital Kabul today.
Reports from Kabul say up to 4,000 people marched in Kabul today -- most of them ethnic Hazaras.
At least 1,000 others demonstrated for a second day today in Mazar-i-Sharif, blocking a highway through the northern city. Ramazan was killed in a drive-by shooting last Tuesday in Mazar-i-Sharif -- capital of Balkh province.
Protesters in both cities are demanding the resignation of Balkh's Governor Atta Mohammed. They accusse the governor of plotting the attack against Ramazan, who belonged to a minority Shi'ite Muslim faction called Hezb-i-Wahdat.
(RFE/RL Afghan service/ Agencies)
index page