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UN: Karzai's using govt. to swing Afghan election
The United Nations said there is growing evidence that Hamid Karzai's government is abusing state resources to help him win this month's presidential election in Afghanistan.
An election report released said monitors had received increasing reports officials were biased and were using their resources to campaign for Karzai.
Rival candidates were being denied access to national state television and government cars or lorries were being used to ship people to rallies.
The report, by the UN mission to Afghanistan and the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, said: "These reported breaches of impartiality tended to be in favor of presidential candidate Karzai."
The recent replacement of three key police chiefs with supporters of Karzai "gave a cumulative impression that they were politically motivated", it added.
The report said the Karzai government had done little to stop the abuses and they were threatening his rivals' ability to run for office.