DEMOCRACY IN THE BALANCE: Afghan warlords find limits to power

Despite Karzai's declaration, the warlords are among the most powerful forces in the country. Scores of them are as entrenched as ever in the provinces, fielding private armies, profiting from the opium trade and co-opting police officials. Those who have come to Kabul know they could easily reconstitute their militias. In the meantime, they are untouchable. The United Nations Development Program, which runs a project designed to rid the country of warlords and illegal militias, says at least 500 members of Karzai's government are directly linked to illegal armed groups. That number does not include Cabinet ministers, governors or members of parliament. Warlords are so entrenched at those levels that the U.N. program dares not target them."We are not now addressing the level of governors and ministers and above — in other words, none of the big guys," said Ariane Quentier, a strategic advisor for the U.N. program. "That would be political suicide at the moment."