olitical parties and leaders: main party--Hizbi Watan Homeland
Party (formerly known as the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan
or PDPA); there are other, much smaller political parties recognized by
the government

_#_Suffrage: universal, male ages 15-50

_#_Elections:

Senate--last held NA April 1988 (next to be held April 1991);
results--Hizbi Watan was the only party;
seats--(192 total, 128 elected) Hizbi Watan 128;

House of Representatives--last held NA April 1988 (next to be held
April 1993);
results--Hizbi Watan was the only party;
seats--(234 total) Hizbi Watan 184, opposition 50;
note--members may or may not be affiliated with a political party

_#_Communists: Hizbi Watan Homeland Party (formerly the People's
Democratic Party of Afghanistan or PDPA) claims 200,000 members and no
longer considers itself a Communist party

_#_Other political or pressure groups: the military and other branches
of internal security have been rebuilt by the USSR; insurgency continues
throughout the country; widespread antiregime sentiment and opposition on
religious and political grounds

_#_Member of: AsDB, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, IOC, ITU,
LORCS, NAM, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO;
note--Afghanistan was suspended from the OIC in January 1980, but in
March 1989 the self-proclaimed Mujaheddin Government of Afghanistan
was given membership

_#_Diplomatic representation: Minister-Counselor, Charge d'Affaires
Abdul Ghafur JOUSHAN; Chancery at 2341 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington
DC 20008;
telephone (202) 234-3770 or 3771;

US--Charge d'Affaires (vacant); Embassy at Ansari Wat, Wazir
Akbar Khan Mina, Kabul; telephone 62230 through 62235 or 62436;
note--US Embassy in Kabul was closed in January 1989

_#_Flag: three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green
with the national coat of arms superimposed on the hoist side of the
black and red bands; similar to the flag of Malawi which is shorter and
bears a radiant, rising red sun centered in the black band

_*_Economy
_#_Overview: Fundamentally, Afghanistan is an extremely poor,
landlocked country, highly dependent on farming (wheat especially) and
livestock raising (sheep and goats). Economic considerations, however,
have played second fiddle to political and military upheavals, including
the nine-year Soviet military occupation (ended 15 February 1989) and th