It's hardly your standard election pitch. "I have not been involved in the killing of innocent people," Abdulrab Rasul Sayaf tells Afghan voters in Kabul's Paghman district. "I have not committed human-rights abuses. I have not smuggled cultural artifacts. I have not smuggled narcotics. I have not been involved in the looting of public property. I have no links to terrorist organizations."

By reciting this mantra, Sayaf, a radical Islamist warlord who at one time or another has been accused of doing practically all of the above, today announced his candidacy for the Loya Jirga, Afghanistan's traditional council of tribal elders. Sitting in an undersized school desk, with FIRST GRADE scrawled across the side in pink crayon, Sayaf, sporting a large white beard and white turban, joined 74 other representatives from Paghman district in an auditorium at Kabul's Zarghooni school for the final phase of the Loya Jirga elections that are being held around the country.

The week-long Loya Jirga, set to begin on Monday, is a grand assembly named for the traditional political gatherings that began back in the 1720s. [EDITOR'S NOTE: The Loya Jirga's opening was delayed until Tuesday afternoon after a controversy over reports that Afghanistan's former king, Zahir Shah, would be a candidate for head of state. The former ruler said Monday he was not a candidate for any post.] The upcoming meeting is the culmination of the political agreement on Afghanistan hammered out in Bonn, Germany, last November. Its role will include establishing a transitional government to succeed the interim administration now led by Hamid Karzai. The meeting will also set the guidelines for governing Afghanistan until proper elections can be held. Not surprisingly, Afghans and foreign donors are anxiously awaiting the outcome of what undoubtedly is a significant political landmark.

That's not to say that the Loya Jirga election process has been flawless. It hasn't. There are widespread reports of bribery, intimidation, assault and even the murder of up to 10 potential candidates and Loya Jirga officials. But, difficult as it may be to admit, it could have been far worse. "Afghanistan is a rough place so this is a rough process," says one Western diplomat. "But so much more could have gone wrong."

What may poison the process is the lack of enforcement of clauses within the Loya Jirga blueprint which are meant to exclude notorious warlords like Sayaf. At the election today, Sayaf tried to clear his background by dismissing charges of past human-rights violations as "baseless accusations." "Those who didn't take care of human rights are well known to the Afghan country, and they will decide," he says in slightly accented English. While some may have walked away from Sayaf skeptically, the electors from Paghman district trusted him enough to vote him in as the top Loya Jirga participant from their district with 21 votes. His supporters celebrated with hearty rounds of "Allah u Akbar" [God is great].

Sayaf is not the only warlord trying to become a politician in the lead-up to the Loya Jirga. Perhaps the most dramatic turnaround has been ethnic-Uzbek warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum. Politician Dostum now favors suave business suits, sports a clean-shaven face and gives speeches on the virtues of democracy and equal representation. "It's a sensitive issue," says Rina Amiri, 33, an international monitor for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and a recent returnee from the United States. "Wouldn't it be much more destructive if they [warlords] are left out of the process?"

Then there's former King Zahir Shah. "The king is here as a private citizen, but if he's secretly convinced that the people want him to be king, he could become king again through the Loya Jirga," says a U.S. official. "That's a dangerous scenario."

While the king has a great deal of support from the Pashtuns--the country's dominant ethnic group--many of the others, particularly the Tajiks, view him as an unacceptable alternative. The most likely scenario is that the interim leader, Hamid Karzai, will retain power. And, to appease the Pashtuns, who are dissatisfied with the Tajik-dominated government, there will likely be a reshuffling of Panjshiri leaders at the key ministries--Defense, Foreign and Interior.

Finding an ethnic balance for the future government will be a key component of the Loya Jirga, as will the inclusion of a much-neglected group: women. Humaira Nehmaty, 38, a professor of law at Mazar-e Sharif University and a member of the Loya Jirga commission, describes the regime of the Taliban as an unimaginably dark period. She was forced to go into hiding after organizing a rally for women's rights in Mazar-e Sharif and spent the last three years moving frequently to avoid capture. The stress from her fugitive life caused three miscarriages. "As a woman and a mother I can't describe the feeling of being allowed to participate in the affairs of our country," she says. "It's a victory that I feel in my bones."

Sitting in a cluttered tent at the offices of the Loya Jirga commission is perhaps the greatest sign of progress for women's' rights--a group of men from Herat province who have accompanied female candidates to the Loya Jirga elections. "Women should be seen as human beings," says Mohammed Asem Mohseni, 48. "We decided that one person from our family should stand as a candidate for the Loya Jirga and we chose my wife."

Seated on a cushion further inside the tent, Sultan Ahmad Nawar, 49, was accompanying his daughter Mahmoonir, 22. "My daughter has been chosen to participate in this important event, but this is Afghanistan. It's not proper to let women travel alone."

As the Loya Jirga participants get briefings over the next couple of days, other groups, such as residual forces of the Taliban, Al Qaeda or former warlords, may be having more sinister briefings. Gen. John McColl, commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) admits that there has been specific intelligence about potential car bombs, suicide attacks and other terrorist acts which could derail the process. But preparations have been made. "Security is as effective as can be," McColl says.

Under the current arrangement, the tightest level of security starts at the massive Loya Jirga tent, where no weapons will be allowed among the 1,450 participants. Within the larger compound, only Karzai, former monarch Zahir Shah and five deputies, including Defense Minister Mohammed Fahim and Planning Minister Haji Mohammed Mohaqiq, will be allowed to bring in bodyguards. The perimeter of the compound will be manned by the First Battalion of the Afghan National Guard along with ISAF, the outer limits of the city will be patrolled by American armed forces. With these heavy security measures, a country that has been torn apart by violence may finally see weapons used to secure peace.