William Crosbie offered to quit after WikiLeaks release
A WikiLeaks cable released Thursday shows Canada’s ambassador to Afghanistan told his U.S. counterpart last February that the level of corruption in Hamid Karzai’s government made his “blood boil.” The document also quoted Ambassador William Crosbie as having said “getting the electoral process right is a bottom-line position for Canada,” and “we risk losing credibility among our own population if we go along with a rigged election.” Crosbie reportedly offered to quit over the leak, which is embarrassing for the Karzai government, but Prime Minister Stephen Harper defended Crosby. Harper told reporters Friday that Canada is already known to be “outspoken in its concerns about some aspects of governance in Afghanistan.” The Sept. 18 election was marked by bloodshed, intimidation and ballot-stuffing by many parties, include Karzai supporters and the election commission only just certified the results on Wednesday. The U.S. and E.U. both said Wednesday that despite evidence of fraud, they are pleased to see the results certified.