Photo Credit: 
Elizabeth Dalziel
 
Photo Caption: 
Men look out from a restaurant decorated with posters of Interim President Hamid Karzai as voting day approaches in Kandahar city, southern Afghanistan Thursday Oct. 7, 2004. Afghanistan's first direct presidential ballot Saturday will be a historic experiment with democracy after more than two decades of ruin, from Soviet occupation to civil war to the repressive Taliban and the thunderous U.S. bombing campaign that ended their rule.
 
Photographer's Notes:
“As life becomes uncertain and many Afghans are fearful of what their daily life might become with a return of the Taliban, I wanted to share this scene in the streets of Kandahar -- a slice of life moment, ahead of the Presidential elections in 2004 when business was bustling, women were gaining more freedom, and music was playing in a restaurant where punters talked politics.”