2004 Winter National
Meeting: The New Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Remarks by Ambassador Said T. Jawad
National Republican Senatorial Committee: Senate Leadership
Network
03/09/2004
Mrs. Laura Bush,
Madame Secretary,
Honorable Senators,
Members of Senate Leadership Network,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Two years ago, along a dusty road in Kunduz, in
the north of Afghanistan, a young man managed to catch the attention
of President Hamid Karzai by throwing a bouquet of flowers at
his car. When the president glanced his way, the young man pointed
to the pitted road at his feet, and shouted, “Fix the
road!” That plea symbolized then – and now- the
desire of our nation to rebuild its infrastructure and national
institutions, as it picks itself up from war and destruction.
We are grateful to the United States’ Government
in first freeing our country from terror and tyranny, and then
responding to the plea of our people for reconstruction. The
close cooperation and enduring partnership between our two nations,
coupled with US economic and security assistance in the amount
of $3.7 billion dollars in the past 2 years, enabled us to start
rebuilding our infrastructures and democratic institutions.
While our common interest in defeating terrorism and strengthening
peace and security forms the bedrock of our partnership, our
plans to rebuild Afghanistan with a democratic state that guarantees
the safety and security of its citizens, protects human rights,
and establishes the rule of the law lies at the forefront of
our shared objectives.
We are grateful to the United States Congress
for its solid support. The Afghanistan Freedom Support Act passed
by Congress clearly demonstrates that Congress’ commitment
goes far beyond achieving a military victory on the battlefield.
It proves US long-term commitment and partnership with the Afghan
people. We are honored to see that on our way to recovery, we
have great friends at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue.
We have taken many bold steps toward achieving
our shared objectives. Today, hope, peace, education, and democracy
are replacing despair, destruction, and tyranny in Afghanistan.
Tangible results of reconstruction and infrastructure building
are visible throughout the country. More than 2.5 million refugees
have now returned to their homes. Urban centers are flourishing
and roads are being rebuilt. In December, we inaugurated the
first part of our national ring road. The highway from Kabul
to Kandahar was completed ahead of schedule, and in record time
thanks to the personal commitment of President Bush. Almost
4.5 million children, about 42 percent of whom are girls, are
now going to school. Economic growth rate reached 30%, last
year, according to the World Bank. A new currency, which is
performing exceptionally well, has been launched, and new banking
and investment laws have been adopted.
On January 4, 2004, President Karzai signed our
new constitution into law. Five hundred and two Afghan delegates
from all walks of life and every province and community adopted
with unanimous acclamation the most progressive constitution
in our region. A constitution that is visionary and balanced,
and guarantees equal rights and full participation of women
in rebuilding Afghanistan. The new constitution provides for
a unitary system to reconstitute the national institutions destroyed
by war, but also institutionalizes district and provincial level
councils to allow provinces to run their local affairs.
The new constitution balances a powerful presidency and a two-chamber
national assembly with extensive powers of inquiry. The President
is elected for 5 years by direct vote. The Parliament can impeach
him. He can not dissolve the Parliament.
Furthermore, the new charter is a careful combination of respect
for moderate and traditional values of the Afghan society and
adherence to the international norms of human rights and democracy.
It appreciates our rich cultural, ethnic and lingual diversity.
For the first time in Afghanistan and the region, the state
recognizes all major languages as official in areas where a
majority speaks such languages. The Constitution includes specific
provisions requiring the state to promote market economy, as
an engine of democracy, and encourages and protects investments,
private enterprises, and intellectual property rights.
Most significantly, our new Constitution reveals that our Islamic
and traditional values are fully compatible, and mutually reinforcing
with an open democracy. The Constitution obligates the State
to abide by the UN charter and international treaties and conventions.
To insure that 25% of the members of lower house of the parliament
are women, the Constitution requires that 2 female delegates
be elected from each of the 32 provinces of the country. The
President appoints 1/3 of the senators, 50% of which appointment
must be women. For the first time, Afghan citizens are empowered
with unlimited right to access information from the Government.
The State is obligated to prevent all types of terrorist activities
and the trade and trafficking of narcotics and intoxicants.
The new Constitution proves that the investment made by the
U.S. Government and the international community to help us build
our national and democratic institutions, has already yielded
very impressive results. The people of Afghanistan, with the
partnership of the international community, turned a neglected
country overrun by the Taliban and Al Qaeda, into what President
Hamid Karzai called “a center for the cooperation of civilizations.”
Afghanistan is emerging as a model. Afghanistan’s successful
advance on the path to democracy and state building will inevitably
impact upon the expectations and the aspirations of people in
other arenas of the global war against terror and tyranny.
The next milestone for the Afghan people is setting
the stage for the first free and fair national elections under
the new Constitution. The elections are scheduled for this summer.
We insist on holding the Presidential elections on time as scheduled,
but we will not compromise the legitimacy, credibility and integrity
of process. We are asking our international partners to help
the United Nations speed up the voters’ registration to
ensure the credibility of the election process. It is crucial
for us that the process gives all Afghan the opportunity to
exercise their constitutional rights to vote in the first national
elections they have waited for so long. So far, 1.2 million
out of 10.5 million eligible voters are registered. We are about
to drastically increase the number of registration posts from
8 to 4000 throughout the country.
We are realistic about our challenges. We face
the general challenge of building a State and providing for
good governance, after a complete destruction of all national
institutions and a severe shortage of resources and human capital.
To overcome these challenges we must reform, strengthen and
rebuild our government institutions to make them accountable,
capable, and more representative. We must also improve local
and district level governance, and enhance government capacity
to deliver services to every corner of the country, especially
areas prone to terrorist infiltration. All Afghans have not
yet benefited from the peace dividends. We must eliminate corruption,
nepotism and abuse of power that undermine our recovery process.
We continue to confront security challenges posed
by the terrorists and other elements. To overcome security challenges
we are working to expedite the process of building our national
army and professional police force, and implementing the demobilization,
disarmament and reintegration of former combatants. We have
asked our international partners to enhance security in the
provinces by expediting the deployment and presence of the International
Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and/or Provincial Reconstructing
Teams (PRT’s). We welcomed the NATO and United Nation's
decision to expand the ISAF outside of Kabul, as well as increasing
the number of PTR’s from 9 to 15 before the election.
Narcotics pose a serious challenge for all of
us. Cultivation and trafficking of narcotics go hand in hand
with terrorism and warlordism. It is to our best national interest
to fight them all. President Karzai is committed to mobilize
all our resources in the fight against narcotics. We know heroin,
which sells on the retail market for one hundred times the farm
gate price in Afghanistan, is one of the sources of the illegal
money that funds international terrorism and crime across the
region. It also finances the destabilizing activities of warlords
and criminals in Afghanistan. Comprehensive and coordinated
efforts are needed to mobilize all available assets to break
this vicious cycle. The Government of Afghanistan has adopted
a National Drug Strategy to reduce drastically poppy cultivation,
encourage alternative income streams, destroy drug labs, increase
law enforcement, train specialized national police units, and
develop the justice sector to facilitate the proper prosecution
and sentencing of traffickers.
While security is a precondition for reconstruction,
stability cannot be sustained without robust economic growth.
We are prepared to present at the upcoming donors’ conference
in Berlin at the end of March, a detailed plan on how to secure
Afghanistan’s future. Securing Afghanistan will require
pledges from donor nations in the total amount of $4.5 billion
per year as part of a commitment spread out over several years.
A moderate investment commitment of $1 billion
per year is needed for development of human capital to create
a literate nation and provide social protection including social
and personal security and access to basic health services. Investments
of $2.1 billion per year are required to provide the necessary
infrastructure for transportation, communications, mining, power
generation, irrigation, housing and urban development. An annual
investment of $750 million in enhancing security, rule of law,
and reforming judicial and administrative sectors are needed
to guarantee an environment conducive to sustainable growth.
We are determined to never again allow our country
to become a failed state that once victimized our people and
served as a breeding ground for the extremists and criminals
that terrorized the world. We appreciate the assistance provided
to us, but to make the state building process in Afghanistan
irreversible, Afghans need and demand the accelerated support
and the sustained engagement by its friends and partners.
Thank you.
