Ambassador Said T. Jawad Discusses Afghanistan On Board the Queen Mary 2
In early May, Ambassador Said T. Jawad held a series of lectures about Afghanistan while on board the Queen Mary 2. The Queen Mary 2 is an elegant 1,132 foot-long,
157,000 horsepower Cunard cruise ship. Cunard has been sailing since 1840, and began a new chapter of its distinguished history in inviting Ambassador Jawad on board and by helping to raise awareness about the situation in Afghanistan. The Ambassador gave detailed presentations on “Winning the Peace, Security Challenges in Afghanistan,” “Building a Civil Society and Women’s Empowerment in Afghanistan,” and “Pluralism and Prosperity: Investment and Reconstruction in Afghanistan.”
The Ambassador thanked Cunard for helping to raise the public profile of Afghanistan, and to their commitment to the rebuilding of the country. "Those of you who have visited Afghanistan know how dramatically our country has changed over the last five years, thanks our people’s determination to rebuild. The sight of beautiful Afghan girls with their black and white uniforms attending school under a tree in a small village and the thousands of signs advertising computer and English classes in major cities are symbols of drastic social changes taking root in our country. Kites are once again flying over our cities, and our people are embracing the many pleasures that they were long denied. Afghanistan today is a country reborn," said the Ambassador. "This spring, a record number of children started their first day of school. As these children learn to read and write, they are growing roots into the social fabric of our country. Afghanistan remains a place of great challenge, but as we rebuild, it also becomes a place of great hope."
During the voyage, Cunard honored the work of Roots of Peace, a non-profit organization that removes land-mines in post-conflict countries and restores the land and livelihood of local communities through sustainable agriculture solutions. Roots of Peace has trained over 10,000 Afghan farmers to grow grapes and raisins—alternative agricultural crops to poppies—and 100,000 landmines and unexploded ordinances have been removed from the once fertile Shomali Plains. In Afghanistan, over 60 people a month are killed or maimed by landmine or unexploded ordnance.
Before sailing, H.M. Queen Noor of Jordan and legendary Napa Valley vintner Mike Grgich were awarded Global Citizen Awards by Roots of Peace for their tireless advocacy of raising landmine awareness around the globe.
For more information on Cunard Cruises, visit http://www.cunard.com/
For more information on Roots of Peace, visit www.rootsofpeace.org
