Hamid Karzai

“ Today, under a United Nations mandate, and consistent with the wishes of the Afghan people, your sons and daughters together with citizens of more than 35 other nations have committed security forces to Afghanistan, while more than 60 nations, along with multilateral organisations, have pledged generously to help rebuild the war-torn Afghanistan in a stable, prosperous and democratic country.
Canada has made a tremendous difference in the lives of millions of Afghans already. Afghanistan is proud to be the largest recipient of your overseas development assistance. ”

“ There is much that Afghanistan can learn from Canada. We admire the multi-cultural society have created where the diversity of your country is seen as one of your greatest strengths. We admire the respect for the rule of law, for justice, and for human dignity that pervades you nation. ”

“ Whereas Afghans had fought and won the world’s war against communism, the reward that Afghanistan received was abandonment by the international community. We were left with a world of destruction to rebuild, and at the mercy of a predatory neighbourhood and the bellicose extremist forces that had been brought to Afghanistan. ”

“ We will not fully succeed in eliminating terrorism, unless we seek and fight the sources of terrorism, wherever they might be, and dry its roots. Our strategy of fighting terrorism in Afghanistan has so far been mainly focused on addressing the symptoms of terrorism – that is on killing terrorists who come from across our borders. This strategy is bound to fail unless we move beyond the military-alone approach in Afghanistan to address terrorism’s political, ideological and financial basis. ”

“ If terrorists continue to harm innocent people around the world, which is what we have seen happen from New York to Bali to Madrid to London, then it is our collective duty to stop them at the point of origin, at their breeding grounds, before they can reach far and wide.
Fighting terrorism effectively is also tied to our fighting against narcotics. The menace of narcotics feeds terrorism and threatens the foundation of legitimate economic development in Afghanistan. ”

“ Terrorism sees its ultimate defeat in the prosperity of the Afghan people. That is why, 200,000 of our students, who went to school two years ago, are no longer able to do so. That is why polio, the children’s disease, increased from 4 cases in 2005 to 27 cases this year almost entirely in the southern provinces of Afghanistan where terrorists are preventing children from access to vaccination. ”

“ Terrorists are prepared to cross any boundaries, and commit horrific acts of violence to try to derail Afghanistan from its path to success; they want the international community to fail in its collective endeavour to help Afghanistan rebuild. ”

“ More than six million children, about forty percent of them girls, have returned to school. Over four million refugees have returned to their homes. We have disarmed tens of thousands of former combatants, and have begun the vital task of building up Afghanistan’s security institution – the Police and Army. We have also achieved fiscal stability and substantial economic growth. In short, we in Afghanistan have embraced the vision of a prosperous and pluralistic society which Canada so richly embodies. ”

“ That is why they decapitate elderly women, blow up mosques full of worshipers, and kill school-going children in indiscriminate bombings of civilian areas. And that is why they are killing international soldiers and civilians who have to come to help the Afghan people. Clearly, unless we confront them more decisively, terrorists will continue to take lives and to inflict greater damage. ”

“ Today, Afghanistan has the most progressive constitution in our region, which enables the Afghan people to choose their leadership for the first time in their history. Over the past five years, our people have voted in two elections, one for the President and another for the Parliament. ”

“ As we move forward, we will continue to look to Canadian institutions like this great Parliament, and to Canada’s pluralistic traditions, to help to move forward.
Despite our phenomenal progress ladies and gentlemen, our new democracy faces serious threats. Insecurity in parts of our country, as a result of the rise of terrorist activities, is our greatest challenge. Five years ago, Afghan and international forces defeated terrorists within two months. ”

“ I know that there are many others who also feel the emptiness and loss of their loved ones. My heart goes to the families, the friends and the Canadian people at this time of reflection and sorrow. More than anyone else, Afghans very much understand that these sacrifices are for a great cause and peace. ”

“ These were indeed significant accomplishments of our time, for which Afghans paid dearly. Over one million Afghans lost lives, another million were disabled, more than a quarter of our population was forced into exile, and our country’s infrastructure was razed to the ground. ”

“ While some terrorists were removed, most of the others took refuge outside our borders. Unfortunately, it was in those sanctuaries beyond our borders where they were re-organised, trained, financed and provided with the ideological motivation to cross into Afghanistan and kill and maim our people, women, men and children, as well as your sons and daughters. During this year, we have seen a dramatic rise in terrorist attacks along the southern and eastern border provinces of Afghanistan, targeting mostly civilians. Terrorists have bombed our schools and mosques; killed our teachers and students ”