Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-10-26-Speech-3-307"
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"en.20051026.20.3-307"2
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".
Madam President, I would like to comment on a few points which have arisen from the debate. One such point is the question of human rights abusers who have been elected to parliament, because this is something that concerns us all.
Unfortunately, Afghanistan has not embarked with any ease on a process to come to terms with its past, and I hope it will take its time. In such circumstances, it is deeply regrettable, but probably inevitable, that this first post-conflict election will result in some questionable individuals being elected to parliament.
Politically, the key question is how much influence these individuals will have in parliament, and I think it is too early to judge, since the voting system, as many have mentioned, myself included, is very complicated. There are no clear party blocks. Parliament will certainly be very fragmented.
I would also like to highlight some positive aspects about some of the people who were elected. There were courageous people with a record of standing up for justice and human rights in Afghanistan who also managed to get elected, including, as many of you mentioned, quite a significant number of women. I met some of the women candidates and, admittedly, I was really surprised and I very much appreciated their courage. When I met them, they said that they had been out working with many women, and I am sure they all said ‘we will get elected’. Ultimately, that has proved to be the case. That is a very positive development.
Furthermore, it is also positive to note that, although a few Taliban were elected, many prominent Taliban were not successful in the elections. The former foreign minister, the former deputy interior minister and the former deputy justice minister were all defeated. I am sure that the voters knew whom they should not vote for.
I would also like to say a few words about drugs. We realise that the drug question is still a very important one. We have also discussed it with President Karzai and are working with the UK Presidency to see what we can do in the future to tackle this problem even more robustly on two fronts – the first of which is alternative plantations, the second being justice and law – which are to be reinforced.
Finally, education is one of the key questions. I would like to put my finger on that issue for future programmes, not only because it applies to the whole of society, but specifically because, over many decades, women did not have any opportunities and we have to compensate for that in some way. In 2004 alone, we built 50 schools and childcare institutions. We also have a specific project for street children. I visited this project and, again, I must say that I saw how much courage and enthusiasm there is among the young children, the beautiful girls and really handsome boys who have a future. They want to get off the streets where they are normally selling vegetables and other small things. I agree that education and healthcare will be the key issues, and we will certainly continue to put our emphasis on those issues."@en1
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