Bismillah…

Honourable Ministers,

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen

Hamwatanan wa dostan aziz,

My wife and my colleagues at the Embassy join me in welcoming all of you to this reception marking Afghanistan’s 88 th Independence Day in Canada.

Les Afghans ont célébré ce jour depuis 1919, lorsque faisant parti des rares nations de ce monde ayant échappé a la colonisation, nous nous sommes battus afin de réclamer notre indépendance, sous le règne du Roi Amunallah. Nous avons ainsi cessé de constituer un état tampon entre les deus super puissances d'alors.

Translation: [Afghans have celebrated this day since 1919, when as one of the few nations in that part of the world to have escaped colonization, under the stewardship of then King Amanullah, we fought to claim our full independence and put an end to being a buffer state between two of the contending superpowers of those days.]

Since then, Afghanistan underwent almost 60 years of stability and steady growth, which was unfortunately shattered by almost 30 years of conflict inflicted by external and domestic forces, plunging the country into a failed-state mode.

Over the past six years, however, Afghans have embarked on a major multi-dimensional mission to rebuild their lives, through peace and economic revitalization. Having embraced an Afghan-inspired democracy, we stand together to counter those groups that pose a threat to global security. Afghans are generally hopeful about their future as we lay the political and socio-economic foundations that our people desire.

Afin d'accomplir cette énorme tache, nous bénéficions non seulement du soutien inébranlable du peuple Afghan mais aussi de l’immense appui de nos amis dans le monde. Nous vous sommes reconnaissants pour votre soutien continuel qui a contribué à l'avancement de la paix et de la sécurité. Comme vous pouvez le constater aujourd’hui, il est toujours d'une importance stratégique de réussir nos activités méritantes en Afghanistan.

Translation:[To accomplish this enormous task, we not only have the overwhelming backing of the Afghan people, but also the strong support of our friends from across the world. We are grateful for your continued contributions, which will further the collective cause of peace and security. As you can appreciate, it is of strategic importance to succeed in our worthy endeavors in Afghanistan.]

In particular, Afghans have had the privilege to work closely with Canada on many fronts. As Afghans celebrate their freedom, I want to tell all Canadians that for the past six years, you have become an integral part of the positive historic changes that have affected the lives of millions of Afghan women, children and impoverished people. We thank you for joining us and others in the recovery process underway half way across the world. Your sacrifices in Afghanistan will always be held with the highest honor.

As an example of these positive changes, we have here with us today two brave and dedicated young Afghan women, who arrived in Canada over the past few days as part of scholarship programs. Ms. Humaira Habib, a journalism graduate from Herat University and manager of Radio Sahar, is a recipient of the Sauve Scholarship Foundation Program at McGill University and will be studying in Montreal for the next 10 months. Ms. Farzana Wahidy, an aspiring photographer who studied secretly under the Taliban is the recipient of a two-year scholarship at Loyalist College in Belleville. Both of these young Afghan women are role models. We wish them well and look forward to receiving more young Afghans to study in Canada and serve their country.

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

I would like to salute all Canadians who have and continue to serve in Afghanistan, whether as part of governmental - civil-military - or non-governmental missions. However, what strikes me as under-reported and of high value in our relations are the grassroots contributions made by non-government organizations, community groups and even individual Canadians.

I would like to recognize several of these Canadians and groups, some of whom are represented here today. They include:

* Care Canada for its humanitarian work performed over the years bringing hope to thousands of war-widows and children,

* The sustainable development work through community participation in the central highlands, spearheaded by the Hon. Flora MacDonald and the Future Generations group,

* The medical aid coming from pharmaceutical companies through Health Partners International Canada, led by John Kelsall and his colleagues, who want to do more and deserve our support,

* The important contributions made by the Peterson Foundation to promote good health and other humanitarian work in Afghanistan,

* Peace Dividend Trust, a non-profit foundation, headed by Scott Gilmore, working to make peace and humanitarian operations more efficient, effective and equitable,

* Wheelchair foundation Canada, headed by Christiana Flessner, eager to provide wheelchairs and give dignity to thousands of victims of landmines and violence across Afghanistan,

* Talking of landmines, a daily killer in my country, the tremendous work done by Mines Action Canada, a coalition of NGOs working towards peace, development, health and human rights,

* The Langford BC firefighting unit under Fire Chief Bob Beckett, which has collected hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of fire fighting equipment for Kabul and Kandahar,

* The soon to be launched Teddy Bears of Hope Afghan project by Miss Teen Canada International, headed by Sylvia Stark. We welcome here today the new Miss Teen Canada international 2008, Cassondra Paletta, who will help collect teddy bears for Afghan children. Congratulations and thank you Cassondra.

* Canadians for Women in Afghanistan, supporting education opportunities for girls,

And many individuals who contact us, like Shemye Emery from Ontario, who wrote asking how she could send more than 5 tons of supplies she collected for the poor and many more who are doing good. I want to say thank you to all of you.

At the end ladies and gentlemen, I would like to pay tribute to a brave Canadian whose goodness I and many in Afghanistan will never forget. Mike Frastacky was a generous humanitarian, a carpenter by trade, who went to Afghanistan in 2002, felt a pull and a desire to help. So he spent his vacations building a school in a remote northern province. Tragically, Mike was killed by criminal elements last year.

However, he left behind the greatest gift a carpenter and a Canadian could leave for Afghan children: a school. We have today with us Luba Frastacky, Mike’s sister, and I want to honor Mike by giving her a very small token of our appreciation and to tell her that Mike Frastacky will always be remembered for his kindness.

Thank you for coming today and celebrating freedom with us.