DATE=04/20/2002

TYPE=EDITORIAL

NUMBER=0-09835

TITLE=EDITORIAL: AFGHAN RECONSTRUCTION

INTERNET=Yes

CONTENT=THIS EDITORIAL IS BEING RELEASED FOR USE BY ALL SERVICES.

Anncr: Next, an editorial reflecting the views of the United States Government:

Voice: The reconstruction of Afghanistan is underway. The interim government under Hamid Karzai has established a budget. An international security force has been deployed in Kabul, providing the security necessary for the interim government to function. In addition, police and other Afghan officials are being paid again. And schools have re-opened.

Afghan refugees who had fled from the repressive Taleban are now returning to their homes. Indeed, this past week, the former Afghan king returned to his homeland for the first time in twenty-nine years. Perhaps most importantly, preparations are being made for the Loya Jirga, or constituent assembly, to be held in June. At that time, a new transitional administration will be chosen. The Loya Jirga will also empower a commission to draft a constitution for Afghanistan.

But threats to the newly established peace in Afghanistan remain. Taleban and al-Qaida are trying to destabilize the government through violence. Recently, a bomb attack appears to have been aimed at the interim administration's defense minister. The U.S. is helping Afghanistan deal with these threats by continuing to prosecute the war on terrorism.

The U.S. has pledged more than three-hundred million dollars this year to help reconstruct Afghanistan. The U.S. has already distributed sixty percent of that money. Some of it will be used to revitalize the agriculture base and help make Afghans again agriculturally self-sufficient.

The U.S. Agency for International Development will distribute seven-thousand metric tons of drought-resistant wheat seed. The seed should produce between eighty and one-hundred percent more wheat than the seed that the Afghan farmers are currently using.

Another aspect of reconstructing Afghanistan is the education of both boys and girls. The U.S. has funded the printing of some ten-million textbooks. In addition, there are teams conducting training sessions for four-thousand teachers across Afghanistan. Half of the trainers are women and half of the teachers receiving training are women.

With the support of the U.S. and its allies in the war on terrorism, Afghanistan has an unprecedented opportunity to build a stable and peaceful society. The Afghan people deserve nothing less.

Anncr: That was an editorial reflecting the views of the United States Government. If you have a comment, please write to Editorials, V-O-A, Washington, D-C, 20237, U-S-A. You may also comment at www-dot-ibb-dot-gov-slash-editorials, or fax us at (202) 619-1043.