8 January 2004 - On 6 January 2004, the Philippines joined the other members of the United Nations Security Council in welcoming the new Constitution agreed by Afghanistan’s Constitutional Loya Jirga on 4 January 2004.  In the first statement for 2004 of the Security Council, Security Council President Heraldo Muñoz (Chile) on 6 January 2004 said that the “Members of the Security Council welcomed the new Constitution” and that “the members hailed this as a very significant step on the path towards a peaceful, prosperous and democratic Afghanistan that respects the rights of all Afghan citizens, men and women.” (complete statement at www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/sc7971.doc.htm)

“This statement is the first formal action of the Security Council for 2004.  Having assumed our seat on the Security Council this year, I am glad that our first action is one of hope and optimism for the future of a country that has suffered so much,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Delia Domingo Albert said.

“Our involvement in establishing a stable and democratic future for Afghanistan predates our membership in the Security Council.  We were a member of the international coalition that helped return Afghanistan to its people,” the Secretary recalled, adding that the Philippines was among the first to support the international war against terrorism.  The Philippines agreed to allow coalition forces involved in the war in Afghanistan to overfly, refit and refuel in the Philippines.

“However, our optimism is tempered by our shock over the continued violence in Afghanistan, particularly the recent bomb attacks in Kandahar, Afghanistan this week in which 14 people were reportedly killed and 70 others injured, many of whom were children, and reports that unidentified gunmen killed 12 ethnic minority Hazaras in southern Afghanistan yesterday.  This follows an incident also this week in which a hand grenade was thrown into the UNHCR compound in Kandahar. We continue to condemn these attacks and extend our profound sympathies to the families of the victims.  We pray that they find the strength to hold on, as they continue to rebuild their society and country,” Secretary Albert said. END.