19 December 2005 Kabul, Afghanistan : Three-piece suits and ties as well as traditional turbans and hats of various colors, shades and shapes made up the most colorful scenes at the inaugural session of the Afghan National Assembly, which convened for the first time after a break of more than three decades. It was as if all the difference in the way the members of the new Assembly dressed was meant to underline a fundamental point, that Afghan people had resolved to live in unity despite all the ethnic and other differences and that the new Assembly building would represent the embodiment of that determination of unity.
The opening session of the Afghan parliament was full of symbolism: The Father of the Nation, the 91-year-old King Zahir Shah addressed the members of the new parliament and said “I thank God that today I am participating in a ceremony that is a step towards rebuilding Afghanistan after decades of fighting. The people of Afghanistan will succeed!"
President Hamid Karzai gave an hour-long speech touching upon all the challenges facing Afghanistan, but said “ Let me tell the world that Afghanistan is rising from the ashes of invasion and will live forever.”
When he finished his speech, many among the MPs, as well as the President, himself, were in tears.
The event was also symbolic in terms of the attendance of high level dignitaries: In a powerful gesture of support, US Vice-President Dick Cheney flew in to be present at the ceremony. In addition Jean Arnault, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General, and Hikmet Cetin, Senior Civilian Representative of the NATO Secretary General were observing the ceremony in the front row.
The new bi-cameral legislature of Afghanistan was formed as a result of the elections last September. Wolesi Jirga (the lower house) has 249 elected members and Meshrano Jirga (the upper house) has 102 members, some of them appointed by President Hamid Karzai. Close to one third of the members of parliament are female, making the Afghan National Assembly one of the most gender-balanced legislatures in the region.
The opening of the Afghan National Assembly brings to climax the process which began in Bonn in 2002 when the road map for a democratic and prosperous Afghanistan was laid down. While the inauguration marks a watershed in Afghanistan’s struggle to live in peace, it also marks the beginning of another process whereby the new Assembly will embark on a broad endeavor to build trust, confidence and tolerance not only among the public for this new institution, but also within itself to enable the work the welfare of the nation to go ahead.
