SWB
FE/0073 C/3
(ii) Inaugurating the seminar "Education, development and society" and the consultative session of the Asian Students' Information Centre, Soltan Ali Keshtmand, Prime Minister of the Republic of Afghanistan, on behalf of the leadership of the PDPA and the government and people of Afghanistan, congratulated the participants of the seminar on holding this important seminar.
This is for the first time that the reliable representatives of youths and students from different countries of the world began their face-to-face discussions in an open atmosphere. These deliberations, Premier Soltan Ali Keshtmand added, are taking place in the direction of peace, good understanding and mutual co-operation.
The seminar is held at a time when the inhabitants of our planet are linked with each other, despite numerous similarities and dissimilarities, and they are in need of co- operation more than ever before. These inter-relations, he indicated, made this broad world interrelated to each other to such an extent that the effects of every important event is inevitably felt in another part of the world.
Afghanistan, Prime Minister Soltan Ali Keshtmand added, as a peaceful country with free judgement on the world issues, believes that the tendency to open the knots, elimination of distrusts and the solution of human difficulties are logical and correct only through talks and understanding.
Foreign intervention in the internal affairs of the Republic of Afghanistan and imposition of the undeclared war on the Afghan people has created a bed of tension in our region. This process cannot be ineffective for ensuring peace in the region, Keshtmand said [as received].
Despite the continuation of foreign intervention in the internal affairs of our country, Keshtmand went on to say, on the basis of the will and determination of our people we will continuously follow realisation of the policy of national reconciliation.
The policy of national reconciliation is the main objective of the PDPA and the state of the Republic of Afghanistan for the solution of national problems on the basis of the philosophy of new political thinking, which considers the right to live and preservation of world peace as the highest human value, Keshtmand said.
We have provided conditions for the creation of a coalition national unity government. For this purpose we have proposed 28 state higher posts to the opposition, he said.
Evaluating the gains of the policy of national reconciliation so far achieved in the country, the Prime Minister further said that the Republic of Afghanistan, as an independent and free state, with the endorsement of its new Constitution has opened a new path for the maintenance and expansion of contacts in international scale, and especially with the Islamic states and member states of the non-aligned movement, which is gaining more prestige and credit for the Republic of Afghanistan in the world arena, Keshtmand further said.
We have used every opportunity to improve and expand our relations with all Asian and other countries of the world, especially with Islamic and the neighbouring countries. We want to establish friendly relations with Iran and Pakistan, according to the principles of good-neighbourliness. In spite of our sincere efforts to improve relations with Pakistan, still the
12 Feb 88
territory of that country is used as a training core of the extremist armed groups against the Republic of Afghanistan, said Soltan Ali Keshtmand.
Pointing to the process of Geneva talks, Keshtmand said: "The final victory of the Geneva talks and ensurance of peace in our country, which has firm links with the world peace process, depends on goodwill of Pakistan and reliable international guarantees on cessation of external interference in the internal affairs of Afghanistan and its non-resumption”.
Reminding the flexibilities made by the Afghan side, the Prime Minister mentioned the statement released by the Afghan President, Najibollah, and the statement of M.S. Gorbachev, General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, in which the time-frame for the withdrawal of the Soviet limited contingents declared 10 months.
He said: "It shows our firm decision and goodwill for the solution of this problem."
The titles "education, development and society" are the subjects, the resolution of which is a part of undelayable task to be carried out by the people's sovereignty, organisations and the Afghan people, the Prime Minister pointed out.
After accounting the damage inflicted as a result of the nine-year-long undeclared war, the Prime Minister said: Right now 16 vocational schools, 15 teacher-training institutions, 30 technical schools and 17,000 students are studying in 28 faculties in Afghanistan [as received].
The Prime Minister described the ASIC [Asian Students' Information Centre] forum as a manifestation of militant solidarity of students, youths, organisations of the participating delegates to the forum with the righteous struggles of Afghan people for establishing peace and building a new Afghanistan.
The holding of the seminar and the consultative session of Asian students enjoys great international significance at the existing historical juncture, said Farid Ahmad Mazdak, First Secretary of Democratic Youth Organisation of Afghanistan (DYOA) Central Committee, in his speech at the Asian Students' Information Centre seminar (education, development and society) held here Wednesday [10th February].
The Afghan youth welcome you in their revolutionary capital at a time when they are struggling against continuation of war in their country and for establishment of country-wide peace. The undeclared war imposed by imperialism on the Afghan people once again clarified that, in the condition of war, only poverty, misfortune and backwardness could be felt. We have been carrying out vast struggle during the 10 years
of
our national democratic revolution and have simultaneously been executing political, development, economic and socio- cultural programmes as well.
As it was pointed out at the beginning, he said, the people and youth of my country are longing for peace since long ago. For we Afghans, peace and development are inter-related concepts, complementing each other. National reconciliation helps us in achieving an end to the war which seemed vague for a while. This policy is in full conformity with the principle of peaceful coexistence and new political thinking in the relations between countries, as well as peaceful settlement of conflicts.
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