Afghanistan

AFGHANISTAN

Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, freedom continues to advance in Afghanistan. Of course, they are a great ally in the war on terror. In fact, I recall visiting Afghanistan just a little over 2 years ago with the current occupant of the Chair, and we had an opportunity to see firsthand the progress they had made at that time, not to mention how far they have come since.

A few days ago the results of that country's historic parliamentary elections, held in mid-September, were officially certified. At the time that Senator Burns and I were there, they had not yet had the election of the President, not officially. They have since had that election. Now they have had a parliamentary election. Those results are now certified. A joint Afghan and United Nations election commission has declared the winners in races for 249 seats in the lower parliamentary house, as well as members of 34 provincial councils around the country.

Afghanistan's continued progress toward democracy is obviously a victory in the war on terror. Four years ago, the ruthless Taliban regime ruled Afghanistan with an unyielding, murderous intolerance, and they laid down that country's welcome mat to all the terrorists to ``come on in.'' I would like to remind my colleagues that 4 short years ago Afghanistan was ruled by a regime so intolerant that as part of an effort to erase any trace of Afghanistan's history before the rise of Islam in the seventh century, the Taliban destroyed two priceless Buddhist statues. These statues had been carved into the face of a cliff outside the Afghan city of Bamiyan. These ancient wonders that had endured for centuries were instantly turned into dust. The Taliban was literally trying to erase history. But now the Taliban itself is history.

America's quick defeat of the Taliban, the rescue of the Afghan people out from under their wicked thumb and the quick transformation of Afghanistan into a burgeoning democracy in just 4 years is nothing short of amazing.

Today, a democratically elected parliament and a democratically elected, President Hamid Karzai, are charting a new course for their country. I am proud to say that a new day has dawned in Afghanistan. Where there was repression, now there is liberty.

For instance, reports indicate that 68 of the new legislators are women. Four years ago little girls weren't allowed to go to school, and women had no rights whatsoever. Four years ago women were second-class citizens, blocked from jobs and educational opportunities by the Taliban. These 68 women legislators make up over a quarter of their chamber. That is significantly higher than the proportion of women in our Congress in the United States.

Afghanistan will continue to make progress toward freedom and democracy. The provincial councils are now in the process of selecting 68 members of the House of Elders, which is the upper parliamentary house. Those selections will be completed soon. Then with President Karzai's selection of an additional 34 members to the upper house, the full Afghan Parliament is scheduled to convene for the first time in the third week of December.

I ask my colleagues to join me in saluting the people of Afghanistan as they move forward toward freedom and democracy. I ask all of us to join in pledging the full support of the United States as the people of Afghanistan continue to fight the last vestiges of an extreme terrorist element, and as they continue to stand with the grand coalition of free nations who are waging the war on terror.

I yield the floor.

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