Karzai calls for respect of new constitution

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, January 05, 2004

Karzai calls for respect of new constitution

Afghanistan's transitional president Hamid Karzai on Sunday called for the rule of law in his war-torn country after a new constitution was approved at a historic assembly with consensus.

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Afghanistan's transitional president Hamid Karzai on Sunday called for the rule of law in his war-torn country after a new constitution was approved at a historic assembly with consensus.

"In Afghanistan, law should rule, the constitution should be respected and enforced," Karzai told an ending session of the LoyaJirga, or grand assembly, which just ratified the new constitution after three-week discussions.

The president stressed equal rights for different ethnic groups,saying that all Afghans should be equal before the constitution and there should be no ethnical discrimination in the country.

"I want all Afghans to be equal," said the president, who is from the majority ethnic group of Pashtuns.

"A Balouch or Hazara can become the president," Karzai told the 502 delegates as well as senior officials and diplomats, referring to two small minority groups in the country.

Ethnic divisions among the 502 delegates to the assembly had forced the prolongation of the constitution-making process. Delegates from minority groups demanded more of their rights to been shrined in the future constitution.

Minority groupings and majority Pashtun delegates earlier on Sunday reached agreement on the official status of minority languages, overcoming the last obstacle in the constitutional process.

Before the concluding ceremony, assembly Chairman Sibghatullah Mujadadi asked the delegates to stand up to show their endorsement of the draft constitution prepared by Karzai's government.

The last-minute consensus on the constitution at the assembly made a vote on the future national document unnecessary.

Earlier the assembly had reached agreement on other crucial issues including the country's future political system and women'sequal rights.

The new constitution is considered as a victory for President Karzai, who had managed to persuade the assembly to adopt a strong presidential system in the nation-building document.

Karzai reiterated his argument that such a system would benefita country like Afghanistan where there are not big political parties with nation-wide influence.

Calling the new constitution "a source of hope" for the Afghan people, United Nations special envoy to Afghanistan Lakhdar Brahimi said that every Afghan would have reason to be proud of the peaceful conclusion of the Loya Jirga.

Meanwhile, the UN envoy urged the Karzai government, which cameto power with support of the United States in late 2001, to take measures to tackle an increasing insurgency by the ousted Taliban and rampant warlordism in many parts of the country.

"It is the duty of the government, the police, the army, and the international community as a whole to make sure that this kindof security is addressed," said Brahimi.

He also stressed equal rights for women in Afghanistan, where former ruling Taliban regime banned women's rights to education and work out of home.

"You have still a lot to do, you have a long struggle ahead before we men recognize your fully rights," he told over 100 womendelegates attending the assembly.

Brahimi, who had tried to mediate reconciliation talks between rival factions at the assembly to forge consensus during the last three weeks, was awarded a medal by Karzai for his contribution tothe Afghan peace and reconstruction processes.

"I will leave but my heart will stay here, and my prayers will be with you," said the former Algerian foreign minister, who has acted as UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's special envoy to Afghanistan since the Taliban's ouster.

Brahimi said he would end his Afghan mission soon as the country 's constitution-making process, which was sponsored by theUnited Nations, had concluded.

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