Optimistic opening of Bonn conference

The first day of the UN-chaired conference on Afghanistan in the German city of Bonn has ended on a note of optimism, with delegates agreeing to a three-point agenda, comprising the formation of an interim supreme council and an administration, the convening of an emergency Loya Jirgah (supreme national tribal assembly) and ensuring the security of Afghans.

Afghans in Pakistan have welcomed the reconciliatory moves in Bonn. Prof Rasul Amin, an Afghan scholar affiliated to the former King's peace group known as the Rome Process, told IRIN that the agreement on the UN agenda by all delegates was a breakthrough and could pave the way for future reconciliation leading to a permanent solution.

Amin dismissed concern over the lack of representation of some Afghan groups, asserting that Bonn was just the start of a long process, and it was still early days. "Representation in a future executive council, interim administration or the emergency Loya Jirgah should be balanced. Now we only need Afghans working for Afghanistan," he said.

However, he considered that there should have been a higher representation of women in Bonn. "Women make up 50 percent of Afghanistan's population, and they need to be represented in all decision-making forums," he maintained.

Dr Fazl-e-Rahim Marwat, an expert on Afghanistan in Peshawar, told IRIN that the world community stood behind the peace efforts, as Afghans were exhausted after 23 years of war. As regards the results emerging from the talks, he said Afghans remained hopeful that the Bonn meeting would succeed where past attempts had failed.

In a special message to the Bonn conference, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged all sides participating to seize the historic opportunity to start the process of finally achieving peace and national reconciliation. "You must place the interests of your people first, above all other concerns," he said.

A UN spokesman in Bonn, Ahmad Fawzi, told reporters the mood of the conference could be gauged by a quote from one of the leaders, who said: "We have a thirst for peace. We are here to work for a comprehensive settlement, and to find the comprehensive groundwork we need to build a new Afghanistan."

According to Fawzi, the Pashtun leader and former Afghan deputy foreign minister, Hamid Karzai, addressed the gathering over the telephone from southern Afghanistan. Karzai said they were one nation, one culture, and they were united, not divided. Karzai added they all believed in Islam, which was the religion of tolerance. "We have been made extremely poor and vulnerable but we are a strong people who would like to assert our will and our sense of self-determination," he said.

"The responsibility is yours," Joschka Fischer, the German foreign minister, told the Afghan participants during the opening session. The international community was prepared to help Afghanistan, he said, but stressed that this readiness was linked with clear expectations, including agreement on a broad-based, representative transitional government and respect for human rights.

The 30 delegates attending the conference include representatives of four Afghan groups, these being the United Front (also known as the Northern Alliance), the Council of Understanding and National Unity of Afghanistan [also known as Peshawar group], the Cyprus Process and the Rome Process. Some individual tribal leaders are also attending.