Brief History on US-Afghanistan Relations

Posted on Mar 29, 2011 in Afghanistan, CUSAP, Hamed Wardak

It was as far back as the 1830s when Pennsylvanian born activist, adventurer Josiah Harlan made his way to Afghanistan as he was determined to be King there.  He didn’t quite realize his dream but he did earn the title Prince of Ghor, for a price.  He had to pay with military aid.  Some years down the track, the British-Indians had to totally withdraw following their defeat and in 1842 thousands of Brits and Indians had been either massacred or captured.  It’s hard to tell exactly what happened as only one man survived – William Brydon – and it is his testimony alone that is being relied upon.  It was said that Harlan left the country at about the same time, making  his way back to his home country.
Today, there are still attempts to establish relations between the two countries.    Hamed Wardak is one of the eight founders of CUSAP (Campaign for a US-Afghanistan Partnership).  The vision of the organization is to “achieve sustainable security and prosperity in Afghanistan.”

Great Fighting Afghans

Posted on Mar 22, 2011 in Afghanistan, Hamed Wardak

It seems like Afghans are pretty strong.  In the 2010-11 World Series that took place in Belgium, Afghan MMA fighter and Shooto Light Heavyweight World Champion, Siyar Bahadurzada defeated John “The Natural” Alessio.  He did this  pretty quickly – in the first round in a knock out punch, making the fight last only 90 seconds.  He was, quite naturally, thrilled and grateful for the support he has received, writing on his FB account, “I’d like to thank each and everyone of you for praying for me, supporting me and for being my motivation!”

This has to be good news for Afghans looking for a boost.  Hamed Wardak, who is an Afghan activist working hard for better conditions for the people.

Afghan Women Pride

Posted on Mar 14, 2011 in Afghanistan, Hamed Wardak

Afghan women can take pride in their heritage.  In March, Exec-Dir. of the Afghan Institute of Learning (AIL) Dr. Sakena Yacoobi was awarded the inaugural Enterprising Women’s 2011 Global Women’s Hall of Fame award in Florida.  Yacoobi received the award from the founder of the Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women (Dr. Terry Neese) at the 9th Annual Enterprising Women of the Year Awards Celebration.
According to Dr. Neese, this nomination was intentional, vis-à-vis empowering Afghan women:  “I nominated Dr. Yacoobi for this award due to her long time efforts to empower women and communities to bring education and health services to poor rural and urban girls and women, as well as other disenfranchised Afghans.”  Apparently it was Yacoobi’s organization which was the instigator of presenting human rights and leadership training to Afghan women, as far back as the 1990s.  The lady is thus “an inspiration to Afghan and American women.”  Yacoobi herself was said to have felt most “honored.”  It is also a mark of honor “for the women of Afghanistan who are creating new lives for themselves through their pursuit of education, their creativity, and their drive to succeed under the most difficult of circumstances.”
Any improvements such as these that are directed toward the people of Afghanistan, giving them a sense of pride in who they are and their achievements is good news for the whole region as well as those like Hamed Wardak – the founder of  Campaign for a US-Afghanistan Partnership – which seeks to improve relations between the two countries.

Buildings Sprout Up in Afghanistan

Posted on Mar 7, 2011 in Afghanistan, CUSAP, Hamed Wardak

It seems like everywhere you look these days in Afghanistan there is another building being constructed.  No longer will it be the case that Afghans can’t find a place to send their kids to school; there are possibly more schools, educational facilities and other training development enhancers being erected than ever before.  In Ghazni for example, a laboratory room and library was inaugurated in the Amir Mohammad Khan High School which was given 166 instruments and 750 educational books.  Also, the Balkh Educational Department in the country’s northern province received $24,000 in chairs and tables, etc., which was given to middle and high schools in Chimtal (in the province).  The more developments like these there are for Afghanistan, the better the quality of life it will be for the people seeking to better their situation.  Hamed Wardak, founding member of CUSAP, seeks to improve relations between America and Afghanistan, escalating the quality of life for his Afghan brethren.

Extension on Herat Airport Runway

Posted on Feb 21, 2011 in Afghanistan, Hamed Wardak

A ceremony marking the completion of the extension on the Herat Airport runway took place on February 17th.  This momentous occasion was attended by NATO and Afghan officials, including Governor of Herat province Daoud Saba.  According to a NATO news release, “the new runway is approximately 9,840 feet (3,000 meters) long, enabling even the largest civilian aircraft to take off and land.” What this means in practice is that for the first time, the province will be able to receive all sorts of airplanes (before this was quite restricted), which is also good news economically since a lot of money will be saved.  In addition, Saba commented that “culturally it’s a milestone for making Herat one of the hubs of development in the country.”
Individuals like Hamed Wardak, active in trying to make Afghanistan a better place to live, will welcome this achievement since the hope is that in the future, the region can become a “hub for cargo in Afghanistan for its access to southern, northern and central provinces of the country.”  Other projects are planned too that will develop the area even more.

Northern Afghanistan Conditions Improve

Posted on Feb 18, 2011 in Afghanistan, Hamed Wardak

A thermal power station is due to be constructed in Shiberghan (Jawzjan province capital), which will be the first of its kind in the entire northern Afghanistan region.   It will work by utilizing natural resources (such as gas) from the province.  According to a recent report, the station is due to be functioning in around four months and is set to “generate 400 megawatts of thermal power.”  As well as meeting the need of those living in Shiberghan, other provinces in northern Afghanistan are also set to benefit from this.  This entire project is bound to benefit those in the region looking for employment as well as everyone’s quality of life when it is up and running.  Hamed Wardak, an Afghan activist working to improve conditions in the region, is always appreciative of such efforts.