Herat Youth Conference (Think Big)!
The Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO), in collaboration with The White Assembly and other prominent national and international organizations, successfully organized the Herat Youth Conference 17th December, 2020 focusing on human rights, liberty, democracy and prosperity with more than 300 participants mainly comprised of youths and university students in Herat province.
In this one-day conference, Herat local officials, people’s representatives in the Provincial Council, university lecturers, civil and human rights activists, Youths and university students came together and, in addition to learning about the values of democracy, freedom, human rights, prosperity, mutual acceptance and fight against extremism; shared their plans and views through group work regarding institutionalization of the values of human rights, democracy, peace, liberty and tolerance in Afghanistan.
The speakers of the conference called the institutionalization of mutual acceptance, the values of human rights, prosperity and freedom the foundations of sustainable peace and prosperity in the country and stressed upon the need to promote tolerance in Afghanistan. The conference participants uttered their support for peace, freedom and mutual acceptance, calling these components a civil and social deterrent against extremism and terrorism.
Mohammad Khalid Ramizy, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO) and a founding member of The White Assembly, inaugurated the conference and said:
“The AELSO in its nearly of two decades of service toward promoting free society values in accordance with the teachings of the Holy Religion of Islam; have taken challenging paths, and we are proud to say that so far we are actively present in nineteen provinces and cities of Afghanistan.”
Talking about the main motive behind organizing Herat Youth Conference Mr. Ramizy said:
“Promoting human rights values in accordance with the values of Islam and to stand against extremism through promoting peace, prosperity and tolerance; are the main goals of the Herat Youth Conference. The main vision and goal of this Conference is to focus on educating participants about human rights, democracy, freedom, prosperity and tolerance; and to collect their ideas and plans for better promotion and institutionalization of these values as well as fighting extremism and fundamentalism in the country. These ideas and plans will be published in a booklet which will serve as the roadmap for today’s and tomorrow’s generations.
Mr. Ramizy added:
“The Herat Youth Conference is not a project! Rather, it is a collective voluntary commitment done by the senior members of the Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO), the White Assembly, and other national and academic personalities.”
Mr. Ramizy further stated:
“The plans and ideas presented at this conference and other programs organized by the AELSO in different parts of the country, will be published in a research booklet. This book will be entrusted to the Afghan government and the international community as a youth-centered narrative for peace in Afghanistan, and should be referenced as a guide during the peace talks between the negotiating teams of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Taliban Emirate.”
While calling on the specific parties Mr. Ramizy said:
“Our message to the government is to make the most out of every opportunity, particularly in case of ensuring peace and prosperity in the country, and to entrust the youths with major role in this regard. Our message to the donor countries is not to allow Afghanistan to become safe havens of the terrorist groups once again and to stay with the Afghan people and keep supporting them. Our message to the Afghan youths is to halt baseless critics and to contribute to the development and progress of their country by being a socially responsible citizen, and to use their capacity for promoting the values of mutual acceptance, liberty, prosperity, human rights and institutionalization of these values in Afghanistan.”
Sayed Wahid Zahid Qatali, Governor of Herat province, welcomed and thanked the initiative of the Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO) and the White Assembly for organizing Herat Youth Conference. By calling on youths and stating the important role they can play in all political and social change in the country. He also encouraged the youths to actively participate and be involved in all political issues of the country.
He said:
We should improve our capacity by not only relying on organizing conferences and discourses; perhaps utilizing from the existing opportunities which have provided the space for change. With all due respect to the youths of 50s, the youths of today should lead them toward retirement and take the initiative in their own hands and decide about the future of the country.
Mrs. Sakinah Hosseini, a member of the Herat Provincial Council, spoke about the role of the Provincial Councils in promoting and protecting human rights values, adding: “our actions bearing the social and religious responsibility should be on the path of enlightenment and humanity in order to ensure human rights in the country. We should follow the paths of righteous people and work for future generations of the country and focus on making the future free of discrimination and extremism for ourselves and our future generations.
Sayed Mustafa Sayedi, Vice Chancellor of RANA University, board member of the AELSO, and another speaker of the Herat Youth Conference, spoke on the components of freedom of expression, peace and mutual acceptance and said:
“Freedom of expression is the oxygen of human societies. Citizens are stronger with having information, and uninformed citizens will live in vain.”
Adding about the peace process and mutual acceptance, Sayedi said:
“If the peace process in Afghanistan is considered as an important issue; it will be solved in a short period and will be easier for all the parties to find a solution. But as the process turns into a mystery, it will be more complicated and difficult for both sides to reach an agreement. On the other hand, mutual acceptance is the bases of social peace and an initial instrument for sustainable peace. In this regard, the role of young people is very important and valuable to use their academic education and youth’s capacity for promoting the values of mutual acceptance starting from their respected families throughout the community so we will be witnessing a peaceful and stable Afghanistan.”
Continuing the program, Mirwais Amini, Acting Head of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) in Herat province, spoke about the human rights situation in Afghanistan particularly in Herat province and said:
“The multiplicity of laws and regulations is not the only solution, but the implementation of them is. Remember that justice cannot be ensured only by making laws, but they can if the laws are implemented effectively and equally.”
In the second part of the program; Speaking for Democracy and Prosperity, a number of university professors spoke to the audience about the spread of extremism in Afghanistan and warned about the destructive outcomes if the spread of these ideologies are not stopped and halted, and the country may face war as well as social and political unrest for upcoming decades.
Abdul Azim Mohmand, professor at Kabul University and board member of the AELSO, said:
“Young people, who are the backbone and future of the country, are an alarm for their communities if their thoughts are pro extremism. Therefore, bringing young people together and providing them a platform to discuss free society values will surely decrease the risk of falling in the trap of extremism. These youths will serve as the role model for their peers in following the path of enlightenment. The role of social workers in promoting the ideas of tolerance, democracy and human rights is very practical and important. With having the knowledge of psychology and the art of social work, these youths can professionally contribute to institutionalizing free society values in the country. Universities should strive to teach the values of human rights, tolerance and democracy to young people, and to further promote these values through social work groups in order to prevent the spread of extremist ideas.”
In the third part of the conference; the participants were divided into four working groups and discussed the causes of extremism, its consequences and strategies to combat this ugly phenomenon in Afghanistan, and shared the result of their group work with peer participants.
In the fourth section of the conference; an expert’s panel was held to discuss about the components of human rights, fighting against extremism, mutual acceptance and prosperity as well as challenges and opportunities. In this section, university professors, civil and human rights activists, cultural and women’s rights activists and experts from different fields discussed about these values and answered participant’s questions and concerns.
It worths mentioning that through this conference, more than 300 youths from Herat and surrounding provinces expressed their concerns about the increasing trends of extremisms and fundamentalism in the country, and considered this phenomenon as one of the main reasons for continuing the war and extreme violence in the county. According to them, the intelligence agencies of neighboring countries with the direct support by some of the extremist religious groups and individuals in the country are exposing the Afghan youths to the extremist ideologies.
According to these youths; the Herat Youth Conference provides an opportunity for young people to promote the values of peace, tolerance and human rights, in addition to fighting extremism and fundamentalism in the society.
Shabnam Salahshor, one of the participants of the conference while talking to the news reporters covering this grand event said:
“Extremism has increased immensely in Afghanistan, young people really suffer from extremist ideologies and believes, and in many cases it has hindered prosperity, mutual acceptance and peace in society. It is even one of the preventive factors in front of girl’s education in the country.”
Mr. Basir Aryan, another participant of the conference said:
“Increasing extremist ideologies is one of the major problems today’s youths are facing, which impacts them by the course of time and will lead them toward joining these groups or contributing to their vision and mission at the end of the day. Thus, holding such programs by AELSO and their national and international supporters in today’s critical situation surely paves the way for enlightenment and prevents these youths from joining extremist groups.”
The conference was concluded with the final remarks by Mr. Mohammad Khalid Ramizy, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Afghanistan Economic & Legal Studies Organization (AELSO). He highlighted a few points as the outcomes of the conference, and reminded to the participants that the 2021 National Youth Conference will be held in Herat province, and soon after signing the agreements with the Herat University and regional office of the Independent Human Rights Commission in Herat, human rights training club for the youths of western provinces of the country particularly Herat province will be held in Herat province.
Also in this conference, the book Islamic foundations of free society, and the book named Peace, Love & Liberty along with other valuable publications of the organization which are considered most reliable resources for promoting free society values and the compatibility of these values with Islam, have been introduced and distributed to the participants along with a copy of the CD containing ideas for peace and prosperity in order to strengthen their intellectual capacity.
The Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO) is committed to organize such conferences in all provinces of the country in order to promote the values of peace, tolerance, freedom and to empower the Afghan youths to stand and fight against extremism. The AELSO is home to those who are committed to promoting these values in the country. If you are interested and willing to dedicate your time or other resources, then the AELSO welcomes you and provides you the opportunity to have the honor of being part of the Liberty Club, AELSO Academy and other unique initiatives of the this Organization.
The conference was covered by more than 20 national and international media agencies.
You can also find more details about the Herat Youth Conference in the report produce and broadcasted by the Tolo News:
