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REMARKS BY:
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TOMMY G. THOMPSON, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
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PLACE:
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UNICEF House Visitor's Center, New York City, NY
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DATE:
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November 6, 2002
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"Bringing Hope to Afghan Women and Children:
The New Kabul Health Clinic"
Thank you so very much, Karin (ShamPoo, Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF), for that kind introduction. It's a real pleasure to be here with you all today. Let me begin by thanking some of the fine people who are doing so much to make the dream of a prosperous, independent Afghanistan a reality.
Just a few weeks ago, I visited Afghanistan and I could not fathom what I saw. That's why we're here today, and that's why we have to do something.
Karin and Eric (LaRoche, UNICEF Representative in Afghanistan), the work that you and UNICEF have done is extraordinary, and we're grateful for your efforts. This report on the status of Afghan women and children that we're announcing today is truly a groundbreaking work in bringing health and hope to those who need it most.
Linda Bartlett, your work and that of your colleagues at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been equally important in saving so many lives in Afghanistan. And I know that together, we're going to save a lot more. You're an outstanding member of the HHS team.
And I would be remiss if I did not thank those without whom we would not be having this press conference - the fighting men and women of America, Afghanistan and other nations who brought down tyranny and sowed the seeds of hope for future generations of Afghans.
All of you have done great work. But we should remember that we can only do so much. A prosperous, independent Afghanistan will only be truly secured when the Afghan people themselves assume the responsibilities of ordered society ... of equal justice ... and of equal rights. They can - and they will.
In my meeting with President Karzai, I had the opportunity to hear firsthand what help they needed and wanted. The President also said that he wanted America's help to teach them so the Afghan people can do for themselves.
But there will be many hurdles. In a land where murderous fanatics launch rocket attacks on schools that teach small girls to read ... in a land where some women and children die because their husbands and fathers will not allow them to seek medical treatment from the only available - and male - doctor ... the road from here to there seems very long. My friends, we are going to help them shorten it.
Make no mistake - helping Afghanistan means helping its women and children. And the plight of women in Afghanistan is dire indeed. We must help Afghanistan rebuild.
When I went there last month, I was shocked to see the living conditions of the Afghans that I met. Decades of war, the cruelty of weather, and the blight of imposed ignorance have stripped away a proud people's humanity, too often reducing life to a brutal game of survival and chance. And it is the women - cloistered, powerless, often caring for families alone - who suffer most.
Linda can tell you in detail just how bad it is. Suffice it to say that life is all too short and too awful for too many Afghan women.
Just reading the CDC/UNICEF report breaks your heart. In provinces outside Kabul, in places like Kandahar and Badakshan, most women die from the complications of childbirth. The vast majority of these deaths - not only from childbirth, but also from infection, disease, and trauma - are preventable.
But they're only preventable with the right equipment. They're only preventable with the right personnel. They're only preventable with the right education. And that's where we come in.
Because I've seen firsthand the devastation in Afghanistan, I'm proud to tell you today that we're taking a critical first step toward making the lives of Afghan women better and more humane. The Department of Health and Human Services, in cooperation with the Department of Defense, the Department of State and USAID, is committed to building and staffing a new women's health clinic in Kabul. And we're going to start construction this month.
Next week, I am sending an assessment team of HHS staff to Afghanistan to determine the needs of the clinic. I hope to have the clinic up and running in 60 days.
We are also teaming-up with expatriates who were born and raised in Afghanistan but who live and practice medicine here in the United States to go back to their native country to provide health care and teach. One of the first courses they will teach will be on midwifery.
Perhaps most important for the long run, it means that Afghan health workers will get the training they need, setting the stage for future expansions of women's health care in other parts of the country.
It's a small first step. But it is just the first.
When we build that clinic ... when we provide prenatal care to women in remote villages ... we won't be helping just the women of Afghanistan. We'll be helping every man, woman and child of that ancient land who ever looked at their country, loved it, and wanted to make it a better, freer, more decent place.
And we must not stop there. It will take the collective effort of the world community, from governments to NGOs to individual citizens to help Afghanistan rebuild in order to become self-sufficient. Only them will we be able to call our efforts a complete success.
Thank you for having me here. May God bless you all.
Last Revised: November 7, 2002
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