Inspector General, senior officers, officers and men of the Islamabad Police and all representatives of Pakistan’s law enforcement, I thank you very much for the honor of joining you today, particularly this day, the 235th anniversary of the independence of the country I represent, the United States of America. You do me high honor in allowing me to share it with you.
Inspector General, since the dawn of history, all societies, peoples and countries have had two professions of arms: one to protect our communities from the threats from outside and the second to protect our communities from the threats from inside. And while I, the grandson, son and brother of Army officers have enormous respect for the military, it is now and always has been the police that protect our communities day after day. They patrol our streets and protect our homes, they rescue our children and confront the criminals, they solve crimes, and they bring justice to our communities. Whether it’s Islamabad or Washington, Lahore or New York, Karachi or Los Angeles, they are the bedrock of our communities.
Ladies and gentlemen, from time to time, far too often, they pay the ultimate price, they make the ultimate sacrifice. Inspector General, about one month ago, specifically on the seventh of June, I participated in an annual ceremony at the U.S. Law Enforcement Memorial in the city of Washington, where all American police, federal, state and local police met to honor those who fell that year. We added nearly 40 names to the memorial. We are here today at Pakistan’s memorial where 500 names are already inscribed and 1,400 more will soon be inscribed. We say about each of those names that when others fled, they stood; when others cowered, they protected their communities; while others lived in cowardice, they died in honor. To them, to their families, I offer thanks, I offer respect, and I offer the highest honors.
If I might close on this 4th of July, quoting the words of the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, who said in Gettysburg in 1863, “The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here; while it can never forget what they did here.” Members of the Pakistani Law Enforcement Community, I thank you, I honor you, and I respect you. Thank you very much.
