The State Minister for Peace: The Ministry will Utilize Academic Research Findings in Developing Work Policies and Decision-Making
Sayed Sadat Mansoor Naderi, the State Minister for Peace and member of the negotiating team of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan addressed the Launch event of the third “Afghan People’s Peace Perception Survey” held by the Institute of War and Peace Studies (IWPS).
Mr. Naderi said that the Ministry welcomes any academic effort leads to understanding the nature and dimensions of war and peace, and will utilize the results and findings of surveys and academic works in developing its work policies and decision-making.
The Minister stated that the peace process is a people-owned process, as in the long run it is the people who decide on the peace and future of Afghanistan through legitimate and defined mechanisms.
Mentioning that more than 75 percent of the people in the survey called for inclusion of a ceasefire as a key priority in the negotiations agenda by the negotiating team of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, he said that an immediate ceasefire and cessation of violence is the basic demand of entire Afghan nation and the international community, and the continuation of violence has no justification, and will affect the public trust in the peace process.
Mr. Naderi further stated that 96% of the respondents called the ongoing war against the Islamic Republic and the people of Afghanistan illegitimate, saying that this point has been raised many times by the people as the religious scholars of Afghanistan and the Islamic world also have consensus on the illegitimacy of the ongoing war in Afghanistan.
Referring that 88% of the respondents in the survey supported the republican system, the State Minister for peace stated that the values and achievements of the republican system over the past two decades are supported not only by the Afghan people but also by the international community and our international partners.
He added that 64% of the interviewees defended the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF), stating that the protection of defense and security structures is one of the priorities of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and no Afghan wants the past mistakes to be repeated.
Saying that 67% of the respondents supported the rights of war victims as a main point in the negotiations agenda, Mr. Naderi added that defending the rights of war victims and providing them with the opportunity to participate in the peace process is one of the main priorities of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and the State Ministry for Peace is one of the main defenders of this demand. He said that in addition to supporting this legitimate demand, we are working with national and international institutions to facilitate the presence of representatives of war victims at the negotiating table, and even we suggest to the other side to take steps in this regard.
It is worthwhile to mention that according to the organizers, more than 8600 people were interviewed in this survey, of which 53% were from rural areas and 47% were from urban areas.
