Appointment a tribute to my country: Qazi

Pakistan's Ambassador Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, who is to take over as UN secretary-general's special representative to Iraq, on Monday said he was deeply honoured by the appointment, which he stated "is a tribute to my country, and my country's foreign policy."
He observed this in his farewell speech to the youth, at the largely-attended Summer Leadership Conference of the Pakistani-American Liaison Center (PAL-C) Rising Leaders at the Jamshed Marker Auditorium of the Pakistan Embassy.
Minister of State and Chairman National Commission for Human Development, Dr Nasim Ashraf; former Congressman Charlie Wilson, Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, chief of the Jang Group; Congressional Chief of Staff and Congressional staffers, and upcoming students and professionals from all over America attended the conference, besides PAL-C Executive Director Faiz Rehman.
Ashraf Qazi said he was honoured to be able to be the Special Representative of the UN secretary-general and to have an opportunity to lead a team to Iraq.
"It would be devoted to serving the Iraqi people and co-operating with the Iraqi government in the process of a political transition towards a stable participatory inclusive democracy", he added.
PAL-C Rising Leaders' motto is: 'Young Americans of Pakistani heritage working to build a better America.' It has been created in recognition of the fact that Americans of the Pakistani heritage are significantly underrepresented in the American political system. It seeks to cultivate a generation of Pakistani-Americans who will be a leading force in US domestic and international politics.
Ashraf Qazi said: "I am a Pakistani, I would always be a Pakistani." "To the extent our mission improves, Insha-Allah, it will have a great feedback also for the relationship between Iraq and Pakistan."
He clarified two mis-impressions which have found expression in the media. One is that my appointment is somehow linked to the issue of Pakistan making a contribution to security force in Iraq. It is simply not the case."
He said Pakistan is an independent sovereign country, and it will take its independent sovereign decision with respect to sending any contingent to Iraq, and it takes into account not only the security situation in Iraq and state of public opinion in Iraq, but also the state of public opinion in Pakistan, and those will remain the parameters within which it will make its decision.
"My function, my mandate is the mandate that is given in United Nations Security Council Resolution 1546, in which the task set before the SRSG of the United Nations is laid out in political and electoral task as well as task involving assistance for humanitarian reconstruction work."
"So, there is absolutely no linkage between my appointment and any decision that Pakistan will take, and I would like to reiterate that is simply the fact," he stated.
He said: "The other impression is that because I am serving in this great capital, I might be taking some specific agenda with me", adding: "That is simply not possible- is not the fact. My agenda once again is the agenda that is spelt out in the UNSC resolution, and will be guided by the interests of the Iraqi people, and that is a very specific mandate."
Ashraf Qazi also said: "We will be aiming at national elections for an interim government next January, after which there will be huge efforts to assist in bringing about consensus for an Iraqi Constitution, which would be submitted to a referendum of the Iraqi people under which Constitution, a general election will be held for a permanent constitutionally elected government, hopefully by the beginning of 2006." And, that would be the completion of the transition to a political and stable democracy.
"On top of that, of course, we will be assisting with humanitarian reconstruction work that is the mandate, that is the agenda. "I assure you as your ambassador here, as Ashraf Qazi, that is my word there is no other agenda."
Qazi said it was important to make that point, "because, I have seen articles in the press which are suggestive to the contrary."
Earlier, in his welcome remarks, Deputy Chief of the Missions of the Pakistan Embassy, Mohammad Sadiq paid tributes to the capable leadership of Ambassador Qazi, during whose tenure a number of events were held, involving the Pakistani American youths in a number of new initiatives.
He referred to professionals conference, and formation of national associations of Pakistani-American students, besides, Rising Leaders, which is a youth arm of the Pakistani-American Liaison Center (PAL-C). He referred to the valuable experiment of induction of interns, and innovative mass mailing system to reach out the community and devising popular Embassy web site, which is drawing record daily hits, computerising of passports and visas.
The goal of PAL-C Rising Leaders is to push forward, and in order to be truly American, the youth must participate in the American political system and that young students and professionals are the link between the community and the leadership.