Yesterday morning I attended the National Memorial Service for the victims of the terrorist attacks in Bali. The Service was deeply moving and allowed me to come face to face with the grieving families of the victims for the first time since these heinous events took place. The suffering of the families of the victims was palpable and haunting for one such as myself who has memories of Afghanistan.

As the Ambassador for Afghanistan I would like to express my deep sympathy to the survivors, the relatives of those lost and the Australian people in relation to this tragic incident. I extend my sympathy as well to the victims and families of other nations, to the community of Bali and to the Indonesian people. I wish the Australian people to know that the Afghan people share and feel the pain of this attack because of their own bitter experiences with terrorism, radicalism and extremism.

Among the first messages of sympathy sent to Australia following the terrorist attack were those from the representatives of the Government and people of Afghanistan. I passed messages of condolence from His Excellency Mr. Hamid Karzai, President of the Transitional Islamic Government of Afghanistan and from the Honourable Dr Abdullah, Minister for Foreign Affairs to the Honourable John Howard, the Prime Minister of Australia and to the Honourable Alexander Downer, Minister for Foreign Affairs respectively on 14 October 2002.

In his message H.E. Mr. Karzai said:

"I present my deepest sympathy and condolences to [Prime Minister] and through you to the people of the friendly country of Australia and the survivors and relatives of those who lost their lives in this sad incident. May the victims of this tragic event have a happy soul for eternity. I wish patience for their families and relatives to overcome the grievance of this tragedy."

Dr Abdullah also expressed his sincere regret at the news of the terrorist attack and presented his deepest sympathy and wishes for patience to provide calm and endurance to the families and relatives of the victims.

The Government and people of Afghanistan denounce this act of terrorism. There is no justification for such a heinous crime and we strongly condemn it.

Australia stood with Afghanistan to fight invasions and terrorism and Afghanistan stands ready to support Australia in any way it can in counter-terrorism campaign both regionally and globally. Our experiences in Afghanistan have taught us that the causes of terrorism are complex and multidimensional and that it cannot be fought on a battlefield alone. In order to eliminate it successfully, nations need to cooperate and to engage fully with each other as we intend to do in our future relations with Australia and its people.

I hope that the survivors and the relatives of those who lost their lives may find healing both physically and spiritually. At this time the hearts of Afghans go to you in your sorrow. We believe that after every darkness there is a light. I hope that this is so for all Australians who were affected in any way by the attack in Bali.

Mahmoud Saikal

Ambassador

25 October 2002