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NEWSLETTER May 2015

Afghan News

Ambassador’s Message

Embassy Activities

Culture Project

Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Tokyo

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AFGHAN NEWS

His Excellency President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani has hosted a series of meetings including with Ministers and staff of the Public Health, Economy, Justice, Transport,

Mines, and Urban Affairs ministries as well as with National Security Council mem-

bers, civil society and religious leaders and United Nations officials as part of a gru-eling schedule to ensure the country's forward momentum is maintained. During the

meetings, it was communicated that it was of fundamental importance to continue

reforms to state institutions, to take strong measures against corruption and to ensure transparency throughout all functions of governance. H.E. President Ghani stated

that the National Unity Government is determined to ensure peace in the country is

enhanced and during the meeting with representatives from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (as pictured above), he insisted that the government is

working to ensure that internally displaced persons and Afghan refugees continue to

be assisted in their return to their communities as an important aspect of the coun-try's overall security and development.

H.E. President Ghani Hosts A Series of Meetings As Part of

Broad Efforts Sustaining the Country's Foreword Momentum

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Newsletter, May 2015

H.E. CEO Dr. Abdullah:

Improving Maternal Health Is Our Top Priority

His Excellency Chief Executive Officer Dr. Abdullah Abdullah opened the conference “Call To Action”

which was a historic event in Kabul where the Gov-

ernment of Afghanistan, together with international

partners and experts, worked to identify ways to save

the lives of 35,000 children by 2020 with cost-

effective health interventions. Afghanistan has made great progress over the last thirteen years in the areas

of maternal health with a dramatic reduction in the maternal mortality rate from

1,600 to 327 people per 100,000 live births and the mortality rate of children under the age of five has dropped from 257 persons to 97 per 1,000 live births. H.E. CEO

Dr. Abdullah praised the tireless work of Afghan doctors, nurses and health special-

ists to achieve such drastic improvements in such a short period of time. The confer-ence focused on the necessity to further improve the current situation and it is be-

lieved that through skilled birth attendance at delivery, increased vaccination and im-

proved nutrition, Afghanistan will, with the assistance of the international commu-

nity, achieve a much improved situation for maternal health in the coming years.

H.E. Mr. Massoud Meets with Japanese Ambassador

Japanese Ambassador to Afghanistan His Excellency Mr. Hiroshi Takahashi met with Special Envoy to the

President on Reforms and Good Governance His Ex-

cellency Mr. Ahmad Zia Massoud for a meeting in Kabul. During the meeting, H.E. Ambassador Mr.

Takahashi expressed that Japan would increase its fi-

nancial and technical assistance for vital projects in Afghanistan such as for the construction of dams for

irrigation and other development and capacity build-

ing programs. He also emphasized that Japan was determined to open a new chapter

in the already robust relations shared between the two countries.

H.E. Mr. Massoud communicated to Ambassador Mr. Takahashi Afghanistan’s ap-

preciation and the importance of the central role that Japan is playing in the coun-

try’s path to self-reliant development. During the meeting, it was communicated that the National Unity Government will continue to fully support Japan’s benevolent ef-

forts which have resulted in Afghans across the country living healthier, freer and

happier lives.

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My Dear Japanese Friends,

This month has certainly passed quickly and has provided the op-

portunity for me on numerous occasions to visit Afghan students studying diligently at universities here in Japan. Listening to their

stories, I am continuously overcome with gratitude to the honor-

able people of Japan for the kindness and warm hospitality that is shown toward my Afghan brothers and sisters.

This month, the Embassy hosted a reception with Junior Chamber

International with sixty-five business people participating. I also had the honor of meeting with the Director of the National Museum of Afghanistan Mr. Massoudi as

he makes preparations for the “Hidden Treasures” exhibition which will tour Japan

in 2016. Such successes give me great hope for the future strengthening of the friendly ties between the peoples of our great nations.

In Afghanistan, the hospitality shown to others is one of our time honored tradi-

tions. As Afghanistan becomes more secure, it is a great dream of mine, and of many

other Afghans, that Japanese business people and tourists will travel to Afghanistan for business and pleasure and experience the warmth of Afghan hospitality, just as

my Afghan brothers and sisters have experienced hospitality here in Japan.

AMBASSADOR’S MESSAGE Dr. Sayed Mohammad Amin Fatimie

Newsletter, May 2015

EMBASSY ACTIVITIES Ambassador Dr. Fatimie Hosts Lunch With MoFA Japan

Recent years have witnessed the ever increasing strength and cooperation between senior levels of Japan's Ministry

of Foreign Affairs and Afghanistan. A lunch hosted by

Ambassador Dr. Fatimie and attended by the Special En-voy for Afghanistan and Pakistan Director-General of

Middle Eastern and African Affairs Bureau The Honorable

Mr. Tsukasa Uemura, Deputy Director-General of the Mid-dle Eastern and African Affairs Bureau The Honorable Ya-

sushi Misawa, Head of Afghan/Pakistan section The Hon-

orable Mr. Isami Takada, and Second Middle East Division Officer Ms. Shino Tsuji at the Ambassador's Residence, highlighted the growing bonds of cooperation be-

tween the two countries. Afghanistan’s deep gratitude for Japan’s invaluable assis-

tance was sincerely expressed.

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Newsletter, May 2015

Embassy Welcomes Director Mr. Massoudi

The Embassy had the great pleasure to welcome the Di-rector of the National Museum of Afghanistan, the es-

teemed Mr. Omara Khan Massoudi, to the Embassy. Lo-

gistics and other issues relating to the upcoming "Hidden Treasures From The National Museum of Afghanistan"

exhibition at the Kyushu National Museum and the To-

kyo National Museum in 2016 were discussed. During future months, the Embassy is looking forward with

great anticipation to keeping our readers up-to-date with

the progress of this historic exhibition.

Ambassador Dr. Fatimie Attends DPJ Reception

Continued political bipartisan support for Af-ghanistan is vital to maintain current trends of

high level cooperation between Afghanistan

and Japan and it was with this in mind that Am-bassador Dr. Fatimie attended a Democratic

Party of Japan reception. After listening to a

presentation regarding the DPJ's current and fu-ture political agendas, H.E. Ambassador Dr.

Fatimie met with a large number of senior gov-

ernment officials including with DPJ President The Honorable Mr. Katsuya Okada who he thanked for Japan’s ongoing support

for the people of Afghanistan.

Embassy Expresses Gratitude and Farewells Mr. Amiri

In what was a sad day for the Embassy, a reception was held in honor of Third Secretary Mr. Sayed Ali Asghar

Amiri's end of mission to Japan. His Excellency Ambas-

sador Dr. Fatimie provided a speech in front of attending Embassy staff, friends of the Embassy and Afghan Stu-

dent Association Representatives and praised Mr. Amiri

for his many valuable contributions to the Embassy and Afghan-Japan relations during the previous three years.

H.E. Ambassador Dr. Fatimie expressed his appreciation

for Mr. Amiri's diligent efforts and warmly wished him the very best as he continues his career with MoFA Afghanistan.

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Embassy Hosts Afghanistan Business Event with JCI

It was a great pleasure for the Embassy to host the first of its kind Afghanistan busi-

ness and economic event. In front of sixty

-five Japanese business people, His Ex-cellency Ambassador Dr. Fatimie led the

Embassy's efforts in presenting Afghani-

stan as a vibrant land of opportunity for Japanese business and investment. Junior

Chamber International communicated to

the Embassy that some JCI members are now wanting to go to Afghanistan to en-

gage in business activities and the local Chairman, the esteemed Mr. Soichiro Yoshi-

koka, articulated that his own and other members' perceptions of Afghanistan had completely changed in what was a successful event for promoting various Afghan

economic sectors.

With Ambassadress Fatimie in attendance, the evening started with speeches by H.E.

Ambassador Dr. Fatimie and Mr. Yoshikoka which were followed by a half-an-hour presentation on Afghanistan's business and investment opportunities by the Em-

bassy's Public Affairs Officer. Then a question and answer session was held between the business people and diplomats before a buffet dinner of sumptuous Afghan cui-

sine was served.

Along with guests from JCI, there were also esteemed participants from the Japanese

Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Minato City Council and from JTB. Through-out the evening, guests also enjoyed viewing an Afghan trade booth which demon-

strated a sampling of Afghan products.

Newsletter, May 2015

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Newsletter, May 2015

Embassy of Afghanistan in Tokyo

Address: 2-2-1 Azabudai, Minato ward, Tokyo, 106-0041

Tel: 03-5574-7611 / Fax: 03-5574-0195

CULTURE PROJECT Buzkashi — Intense battle on the field

What is “Buzkashi”?

Buzkashi is a national sport of Afghanistan which is often

played drawing audiences of thousands. It originated from

the ancient tradition of sacrificing a sheep for preventing

misfortune. Players from two teams ride horses and attempt

to drag a headless goat toward their goal. Since this is a

tough horse-mounted tackling game, it is played on a wide

field with almost no limitation to the numbers of players.

Under the Taliban Buzkashi regime considered it as im-

moral. Buzkashi demands the highest degree of horseman-

ship, courage, physical strength, and competitive spirit from

its players and so the skills of the players are greatly appre-

ciated by the audience.

Performance

According to recent rules introduced by the

Afghan Olympic Federation: 1. The ground has a square layout with each side 400 m long. 2. Each team consists of 10 riders. 3. Only five riders from each team can play in a half. 4. The total duration of each half is 45 minutes. 5. There is one 15 minute break between the two halves.

6. The game is supervised by a referee.

Someone would notice that the playing time is

exactly the same as that of football, but with a

much bigger playing field. Although there are

these official rules, most of the games are

played under free rules.

As seen in this picture on the left, 2 teams have

their own goal point marked as a circle. They

have to struggle against each other in order to

bring the goat into the circle. 2 points are

scored for each goal. At one end of the field

stands a line of flags marking the minimum dis-

tance the calf must be carried before return-

ing to the scoring circle to make a goal. A

team crossing the line of flags receives one

point.

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Interaction Between Horse and Human

Chapandaz is the term indicating a skilled, ex-

perienced Buzkashi player who is at least over

the age of 40. Most skilled Chapandaz will play

in the major contests. Northern Afghan horses

are renowned for their great speed and endur-

ance which is very important in Buzkashi. One

breed is called Tartar which is small but fast and

strong enough to impress even Alexander the

Great and Marco Polo. There are also Habash,

Borta, Waziri, Arabi and the Tazi types of breed.

Horses also need patient training and preparation

before participating in the big matches. Chapan-

daz train horses never to trample a fallen rider

and to swerve away from collisions without a

gesture from the rider. Also, horses are trained to push and ram their opponents and to stand per-

fectly still when the rider reaches down to the ground to grab the goat. Good horses play for as long

as 20 years.

Interesting Facts

A gutted carcass weighs from 20 to 50 kg, the eviscerated body being lighter.

The chapandaz wear high leather boots to protect themselves from the flying hooves.

In the past, as many as 1,000 players participated in a single match.

Some Chapandaz get extra pay by their sponsor whenever they score.

A common Afghan saying:

"Better a poor rider on a good horse than a good rider on a poor horse!"

Embassy of Afghanistan in Tokyo

Address: 2-2-1 Azabudai, Minato ward, Tokyo, 106-0041

Tel: 03-5574-7611 / Fax: 03-5574-0195

Website: www.afghanembassyjp.org

Newsletter, May 2015