Thank you, witnesses, for appearing. I have just a few comments.
I think it's extremely difficult to compare the situation in Haiti with the situation in Afghanistan. I have concerns about the many comments to do with negotiating. I wonder what the Afghan women members of Parliament who were here on the Hill would think. What would they negotiate away in these negotiations? Their jobs, their lives, their children's lives, education, governance? Where do you start and stop? I believe that eventually there will be dialogue and consultation, but I believe you negotiate from a position of strength.
My major question to Ms. Banerjee would be this: do you not feel that the best way to buttress the country against the extremes of the Taliban when they return would be by building the governance capacity, building the institutional capacity, and educating the youth? Even if it takes a generation or two, these are all very important things that will require assistance until the country has the capacity to refuse to accept the extremes of the Taliban.
As you said, the more moderate members of the Taliban could possibly fit into this method of increased governance—and quite nicely. But it's a little premature to be having these discussions. You're going to be losing an awful lot of the characteristics that these members of Parliament expressed to us when they came to the Hill. I would think that we have much more work to do on the governance and capacity-building level. Maybe you can comment on how we can improve and bring that along more.