Thank you.
Thank you, Madame. I'm very pleased to be able to take part in this discussion with you. I've been an admirer of your work for a long time. I'm very proud that we have a Canadian carrying our flag around the world in the manner that you have done.
You said early in your testimony that the international intervention in Afghanistan had not succeeded in the area of justice or building the rule-of-law institutions. My party has been supportive of our troops in Afghanistan but very concerned about the intervention and how it's been managed. I, for one, believe the failures are not the failures of Canadians, but the failures of an international community there.
At this committee we've heard very disturbing testimony about a practice called “boy dance”. A young child dances for a period of time and then is awarded as a sexual prize to one or more of the men in the room. We've heard that this has actually occurred at police stations and places like that. It seems to match up with what you've said in your testimony regarding military and police power.
It appears that allowing sexual assaults of this nature--and, more broadly, the attacking of women as well--is in a way a transferral of power from whoever is the government of the day, either by benign neglect or impunity, to the military and to the police to ensure their future support. Sadly, tragically, taking the power away from others by these acts is, in a way, empowerment for them.
I would be curious to hear your opinion: are the police and military sexual assaults more prevalent than actual civilian-to-civilian assaults?
That's one question. I'll go through a couple of things, and then you can answer as you feel.
I have to wonder, from your testimony, if there's broad-based support on the ground for the establishment of the rule of law in the supporting institutions. Our forces, the international forces, can do as much as possible, but there has to be that need within the community, within the peoples of a country, for it to be truly successful. There has to be a foundation. There have to be the bricks to build with, so to speak. I'd like your view on that. We all knew that the Taliban ruled with tyranny when they were there, but what were the cases of assaults and cases of that nature under their reign?
On resolution 1325, you've indicated that there has not been complete and enthusiastic support from the international community. I would suggest that's probably the reason--that it's not had the outcomes that we've wanted right along--but that's more of a comment on your comments.
Perhaps you'd like to respond to the first part.
Thank you.