Empowering Citizens Through Property Rights and Legal Security

Speech at the ceremony for granting property ownership certificates for informal urban areas in Herat

Keypoints: 

• Secure Property Rights: Legal ownership for all citizens, including women.
• Citizen Empowerment: Local control and decision-making within communities.
• National Unity: Herat as a symbol of Afghan cohesion and solidarity.
• Rule of Law: Establishing the law as the foundation for social and economic stability.
• Recognition of Sacrifice: Honoring martyrs and acknowledging historical contributions.
• Inclusive Development: Ensuring equal access to land, housing, and urban services.
• Long-term Vision: Programs designed to benefit both current and future generations.
• Growth and Stability: Linking property rights to broader national development initiatives.

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Allow me to speak to you as a fellow citizen of Herat. You—the city of Khwaja Abdullah Ansari, the city of Behzad, the city of Wazir Yar Mohammad Khan Alokozay, and the city of thousands of heroes—yesterday gave me the honor of welcoming all our partners in the TAPI project to ancient Herat on your behalf.

Respected fellow citizens, honorable representatives, elders, respected sisters, members of the Provincial Council, members of the National Assembly, members of the Cabinet, Mr. Governor, the Mayors of Lashkar Gah, Kandahar, and Herat, and Respected Mr. Peykar: Allow me first to offer you the gift of the Leader of Humanity: As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh!

First of all, I offer my condolences. While the people of Afghanistan are occupied with the joys of the TAPI celebration, the enemies of this land have once again, unfortunately, committed crimes in the city of Kabul, Lashkar Gah, and Farah province, martyring and wounding a number of our compatriots. I pray to the Almighty for the highest paradise (Jannat al-Firdous) for the martyrs of these unfortunate events and for a speedy recovery for the wounded. The enemies of Afghanistan must know that our resolve and will for the economic development of this land, and our struggle to suppress the enemies, will continue with full force. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un! (To Allah we belong and to Him we shall return).

First, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to all the people and strata of Herat. Today, Herat announced the message of national unity, agreement, and especially the Rule of Law to all of Afghanistan with a loud voice. When Herat moves, all of Afghanistan moves, Inshallah Ta'ala.

Second, TAPI is a program; TAPI is a project for changing lives and the "dastarkhwan" (livelihood). But yesterday, Heratis gave a gift to the people of Afghanistan that is beyond price: the revival of hope and belief in the future of Afghanistan. For this reason, the entire people of Afghanistan collectively welcome and celebrate this success and this change in Herat's perspective.

Third, thank you for transforming a city. Yesterday, in every corner of Herat, there was cleanliness, order, and empathy. In this regard, I gift the new Mawlana Hall to the people of Herat. This stone and craftsmanship is the work of the people of Herat, completed in two phases. I thank the Governor and all colleagues for creating this magnificent hall.

Moving forward, this will be a place that is always utilized. I congratulate you that the people of Herat, Farah, Nimroz, Helmand, and Kandahar committed with one voice that the security of TAPI will be the security of their own property, lives, and hearts. I congratulate you all that we were able to bring all our neighbors and three countries into a single line to reach the conclusion—based on Afghanistan's location, which I always tell you is "gold"—to invest seven to eight billion dollars.

The End of the "Vicious Cycle" of Land

If TAPI is one side of our work, establishing fixed and permanent property ownership is the other. Where was the problem and why was it created? Respected sisters, dear brothers, and esteemed fellow citizens! The problem is that we created a "vicious cycle" ourselves. What is this vicious cycle? First, land is usurped, then it is divided, and after that, you do not grant legal property rights to the person who has poured their life's sweat into it. Then, you chase them with a stick to leave their home and hearth. This vicious cycle is never acceptable.

Herat has been the site of martyrdom and sacrifice throughout our historical centuries. Herat has always built the national unity of Afghanistan at the cost of its own blood. Why should every Herati and every Afghan not have secure property? The promise I made to you is that the words "unplanned areas" and "insecure property" must no longer have a place in our lexicon.

Who has looked after Afghanistan throughout history? The people of Afghanistan. Therefore, after God (jt), who is the owner of Afghanistan? The people of Afghanistan. For the people of Afghanistan to truly be the owners of Afghanistan—not just spiritually, but practically and economically—what is required? A secure place.

Each of you has a special attachment to some point in Afghanistan. When hard days come, those sweet childhood memories of a specific village or a house—which might have only four or even two rooms—are worth billions in your heart. Our commitment to you is that your place shall be secure. Every Afghan must find the assurance that their home is secure and no one can interfere with their investment.

Specifically, every Afghan woman must understand that the Sharia of Muhammad and the Holy Quran have granted them the right of ownership and property. Thirteen hundred years ago, before the Western woman obtained the right to property, the Muslim woman had the right to property. Do not tell me again that I have done something new. Our entire will is the implementation of Islamic rights. Whenever the state has been strong and the courts have been just, the woman, the poor, and every citizen of the nation has had the right to property. This is the essence of the verses recited, where Prophet David (AS) was appointed as Caliph to ensure an atmosphere of security.

Governance as a Means, Not an End

Therefore, respected sisters and brothers: reforms and governance are not the goal; they are the means. Good governance is the means for our people to have bread, shelter, and a home, and the assurance to invest in their children. This is the fundamental goal. The property ownership of women facilitates this, and I congratulate you that women have received title deeds both as individuals and alongside their husbands and families.

In permanent property lies the unity of the Afghan family, and we want the unity of the Afghan family. We were Muslims, we are, and we shall be forever. We were Afghans, we are, and we shall be forever. Has anyone gifted us "Nationhood"? Who in this region has sacrificed as much as we have for the luminous religion of Islam and our national identity? Why did we endure the memories of 1.5 million martyrs and millions of refugees?

Did Herat not lose half of its residential area in a single day of bombing? In five hundred years, has Herat not been destroyed eight times? Has the Herati will been weakened? Has there been any doubt about national unity? Have they not been ready for sacrifice? Therefore, no one gifted us this nation; we earned it ourselves. We are committed to our religion—this is the secret of our unity. When we are under attack, we gather around the banner of Islam and defend our national unity.

It is necessary for our citizens to be the owners of the city. I also congratulate the mayors—the mayors of Kandahar, Lashkar Gah, and Herat. Today, we have created a vast program—Mr. Popal and all his colleagues—to issue one million deeds backed by massive state support. The name of that state program is the Citizens' Charter (Misagh-e-Shahrwandi). For every village and neighborhood in Afghanistan, we will reach a point in the next few years where there is state assistance, so the people themselves can decide.

My request to you, sisters and brothers, is to participate fundamentally in these councils. What you can do through your own unity, no one else can do. You can solve the problems yourselves; the duty of the state is to ensure there is no policy vacuum. When a vacuum exists, it gets filled by something else. If we do not implement the Rule of Law in land management, obviously other types of abuse will occur. Our will in this sector is absolutely firm.

A Small Stature, A Steely Will

Let me share a story to make you smile. During the Constitutional Loya Jirga, a lady had come from Iran. I greeted her, and she passed by me with great indifference. Then she came back, tapped me on the shoulder, and asked, "Are you Ashraf Ghani?" I said, "Yes, sister, I just greeted you a moment ago." She said, "With this stature? I thought you would be two meters tall and weigh 180 kilos!"

My point is this: our commitment, our pact, and our unity are not because of physical appearance or shape. They are because of national commitment and national programs to pull Afghanistan out of crisis. For forty years, we have taken the lives of five generations away from them. Situations came such that generation after generation, we sacrificed and lived in crisis. My message is very simple: the end of these inherited crises is the beginning of a life that is dignified, lawful, united, and driven by a firm national will.

Every Afghan is equal to every other Afghan. Every Afghan has the fundamental right to live in any corner of Afghanistan. We are a single body, and this single body requires a lawful and strong state to secure its rights.

Inshallah Ta'ala, with yesterday's actions and the actions of the past three years, you and I will lay the foundation for a life that, centuries from now, people will say: there was a generation of women, men, representatives, citizens, and a President with a small physical frame but a steely will who brought stability to Afghanistan.

Yasha-sin Afghanistan! Zhwandi de wi Afghanistan! Long live Afghanistan, and long live the brave and heroic people of Herat!