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President Bush's Reply to Dr. Magee's Letter

The White House
Washington

February 19, 2003

Kenneth K. Magee, MD
5233 Uhrmann Road
Klamath Falls, Oregon 97601-9312

Dear Dr. Magee:

Thank you for your letter about Afghanistan. I appreciate hearing your concerns and welcome your suggestions.

As our Nation fights terrorism around the world, we remain fully committed to building a future of progress and stability for the Afghan people, and to ensuring the safety of those providing aid in the region. The United States had helped Afghanistan avert mass starvation, reopen schools for both boys and girls, and establish the most broadly representative and accountable government in that country's history. We are helping the men and women of Afghanistan claim their democratic future, establish public order and safety, and we are working closely with the Afghan government to overcome the forces of terror. American will continue to work with the Afghan people to assemble institutions that will help their country develop peacefully, and in their image, not American's. Starting with the Tokyo Conference in January 2002, the United States and 60 other countries have pledged to provide $4.5 billion over five years to aid in long-term economic reconstruction, and the United States has provided nearly $850 million for humanitarian assistance, reconstruction, and recovery projects in Afghanistan. We are helping to reestablish security institutions including the Afghan National Army, and to restore infrastructure, clear mine fields, improve health care, and integrate women into the workforce. Our Nation and our partners are rebuilding roads, bridges, waterways, and buildings, and in September 2002, the United States, Japan, and Saudi Arabia committed $180 million to reconstruct the highway connecting Kabul, Kandahar, and Herat.

Since October 2001, more than 2 million Afghan refugees have returned to their homeland, and more than 3 million children have returned to school in Afghanistan. Afghan girls now comprise 30 percent of the total student population. Newspapers, radio, and television have been reborn, and individual, political, and religious freedoms are being reestablished. Women doctors are returning to work, and male doctors are once again allowed to treat women. Thanks to this progress, Afghanistan has entered a new era of hope, and the United States will continue to help its citizens recover from many years of tyranny and oppression.

Thank you again for writing. Best wishes.

Sincerely,

George W. Bush