Text of a message given inside Malalai Hospital on May 27, 2002 by Steve Penners, president of the Afghan Women's Mission
Doctors and staff of Malalai Hospital, members of RAWA, friends and guests. It is my great pleasure to have been invited to be with you here today for today we are officially inaugurating a new hospital dedicated to the work of improving the lives of Afghan women. The idea for this hospital originated with Meena, founding leader of RAWA. It had operated for 10 years in Quetta, Pakistan and had helped countless scores of women and children until it was closed a few years ago due to lack of funding.
In early 2000, I founded the Afghan Women's Mission with the primary objective of re-opening the doors of Malalai Hospital and once again serving the needs of so many well deserving Afghan women. RAWA had brought the plight of Afghan women vividly to my attention through their web site and emails. Upon discovering that their hospital had closed some years earlier, I was deeply saddened and resolved to make every possible effort to once again bring healing within the reach of many Afghan women through free or low cost health care.
I did not know if it was possible to successfully complete such a project due to the large scope of funding needed and my own lack of experience, but because of a deep and sincere respect for the rights of women who are enduring so much difficulty and trauma, I felt that I must commit to the task.
Happily, through the combined efforts of many at the Afghan Women's Mission, and RAWA, and with the help of our wonderful donors and supporters, we are now witnessing the successful accomplishment of this monumental achievement. In late 2001, a small clinic was opened and on January 1, 2002, the small clinic gave way to the larger Malalai Hospital in Rawalpindi, Pakistan and is once again doing the important work of bringing health care within the reach of Afghan women and children.
As many of the patients have exclaimed - "We have been here many years and no one cared about us. We have never seen the level of caring and concern as we find at this hospital." It is by comments such as these that we positively know that the work of Malalai Hospital is meeting it's objectives in not only promoting physical healing, but letting Afghan women know that there are many, many people who love them and who are willing to sacrifice time, energy and money to prove it.
There will continue to be a need to support this effort in the future, and as the hospital does not have government or large organizational support, but is paid for through private donations, I hope we can count on all those hearing about it to help it continue and improve its work through their generous contributions. I also hope that the government of Pakistan will fully recognize the valuable work being done for the improvement of society by RAWA and will make every effort to assist in those works.
A special thanks to the doctors and staff of Malalai Hospital whose caring and skill are making a tremendous positive impact on the lives of so many deserving women and children. And a special thanks also to the members of the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan whose tireless work has brought this dream to reality. With these words let Malalai Hospital be officially inaugurated. Thank you.
