Opening of Lincoln Center in Herat
On Sunday, November 16, 2008, Sayyed Hussein Anwari, the Governor of Herat, Nematullah Sarwari, Director of Information and Culture for Herat, and Brad Hanson, the U.S. Department of State representative in Heart, cut the ribbon officially opening the Herat Lincoln Center.
About 80 invitees, including senior provincial and municipal government officials, the Consul Generals of Turkmenistan, Pakistan and India, civil society and youth representatives, Heart university lecturers and students’ representatives, journalists, and some NGO directors attended the opening ceremony.
“Opening of this center will be a huge step towards strengthening of cultural and educational ties between the citizens of Herat and the people of the United States,” said the Governor of Herat in his remarks. “I appreciate the efforts of the U.S. Embassy for setting up this center and urge the youth of Herat to come here and take advantage of this opportunity and the facilities provided.”
The U.S. State Department representative mentioned that Herat’s Lincoln Center is the fifth – and largest -- to open in Afghanistan. It provides a wealth of materials, in print and electronically, for learning English; accessing the worldwide internet; becoming familiar with American culture, literature, and history; and gaining information about studying in the United States. It also will provide a venue for Herat citizens to meet and share knowledge and information, to practice their English. The possibilities are endless. He thanked the Director for Information and Culture for all his office’s assistance in opening the Center and the Governor for his support. In closing, Mr. Hanson stated, “A book is a present you can open again and again. I hope the Lincoln Center will be a place that the people of Heart will visit again and again.”
The VOA Pashto and Dari stringers, Reuters stringer, and local Herat TV and print media covered the event, interviewing the Governor, Mr. Sarwari, and the State Department representative, as well as some of the guests at the inauguration.
After the ribbon cutting ceremony, Lincoln Center staff and visiting Public Affairs Section staff from the Embassy gave guests a tour of the Center to learn about all the resources the Center offers. And following the inauguration and after all the guests had departed, several students, including one who had studied in Iran, came in off the street looking for information about improving their English and studying in the United States.