Dear Colleagues,

Thank you for coming.

Today we come together to mourn UN staff and all victims of the terrible and horrific attack that took place in Kabul on Friday.

Just like us, our colleagues Basra, Nasrin, Khanjar and Vadim were members of the UN family.

Their job was to deliver the work of the organization, but in an extremely charged, turbulent and dangerous environment – helping the people of Afghanistan, from its children to its leaders, to face a new future on their own.

In this challenging environment, the restaurant where the attack happened, the Taverna du Liban, tucked in a quiet street in one of Kabul’s oldest neighbourhoods, was seen as a haven of peace.

We all need to wind down at the weekend after a hard week’s work and for our colleagues and the others who perished, the taverna was a place to go to socialize, relax and find some normality. And also to put aside the danger, in a restaurant that was on the safe list of place to go.

Colleagues and others I have spoken to who have been to Afghanistan, speak warmly of the owner, Kamal, who did his best to make this so. Flying in authentic ingredients to make the food he served taste just right, being generous in his hospitality and making sure no-one left without trying his chocolate fondant.

And that is why so many UN colleagues and others gathered there at weekends. We have also heard about the head of the IMF mission, students working at the American University.

And there were the many Afghans there too. One of them, Amruddin, a waiter in the restaurant, was saving hard, like many young people in his situation, for his wedding. He had been putting in double shifts and was looking forward to the big day.

It was because the taverna was so popular with foreign officials that the terrorists decided to attack that evening. Blowing open the gates and then entering and indiscriminately firing at close range until local forces could bring the situation under control.

The same kind of attack that took place against our colleagues in Nairobi and Mogadishu.

This is the sad reality that we as UN staff face today. The UN flag is now a target, not a shield and we are targeted because of who we are and what we do.

Last year 58 personnel were targeted by terrorists and insurgents, making it a particularly murderous year. This year sadly promises more of the same. And we await news of colleagues abducted in among other places, Syria and Yemen.

Life, working for the UN, has become more and more dangerous. Since the bombing in Baghdad, whose victims are commemorated in this plaque behind me, over 560 colleagues have died in the line of duty.

Perhaps this is a fate we must accept. But let’s hope not. Let’s hope too that those who planned this atrocity are brought to justice.

Yet sadly, this may well not happen. Too often, as UN personnel, we seem to slip through the gaps. For example, only 43 countries have signed the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel.

Staff, management and member states must work together to do all we can to change this situation. To restore the UN flag as a shield, to strengthen protection and ensure acceptance of our mission and goals.

We owe this to the 560 colleagues killed since Baghdad.

For the 58 who died last year.

And we owe this to Basra, Nasrin, Khanjar and Vadim, who so steadfastly and selflessly carried out the work of this great organization.

May their souls rest in peace.

Thank you

Delivered by Ian Richards, President, UNOG Staff Coordinating Council