Speech in Celebration of Independence Day

It is a great pleasure to welcome you this evening.  Thank you for joining me in this celebration of the anniversary of the founding of the United States of America. 

231 years ago delegates from thirteen colonies on the remote shores of eastern North America declared that they represented free and independent states.  Their words also defined the ideals that would guide the course of the new nation.

But this declaration was only the start of our national journey toward a democratic society that embraces all its citizens.  To realize these ideals, we still had to enact a constitution for an effective representative government.  We still had to establish the precedent of our leaders stepping aside and handing power over through free elections.  We still had to endure a terrible civil war to assure our national unity.  We still had to struggle to provide all citizens the full rights of citizenship and economic opportunity.  And this journey is far from over.

Chad faces such challenges as well.  You confront the task of consolidating your constitutional government; of forging a nation after suffering for too long the agony of ethnic conflict and civil war; of using your oil resources transparently for the benefit of all; and ensuring the peaceful transfer of power from one leader to another. 

We salute your efforts to surmount these challenges.  We welcome the talks underway on electoral reform and hope they will lead to real results.  Not by arms, but by dialogue and elections will Chad ever break the cycle of violence and know lasting peace.  Only by engaging in the patient work of democracy will you be able to resolve your differences, build consensus, and make decisions about your common future within the framework of enduring democratic institutions.

We urge all Chadians to join in seeking to advance further down this path.  It is a journey for you – the people and leaders of Chad – to undertake together.  And I want you to know that we will be at your side ready to lend support.

Let me close on a personal note.  This is the fourth time I have stood before you to share a few words on the occasion of my country’s national day.  I will be leaving Chad tomorrow after three challenging and eventful years.  I will never forget the many friends I have made here nor the many kindnesses they have shown me.  In my time with you here in N’Djamena and in my travels to the far corners of your country, I have come to know many, many people whose integrity and good will I respect immensely.  I leave here hopeful for the future because I know they and many more like them remain in Chad working for the good of their country.

Allow me to express my thanks to all who have meant so much to me.  To my colleagues in the American Embassy, thank you for all you have done for the success of our mission.  It has truly been an honor to serve with you.  To my friends in the American and international community, thank you for the good and important work you do, whether in the camps for refugees and displaced Chadians, in the Doba oil fields, or in schools and churches throughout the country.  To the Chadian people, thank you for letting me enter your lives and share with you this moment in the history of your country.

And to all of you here, thank you again for coming.

Vive la cooperation, vive la amitie entre le peuple du Tchad et des Etats-Unies.