KANDAHAR - Colleagues and friends of Toopaki Ulfat gathered in Kandahar today to pay tribute to her life and express their sense of loss on account of her murder earlier this week.

Staff from across the UN family were joined at the memorial service by Nicholas Haysom, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan.

“Toorpaki knew that as a member of the United Nations she had the power to affect change for the good of her country,” said Mr. Haysom. “She used her privileged position to help those most vulnerable, Afghan women and children.”

Mr. Haysom spoke of how the perpetrators not only robbed the UN of a dedicated worker and the community of a wonderful person but also “deprived Afghanistan of a champion, a supporter who had committed much of her life to the welfare of its people.”

Toorpaki worked over the past five years for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). She was a respected human rights defender. Her commitment was not dimmed by the challenging security environment. She represented the best of what Afghan youth have to offer. Her ideals and enthusiasm were an inspiration to her colleagues and to those she helped.

The motive behind her senseless murder is to be determined, but UNAMA is committed to do all it can, and work closely with local authorities, to identify the killers.

Before the unveiling of a commemorative plaque, Mr. Haysom echoed the Secretary-General’s condolences to Toorpaki’s mother, father and family.