Bearding the Lion
At the outset of “3D Vision” (July/ August), I thought that authors Taylor Owen and Patrick Travers were going to address the question of why we are in Afghanistan. But as in virtually every commentary on the war, they skirted the issue.
I believe that Canada is in Afghanistan because Chrétien, Martin, and Harper didn’t want to upset Mr. Bush when “we the people” wouldn’t tolerate joining the rape of Iraq. But this war is likely to be as great a disaster. When the ussr invaded Afghanistan from right next door, they lost almost 15,000 of their soldiers, another 50,000 plus were seriously wounded, and they still got run out of town.
John Olsen
Errington, British Columbia
As a Canadian Forces soldier with two tours in Afghanistan under my belt, I have front line experience with Canada’s 3D (defence, diplomacy, and development) policy.
In the fall of 2005 — the beginning of my second tour — Paul Martin sent a small group of us to take over the American Provincial Reconstruction Team camp inside Kandahar city. The goal was to help move the Canadian contingent from Kabul in the north to the volatile southern regions. The dangers were well-known, and many of our families were told we wouldn’t come home.
We walked the streets of Panjawai carrying out 3D. We didn’t build wells or schools, but we did help Afghans build infrastructure themselves. We earned the trust of the people as well as the respect of tribesmen, who understand talk of peace at the end of a rifle.
When diplomat Glyn Berry was killed by a suicide bomber on his way to a reconstruction site in early 2006 (I was injured in the same attack), it was definitely a turning point. It showed us that we were vulnerable, a target to be engaged. Canadian policy shifted slightly in that defence became our first priority. But the 3D approach allows for this; it is, in a sense, part of the plan. And troops continue to have the support of the people.
However, the future of Afghanistan really lies with three institutions: the Afghan government, the country’s police and judicial systems, and its army. The army is fiercely proud and already effective — with greater numbers, it will do well. Law and order will take longer to professionalize due to corruption and the lack of popular support. The government will succeed when President Karzai weakens the warlords’ hold on the country’s parliament.
