Tom Clark's Afghanistan Blog

[GAP]

Tom Clark's Afghanistan Blog
Updated Sat. Mar. 3 2007 12:13 PM ET Tom Clark, CTV News
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Saturday March 3: I'll say this much for the soldiers of the Van Doos; they're the most fashionable soldiers in Kandahar. Many of them have adopted the keffiyeh as an accessory to the rather bland desert uniform.

The keffiyeh is that black and white chequered piece of cloth, sometimes worn as an Arab headdress, but among some westerners worn as a scarf around the neck. Soldiers going back to the Second World War found them useful in hot climates as a way of keeping the sand away from the face and mouth. Useful and utilitarian.

But strangely dashing too. Call it military chic.

I bring this up only because, once again, I was a guest of the best dressed unit in the south, bouncing along in one of their convoys.

But it was where we were bouncing that made this special. We were tracking exactly the route taken by Alexander the Great in 392 BC when he rumbled through here on his way home from conquering the world. Now a lot has changed in 2,400 years, but not everything.


For instance, the mountain passes he had to go through are still here and still control the way in and out of Kandahar City, but the choke points that would have been controlled by Alexander (or his enemies) are today the responsibility of a Mountie from Newfoundland. Historically speaking that's a bit of a surprise.

Cpl. Barry Pitcher of St. John's left his suit and tie life as a commercial fraud investigator to show the Afghan police how to get their man, and in this case, their Taliban.  He's going to be here a full year, twice as long as most of the soldiers, including the Generals, and generations longer than most reporters.


Pitcher happily admits that his Mountie friends back home have questioned his sanity. But he's here with some other like-minded police as well, including one from Cape Breton and another from Medicine Hat.

It will be interesting to see how the Afghan police turn out in a few years. Can't you just see them, after this training, pulling over a car and saying, "Good Day me son, I wants ya to put down dat RPG, la. And don't step in the snow eh?"

And they'll probably say it with a jaunty little keffiyeh around their necks.
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[Gronk]

Quite an interesting blog. Worth a look.

 

[GAP]

Updated Tue. Mar. 13 2007 3:50 PM ET

Tom Clark, CTV News
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Tuesday March 13: It's been 30 days and nights and it's time for me to leave Afghanistan. There is much envy among my colleagues, and a certain wistfulness among some of the soldiers who won't even be thinking of going home for another few months.

But leaving here is a funny thing. It's not as simple as you might imagine. I don't mean the actual mechanics of leaving -- I'll be going out in the same patched up, slightly eccentric, Russian cargo plane that brought me in. I mean more the emotion of leaving.

Everyone who comes here, in whatever job or capacity, gets deeply drawn in. This is a difficult, complex, and utterly fascinating place. I've not met anyone who is ho-hum about it.

The Canadian soldiers who have been here, are here, and who are coming here, will be changed. Out in the field, they interact with the local population a great deal. Many have picked up words and expressions in Pashtou, the local language, and most have had an up close look at a culture they probably never even thought about just a few years back. And they have done extremely well with it. I think there's something about Canadians, and especially something about the Canadian military, that makes us a bit more open, a bit more curious about things and people, and it shows over here.

And speaking of our military, I can't think of another group that has so impressed me so consistently. My God, we've got some fine intelligent people in uniform.
I suspect when I return I will be asked what I think of the mission here, whether it's the right one, and if it can succeed. My answer, just so you know in advance, will be to pass on what Afghans have said to me when I've asked them that same series of questions, because I figure they have a bigger stake in the answer than I do.

In short, the consensus is yes it can work, if by that you mean giving the country a chance to succeed without the terror of the Taliban hanging over their future. It's not there yet, but the combination of security provided by NATO and development provided by people and governments, is having a positive effect. And of course an Afghanistan free of terror can only be a good thing for the rest of the world.

But back to the difficulty of leaving such a place, and why so many civilians and soldiers are ready to come back. Life here is played out in primary colours. Everything matters, and everything is in sharp focus. There is a raw clarity to basic things, and so much here is basic.

From here, the world back home can seem grey and indecisive, a "on the one hand on the other" sort of place. It may be more comfortable, but it can't be more intriguing.

So, with some regret, I'm leaving. I thank all who have written to me, especially the many mothers of soldiers serving here, both Canadian and American. I can tell you, your kids are alright and should make you proud.

Now to Dubai, and the promise of a glass of something red and a real bed with a 420 thread count sheet.
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[CdnArtyWife]

I have been following his blog daily and just read that piece. Its a shame that he's coming home so soon, I have been impressed with his reporting and blogging and I just plain like his style. Hopefully whoever is replacing him will have just as much class.

Cheers,

CAW

 

[GAP]

Excellent Blog, well worth the read.

 

[GAP]

Paul Workman's Afghanistan Blog
Updated Thu. Mar. 15 2007 10:40 AM ET Paul Workman, CTV News
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Kandahar, AFGHANISTAN -- Thursday, March 15: Abdul Noorzai has a gentle face with radiant eyes and remarkably long ear lobes. He smiles easily and often. He smiled widely this week when he met Canada's defence minister at the Kandahar airfield. Reporters smiled too as Noorzai jumped out of his car and walked right past Gordon O'Connor before being summoned back with the curl of the minister's index finger.

This was the man O'Connor vowed to look straight in the eye and demand some answers. The man he was supposed to meet two days earlier but was stood up. It finally happened with photo-op planning inside Canada's detention centre here, known officially as the "Detainee Transfer Facility." This is the place where Afghan prisoners end up before being handed over to local authorities, either the police, or the intelligence services. Most Afghan prisoners, but not all, it turns out. More on that later.

As regional director of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, Noorzai has an important position. Whenever he speaks, he always emphasizes the word "independent," even though the term is relative and used casually in a place like Afghanistan.

"He's a very honest man, really dedicated to human rights," said the minister who rather desperately needs Noorzai's help. Perhaps the word "desperate" is too strong; more like "badly wants," or "urgently requires."
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