>> INTERVIEW / GENERAL GAWN
On duty in full combat gear this NZDF soldier is no threat to the local children of the Bamyan province in Afghanistan
ets: Tell us about the NZDF involvement in Bamyan. General Gawn: We chose Bamyan province because it was an environment that suited our capabilities in the way our military conducts business. Bamyan is unique compared to other parts of Afghanistan. It is mountainous and environmentally challenging. The deep valleys turn a lush green during the growing season. There are parts of Bamyan that look like New Zealand and we often refer to it as living at the height of Mount Ruapehu, the central plateau of the North Island of New Zealand. Bamyan has been a relative microcosm of serenity in comparison to the rest of Afghanistan – the province is less developed than other parts of the country. The people engage in subsistence agriculture and the road systems are very limited. The New Zealand government at the time was wise to choose a province which was mostly homogenous in its ethnic makeup. Bamyan is overwhelmingly ethnic-Hazara, who follow Shia Islam. The province is generally progressive and the people are friendly. A significant proportion of Bamyan’s children and adolescents of both genders now go to school or even university. It is also the only province in Afghanistan that has elected a female governor. New Zealand was one of the first, if not the first country to establish a PRT in Afghanistan after the US. The New Zealand PRT is based around a combat
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element of about 140 personnel. We conduct our rotations around the seasonal weather changes. During winter, parts of Bamyan are literally cut off from the outside world due to the heavy snowfall. Since 2003 the PRT has completed 20 rotations so far. Over 2,500 personnel have deployed to Afghanistan in total – this includes a number of smaller deployments to other regions in Afghanistan; for example, the NZSAS and staff officers in ISAF headquarters.
ets: Since the NZDF and its coalition allies first arrived what has been achieved in the province? General Gawn: To provide security the Bamyan provincial government does not have anything more than an indigenous police force. The ANA do not operate in Bamyan. Since last year we have transitioned around 90 per cent of the security of Bamyan to the Afghan National Police (ANP). The ANP in Bamyan are recruited locally and are mostly Hazara. Because they are well-trained they are often pulled out of the province and deployed to other less stable provinces. The whole focus of what we are doing in Bamyan is to build capacity of the ANP, so as we transition out they are able to sustain themselves without our assistance. We have deployed a New Zealand police training team that teaches at the Bamyan police academy, along with police training teams from EUPOL and Canada – these also provide instructors and mentoring support.
globaldefencemedia.com | winter 2012_13
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