>> INTERVIEW / GENERAL GAWN
six years in Bamyan were benign and in the first four years there were virtually no security concerns at all. When we commenced operations in the province in 2003 it did not include the northeast district of Kahmard, which was incorporated into Bamyan in 2006. This changed the dynamics of the situation in the province. The area up there is ethnically mixed – with Hazaras, Tajiks and others – and is also where we are having the most trouble. But even here until recently, two to three years at the most, we did not need or use armoured vehicles – we simply used crew-cabs with our troops sitting on the back. The concept of engaging with the local population is fundamental to the way that we do business. The locals have appreciated this approach and have been very supportive of our operational methodology. There is a high degree of confidence in the relationship we have with the population. Bamyan’s large Hazara
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population is very knowledgeable in terms of who’s in and out of the province. That is the fundamental difference in comparison to most of the other regions of Afghanistan. If Bamyan was not so ethnically homogenous it would be quite a different situation. The flashpoints relate to the ethnic, religious and tribal fracture lines up around the north and east of the province, where insurgents drift backwards and forwards across provincial borders. The provinces of Baghlan, Parwan and Wardak which border Bamyan are of the most concern. We experience that age old difficulty along boundaries and borders. This issue has required us to engage extensively with the Hungarian PRT in Baghlan Province. In the last five years the situation has changed and each patrol can now probably anticipate between two or three contacts or incidents on each tour. Fortunately, the NZDF has sustained few casualties in Afghanistan in
globaldefencemedia.com | winter 2012_13
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