FEATURES


By communicating with elders and elected representatives, the message about what it is the GIRoA can offer is being passed down to locals who are beginning to see the benefits.


This has undoubtably given us advantage and has meant commanders on the ground are able to converse more easily with their Afghan counterparts and problems and issues are dealt with more quickly and satisfactorily.


I have found a lot of my work involves translating for locals who are seeking compensation for damaged crops or local elders who want to know which department of the GIRoA they need to speak to for help resolving issues.


Being in Afghanistan and actually speaking the language has helped me to improve markedly, compared with how I was when I finished the course. Although I initially found the Helmandi dialect somewhat tricky, I am now even picking up local idioms and phrases that are unique to this part of Afghanistan.


The locals, whether they are farmers, elders or security forces, have all been quite surprised that a British officer can speak their language, but they have all been extremely grateful that we are taking the time to train people to speak Pashto. 


* An Arabic word meaning ‘consultation’


Flight Lieutenant Dave Collins during a shura


www.raf-ff.org.uk


Envoy Winter 2011


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