RELEASE NUMBER: 040819-02
DATE POSTED: AUGUST 19, 2004
Civil affairs teams help build relations with Afghans
By Sgt. Jennifer S. Emmons
17th Public Affairs Detachment
FORWARD OPERATING SITE CARLSON, Afghanistan (USASOC News Service, Aug. 19, 2004) — Building relationships with the local population is essential to the success of missions in southeastern Afghanistan.
Soldiers of the 96th Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne) and the 27th Engineer Battalion (Combat) (Airborne) convoyed north of Forward Operating Site Carlson Afghanistan to a small village. It was the first time they had gone so far from the in base camp.
“We pushed out a little bit north of where we normally do,” said Capt. Dustin Owens, 27th Eng. Bn. intelligence officer. The assessment had two purposes. It moved the unit farther north in the operating area along the southeastern border of Afghanistan, presenting a security presence to the villagers in the area. It also helped expand the reach of the civil affairs Soldiers, giving them the opportunity to conduct village assessments in other areas.
The civil affairs team assesses villages to see how they can best help the local population.
The goal is to identify the location of the village, meet the elders, determine the basic infrastructure of the village and find out the needs of the village, said Capt. Nathan Reynolds, a 96th CA Bn. team leader.
As the convoy rolled into the bazaar area, several villagers came out to visit with the civil affair Soldiers. They drank tea and discussed local issues, while Soldiers from the 27th Eng. Bn. pulled security.
The civil affairs team took into account the needs of the village as they spoke to the elders. In the past, most elders have asked for generators.
“When we give a village a generator, we are providing electricity and power to a region that has never had power before,” said Reynolds. “They all know what a generator can bring. Not only does it provide power for homes and markets, the power can also expand their livelihood.”
When the Soldiers go into villages, they expect the local population to help with the projects in the area.
“We don’t want to just give things outright. We want to meet them halfway,” said Reynolds. “We may present a generator to a village and make sure the understanding is that it’s for the village as a whole – it’s not for select individuals. And to try to develop the sense of community that it’s there for all of them and they all need to pitch in together. ... They have to come together to obtain all the wiring and electrical outlets.
They have to come to a consensus and then obtain the additional resources to put it to use.”
It’s important for the villagers to understand the process of working as a team and make the most of the assistance the civil affairs team is providing.
“We don’t want them to become entirely dependent on us. We have a lot more resources currently than what their government does, but what we’re trying to do is take care of some of the basic needs,” said Reynolds. “However, we also try to push them in the direction of their local government, to the provincial government and the national government to satisfy some of their needs.
“We try to kind of build faith in their government. We’ll be here for a while, but they also need to know that there’s another outlet, another system, established for them,” he said.
While the Soldiers are in the village to try to make life better for the people, they are also collecting information on how to secure the area.
“A lot of information that I get is mostly human intelligence when I go up to these areas. I get to speak directly with the people that are living within the area,” said Owens. “They provide the direct information I need in order to keep the area safe, as well as the guys on FOS Carlson.”
Village assessments have gone a long way toward the coalition gaining the respect and trust of the local population throughout the country. This village is no exception.
“We’re chipping away at the support of the Taliban and causing people to come to us. While the Taliban and anti-coalition (militants) use fear to intimidate the people, we help them through projects that sway them to our side,” said Reynolds. “We’re making an impact on the area.”
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