Defiant Marjah Residents and The Ideas The U.S. Must Counter in Afghanistan
For the Past eight years, a mismanaged United States military presence in Afghanistan has lead to increasing civilian deaths that when coupled with an illegitimate government and lack of development have enraged many frustrated Afghan people.
Now as the U.S. and NATO forces prepare for a massive offensive in the town of Marjah thousands of civilians, fearful for their lives, are evacuating the town in Central Helmand.
The words of one un-named elder in the town near Helmand’s provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, illustrate the exact mentality the United States must work hard to disprove in Afghanistan. It cannot be denied that the poorly planned and utterly mis-managed U.S. military presence in Afghanistan has given many Afghans ample reasoning to hold such a negatively charged view of the United States military.
However, with that said, the powerful words of the Marjah elder should serve as a catalyst for the United States and NATO forces to work even harder to avoid civilian casualties and provide education and development opportunities while working to secure areas like Marjah.
The words of the un-named elder cannot be taken lightly, as they are indicative of a pervasive attitude among Afghans frustrated with the lack of progress in their nation after an 8 year foreign military presence. If General McChrystal truly hopes to make 2010 a year of change in Afghanistan, he must take the ideas of the elder (and many other Afghans who share his viewpoint) seriously when planning military operations in a nation already ravaged by 30 years of non-stop war:
The counterinsurgency plan pushed by Stanley McChrystal, the US commander of all Nato forces in Afghanistan, aims not to alienate the population. But a Marjah resident, an elder reached by phone, who was not prepared to give his name, said he had evacuated his family a week ago because he feared “the worst attack ever“.
“Always when they storm a village the foreign troops never care about civilian casualties at all. And at the end of the day they report the deaths of women and children as the deaths of Taliban,” he said.
Thousands of civilians flee Afghan region as Nato plans onslaught [Guardian]