Responsible For What!??

Afghanistan is a hard place to be located in, all the more so for foreigners, and even more so for foreign troops. This is not a war, for example, that has touched the shores of the many countries whose military representatives are there, at the request of the United States, NATO, and the United Nations. Foreign troops, along with foreign dignitaries, NGOs, and civilian volunteers to assist in the law, policing, health-care and other civic institution-building, are there in an extremely dangerous, difficult place, trying to do the best they can.

Initially there to rout the Taliban and their al-Qaeda guests, they've stayed behind at the fervent request of the allied-assisted new government of Afghanistan, one attempting to move beyond medieval backwardness toward 19th Century social-political-religious balance to advance the country toward human rights and turn its back on oppressive fundamentalism. This is no easy accomplishment, since the country and its population is huge, diversified and culturally attached to its traditions.

Yet, back at home in Canada, the opposition parties are calling out the government on its laxity in responding to the human-rights warning of a former Canadian diplomat who reported in 2006 that it was his opinion, based on his interviews with Afghan detainees, that prisoners turned over by Canadian troops to their Afghan counterparts, were being abused. Canada is in no position to retain prisoners. Due process indicates prisoners be turned over to the care and apprehension of Afghan authorities.

When, initially, the spectre of prisoner-abuse came to light, efforts were made on a government-to-government basis to ensure that Afghanistan was aware of Canada's concerns. But Afghanistan is not Belgium or France or Italy, cognizant and respectful of the Geneva convention. The country is backward, brutal and fiercely independent, with their own military and authoritarian traditions. There are so many instances of social and cultural traditions that are distasteful and abusive by Western standards, the abuse of prisoners is quite far back in the line-up.

Telling it like it is, is not an option for the political parties in Canada who are interested in scoring public-relations victories over their more successful rival, now in power. But their eagerly-opportunistic rantings and railings over the presumptive failures of this government and the Canadian troops in Afghanistan are gruesomely out of place. Apart from the fact that they would do things no differently.