Canadian Military Assists in Af'stan Development

I saw this article from the Globe & Mail this morning:

The aid project, the brainchild of the Canadian International Development Agency, was unveiled under tight security at a meeting of 300 tribal elders yesterday in a dusty desert village in the heart of Taliban territory in northeastern Kandahar province.

The region is so dangerous that the meeting had to be guarded by scores of heavily armed troops, policemen, bodyguards and security agents -- including a convoy of Canadian armoured vehicles and several dozen Canadian soldiers.

The aid project is to give villagers in rural areas an alternative to the Taliban for protection, funding and rule.

The new Canadian program, created by CIDA, is an unprecedented exercise in consulting Afghans on their own needs and priorities. It aims to rebuild the shattered authority of Afghanistan's local governments, giving people control of their own schools and clinics, and making the Taliban a much less attractive option.

"It's a uniquely Canadian approach," said an official of Canada's provincial reconstruction team in Kandahar. "It's never been done before. The whole point is community participation. If an insurgent comes to burn your school, you're more likely to defend it if it's your own school."

Looks like our men and women on the front lines are providing a very useful service to the redevelopment of very dangerous territory. I shall be keeping an eye on this story.

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In other news, emails have been flying back and forth between members of the original Soldiers Angels, other bloggers, myself... So I'll set the record straight.

Canadian Angels is not officially affiliated with Soldiers Angels in the USA, though it is based on the same premise: to support those on the front lines and show them they are loved. Canadian Angels has received the blessing of Patti Bader, founder of Soldiers Angels, who emailed me on Friday to tell me she was proud of me. It brought tears to my eyes.

The idea is to work together to make sure we don't miss anyone. If Patti's organization can do something easier and more efficiently, then they absolutely should. But if I can get more Canadians involved in the support of their soldiers, the way I have been supporting American Forces through Soldiers Angels, then I welcome the opportunity to do so.

And in addition, Canadians sending mail to Canadian troops pay less in postage. It's as simple as that. Sometimes it just makes more sense to have a localized angency assisting.

I envision a situation where Angels on both sides of the 49th Parallel feel comfortable exchanging information. We are all in this together. And that's a blessing in itself.