Saturday, September 9, 2000
Experienced MPs pass along
knowledge of Bosnia's realitiesBy Anthony Burgos
Bosnia bureau
EAGLE BASE, Bosnia and Herzegovina -- It’s always good to have an experienced teacher.
At Eagle Base in Bosnia and Herzegovina, military police help each other by passing on a tour’s worth of experience to their replacements.
Reserve soldiers in the 94th Military Police company from Londonderry, N.H., are the new kids on the block at Eagle Base. Active-duty soldiers in the 984th Military Police company from Fort Carson, Colo., recently taught them what it takes to sit in the driver’s seat.
As a military policeman at Eagle Base’s Tactical Operations office, Staff Sgt. Norman Broderick, who finishes his eight-month tour in Bosnia next week, helped coordinate patrol routes in the area. But for the last two weeks, he’s trained his replacements.
"We call it, ‘right seat, left seat training,’ " Broderick said. "At the end of August, the new guys took the right seat and watched how we run things. A lot of the new guys have never been overseas, so there are some things they have to get used to."
Driving conditions, accents, language barriers and operational procedures are some of the challenges MPs face when working in the multinational environment in Bosnia, Broderick said.
"We do convoy escorts, route reconnaissance, area security and provide protective services," Broderick said. "We also have Provost Marshall, criminal investigation and traffic investigation branches."
After a training and an evaluation period, everyone switch seats.
"[The new MP company] took the left seat about a week ago. Wednesday was last day of training and today [Thursday] they were on their own," Broderick said.
The first official day on the job was a relatively easy one for the 94th MP Company. They escorted a group of soldiers touring Tuzla, Bosnia. Members of the 94th were relieved to officially start their mission.
"It’s actually nice to do the job," said Sgt. Aaron O’Neil, who began his tour in Bosnia two weeks ago. "We have been training for a really long time."
"At home, training is geared toward combat," he said. "Here in Bosnia, we do peacekeeping. The guys from Colorado taught us the hints that you would only learn from being here and experiencing it for yourself. It was good to have a trainer looking over our shoulder, letting us know what was going well and wasn’t."
Broderick, who was impressed with the new set of MPs, said they also contributed to the training.
"New guys bring a fresh perspective to the mission," he said. "Sometimes, we get set in the way we do things. A new set of eyes can be a real help."
O’Neil said the weather in Bosnia reminds him of the climate in his hometown of Hopkington, Mass., but he admits he still needs to adapt to a few things.
"Driving here is definitely different. They
told us it was bad, but it’s crazier than I expected," he said. "We just
have to get in the flow. I think we have the training to handle it."
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
