21 March 2003
Afghans Begin Training Their National Army
(Army serves as a force for national integration) (1060)
By Stephen Kaufman
Washington File Staff Writer
Pul-E Charkhi, Afghanistan -- As of March 27, there will be a seventh
new battalion consisting of approximately 700 soldiers added to the
ranks of the Afghan National Army (ANA).
However, the graduation of the recruits, trained at the Kabul Military
Training Center (KMTC) in Pul-E Charkhi by American soldiers, may mark
the end of one era and the beginning of another. The eighth battalion,
which began its in-processing on February 23, is being trained
directly by fellow Afghan non-commissioned officers (NCOs).
"It shows the growth of the army," said Colonel Roger King, the U.S.
military spokesman in Afghanistan. "Now we are getting people in who
have got enough experience to train others." King was speaking to
reporters at his weekly press conference in Kabul March 5.
Seven and one half months after coalition forces including France,
Britain and the United States began the training at KMTC,
approximately 4000 recruits representing all of Afghanistan's ethnic
communities have completed the training. The recruits range in age
from teens to men in their fifties. When the training is completed,
the ANA will consist of as many as 25 battalions, or more than 15,000
troops.
Building a national army is much more than a means of defending the
country and strengthening the central government under President Hamid
Karzai. A national army will serve to integrate the population and
encourage them to identify themselves first as Afghans, instead of
Pashtuns, Tajiks, or one of the many other national ethnic groups.
And so far, the message appears to have taken hold among many of the
soldiers. Both Aziz Ullah and Rahim Ullah are now working to train the
newest Afghan battalion. While Rahim spoke in Pashtu, Aziz spoke in
Farsi, reflecting their different backgrounds. Both told the
Washington File that they hoped for a peaceful future for all Afghans
"without ethnic or linguistic divisions."
"We're very hopeful and at the same time very thankful that the
coalition supports us and will continue to do so without ethnic or
linguistic divisions, so that this national army will be able to
rebuild the country for a brighter future," said Aziz Ullah, who is
now a sergeant with 120 men under his command.
"I am very hopeful for the future, that it will be a peaceful future
that all Afghans from north and south, east and west, will work
together as one nation for the rebuilding of this devastated land,"
said Rahim Allah, who is in charge of a 40-man platoon.
The recruits are selected by the Afghan Ministry of Defense and
presented to the staff at KMTC for medical evaluation and training.
According to KMTC data, as of late February 2003, the ethnicity
balance of the recruits has been: 42% Pashtun, 27% Tajik, 10% Hazara,
7% Uzbek, and 14% from other minority groups. But each battalion is
integrated as much as possible.
"We are trying to take and break them out along ethnic lines as far as
balancing it out," said Major Bill Gervasi, the executive officer at
KMTC.
After five or six weeks of intensive and demanding training, "you can
actually see that they come together and ... the ethnic lines are
actually being crossed at this point because misery loves company,"
said Gervasi. "They are becoming a true unit."
The major said the training staff can be very tough on the recruits.
He related that once a group of trainees asked the staff for mercy. In
response, the staff found a heavy metal railroad tie, wrote "mercy" on
its side, and then gave it to the recruits.
"From now on they carried 'mercy' through the training, and back and
forth. 'Mercy' was not allowed to touch the ground, so they put it in
their rucksacks ... At night they put 'mercy' in a bunk in their
sleeping bag and zipped it up so it wouldn't get cold," said Gervasi.
France, the United Kingdom and the United States have each taken on
different areas of the KMTC training program, with the French training
the Afghan officers, the British conducting a platoon leaders course,
and the Americans handling the basic military training. Upon
completion of the training, the three elements are combined to form
the battalion.
For the Afghan military, once styled upon a Soviet model, it will be
the first time they will have a professional non-commissioned officer
(NCO) corps, which will add more organization and leadership on a unit
level.
While France, Britain and the U.S. have a more visible role in the
training, many other countries have contributed to the development of
the new ANA. South Korean military doctors operate the training center
clinic, and other countries from Europe and the Arab world have
donated a total of two and a half million tons of equipment for the
army, "everything from mortars to hats," said Gervasi.
For some of the recruits, this will be their first job with a steady
paycheck. According to Major Gervasi, a private earns $30 per month
during the eight weeks of training, and $70 per month upon graduation.
A general earns $850 per month.
The integrated and professionally trained ANA soldiers have already
made an impact upon their countrymen. Gervasi reported that when the
troops were first deployed in Orgun-E, their fellow Afghans were very
impressed.
"They thought they were Turks at first because they were organized.
They knew what they were doing. When their own soldiers told them 'no,
we are your Afghan army,' they were truly amazed."
Also, he said, due to the army presence, "their feeling of security
increased," and the populace began to turn their own weapons in to
authorities. "Their confidence in the army was evident ... It truly
was an unexpected pleasure," said Gervasi.
Ahmad Gul, a young Afghan man working as a waiter in a Kabul
restaurant, told the Washington File that he himself had seen the ANA
in action, and it appeared to be doing a good job.
"I'm a great supporter of an army that does not recognize ethnic and
linguistic barriers with their main task to bring peace and stability
to the country," said Gul.
(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
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