reviews by Roy Thomas, MSC, CD, MA (RMC)
Helping Hands & Loaded Arms
Edited by Sarah Jane Meharg
Clementsport, NS, The Canadian Peacekeeping Press, 2007, 231 pages
$19.95 at www.peaceoperations.org
A book can be like a restaurant, stimulation not for the taste buds but for the brain. Often some old process has been slightly re-worked to produce interesting results. In the wake of the Manley Report, Helping Hands & Loaded Arms has much to interest decision-makers and practitioners.
Conferences and workshops all too often bring together a mix of experts with their own entrenched viewpoints highlighted in prepared papers. In September 2006, the Pearson Peacekeeping Centre (PPC) and the Humber International Development Institute (HIDI) turned that approach on its head, hosting a consultation in which 3D stakeholders, rather than preparing papers, were “to voice concerns, discuss tensions, and seek solutions.”
After the two-day event, the participants, who might not normally have shared ideas, were invited to write their “recast” or “recalibrated” thoughts on “humanitarian and military space” as result of the deliberations.
Helping Hands & Loaded Arms is a selection of those thoughts from participants from the U.S. Army, USMC, RMC, Oxfam, Carleton’s Norman Paterson School of International Affairs and, of course, the host institutions, PPC and HIDI.
The 3D process and the question of security in humanitarian space are highly relevant to Canada’s approach in Afghanistan. In the September/October issue of Vanguard, the executive director of Oxfam outlined his views on protecting humanitarian space. A year previously, John Watson, president of CARE Canada, and Major-General David Fraser expressed contrary views on the subject.
As editor Sarah Jane Meharg suggests in her introduction, Helping Hands & Loaded Arms “exemplifies the new reality of shared military and humanitarian space.” For those who have neither the time nor inclination to be confronted with the whole array of recalibrations then her introduction serves as an admirable menu to the book’s contents. For those not sure what is meant by humanitarian or military space there is sufficient exposure early in the book to consider what these terms mean. The editor has provided a provocative appetizer, stating “humanitarian space no longer exists.”
Perhaps the most appealing contributions in view of the increased U.S. combat presence in southern Afghanistan are the submissions of the American Marine and Army participants. For those following calls for disbandment of Canada’s Strategic Advisory Team-Afghanistan (see In Brief, January/February 2008) the chapter on “Putting Policy into Practice: Integrating Post-Conflict Operations” might prove to be the most attractive read.
There is no offering on police, prisons or the justice system, a notable deficiency. However, both PPC and HIDI are to be complimented for their fresh approach.
Aboriginal Peoples and the Canadian Military: Historical Perspectives
Edited by P.Whitney Lackenbauer and Craig Leslie Mantle
Canadian Defence Academy Press, Kingston, 2007, 266 pages
Free through the CF Leadership Institute at cfli.cda@forces.gc.ca
Keeping with the food theme, Aboriginal Peoples and the Canadian Military offers a wonderful breakfast buffet on “one of the fastest growing and most dynamic fields in Canadian history.”
“To navigate a common path into the future based on mutual understanding, trust and respect,” one must learn from the past. The value of this book is highlighted by the Chief of Land Staff in his foreword: “At present 1275 First Nation, Inuit and Métis serve with the CF at home and aboard.”
The book, which together with a companion volume, “Aboriginal Peoples and Military Participation: Canadian and International Perspectives,” arose out a June 2006 conference at Royal Military College, serves up an array of perspectives.
Colonel Bruce Horn, now the Deputy Commander of Canada’s Special Operations Forces Command, opens with an account of indigenous allies during the struggle for North America. Then, as now in Afghanistan, the conduct of allies, especially in the treatment of prisoners and attacks on non-combatants, was an issue with officers schooled in European warfare.
Donald Graves, one of our best-known War of 1812 scholars, inspires comparisons with events in the Middle East and Afghanistan, with his assessment of the potent combination of terror tactics and psychological warfare. He argues that strategically the aboriginal threat drew American resources to the Northwest that might have been better directed at severing the vulnerable St. Lawrence lifeline. Psychologically, the presence of even a few First Nation warriors beside their British allies was a tactical force multiplier.
There are several contributions dealing with the participation of First Nations in both World Wars, though, unfortunately, the treatment of First Nations veterans after both wars is a sad saga that still needs monitoring. This book provides a start line to do so.
With the current government’s well-publicized focus on the Arctic, the chapter, “Canada’s Northern Defenders: Aboriginal Peoples in the Canadian Rangers, 1947-2005” is equally timely.
If a good breakfast is said to be the basis of a good day then this book is indeed a good basis for the study of the relationship of our military with our Aboriginal Peoples.