Afghanistan My Last Tour

ANA CSM Quaseem

Today I had my first sit down meeting with my ANA Command Sergeant Major.  We exchanged pleasantries and he invited me into his office.  He is rather short in stature but his size has no bearing on his commanding presence and the way he carries himself.  When he walks into offices and dormitories his soldiers rise to attention and listen intently as he barks out orders.  Personally I think he still acts like he has retained his former Soviet rank of colonel.

The CSM has been in the army for 36 years and 5 of that have been with the reformed ANA army.  He graduated from high school and received a bachelor’s degree in Logistics from the Soviet Union.  He is married and has 8 children (4 girls and 4 boys) with ages ranging from 5-18.  He is responsible for 120 Noncommissioned Officers (NCOs) and 253 askars (soldiers).  He appeared to be very organized with his paperwork and would occasionally comb his bushy moustache during our conversations.  Some of his pet peeves are discipline, cropped hair, and clean and organized rooms.  He is also an ardent supporter of literacy for his soldiers.

Having chair with ANA CSM.

During these two hours, the CSM made me and Omid my interpreter a pot of chai (tea) to drink.  To boil the water he placed an electrode device with a plastic handle into a larger pot of water.  After the water boiled he used it to sterilize our glasses and then transferred the water into a teapot along with the tea leaves.  He also placed a platter of candy and nuts on the table for consumption.  Then he carefully unwrapped a piece of newspaper containing cold Naan bread.  Bon Apetite!

He apologized for not being at the post yesterday.  One of his relatives was injured by flying glass resulting from an RPG explosion.  He also had to take care of some business concerning his deceased brother who was killed a few months ago.  His brother was an ANA commander and a fierce fighter against the Taliban.  The Taliban placed a $200,000 bounty on his brother’s life.  His brother was on a mission along with 15 soldiers and was ambushed by the Taliban.  After the ANA soldiers ran out of bullets, they were overran and killed by the Taliban.  He blames ANA leadership for this action and feels his brother was intentionally set up for the reward money.

His brother was helping to support his 10 family members because his $250 a month salary was insufficient.  In turn, this conversation led to a long discussion about the rampant corruption in the ANA and the Afghan government.  If he would pay $1200 today, he would be promoted to ANA Major.  The CSM gave me permission to write about our conversation because he doesn’t fear anything.  He informed me that some foreign countries along with US security companies pay money to the Taliban in exchange for not attacking them.  He said this was common knowledge, even though the Italians are vehemently denying the allegation.

As we sipped our tea, the conversation switched to the HA drops in the villages.  The CSM gave me some insight about how people steal these items and who to trust and who not to trust.  I was totally dumbfounded when he said, “Please don’t give me any of those items, because I would be tempted to steal them too.”  I explained our process on how we hand out items.  We do not give them to select families, instead we provide to an entire village or school.  He nodded in agreement.

Our conversation continued to revolve about the corrupt government and how millions if not billions of dollars of foreign aid have been siphoned off by corrupt government officials.  But he put it into perspective and compared it to the United States.  Afghanistan doesn’t have the lobbyist organizations like the US.  Instead it utilizes tribal connections and nepotism.  Enterprising businessmen and government officials who receive the money subcontract out using inferior quality and then pocket the rest.   As a result, individuals who are illiterate become millionaires over night.  We also discussed about US contractors working in Afghanistan.  Most of them get paid over $100,000 and then the parent company charges the US government double or triple this rate, but nobody in the US seems to complain about this.  It’s just a different way of doing business.

The CSM explained under the Soviet regime, they did not have this corruption.  The soldiers were given sufficient flour, beans, tea, etc along with a meager salary, but it was sufficient enough to support a family.  But now, the government wants to pocket this money instead of distributing it to the soldiers.  He was adamant that unless the corruption is controlled, nothing will change.  He said the people in Afghanistan want jobs and security so they can provide for their families.  Until someone finds a way to do this, the country is in great danger of falling into the hands of the Taliban.  The Taliban recently imposed a 10% tax on poppy farmers as a new way of generating revenue to support their cause.

School supplies from St Martin North Elementary School in Biloxi, Miss.

As I walked back over to camp, I was feeling rather disheartened after this conversation.  I appreciated the CSM bluntness and honesty.  At least we did agree on one positive aspect that educating the children was vitally important.  One of the soldiers recognized me and informed me that I had a stack of boxes waiting for me at the Post Office.  Thanks to one of my teammate’s energetic spouse, I added 22 more boxes of school supplies to my collection in the connex.  Special thanks to St Martin North Elementary School in Biloxi, Mississippi for their generous donations.

SPC Lowe talking to me on Skype.

I had one more additional surprise while I was typing this blog entry.  SPC “Kit” Lowe (my friend who was shot) and I had a great conversation on Skype.  He still does not have any feeling below his knee, but he is scheduled for additional nerve surgery.  His goal is to be healed and walking by the time I finish my deployment.  My wife

From left: Lisa Freeman, my wife Liisa and Sandi Lowe; Specialist Chris 'Kit" Lowe in the front; behind them all the supplies leaving from Savannah tomorrow

drove up there to meet him and his family along with Marine CPT Freeman’s mother Lisa.  In honor of CPT Freeman’s request, they have collected school supplies.  Before his death, CPT Freeman had called home requesting school supplies and his mother had started to get donations together. After his death, a local military family, the Calkins, the continued the drive for Mrs. Freeman and filled box after box of supplies. Those donations are leaving tomorrow from Savannah on a transport plane. Once they get to Afghanistan, these supplies will be delivered to me and others in CPT Freeman’s former unit so we can distribute them to local schools here in Afghanistan.