James Donally

An absent Governor - but business goes on

Somehow we seem to have been spared the worst of winter so we can now hold our shuras outside on the lawn whilst sipping tea in the pre-spring sunshine. A far more civilised way of doing business than being stuck in an office. Our District Governor remains in Kabul trying to drum up support for Musa Qala and Northern Helmand Province but we could do with him back soon. Meanwhile we have a temporary replacement - a charming old man, very cooperative and keen to help local people. He was a judge under the Taleban, which just goes to show that reconciliation is possible with the unlikeliest people. And now that I’ve donated my spare pair of glasses to him he can see who he’s talking to.

Anyway, the business of government goes on: representatives from the Ministry of Rural Reconstruction and Development (MRRD) and from the Ministry of Education are in town; these are exactly the kind of visitors the local people need to see in order to believe that their government is interested in helping them. MRRD is building a wall to prevent the wadi flooding when the snow melts (which will be soon, I think) plus some wells in the villages, whilst the education reps are visiting schools in newly “liberated” areas where it’s now safe for children to go to school. Another very positive sign of people’s engagement in civic life has been the encouraging turnout for voter registration. Some days see up to 500 people coming into town to register, including people from neighbouring districts. This would not have been possible six months ago and bodes well for the forthcoming presidential elections. I hope I don’t jinx things, but the voter registration has been peaceful and intimidation-free so far, mainly thanks to the local police.

We have a top notch army chef visiting the camp. This week has seen roast turkey; but who could resist a “Hawaiian Toastie”? Canned pineapple, canned cheese with spam on stale white plastic bread.

Finally, thank you for the encouraging comments from Australia and my home village; I wonder if anyone else is reading this?

Posted at 20:37 12 February 2009 by James Donally  |  Comments[6]