Private Woodfield and Why It Is Important We Are In Afghanistan
THE OBSERVER – JANUARY, 2006
I recently had an opportunity to attend the funeral of Private Braun Woodfield of the 2nd Royal Canadian Regiment (2RCR) based out of CFB Gagetown. His death in the line of duty in Afghanistan has focused attention on our role in that country. I, for one, support the role of our troops in Afghanistan and I think it is important that Canadians understand how valuable the role of our military is in central Asia.
Private Woodfield was from Cow Bay. He wanted to join the military because he wanted to contribute and make the world a better place. He comes from a family where military service was common and well respected. He had only been in the Army for two and one-half years, having joined in April of 2003. But he had already been deployed to Haiti as part of Operation HALO.
His death on November 24, 2005 was hard to accept, not only for his family, but for his extended military family and his fiends and community. But there are risks to peacekeeping and peacemaking in the world – from Kosovo to East Timor to Afghanistan. Our troops understand the risks involved and are willing to represent their country with pride to ensure our interests and freedoms are preserved.
We have undervalued our military for too many years in Canada. I have seen the impact our troops can have when we give them the equipment and support they need to be part of an action that ensures a safer world. I have worked in Kosovo a number of times and I have heard first hand how the people of that country have such respect for our troops as they helped liberate the country.
If we believe that our political system is a shining example to the world, we must be prepared to invest in a military that is able to secure the peace anywhere in the world as a first step towards promoting a more democratic world.
If we believe we are a civilized, pluralistic society that promotes multiculturalism, we need to ensure our troops are capable of peacekeeping where required as a means of promoting such values around the world.
Our troops are not just soldiers when they are deployed to Bosnia or Afghanistan. They are social workers, police officers and diplomats for our country. They are the first Canadian faces many in the world meet. They must have the training, support and equipment to be effective peacekeepers and peacemakers. We owe that to them and we owe that to the world. If we have a system that is worth promoting we have an obligation to do what we can to promote that system.
Afghanistan is our current destination. In the past it was Europe, the Suez Canal, Cyprus and the Balkans. In the future there will be new conflicts in countries and regions most of us will not have heard of. But our military men and women will continue to represent us with pride. We must do our part at home to ensure they have what it takes to do the dangerous work they do and to represent our country with distinction.
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