Canada's Green Zone in Afghanistan

Peter MacKay has been speaking out of both sides of his mouth when it comes to discussing redevelopment in Afghanistan. The Globe & Mail reports that aid efforts have been severely hampered by travel restrictions which MacKay seems to be almost powerless to change.

OTTAWA — Canadian diplomats and aid organizers in southern Afghanistan have been under tight, government-imposed travel restrictions ever since diplomat Glyn Berry was killed in a roadside bomb attack in January — and the constraints appear to be hampering reconstruction efforts.

Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay has acknowledged the limits and is trying to get them eased.

“We are working as effectively and efficiently as possible to free up any restrictions that stand in the way of development, that stand in the way of the progress being made,” Mr. MacKay said following a recent speech to diplomats.

“We're looking for every means of efficiency to do that, both in our department and CIDA and at National Defence.”

Some frustrated overseas staff have likened the constraints to being “nannied” by Ottawa, a source at Foreign Affairs told The Canadian Press.

The Conservatives have created a nanny state? How ironic is that? And why are these Tory-imposed restrictions so hard to eliminate?

“We're making progress,” Mr. MacKay insisted. “We're making a big difference in the lives of Afghan people that directly impacts as well on our own safety and security.”

But officials charged with delivering millions of dollars in Canadian aid are rarely allowed to venture beyond the heavily fortified compounds of the Kandahar airfield and the nearby provincial reconstruction team (PRT) base, which is located within Kandahar city itself.

Instead, local Afghan officials are often required to present themselves at the PRT to discuss projects.

When officials do get outside the base, it's usually as part of heavily-armed military convoys that Canadian contractors who are working on reconstruction say offer little opportunity for interaction with locals.

At one point last spring, the constraints included a prohibition on travel by road for the most senior diplomatic staff, forcing the Canadian army to scrounge helicopter flights from allies, said sources at the Defence Department.

How mant times have I written in the past week that this government continues to be a constant embarassment? Too many.

There is no doubt that security is an issue in Afghanistan but if the so-called "3 D" (defence, development, diplomacy) plan is going to have any chance of working, development workers have to find a way to get out among the people to make it happen. Showing Canadians pictures of our soldiers meeting and greeting the Afghan people is not enough. The lack of redevelopment 5 years into this war is very real and continues to hamper progress all over the country.

This is not the way to win hearts and minds:

KABUL -- The World Food Program said yesterday that Afghanistan was facing a food shortage that could put millions at risk this winter.

Ebadullah Ebadi, the WFP spokesman in Kabul, said the UN agency has received only 34% of requested funds this year and that donations have come too late to be converted into food deliveries before winter.

"Unfortunately right now we have no food," Ebadi told AP Television News. "Big humanitarian organizations like the World Food Program cannot provide food to the needy people. The government is relying on organizations like us, and we cannot do anything until we receive food."

The Canadian government cannot continue to claim that it is making an acceptable amount of progress in a country where millions will starve while its redevelopment people stay cloistered in the green zone and it must act with a greater sense of urgency if it's serious about helping the people of Afghanistan. The status quo is not acceptable and the focus on winning militarily, which even Defence Minister O'Connor admitted won't work, must be re-examined. Canada's priorities in Afghanistan must be changed.