letters to the editor - Department of Defence

S A S O L D I E Rstories from 2004Women soldiers back fromdeployment in BurundiArticle and photo courtesy womenwho were deployed in Burundi (anextract of what was published inSA Soldier: October 2004, page 24)Ibelieve one can only reflect on asituation once you are not "in it"any longer. After deployment tothe African Mission in Burundi(AMIB) for a six-month period -from August 2003 to February2004 - and now back for four months,it is perhaps a good time for reflection.Did all the other women and myselfmake a difference in serving the PeaceMission in Burundi? Nowadays whenI watch the news and I hear the wordBurundi, I tend to give my full attention.Every time the peace processseems to stumble, my heart aches.Every time it goes ahead full steam Ifeel like dancing.Some twenty women spent six monthsat the Demobilisation Centre, some 30km north-east of the capital city ofBujumbura, and only came to "town"and the "Palace Base" once everymonth for four or five days at a time.They certainly earned the respect oftheir male counterparts. I do believetheir input to safeguarding some 200ex-combatants did make a differenceto the Mission.Within the VIP Protectors and theStatic Guards there were almost thirtywomen. Being a VIP Protector has itsown kind of challenges, but thewomen proved that they could performthis specialised job without hav-Every time the peace process seems to stumble,my heart aches. Every time it goes ahead full steamI feel like dancing.Capt Harriët Joseph and an Ethiopian soldier.ing to stand back for any man. I dobelieve that each one of them made adifference in serving the Mission.At the Airport Base some eight womenserved the Mission inter alia as logisticiansand some even in the ArtilleryBattery. The Medical and Air Forcepersonnel rotated more frequently thanthe Army personnel, but without theirmedical care Burundi would not havebeen the same. As any soldier knows,good support contributes enormouslyto morale.At AMIB HQ some twenty womenheld posts varying from photographer,"manning SAFI", a civilian lady (ABSA'Blief Tannie) in the pay office, to CMIservices, etc - Ibelieve eachand everyoneof them made adifference inthe supporttasks they performed.What motivatesa woman tovolunteer todeploy for aperiod of sixmonths? Thesame questioncan be asked ofall the men who voluntarily deploy.One would be dishonest if one saidthat the money involved did notcount. There are, however, other reasonsas well. Reasons such as "wanderlust"and the gaining of experiencein one's specific area of specialisationwithin the peacekeeping environment- experience that nobody can takeaway from you.If I now look at photos and try toshare the wonderful experience withfriends and family, I realise to my dismaythat they cannot be as excited as Iam. Unfortunately, only those whohave shared in the hardships, but alsothe highlights, can really share in theexcitement.26• M A Y 2 0 1 1