Training Afghan police top priority

 

If the mission commanded by the most senior Canadian soldier in Afghanistan fails, most observers agree there is a strong possibility that the war against the Taliban will be lost.

 

Maj.-Gen. Mike Ward of Ottawa has the daunting task of rapidly reforming and expanding Afghanistan's much-maligned national police, which now numbers approximately 97,000. Yet the target set last week by the Afghan government, the UN and NATO is to have 134,000 police on the beat by the end of 2011.

 

Even if everything works out perfectly, getting the police from here to there on such a tight timetable is a herculean undertaking.

 

The goal is to enlist about 2,100 fresh recruits for training every month. However, this is only slightly more than the number of police officers (19 per cent) who quit every year, although attrition has been trending downward recently.

 

Moreover, tens of thousands of police officers already on the rolls must be thoroughly retrained to improve their fighting and crime-fighting skills and to acquaint them with issues such as human rights.

 

Corruption on the police force, as almost everywhere in Afghanistan, is pervasive. Most recruits are illiterate. Many of those expected to enforce the law are themselves drug users.

 

"The ANP is still a very fragile institution and it carries the highest consequence of failure," Ward said during a visit to the Afghan Police Academy in Kabul. "That is why there is an emerging recognition that we must focus our effort on the police."

 

As for attrition, he likened it to "chasing a runaway train."

 

There are 7,633 police in various stages of training right now, an increase of about 130 from last month. Recruits must attend an eight-week basic course that replaces a course that used to last two weeks. Would-be officers take a six-month course. Those already on the force must take an intensive two-week refresher course.

 

As with much else in Afghanistan, drug use by police is a complicated issue. "Drugs are the first nut to crack," Ward said. "Those taking opiates won't get through the door. They will be thrown out."