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Lack of training, drug use hit Afghan police training: US
Golestan, Afghanistan (AFP) Oct 5, 2009 Lack of training, equipment and mentors are hampering efforts to transfer responsibility for Afghanistan's domestic security to local forces, US military officials say. Widespread drug use, tribal divisions, corruption and a high drop-out rate are also slowing attempts to create a credible force able to protect the public from Taliban insurgents and tackle general crime. Some of the problems are on display in the village of Golestan, in the rural western province of Farah, where a US military team is training 47 police recruits. Taking a break from the four hours of daily lessons in skills such as weapons handling and how to conduct house and vehicle searches, the ragtag band of police officers loll on bare metal bunkbeds in the midday sun. Their US trainers said that while they had some enthusiastic and capable recruits, honing the men's skills was a long process, despite the urgent need for more security on the ground as Taliban attacks become more frequent. "I don't think it can be sped up any more than it is already," said Sergeant Charles Allen Garrett, of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade. "They're not used to classroom environments. They want to take chai (tea) breaks every few minutes, so we are training as fast as we can. Some days they really enjoy training, some days they just want to lie down." One recruit even shot himself in the leg while trying to clear his weapon, the sergeant added. Creating a fully-functioning Afghan National Police (ANP) force capable of handling the war-torn country's security is a key plank of the international contingent's policy here. ANP numbers have grown to 68,000 since the 2001 US-led invasion to remove the hardline Islamist Taliban rulers and are due to increase to 86,000 with the help of some 10 billion dollars earmarked for developing the force. But there is increasing concern that the programme is not working, amid fears that the implementation of vital development programmes is being hit by a lack of security. Both the UN and NATO have said that Afghan police numbers should be increased, possibly to as high as 140,000 by the end of the year. The commander of US and NATO troops in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, has reportedly called for 40,000 more foreign troops on the ground, many of whom could be used for training local security forces. His recent report to US President Barack Obama also identified "a lack of training, leaders, resources, equipment and mentoring" for the ANP. Poor pay was leading to corruption while a lack of a working justice system was holding back effective policing, he added, calling for "substantial reform with appropriate resources". Elsewhere, "quick fix" training courses -- some lasting only three weeks -- have been criticised as inadequate and concern expressed about police fatalities, the drop-out rate and even infiltration by Taliban fighters. One Western diplomat in Kabul said at least one-third of all police recruits desert, adding: "Can you blame them when their comrades are being killed every day?" About 2,000 Afghan police were killed last year and 2,000 to 3,000 wounded, according to a German police officer responsible for training local recruits. The diplomat described army training of the police force as misguided, and said high casualty rates resulted from badly-equipped and ill-trained men being used as a "auxiliary paramilitary fighting force rather than for law enforcement". In Farah, Marines said Afghan police officers' drug and alcohol use were also affecting the situation. "They're no stranger to drugs around here. It's definitely a challenge," police trainer Lieutenant Dan Nagourney told AFP. "It's having them understand that as a policeman you can't be high, you can't be drunk on duty, but they don't understand that concept." Police trainers recently took district police chief Major Mahmood Shah to task over his men's erratic motivation and use of opium, more of which is produced in neighbouring Helmand province than anywhere else in the world. Meanwhile, Garrett said corruption had sapped the motivation of some recruits. Officers often received only two-thirds of their 9,000-Afghani (180-dollar) monthly salary. Fuel and food has also gone missing. "I think they will be able to do it one day, but it's just going to take some time," he added. Share This Article With Planet Earth
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