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    Rule of Law

    Rule of law

    Photo By Frank O'Brien | A local security guard on patrol, protecting the members of Qalat’s legal community...... read more read more

    QALAT, AFGHANISTAN

    09.03.2011

    Story by Sgt. Frank O'Brien 

    116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team

    ZABUL PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Service members from 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and the Provincial Reconstruction Team had a meeting with Zabul province judicial leadership on how to improve the judicial system in the province Sept. 5.

    There is ample historical evidence that the unforgiving nature of the desert gives birth to great leaps forward in law and justice. Babylon gave us the Code of Hammurabi over 3,000 years ago. Moses carried the Ten Commandments down from Mount Sinai. Capt. C. Carter Lee, Operational Law Attorney for the Staunton, Va.-based 116th “Stonewall Brigade” deployed to Forward Operating Base Lagman, brings to this desert a text not nearly as distinguished but valuable just the same: “The Rule of Law Handbook, A Practitioner’s Guide for Judge Advocates.”

    Lee, 32, who graduated from the University of Richmond with his Juris Doctor in 2009, follows in the legal tradition of his great-grandfather, a judge who “rode the circuit” in the early 20th century, touring rural counties of Virginia, holding court and dispensing justice. This Lee rides a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle rather than a horse, and brings his justice by supporting the counterinsurgency mission of the 116th IBCT in Zabul and working to revitalize the provincial court system.

    Lee quotes the following passage when defining his unique role in supporting the counterinsurgency strategy initiated by then Gen. David Petraeus in 2010: “The central weakness of any insurgency is not its military capabilities but its reliance on the local populace for legitimacy, recruits, financing, sanctuary, intelligence and other material support.” Providing stability and safety for the local populace through the Rule of Law exploits this weakness by increasing support for the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and turning the public against the insurgents.

    By expanding access to the courts for the people of Zabul province, I hope to increase faith in the government, thereby weakening the insurgency. When the locals go to the Taliban to resolve their disputes, there is no review, no transparency, with cruel or irrational results. By teaching our hosts to conduct investigations and apply their laws themselves, we can ensure GIRoA can protect their citizens after we leave, Lee added.
    “When there is an equal application of humane laws,” said Lee, “with processes to ensure that everything is done fairly…when people are able to predict the consequences of their actions, they feel safe.”

    The “how” in how to implement the complex U.S. counterinsurgency strategy and noble ideals of the Combined Team Zabul Rule of Law Program Handbook is neatly summarized in three words: cops, courts and corrections.

    “The Afghan National Police are out there [doing good things],” said Sgt. 1st Class Bladimiro Fernandez, 33, of Jacksonsville, Fla., a military policeman deployed with the 116th IBCT Provost Marshall office. “But there’s also a need for community policing,” he added.

    When not busy trying to implement a drill and ceremony intensive youth challenge program for juvenile offenders, and kick start a U.S. style community policing program in downtown Qalat, Fernandez makes plans to travel to the remote areas of Zabul province to observe the private contractors providing police training to Afghans.

    Like players on a football field, the U.S. is strategically deploying its assets across Zabul province to outmaneuver the enemy. Efforts centered in the city of Qalat are well funded and established. Rural districts, for lack of resources, can resemble the Wild West.

    “These guys are out in the hinterlands? They’re focused, thinking to themselves: ‘If we screw up, we’re dead,’” said Barry F. Lory, 63, a police veteran. Lory advises and assists the 116th IBCT with duties including processing, jailing and transporting detainees.
    The corrections portion of the three C’s is focused mainly on updating the provincial detention facilities.

    The fight to delegitimize the insurgency is fought one person, one court case, one policing program at a time, where every detail is an opportunity to move closer to the goal line.

    “After I leave Afghanistan, I hope to weaken the insurgency by expanding access to the courts for the people of Zabul province, improving police practices, and improving conditions in the corrections system. The end result of these efforts, I hope, would be increased faith and loyalty in the government.” said Lee.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 09.03.2011
    Date Posted: 10.28.2011 06:49
    Story ID: 79165
    Location: QALAT, AF

    Web Views: 224
    Downloads: 0

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