Defending the army defenders

Ruapehu Bulletin, 22 June 1993, Page 4

Defending the army defenders

Dead peacekeeper no good • Evin Wood's letter, published on 15 June, raises some good issues. The first is the as-

sumption that training for war precludes training for negotiation and mediation. The letter gave me pause for thought as to whether I had spent more time, in

a fairly lengthy career, on a rifle-range or engaged in negotiation or mediation training and activities. I have to concede that time spent on negotiation and me-

diation wins by a landslide. Thus, his assumption is incorrect. Second, I have made the point that training for war is the ideal vehicle for training for peace and I stand by that. As has been seen recently by the sad killing of Pakistan's peace-keep-ers in Somalia, an understanding of the bat-tle-field environment is essential for a peacekeeper's survival. If you are dead, you cannot negotiate - and as Somalia (and many other places) has shown, there are people out there who prefer peace-keepers to be dead, rather than involved in mediation for peace. Thus, in peace-keep-ing as in war, the first principle needs to be followed: in order to do your job you have to be alive. I am sure Evin Wood doesn't begrudge us this. R C Mortlock, Colonel Commander. Keep the peace keepers • Your correspondent, Evin Wood, completely miss-quoted the article on Colonel Mortlock. The article said peace-keeping, not peace. Peace is a state that most of us would hope for, but few of us achieve. Peace-keeping, in the sense that Colonel Mortlock refers to is a duty New Zealand defence personnel perform. Colonel Mortlock is a soldier not a politician. He does not choose where he or other defence personnel are sent, they obey orders. Colonel Mortlock probably is vastly more experienced in some of these places than you, Evin Wood. So what is witmg with wanting to train them to meet the demands they may be called upon to deal with? If they are going to a war zone then surely they should be trained in the art of war, or don't the lives of New Zealand defence personnel matter? Last year I attended the funeral of Colonel Mortlock's father, Colonel Mortlock could not attend because he was in Angola. Although I have never met Colonel Mortlock the fax that he sent and that was read at the funeral service affected me deeply. Definitely not the writings of some mindless moron intent on war and destruction. It was written by someone who obviously cares for his family and from the article in the Bulletin he obviously cares for the men under his command and would like to see them trained to the best of his ability to do the job they may be required to do. Evin Wood, welcome

to the real world! We are part of this planet and from time-to-time we must do our bit - playing with the big boys as you put it. Moan at the politicians if you must, but leave the men and women who do the dirty work for us alone. Lou Most Wild horses • The trial round-up of the Kaimanawa wild horses has ended in practice, but what of the horses? DoC announced that it would advertise in all the major papers before the round-up so that people could register their interest in the horses. That never happened and as a result many healthy stallions and mares have been slaughtered. Some have gone to a Taumarunui processing plant to be exported for human consumption while other horses have gone to private properties to be slaughtered in back-yard operations. These horses never had a chance and unless we can stop future roundups then more horses will suffer the same. The Kaimanawa wild horses are a protected and very unique species. We should be proud to have such a wild herd in our country. Anyone who would like to register interest is asked to write to: The New Zealand Wild Horse Charity Trust, PO Box 3161, Whangarei, or phone 06-388-1144 for further information. Sarah Hulena Return PO • Te hei Mauru ora Mainstreet Programme by the Mayor of Ruapehu District Council. Having read all about

it in the Bulletin issue 13 June has prompted me, by the same token to write and express my views on this matter. We are fortunate in having in our midst the facility such as the Bulletin serving the Waimarino district. First and foremost I would like to see our old Post Office, back to its original site, in Seddon Street where it belongs. The demise of our Post Office on 19 May 1989, was a very sad day indeed in the history of this township of Raetihi. The heart and soul of the community. During -the celebration of our Centenary a lot of people asked what had happened to our Post Office, which was the focal point of the town. The answer was: hidden away in the old borough redundant offices. Out of sight but not mind. The Mayor and his cohorts can perform a miracle, that is what I would like to see. Otherwise all this planning and so forth is just a sheer waste of time and effort. Kia ora. H Rawiri Good-bye Mrs Vincent • Thank you Mrs Vincent for teaching us, you were good to us. Thank you for letting us have choosing time

too. We miss you very much and love you heaps and heaps. Tino aroha maua ki a koe. Nga mahanga ko. Jamal and Elisha Pakinga. • Thank you Mrs Vincent for being how you've been towards me and the other children. I love you. Arohanui. Mindy-Lu. • I just wanted to say thank you for looking after us at school. You were always caring and talked with us when we had problems. You are a kind teacher and I will never forget you Meki xxx.