In a few weeks time Rick Hillier, the Rock from the Rock, will be gone — from the military. Undoubtedly it will not be the last we hear from him and about him. He is too large to disappear and too loud to remain unheard.
He has been quoted that the military is for killing people. We have armed them with tools that are meant to kill though not enough for Hillier’s likes. In his years as Canada’s top killer he has striven to enhance the Canadian forces physically and morally.
He is not quite finished with his task and there is much speculation why he has quit when a second term was undoubtedly at hand. Was there a disagreement or tension between him and his political bosses? Hillier is basically a commander and not an order taker. For a while people like Harper and Hillier might get along. Their political philosophies are not that much out of sync. Inevitably there would be a parting of the ways; they are too powerful to cohabit in comfort.
Hillier will be sorely missed by his men and perhaps some women. He spoke their language and I have heard that he mastered barrack talk.
Some civilians may also miss clarity of purpose and action. What can be clearer than, “Kill those scum bags,” his description of the enemy and his way with them.
I can’t believe I’m writing this, but its true and black and white. And that’s where I take issue. International relations are never monochromatic. But the enemy, so to speak, is never all black, and the defenders of freedom, so to speak, are never all white. In a black and white world Hilliers are essential — block out the black, use whatever force is available to eliminate the enemy so that white will prevail.
Peace, however, does not come out of a barrel of a gun. Death does. Pacification isn’t the same as killing, it is much more nuanced and complex. Peace can’t be left in the hands of armies armed to the teeth even if they guard those who build roads, schools, clinics, shopping malls and pipelines.
For years Afghanistan will be discussed and written about. It is a textbook case. Sooner or later the Canadian forces will have to pull out. I doubt Canadians will tolerate long-term involvement such as is conceived by Republican presidential candidate McCain who suggests a thousand years of occupation in Iraq. The Pentagon has recently conceded that after a pullout Afghanistan will quickly slip back to tribal warfare. When our brave men and women say their farewells to whatever friends they have made, and certainly they have made friends, will there be peace, a trustworthy army and police? Will democracy prevail?
Some will undoubtedly say that Hillier left too soon because he could not have his way. There hasn’t been enough killing yet. The cancer cells have not been sufficiently excised and irradiated.
For me Hillier stands for what is effective, for a time, and wrong. In a black and white world his way may work, but the world is a profusion of colour.
Real peace can only be achieved through negotiation. And negotiation means that you don’t get your own way. Whoever replaces the Rock will have to be both hard and flexible, will not only command, but also take direction.
Hanns F. Skoutajan
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