Evidence of meeting #35 for Foreign Affairs and International Development in the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was question.
A recording is available from Parliament.
5:30 p.m.
NDP
Alexa McDonough NDP Halifax, NS
Roughly how many Afghan police would have been trained since your involvement there? How long have you been there?
5:30 p.m.
C/Supt David Beer
For Kandahar? About 1,500, I believe.
5:30 p.m.
Assistant Commissioner, Federal and International Operations, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
I believe this is going to pick up quite a bit, for a number of reasons. For one thing, our numbers there will increase. The RCMP contribution should go up to ten by March of this year. As well, there were some logistical problems in being able to receive funds to utilize for the training, and that's now been looked after, so things should pick up in the next few months.
5:30 p.m.
NDP
Alexa McDonough NDP Halifax, NS
The reason I'm pursuing this.... I have to say I'm utterly stunned at the idea that we've been involved--and I'm not saying this is not very important to do--in the training of 34,700 Iraqi police, yet we talk about our robust commitment in Afghanistan. From everything we hear about the horrors of what's going on in Kandahar--I certainly got this impression when I was there myself, although I had very limited exposure--it seems a huge part of the instability there is really the result of criminality associated with the drug trade, or of incredible corruption, bribery, extortion, partly rising out of people's desperate economic circumstances. They're up for hire. They're up for fighting for the Taliban if they'll get paid more.
It seems policing should be such a huge part of what we're doing there, offering that training. I'm trying to get a sense of why the minimal effort.... Maybe you're going to direct us back to the political decisions that get made about this, but I'm trying to get an understanding.
5:30 p.m.
C/Supt David Beer
Part of it is the ongoing conflict in the area and the number of people we have available. The Jordan facility was essentially U.S.-funded. It's a huge facility training thousands of people at a time. We don't have that sort of facility for the Afghans.
We will be able to increase training in due course. In fact, we are working on a strategy with the military to build a local training complex as part of the PRT so that we can bring the local police to us in numbers. Of course, that relieves the burden on the military in having to take us out all the time to protect us.
So with the increased number of people on the ground and the fact that we now have money moving and we'll be able to spend money in a logical way, it will increase the number of people on the ground. If we can get this facility built, we'll be able to increase the numbers.
5:35 p.m.
NDP
Alexa McDonough NDP Halifax, NS
What other national police are there with you in Kandahar? You spoke about the Germans playing a major role in Kabul, but are there others?
5:35 p.m.
C/Supt David Beer
No, not in Kandahar.
5:35 p.m.
Conservative
5:35 p.m.
Conservative
Bill Casey Conservative Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley, NS
I don't have a question. I have a compliment.
I'm from Amherst, Nova Scotia. It's my home town. We have an RCMP officer who's serving his second deployment in Sierra Leone, and the neat thing is that his wife, when she goes to visit him, does a public drive to gather up pens, pencils, papers, textbooks, and clothes for kids in Sierra Leone--and the kids in Sierra Leone need all those. She provides a great service for the RCMP in public awareness of what the country does and the role they play. Otherwise, people would not even know that you have an officer from Amherst in Sierra Leone. It's a kind of neat “two for the price of one” thing. And for the life of me I can't think of his name or her name. But I will, and I'll get it to you, because--
5:35 p.m.
C/Supt David Beer
Does she know we're recruiting, sir?
5:35 p.m.
Conservative
Bill Casey Conservative Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley, NS
That would be good. She's free now.
I would like to get their names to you, because they've done a great job, at the highest standards, and that sets a great example.
5:35 p.m.
C/Supt David Beer
Thank you.
5:35 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
Thank you, Mr. Casey.
If there are no other questions, we want to thank you for being here today. We appreciate your taking time out of a very busy day to be here. So until we meet again, thank you.
We are adjourned.