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The Daily Star - Politics - Indian peacekeepers forge ties with Southerners by providing social services
Indian peacekeepers forge ties with Southerners by providing social services
[EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first in a series of articles that profiles, in detail, contingents of countries serving as part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)]
IBL AL SAQI: Chief veterinarian for the Indian UN battalion (INDBATT) Lieutenant Colonel Satvir Singh, in full uniform, lowers himself on one knee on the side of the road in the southern Lebanese town of Shebaa. He reaches under the goat as the shepherd's wife holds it by the scruff of its neck and pulls the heaving udder toward him.
"Its healing well but the stitches need another few days" he says, referring to one of the partially ripped nipples, which Singh had stitched up a few days earlier. He walks over to his white UN 4-runner and returns with a handful of medications and syringes, which the shepherd's grateful wife takes as she pulls the goat, a primary source of milk for this family, back towards the house.
When one thinks of the United Nations troops this is probably not the image that comes to mind, especially in southern Lebanon, in a place where the disputed border is a stone's throw away and armed conflict happens about as often as the Olympic Games.
This is the tenth Indian Battalion operating as part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to be stationed in this area of southern Lebanon and their participation in peacekeeping operations here has been ongoing since 1998. Under UN resolution 1701, these peacekeepers, who arrived in January, are stationed to prevent hostile activity with their assigned region and to prevent violations of the "Blue Line," the disputed border area between Lebanon and Israel.
But these days things are generally peaceful in the area, with Hizbullah and the Israeli military both keeping a relatively low profile. This group of soldiers, like those of earlier battalions, has used this time to forge close ties with the surrounding communities by provide valuable social services to the neighboring villages.
The veterinary services are one example of a Winning Hearts and Minds (WHAM) campaign that the Indian Battalion seems to do with the greatest of ease. As Singh observes, "we provide the only veterinary care in the area, and though the gesture of helping a shepherd treat his goat may seem small, it is significant when you realize that these villagers live mainly on agriculture and livestock. Many can't afford to bring their animals to the UN compound, so we come to them."
In a similar light, INDBATT offers a number of other services. Last week was the celebrated Jaipur Foot Camp, an ongoing initiative by INDBATT during which technicians from the Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti hospital in Jaipur work with the battalion to fit needy Lebanese with prosthetics. They provide the service free of charge and every patient walks out with a fitted limb on the same day he came.
Technicians work around the clock using equipment and materials brought from India to make this level of service possible. Shibli Mattar, a 48-year-old man who lost his leg when he stepped on a land mine, traveled to INDBATT from Saad Nayel in the Bekaa Valley. He is one of many who have been brought to the camp by the Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union, a nonprofit that has been bringing needy patients to the Jaipur Foot Camp from all over Lebanon for a number of years.
"When I lost my leg I felt like incomplete, but when I was fitted with an artificial limb I felt like I could work and help my family again," he said.
INDBATT will provide artificial legs, artificial hands, and braces for those affected by polio for over 200 civilians during this camp alone, and hope to serve an even greater number next year.
INDBATT also provides free primary medical and dental services to the local population through clinics in each of the 11 villages in the batallion's area of operation. In past six months the medical team has treated approximately 3,500 patients and the dental team about 2600.
As senior Medical Officer Lieutenant Colonel Anupam Tuteja says, "health care in Lebanon is very expensive and thus at times there is a tendency to neglect it."
Dental officer Major KS Jamwal added that dental health suffers from the same neglect, with 35 years being the average age of persons requiring dentures. He stressed that there must be a sustained effort to educate people on good health and hygiene practices. The equivalent cost of treatment for the civilians treated by INDBATT this year alone is estimated to be about $300,000, money that can be used by the people of the region to improve their standard of living.
Beyond the numbers, the qualitative effects of these services are quickly evident. Villagers wave and shout greetings at the soldiers as their patrols pass through the winding streets of the mountain towns. Families come out of their homes smiling in anticipation as the white UN vehicles approach for a visit.
As Colonel Gurbir Pal Singh, the commanding Officer explains, "We have a similar family culture in India and that is why it is so easy for us to get along. The humility with which our soldiers interact with the locals is a key to how we approach all of our duties."
At a time when many armies are focusing great resources on formally implemented sensitivity training in their own hearts and minds campaigns, soldiers in the Indian Battalion seem to have it already figured out. - The Daily Star