Greens renew calls for early Afghanistan withdrawal

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Greens renew calls for early Afghanistan withdrawal

3News NZ

(AAP)

(AAP)

By 3 News online staff

The deaths of three New Zealand soldiers in Afghanistan has lead to renewed calls for New Zealand soldiers to withdraw from the country.

New Zealand forces involved in the Bamiyan province are supposed to withdraw in April 2013, but Green Party co-leader Dr Russel Norman says this is not soon enough.

“When you think about the mission, there was three parts to it – the first was dealing with Al Qaeda and that’s pretty much been done. The second was around nation-building in Afghanistan and nothing we do between now and April is going to make the slightest bit of difference to that and then the third part about it was trying to appease the Americans and trying to get on the good side of the Americans,” Dr Norman told Firstline this morning.

Dr Norman says New Zealand soldiers were originally sent to Bamiyan to help the rebuilding effort, but have started to suffer ‘mission creep’ and are being used in other roles.

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Comments

21/08/2012 5:46:11 p.m.

Mrs M.H wrote:

In cases where N.Z has to provide soldiers for war... these prisoners getting a free ride and holiday would be better used in compulsory service to put their butts on the line for our country. These men dying are the dedicated and strong willed that could be used within our country and deployed to help our countries friends not the unwittingly stupid countries that don't help their people... ALL for a strike on AFGHAN! A combined forces effort

21/08/2012 5:01:57 p.m.

Gary wrote:

@MIKE what a load of bull. I know you have to write this nonsense thats your job! So WAR is the same as driving? Are you totally mad?? As a tax paying NZer I would prefer that we stopped wasting money and lives on this pointless situation! How does this improve NZ. What gains do we get from the millions it is costing us? Why not use the money and the soldiers to help re-build Christchurch? Or do our own citizens not count? @HARRY I suggest you look at the history of Afghanistan?? Last time US supported the terrorists with funding and arms to fight against Russia and oust the then Afghan government.

21/08/2012 4:30:16 p.m.

Roy wrote:

People are saying that the soldiers are too young,they are trained men and go where they are posted I was in the Army when the Suez conflict was on did not get there but wanted to I was only 19 at the time

21/08/2012 3:03:07 p.m.

Harry wrote:

well said Mike, I think people sometime forget that the troops actually want to be over there and want to help the afghan people have a better way of life, normal afghan people want to live there lives without fear of the Taliban and the NATO forces are helping them do that.

21/08/2012 11:55:21 a.m.

Mike wrote:

Afghanistan is a war zone in that there are armed hostiles terrorising locals and to a lesser degree armed forces stationed there.

Any week we tend to have around 5 die on NZ roads, which puts the deaths in perspective. The deaths will not be easy on the families or our defence forces. But is that enough to demand pulling out? If the deaths are that bad, then no doubt the road toll in NZ would convince greens not to even use roads for fear of road toll deaths!

There is nothing like waving someone elses bloody shirt by politicians. The people to ask about our troops stationed in afghanistan are our troops who are there.

NZ troops have done a great job in Bamiyan and the results have been less terrorising of locals and less action by insurgents. It is this good job which has no doubt set our troops as targets.

No doubt if NZ police lost an officer to some gunman, the Greens would be calling on NZ police to pull out and just leave the public to be shot/killed by the gunman.

We should ask our troops what they want, not listen to some spotlight grabing opposition talking head that has no effect on nz policy or the tallibans.