(AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)You can have links to every blog out there, an entire library from Galula to Kilcullen, and still make things worse than when you arrived. In the simplest of terms, counterinsurgency is a popularity contest. Repeatedly on this blog it is stated that if you understand the culture the strategy will write itself. This is exactly what this refers to as you have been thrown into a popularity contest. Garrison military customs and courtesies will destroy your unit's ability to innovate; take the necessary steps to politically outmaneuver the enemy on his home turf.
General Overview:
If you have no chance of the population electing you to an office, relieve yourself of command. You are a foreigner and most likely not a muslim. There is little you can relate to at the offset, so if you burn bridges within your first three months you created an insurgent friendly environment.
Rank is an antiquated concept and counterproductive in COIN. You may have cultural experts in your unit but overlooked them. Ditch the rank and formalities until you are out of the country. Network your experts and trusted minds keeping them outside a traditional chain of command.
Break every World War II-era regulation designed to maintain discipline. Beards, first names, and modified uniforms specifically are half your battle. Imagine you are on a plane and five men dressed just like Mullah Omar sit in first class. What is going through your head? It is the same thing that is going through an Afghans when he sees yet another foreign military unit in his home country.
Find a native Afghan salesman while still in your home country and have him teach you everything he knows. It is one thing to be able to sell something to your neighbor, it is another to talk a Taliban supporter into following you. Understanding the culture will assist in formulating an effective approach for your unique area of operations.
Do not back corrupt officials; their tainted credibility damages yours as well. Do whatever you have to in order for them to resign. When they resign, take credit for it to keep your place as an honest broker in the eyes of the population.
Avoid internal strife. Mission envy destroys morale just as fast as taking casualties. Do not come down on a unit that is required to do more or dress differently. You are all on the same team and need them as much as you need the population on your side.
Neutrality in reporting current events is a myth; specifically during an insurgency. The media and rumors will always help one side and hurt another. Negative news carries more weight than positive. Also a "good news" story from an untrusted source (your PAO) has the same effect as a vicious rumor. Free speech is a luxury; do not defend your critics as they are intentionally or unwittingly shaping opinion against you.
Your popularity is your life. Do whatever you have must to keep it as high as possible; among your troops, partner agencies, and most importantly the population you will now protect. The public will typically fall into three of five basic categories in the spectrum of opinion: hate, dislike, indifference, like, love. Keep them ranging from indifference, like, and love and you will be fine.
Focus on the influential, not the masses. In other words, win the shepherds as they bring the sheep. Your resources and capabilities will be nowhere close to what you need. A focused campaign of winning over elders, chiefs, and mullahs will get you where you need to be much faster as time is another luxury you will not have.
Train your local replacement. Find an individual out of the population to take your place. He must be as popular as yourself if not more so. Most importantly, he must be able to tap into the resources you have available. Not creating a self-sustaining environment is simply kicking the can down the road. This is the first step in grassroots acceptance of governance.
Posts
