Saturday, August 13, 2005
Unembedded in Afghanistan
A documentary filmmaker finds disturbing stories of U.S. abuse
Away from the glare of the media, in the most remote and dangerous parts of Afghanistan, U.S. marines are on a mission to hunt down the Taliban. But in many places their security sweeps are proving counterproductive. More and more villagers are alleging they have been abused by marines.
Carmela Baranowska’s “Taliban Country” is a rare and damning insight into what U.S. forces are doing in remote Afghanistan. For three weeks, Carmela was embedded with the U.S. Marines in their remote forward operating Base.
Suspicious of what was really happening, Carmela later became the only person in 2004 to return and independently cover this area. [..]
But if the aim of the U.S. presence in Afghanistan is to remove the Taliban and Al Qaeda remnants and allow the country to embrace true democracy, they clearly still have a long way to go. In this remote corner of the country they are turning the local people against them. Some are being driven to join what remains of the Taliban. As the village leader summed up “Enough is enough …. These Americans must be accountable to someone.”
“Taliban Country,” in addition to winning the Walkley Prize, will be recognized at the International Festival of Biarritz. The broadcast of the documentary on Australian television has led to two U.S. military investigations.
At GNN ¶ Saturday, August 13, 2005
A documentary filmmaker finds disturbing stories of U.S. abuseAway from the glare of the media, in the most remote and dangerous parts of Afghanistan, U.S. marines are on a mission to hunt down the Taliban. But in many places their security sweeps are proving counterproductive. More and more villagers are alleging they have been abused by marines.
Carmela Baranowska’s “Taliban Country” is a rare and damning insight into what U.S. forces are doing in remote Afghanistan. For three weeks, Carmela was embedded with the U.S. Marines in their remote forward operating Base.
Suspicious of what was really happening, Carmela later became the only person in 2004 to return and independently cover this area. [..]
But if the aim of the U.S. presence in Afghanistan is to remove the Taliban and Al Qaeda remnants and allow the country to embrace true democracy, they clearly still have a long way to go. In this remote corner of the country they are turning the local people against them. Some are being driven to join what remains of the Taliban. As the village leader summed up “Enough is enough …. These Americans must be accountable to someone.”
“Taliban Country,” in addition to winning the Walkley Prize, will be recognized at the International Festival of Biarritz. The broadcast of the documentary on Australian television has led to two U.S. military investigations.
At GNN ¶ Saturday, August 13, 2005
