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... c opinion, shortly after parliament chose to agree with this request. Serving in the Congo was a challenge for many Canadian service personnel. The heat as well as the sights, sounds and particularly smells (i. e. at the market in Leopoldville), will remain unforgettable.
During the course of their stay, a number of Canadians preformed heroic rescues that merited bravery awards. Lieutenant J. T. F. A. Liston, an officer in the Royal 22 e Regiment, was named a member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for saving a wounded Congolese lying in a minefield.
Lieutenant-Colonel P. A. Mayer and Sergeant J. A. Lessard were both awarded the George Medal. On 27 January 1964 at Kasendji, Lieutenant-Colonel Mayer rescued two nuns and three fathers.
Eight sisters and one priest remained. During talks Colonel Mayer was hit on the back of the neck with a club and knocked unconscious. Members of the Jeunesse [a loosely, organized militant group responsible for the attacks on missionaries and others] removed his revolver, beret and web belt. A frenzied Jeunesse thrust the pistol in Colonel Mayers stomach and pulled the trigger. Fortunately, there was no round in the chamber. In the meantime three fathers and two sisters were able to board the helicopter.
After arrangements had been made to free the remaining eight sisters, Colonel Mayer was allowed to leave amongst a wild and screaming mob The actions displayed by Lieutenant-Colonel P. A. Mayer and Sergeant J. A. Lessard is uniform throughout the Canadian peacekeeping troops. It is these men, and those like them, that represent the image of Canadian peacekeeping.
The UN Operation in Somalia (See Appendix 4), UNOSOM I, was set up to give humanitarian aid to people trapped by civil war and famine. The mission developed into a broad attempt to help stop the conflict of the many rival clans that were influencing politics in a strategically important geopolitical position, the Horn of Africa. From November 1991, there was heavy fighting in the Somali capital of Mogadishu between armed elements allied to General Mohamed Farah Add, or to Mr. Ali Mohamed Mahdi, the appointed "interim President", and yet other clans.
In addition to Mogadishu, there was conflict in Kismayo, and in the northwest, local leaders were pushing to create an independent "Somaliland." The country as a whole was without any form of central government. With all of the wars going on within Somalia, the country was also suffering a major drought. The combination of violence and lack of water, proved disastrous for the population. By 1992, almost 4. 5 million people, more than half the total number in the country, were threatened with starvation, severe malnutrition and related diseases. The magnitude of suffering was immense. Overall, an estimated 300, 000 people, including many children, died.
Some 2 million people, violently displaced from their home areas, fled either to neighbouring countries or elsewhere within Somalia. All institutions of governance and at least 60 per cent of the country's basic infrastructure disintegrated. Canada contributed nearly 1 400 troops in 1992 - 1993 to the UNITAF contingent that was designed to distribute relief supplies. These troops suffered harsh environments and extreme temperatures, The temperature is well over 50 o C (120 o F) today and there is little wind. This condition as well as the lack of water, sleep, disease, and conditions they are currently living with, caused many soldiers to be in a dazed frame of mind: The fever hit last night during the patrol.
I wandered dazed through the shadows of town like in a half dream. Most of the time the pistol in my hand hung limply by my side instead of chasing movements in the shadows. Hallucinations haunted me like some surreal drug trip and my mind reeled at the horror that surrounds me. At around 8: 45 p. m. Sergeant Hillier spotted sixteen-year-old Shidane Abukar Arone entering the compound and chased him.
Arone ran but he was caught by Hillier. He cuffed Arone and dragged him inside the camp that was set up so that Clayton Matchee would watch the prisoner until his shift was over at 9: 00 p. m. Matchee was a Master Corporal and second-in-command of Sergeant Boland's Section. The limit of alcohol for the troops was two beers per day, per soldier; Matchee had far exceeded that limit today and was continuing to drink more beer. Around 10: 00 p.
m. Matchee and another soldier named Kyle Brown, a naturally calm and nice person, went to relieve Boland of his watch post over the prisoner. Boland was aware of what was going to happen to Arone because while he left he told Brown and Matchee, I dont care what you do, just dont kill the guy. As soon as he left, the two started beating on Arone, bound and tied, he was helpless. Early the next morning, the soldiers took Arone to a hospital where he died. The actions of these two men do not define the Canadian peacekeeping image.
These two men account for 0. 001 % of the troops sent to Somalia by Canada. This one mission, in contrast to the seventy others that Canada took part in, is a rather small percentage of the efforts and glory of the peacekeeping image of Canada. Canada is considered an excellent peacekeeping nation that is very proud of its efforts, as well as its accomplishments. Being among the first members to join the United Nations, Canada has lent a helping hand wherever and whenever possible. On June 26, of 1945 Canada was a proud part of the United nations and participated in its first peacekeeping mission in 1947; Canada participated in the following twenty-three missions. Canadas contribution to the United Nations peacekeeping missions has cost a great deal of money, showing the dedication and participation that strives towards world peace.
The forces put into Cyprus amounted to a total of 1100 soldiers and lasted for well over twenty years and is currently under operation today. The medals awarded to Company Sergeant-Major Georges Outlet of Levis, Quebec and Lieutenant J. T. F. A. Liston, an officer in the Royal 22 e Regiment, were just two of many awards given to Canadian soldiers involved in peacekeeping missions.
The dishonorable action of two soldiers, from an organization of hundreds of thousands, does not resemble the Canadian peacekeeping image. Therefore the Canadian peacekeeping image has a strong and flawless reputation that has taken the effort of a nation as a whole.
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Research essay sample on The Tarnished Image Of Canadian Peacekeeping
