An Cosantóir

22 "The DDRR process is critical to improving the well-being of Liberian Children." – Ms. Angela Kearney, UNICEF We are halfway into our tour of duty. It's a Monday and it's Saint Patrick's Day 2003. There is a shamrock parade at 10am followed by mass at 11am, followed by lunch between 12 noon and 1.30pm with our medal parade at 3pm. Today all men and women of the 90th Infantry Battalion from Ireland will receive their medal of peace for their contribution to the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). Post medal parade and dinner, there will be a drinks reception at our canteen and music will be provided by the battalion band, a group of musicians providing entertainment for us all with the odd good, bad and average singer who'll give a bar or two. All welcome! As we march from the Logistics part of camp to the main square area at the centre of the camp to be presented with our shamrock, which is a ritual overseas with the Irish Defence Forces, two Army pipers lead us along the way to the tune of Mull of Kintyre, Privates McLoughlan and Devereaux, both from the 28th Infantry Battalion, Donegal. Everyone is proud to be here. Backs straight, heads erect, rifles tight to our chests and each step in sync. It is one thing being Irish, another being born in the heart of it, but for me, to serve my country, there was no greater feeling. As our tour of duty closes in on month six, it is nearly time for the handover from our battalion, the 90th Infantry Battalion drawn from the 4th Western Brigade back home to the incoming 91st Infantry Battalion drawn from the 2nd Eastern Brigade, on April 16th, 2004, the re-commencement of the disarmament, demobilization, rehabilitation, and reintegration (DDRR) of fighters of Liberia's warring factions enough incentive to pack it all in and to reset, to restart and to try something more refreshing. A normal life. UNICEF personnel are heavily present, mainly in and around Monrovia. We are patrolling robustly, sending 2 to 3 patrols out from our HQ daily to provide security to members of UNICEF who are naturally unarmed and to assist in policing. Ms. Angela Kearney of UNICEF releases a statement which leads with, "The DDRR process is critical to improving the well-being of Liberian Children," – an impactful introduction considering that children were used in the wars in Liberia, being used as child soldiers for little or nothing. Every child deserves a childhood, but sadly not every child has such a luxury, not in these parts. There are lines of men and women queuing up with weapons and ammunition in exchange for a better and a more civilised way of life. My mind is racing. I am looking at these people, they're looking at me, they bare a smile and I return it, I return it in the hope that they will finally realise that I am on their side and that my face from a place far away wishes the best for them and their people. We are on their side. Our comrades coming to relieve us soon will be on their side too. Our UN colleagues from Sweden, France, Bangladesh and Ukraine and so on are on their side too. As the tour of duty for the 90th Infantry Battalion closes in, I will rotate with chalk one out of here after a six-month tour of duty which I took no leave from. This is my last weekend here and I have volunteered for yet another patrol. This patrol is a day trip to a town called Ganta. We are providing a dozen soldiers as part of a security party for DDRR events taking place there this weekend. We will be transported by air. As the flight out today will not leave from Camp Clara, we must make our way to the UN airfield in Monrovia, about fifteen minutes from our HQ by car. We mount up and set off on our way. At the UN Airfield in Monrovia there are various different military helicopters. I notice one over to my left, so while I have the time prior to our flight on the M-I8 chopper, I head over to a small group of soldiers from Gambia, very small talk, but very friendly towards each other. We are both brought together by the fact that we are both serving here under the same United Nations mandate and mission. We shake hands, share a brief introduction of our first names and is introduced. Like all wars, it is a great thing when they come to an end. This programme is a decommissioning phase for the war-ravaged Liberia. Most Liberian citizens want an end to the terror and the fear, but there are dissidents who don't want to let it go. To anyone contributing to peace and to this programme, they are promised a pay-off, medical assistance and an employment role or scheme. You would think it a good MULLINGAR TO MONROVIA – A SOLDIER'S MEMOIR Lar taking a rest at the Basecamp at Gbarnga One of the many queues of young adults lining up to hand over their arsenal of weapons as part of UNICEF's DDRR programme. Liberia, April 2004

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