Season 4: Canada’s Peacekeepers

Music [00:00]

Host [00:05]

We are a nation of peacekeepers. For more than seven decades, Canadians have served in peacekeeping missions around the world. More than one-hundred and twenty-five thousand Canadians have travelled to areas experiencing conflict and unrest – places like Haiti, the Balkans, and the Sinai Peninsula. There, they’ve helped restore peace and security, while facing extreme climates and dangerous conditions. Join us as Veterans share their experiences as peacekeepers. We’ll hear about their triumphs, struggles, and the human connections they’ve made. With courage, integrity and loyalty, they’ve left their mark…

Music [0:44]

Host [0:47]

Originally a Portuguese colony, East Timor was invaded by Indonesia in 1975. For decades, the East Timorese fought a guerrilla campaign against Indonesian occupation. Finally, after a United Nations-supervised referendum in 1999, East Timor voted for independence. This led to renewed violence, as pro-Indonesian militias, at times supported by the Indonesian military, burnt homes, killed civilians and created unrest that resulted in more than 500,000 people being displaced. In response, a United Nations mission was sent to halt the violence and, eventually, help rebuild the country.

Retired Major Kerry Mould served with the Canadian Air Force for more than 20 years. As an airfield and construction engineer, he was posted across the country, but dreamed of deploying overseas. He always wanted to serve on a United Nations mission. After 10 years in the military, he finally got his opportunity, serving with a peacekeeping mission on the other side of the world, in East Timor.

Music [1:50]

Kerry Robert Mould [1:55]

I really wanted to go on a UN mission. I, being posted to the air division, the actual section that that arranges for all the deployments of personnel from the Air Force to UN missions was one floor down from where I worked. So I went down and badgered the guys and said, “You know, I really want to go, I don't really care what mission to go on, I just want to go on a mission.” So I actually got sent to, to Kingston to do the UN military observers course, in preparation. The UN military observer course is not a specific, mission specific course, it is more of a general course. And what they're trying to, to instill in you is, what is the role of a military observer? What sort of challenges might you face? For example, there's an extensive first aid portion on the on the course, because quite often military observers are in locations by themselves or with one other military observer.

Host [3:02]

After completing the UN Observer course, Kerry Mould was placed on a contingency standby list for short notice overseas deployments. Eventually, after more than a decade in the Canadian Armed Forces, he was chosen to serve on a UN mission.

Music [3:15]

Kerry Robert Mould [3:20]

East Timor ended up being the one that there were short notice for to, to send three staff officers to that mission. And so I was selected to go, when they told me I was going to East Timor, I, [laughter] I kind of went “Where is that?” Because I didn't know anything about East Timor. And so I quickly ran off and, and looked, looked up the history of East Timor, and where it was and what the situation was there. I didn't really learn a lot about that until I got the in briefings from the, from DND on what our mission was and where we were going to go and what we were going to be doing.

Music [4:04]

Kerry Robert Mould [4:08]

It was a very, something that I had worked through my whole career towards. At that point, I'd been in the military about 12 years, 10 - 12 years. And I really wanted to go and missed out on a few other missions, just because it didn't correlate with my posting, or, or I wasn't available, or they weren't asking for volunteers they were taking people from specific units. I joined the military to, to do active duty, to do something, you know, that was important. And for real, you know, most of your career in the military is preparing for eventual deployment overseas to, to some action somewhere.

Music [4:54]

Host [4:58]

More than 600 Canadians deployed to East Timor in 1999, where they joined the Australian-led multinational force working to restore peace and security in the country. After the initial force returned to Canada, a smaller Canadian presence remained in the region.

Music [5:12]

Kerry Robert Mould [5:16]

Three of us were sent as the second rotation of three staff officers. And as it turned out, the last rotation of three staff officers. There were, I think, seven battalions of varying nations supporting through the, through the island. The leading forces were the Australians who had a battalion and the New Zealanders. But there was also Portuguese, South Korean, Thai, Filipino.

It's a South Pacific Island, so it's, you know, palm trees and white beaches. And, and that was sort of one of the first impressions I got as we were landing. But then, as we drove into the city, the poverty level struck me immediately. I mean, the, the, it was a very poor country. And I think at the time, it was the sixth poorest country in the world. And not only that, but everything of value had been burned. So every nice house was basically a scorched wreck. All the marketplaces, everything had been burned, they had ripped down all the telephone lines, the power lines. So the Indonesians had done a very significant scorched earth policy as they pulled out. And that was obvious everywhere.

I had originally expected because I was a construction engineer, I would be in the engineering section. But when I arrived, I was told nope, that's been taken care of, what we really need is staff officers to work in the intelligence section. As part of my responsibilities within that cell, I wrote a handbook on the political situation in East Timor. It was a small island. But it had multiple political parties because of the fact that it was a completely new country. So we were doing interviews with the political leaders asking, you know, what is your position? What do you believe in? And so I developed a handbook, basically, a small pamphlet that could be handed out to different organizations.

I got to attend a number of their initial parliamentary sessions, watch how those unfolded, I got to see elections occur. There was actually several members of Elections Canada, who were there working, as well as several RCMP officers, were working with the CIVPOL section.

Music [7:56]

Kerry Robert Mould [8:01]

But I also worked as a day to day Information Officer so we did daily data gathering from all of the, all of the battalions within the sectors. We'd gather daily intelligence report from them, what was going on, issues, problems, all that sort of stuff. We put together a daily info summary. And then within the cell, every day, a different person took the briefing, who would brief it to the, to the general and all the senior officers. So we briefed the, all of the NGOs on a weekly basis. We would brief them on the threats. But for the most part, it was more, you know, these roads are washed out, you know, this is the, the travel in this area is very bad, because of the situation with the roads, was more environmental risks than it was risks of crime or any sort of combat risks. There was a very large and robust civilian component of the, of the mission. So there was already an organization set up to distribute aid to deal with refugees, to deal with resettlement and stuff like that.

Music [9:26]

Host [9:30]

Over the course of his six months in East Timor, Mould witnessed the positive results of their efforts to help rebuild the country.

Music [9:37]  

Kerry Robert Mould [9:41]

There was a lot more structure in the, in the six months. I mean, you saw roads and bridges being repaired. You saw schools being rebuilt, you know, people were going back to work there was you could see, some of the houses that had been burned out, were being rebuilt. The feeling generally across the country was one of optimism. I mean, you had, you know, they had their first parliamentary sessions. They had, you know, deciding their own future. Just to give you an example, the most senior East Timorese, in the previous government, in the in the Indonesian occupation government, had been a secretary who worked in the Ministry of Justice for the Indonesians. That person was, there was, there was about 10 of them were picked. And they were sent to Australia for training on law. And then they came back and formed their own Supreme Court and their own federal court and their own lower courts.

Music [10:59]

Kerry Robert Mould [11:03]

From October 2001, through to March 2002 the situation in East Timor had stabilized considerably. The UN military presence had basically put an end to the, to the Indonesian colonists insurrection against these Timorese, they had mostly left. So there was very little in the way of conflict associated with the independence. Now, there was still issues with criminality. And you have to understand when like, literally, a Western person, the watch on their on their wrist is more than that person would make in a month or two months, like that's the value difference.

Now, that being said, as a UN military member, I was armed all the time, I carried a pistol with me whenever I left my room. And so even in the daytime, like, we worked Monday to Saturday, basically 12 hour days, and we had Sundays off. And so, Sundays, sometimes we'd go to the beach to go swimming and stuff like that to, to you know, appreciate where we were. And when we would do things like that, there was always several members of the group who were assigned on over watch who would, you know, for those of us who are going swimming, we would leave our pistols, in a pile with a couple of people who are armed. And so that to provide security and I mean, I traveled throughout Dili on a daily basis, I never really felt sort of fear that, you know, we're going to be attacked or anything like that. It was the poverty more than anything, you know, that that was, I think the, you know, what crime there was, was, I think, an issue of people were starving and, you know, needed food, and the decisions where we're being, you know, forced from that, not from any, you know, feeling against the UN personnel.

Music [13:19]

Kerry Robert Mould [13:24]

I left in, in March of 2002. And I did feel that, that I mean, it's a very difficult thing to build a country from the ground up. And, and I saw that firsthand. And I did feel that, you know, there was a long road ahead of East Timor. You don't realize it when you come from, from a wealthy first world country, how much you take for granted. But the grinding poverty was just something that you, you just don't get used to, you know, people living totally hand to mouth, right. They're they’re, they're growing their food, they're raising their animals and if the crop doesn't come in, they don't eat. So it was a, it was certainly an eye opener for somebody like myself coming from a very wealthy country to go visit somewhere where what we take for granted is certainly not taken for granted there.

Music [14:28]

Host [14:33]

And with that, I’d like to thank you for listening to the Peacekeeper’s edition of the Faces of Freedom podcast. Subscribe, and check out previous seasons, through your favorite podcasting app. If you have a suggestion – whether it’s a guest or a story – you can reach us at Canada Remembers on Facebook and Instagram, and at Veterans Affairs Canada on Twitter. Use the hashtag #CanadaRemembers and tell us what you think. If you’re looking to dig even further into the stories of Canadian Veterans, we have a wide selection online at veterans.gc.ca. Thanks for joining! Until next time.

Music [00:00]

Host [00:05]

We are a nation of peacekeepers. For more than seven decades, Canadians have served in peacekeeping missions around the world. More than one-hundred and twenty-five thousand Canadians have travelled to areas experiencing conflict and unrest – places like Haiti, the Balkans, and the Sinai Peninsula. There, they’ve helped restore peace and security, while facing extreme climates and dangerous conditions. Join us as Veterans share their experiences as peacekeepers. We’ll hear about their triumphs, struggles, and the human connections they’ve made. With courage, integrity and loyalty, they’ve left their mark…

Music [0:44]

Host [0:47]

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has experienced violence and unrest since 1960, shortly after it gained independence from Belgium after 90 years of colonial rule.

The first UN troops deployed to the Congo in the early 1960s. Eventually a force of more than 20,000, including 300 Canadians, would serve there. While peacekeepers left the Congo in 1964, major unrest erupted again in the mid-1990s, followed by a violent coup and civil war in 1997.

A second UN mission began in 1999, one Canadians continue to serve on today. Charles Hamel was one such Canadian. Following in his family's rich tradition of military service, he served for 42 years in the Canadian Armed Forces. In 2003, he deployed to the Congo, following in the footsteps of his father, who was part of the first UN mission forty years before.

Music [1:43]

Charles Hamel [1:48]

We have a strong lineage, family lineage of service. My father was an infantry officer with the Van Doos. I was named after my uncle Charlie, who served in the Second World War and lost his leg.

I joined in 1973. And went directly through Basic Officer Training, and served with the Royal Montreal Regiment, and later commanded the Regiment in 1986. And I spent quite a few years working off and on full time with the military. I was a reservist and joined as a reservist.

Host [2:41]

When Hamel deployed to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, he was already familiar with the region.

Charles Hamel [2:47]

Well, what I knew was, my father was on the same mission, the same peacekeeping mission. In fact, that almost had the same title and has been continuous ever since 1961-62, when the Congo had declared independence from Belgium.

This was I think the second peacekeeping mission that the UN undertook. It was the largest then, and is still the largest UN peacekeeping mission today. I did know vaguely what my father had done when he was there. So I did have some background and some history. And of course, who wouldn't want to go serve on the same mission as their father had served 42 years later, and then be able to communicate with one another and compare notes. The then and now. So it was… it was something that I was really looking forward to, and, and I felt ready to go as well.

My father's commanding officer in Korea, his name was Colonel Tony Poulin, who was a neighbour of my father's, and he was doing the same job that I was about to do. So I have a picture of him in his office and a picture of myself in my own office, then it was just a little black phone on the corner of the desk with an in basket, and he was smoking a cigar, and me in a operational headquarters with all the bells and whistles, and so on. So he also was very, very interested in, in what I was about to undertake. And we communicated for, I think, the first three months of my tour, and then he passed away. And I thought it was kind of fitting that when I ended the tour I dedicated my work and so on to Colonel Tony Poulin.

Music [5:09]

Host [5:13]

After arriving in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Hamel got down to work, hoping to help reduce the violence in the country.

Charles Hamel [5:20]

It got out of control on the eastern part of the country. So, you know, you remember Roméo Dallaire, and his experience in Rwanda, eventually, you know, that led to the Hutus being pushed out of Rwanda. And a large majority of them basically crossed across the border to the Congo. And what happened is, I ended up being deployed out of the capital over to the eastern part of the country where all the violence was actually happening.

Music [6:04]

Charles Hamel [6:10]

End of August, early September, that's when I was deployed out to the Ituri Brigade. And right from the get go, it was very chaotic. In fact, the very first evening, when I arrived, and was in a relatively safe house, it was being attacked. And I can always vividly remember that a soldier standing next to me, fired his rifle. So it just kind of caught me kind of like holy, it's been a long time since I've been that close to a weapon firing.

I had to go up to a village called Aru, A-r-u that was in the northern part of the Great Lakes area and the northeastern tip of the Congo. And the reason why we were going up there is because there was a warlord that was using child soldiers. And he had claimed that he was a good guy now, and they had demobilized all of those child soldiers.

Here we are in the compound going into his kinda headquarters, and everybody is armed to the teeth, except for a couple of military observers unarmed, like myself, and my French colleague. So, yeah, I mean, the first thing we did was scout out that room and find out what is the nearest exit in the in case that everything did go south? Thankfully, it did not. But when we exited, there was this very large platoon of children that were formed up in three ranks. And basically, what it was showing is they were all dressed in civilian, they were not armed, and they were just kids. Anyways, as we're chatting away, I was kinda like, “Huh, I wonder if these are truly child soldiers? Or is this just some kind of, you know, a propaganda ploy.” So I asked Commander Jerome if I can have one of his guards, AK-47s. And I handed the weapon over to a young lad, that was in the front rank of these platoons. And I could talk to them, because I spoke French.

But I spoke to this young lad and I asked him if he could take the weapon apart, and put it back together again. And without hesitation, he stripped and reassembled that AK-47 promptly. So in my mind's eye, these were actually child soldiers. Now had they actually been demobilized, and were no longer, and they were reintegrated back into the villages in the communities from which they were recruited? No, I don't think so. I was not convinced at all. In fact, all of my records, pictures and journal entries of that visit, were handed over to the international war tribunal because it was alleged that he had committed war crimes.

Music [10:06]

Host [10:11]

While serving in the Congo, Hamel kept in touch with his colleagues, friends and family by emailing them pictures.

Charles Hamel [10:18]

I sent probably every second day or so a picture, and an article as to what the picture depicted and what's going on in the Congo. And I ended up sending 100 of them. And they were called photo du jour, picture of the day. And the distribution list that I had on there. And the audience that I wrote to was very broad. So you know, it would go to my thesis advisor at the University of Calgary in the Centre for Military Strategic Studies. And they would post that on the bulletin board. So that all the students that were the post grad students that were part there would, would be up to speed as to what's going on in that part of the world. And they were just very grateful. The other group, of course, was my, my peers, and the military. But to this day, so few Canadians actually know what the hell is going on, on the largest peacekeeping mission on the planet that has eight million killed since 1998. It's called Africa's First World War. And so little is known about the travesty that's going on in that part of the world.

Music [11:57]

Host [12:03]

And with that, I’d like to thank you for listening to the peacekeeper’s edition of the Faces of Freedom podcast. Subscribe, and check out previous seasons, through your favorite podcasting app. If you have a suggestion – whether it’s a guest or a story – you can reach us at Canada Remembers on Facebook and Instagram, and at Veterans Affairs Canada on Twitter. Use the hashtag #CanadaRemembers and tell us what you think. If you’re looking to dig even further into the stories of Canadian Veterans, we have a wide selection online at veterans.gc.ca. Thanks for joining! Until next time.