LTGEN Mateparae, Chief of Defence Force
By Lieutenant General Jerry Mateparae, Chief of Defence Force
The New Zealand Defence Force’s mission is a simple one – to keep New Zealand secure. As becomes evident from this latest edition of our One Force magazine though, the definition of security is a necessarily broad one.
The Special Air Service (SAS) troops have again deployed to Afghanistan (see NZ SAS Deploy to Afghanistan). They join our Provincial Reconstruction Team in each delivering in their own ways the security conditions required in Afghanistan to allow the building of infrastructure and enduring institutions of state. A stable Afghanistan with good governance, strong security forces and an impartial judiciary is unlikely to again become a home for terrorists. And therein rests this country’s very real connection to New Zealand. Kiwis are renowned travellers; we take planes and stay in hotel rooms and resorts. So where terrorists strike around the world, the chances are that New Zealanders will be at risk. In this sense, NZDF involvement in Afghanistan is directly connected to keeping New Zealanders secure.
Meanwhile, our peace-making and keeping operations in Timor-Leste have marked a special milestone, with the 10th anniversary of our involvement there (see Ten Years in Timor). As at 21 September 2009 there were 157 NZDF personnel in Timor-Leste. The situation on the ground today is calm, a situation that has been brought about not without significant cost to New Zealand. Five New Zealand soldiers have died during this ten year deployment, including Private Leonard Manning, New Zealand’s first combat casualty since the Vietnam War. Under the auspices of the United Nations, the NZDF injected its forces on occasions to help bring peace to a country in our ‘neighbourhood’ that was falling into turmoil, and we have been required to keep that peace.
Lastly, I draw your attention to the story about the Government’s expansion of youth initiatives that the NZDF is actively involved in – one the pre-employment Limited Service Volunteer (LSV) scheme; the other is the Fresh Start residential programme for young offenders (see Government Expands Youth Initiatives). NZDF people are great trainers and we have many skills, values and attitudes to teach, especially around self discipline and motivation. I am delighted that the NZDF is involved in these initiatives. We are an organisation founded on an ethic of service to our country and the values of courage, commitment, comradeship and integrity, all built around doctrine, leadership, learning and discipline. We have a responsibility to use these talents for the benefit of New Zealand.