Giesbrecht, John Albert: my Canadian Forces recollections (March 26, 2012)
An interview/narrative of Captain Al Giesbrecht's experiences whilst serving with the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan. Interview took place on March 26, 2012.
Interviewee: Giesbrecht, John Albert, b. 1953
ABSTRACT: Captain Giesbrecht talks about his deployment in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan as the Officer in Command of the Fusion Cell in TF 3-09 from October 2009 to April 2010. He discusses how his background in criminal intelligence with the RCMP helped him gather intelligence, mapping the infrastructure and complex relations of Afghans in Kandahar Province to create a database for NATO operations in the area. The type of work he was doing, usually called "White Situational Awareness," entailed that he document the social hierarchy and relationships of villages, gather financial, business, and property information on the major players within Afghan society. He worked in conjunction with CIDA, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and PRTs in the region with coordinating, debriefing, and collecting information in the area. 0:00 – 6:00 - Introduction; Training in Shilo, Manitoba and becoming OC of Fusion Cell. 6:00 - 10:00 - Basic job description: building a database with mapping; village structure. 10:00 - 17:00 - Local economy: Basic index; village markets; infrastructure projects. 17:00 - 19:00 - Working with NGOs: filling them in on situational location. 19:00 - 21:30 - Working with different CF bases; collecting intelligence; debriefing. 21:30 - 23:30 - Comparison of deployment with RCMP criminal intelligence job. 23:30 - 27:00 - Job description: daily schedule; living conditions/facilities; food. 27:00 - 28:00 - Christmas in Kandahar. 28:00 - 28:00 - Politics of picking when to take leave time. 29:00 - 31:00 - Security and security risks in and around Camp Nathan Smith. 31:00 - 34:00 - The diverse composition of his Situational Awareness Team. 34:00 - 35:20 - Working with US Liaison Officers; comradely; June handover to US. 35:20 - 37:00 - More Christmas day description. 37:00 - 38:00 - Local Muslim bemusement to Christmas celebration. 38:00 - 40:30 - CF's cultural advisors 40:30 - 45:00 - Which information is important and how to use it; village profiles; 45:00 - 47:00 - Training in winter in Shilo, Manitoba. 47:00 - 50:30 - IEDs: attacks and casualties; training; danger areas. 50:30 - 52:30 - Impression of the ANA and RCMP training them. 52:30 - 56:30 - Tribal life and complications of working with different tribes. 56:30 - 57:20 - Basic consumer price index. 57:20 - 1:00:00 - Agriculture in Southern Afghanistan: drugs and corruption. 1:00:00 - 1:04:36 - Conclusion: effective things; challenges; overall feeling.
Interviewer: Balfour, Jimmy
Rank: Captain. Medals and Honours: Afghanistan Campaign Star
- In Collection:
- Camp Nathan Smith (Afghanistan : Military base)
- Marijuana--Afghanistan
- Tribes
- Culture conflict
- Afghan War, 2001- --Personal narratives, Canadian
- Situational awareness
- Afghanistan--History--2001-
- Giesbrecht, John Albert, 1953- --Interviews
- Kandaha?r (Afghanistan)
- Intelligence officers
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Recreation
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Leaves and furloughs
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, 1
- Canada--Canadian Forces Base (Shilo, Man.)
- Multinational armed forces
- Military intelligence
- Non-governmental organizations
- Social structure--Afghanistan
- Drug traffic--Afghanistan
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry--Battalion, 1st
- Integrated operations (Military science).
- Race relations
- Cultural intelligence
- Taliban
- Improvised explosive devices
- Opium trade--Afghanistan
- Afghan War, 2001-
- Civil-military relations--Afghanistan
- Ethnic relations--Political aspects
- Ethnic conflict
- Canada--Dept. of Foreign Affairs
- Military occupation
- Agriculture--Afghanistan
- Kandahar Airfield (Afghanistan)
- Afghanistan--Afghan National Army
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Military life
- Cultural awareness
- Communications, Military
- Panjwa?ii (Afghanistan : District)
- Afghan War 2001- --Military intelligence
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Personal narratives
- Operation Athena (2003-2005)
- Land mines
- Canadian International Development Agency
- Tactics
- Afghanistan--Politics and government--2001-
- North Atlantic Treaty Organization
- Translators
- Afghanistan--Afghan National Police
- Afghanistan National Security Forces
- Liaison Officers--United States
- Peacekeeping Forces, Canadian
- Muslims--Afghanistan
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Commissariat
- United States--Army
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, 2
- Christmas--Afghanistan
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Battle Group TF 3-09 (Operation Athena Rotation 8)
- Provincial Reconstruction Team
- Royal Canadian Mounted Police--Personal narratives,Canadian
- Domestic intelligence
- Kandaha?r (Afghanistan : Province)
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Barracks and quarters
- 1 sound recording (MP3)
- 60.10867, -113.64258
- 39.76, -98.5
- Original sound recording (MP3) also available.
- Canadian Military Oral History Collection
- GA_705
- Special Collections Finding Aid: https://uvic2.coppul.archivematica.org/military-oral-history-collection
- March 26, 2012
- Digital sound recording in .mp3 format at 160 kbps and 44 kHz. Recorded in digital format by interviewer, technical and cataloguing metadata provided by JF and JP. Interview recorded in digital format for UVic Special Collections in 2012. Migration metadata by KD and MT.
- Rights
- This interview has been posted with the understanding that it may be used for research purposes only. Should the interviewee or their heirs have any objections to this interview being accessible on the Internet, it will be removed promptly. Contact UVic Special Collections for permission if using for other than research purposes: speccoll@uvic.ca
- DOI
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