Keith, Rollie: my UNEF experiences (March 5, 2017)
Interviewee: Keith, Roland "Rollie"
An interview/narrative of Rollie Keith's experiences with the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF). Interview took place on March 5, 2017 in Victoria, B.C.
ABSTRACT: 0:00 – 0:35 Interview Standard Narrative. 0:35 – 7:00 Background information, motivations for enlistment, family. 4:15 – 14:15 Training, perceptions of peacekeeping, make-up of UNEF forces. 14:15 – 19:45 Day to day life on deployment, patrols, equipment, living conditions, recreation, morale. 19:45 – 25:20 Individual perspective, navigation in the desert, use of radios, daily routine, Ferret Scout Cars, contacting home. 25:25 – 28:15 Tasks/aims/objectives, guards shifts. 28:15 – 33:15 Confrontation with Egyptian platoon, other notable incidents, mines, rules of engagement. 33:15 – 36:20 Relations with Bedouins, trading eggs and tea, leave to Beirut, interest in the history of Mandatory Palestine. 36:20 – 38:20 Fatality due to mines, visiting Israeli hospital. 38:20 – 39:20 Effects of 1956 war, loss of Israeli life. 39:20 – 40:00 Opinions of involvement. 40:00 – 42:30 Conditions upon arrival, different roles in the mission. 42:30 – 51:00 Hostility from civilians, reflections on civilian groups, issues of bias. 51:00 – 57: 25 Military effectiveness of each side, UN bureaucracy, relations with other members of the UNEF. 57:25 – 1:00:00 Success of mission, other peacekeeping missions. 1:00:00 – 1:02:30 Family opinions, transition and decompression. 1:02:30 – 1:07:42 Impressions of the UN. 1:07:42 – 1:12:40 The UNEF mission as worth it, international implications. 1:12:40 – 1:14:18 Concluding remarks and interview standard narrative. Suggested Clip(s) for Archive: 28:15 – 32:45 Confrontation with Egyptian platoon. 36:20 – 38:20 Fatality due to mines, visiting Israeli hospital
Interviewer: Roberts, Daisy
- In Collection:
- 1 sound recording (MP3)
- 48.4359, -123.35155
- Original sound recordings (MP3) also available.
- Canadian Military Oral History Collection
- KR_845
- Special Collections Finding Aid: https://uvic2.coppul.archivematica.org/military-oral-history-collection
- March 5, 2017
- Digital sound recording in .mp3 format at 256 kbps. Recorded in digital format by interviewer, technical and cataloguing metadata provided by JF. Interview recorded in digital format for UVic Special Collections in 2017. 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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