Sanctuary (or perhaps just area) denial operations at the Afghanistan village level

[davidbfpo]

I've just read through this thread and from an "armchair" faraway surely the local populace need to know what the message is? What is the minimum level of co-operation expected etc. As I recall in Malaya, not just in the protected villages, there was a very clear statement of principles / intent by the government and the resulting punishment for evasion (draconian by contemporary standards).

In the Afghan village context is this message clear? I do not mean 'fight with us', give us information how to fight and the rest.

Slap in particular has pointed at the lessons of gangs. We may not admit it, but most Western democracies have 'no go' areas or areas where neither the law nor state power are decisive - especially at night. Surveillance can help, for obvious reasons covert surveillance tends to be long range and the identification of individuals has a host of difficulties.

[jcustis]

Tough question David. My experience in Iraq leads me to think that the answer lies in having the time to be present and watch/observe/judge what is going on around you in the village. We can engage them in dialog all we want, but if we are did so during a short 2-4 hour visit, we used to be told all sorts of tales of woe, which usually had a self-serving purpose most of the time.

It takes time and presence to make sure any message does "sink in."