The PRT's Public Affairs Officer

Lt(N) Desmond James blogs about his job:

This image is of the Van Doos a soccer game they organized for local kids. The Van Doos, on their spare time, built a soccer pitch for the local kids. The photo was taken by a Van Doo.

I guess I have never explained what I actually do here in Kandahar.

I am a Public Affairs Officer with the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Kandahar. I work both inside and outside Camp Nathan Smith, also known as "outside the wire."

I spend some amount of my time in convoys going from place to place, taking reporters to events they want to see, and myself learning about Afghanistan. I am also a soldier. I watch the back of reporters as they go about their work because they can't do that as well as their job.

My job is to try and get factual reporting on the PRT. As I work in the PRT, that means showing journalists (local, Canadian, and international) PRT operations and work. Journalists speak to Afghans along the way to get their views. I don't edit, screen, or approve any work they do unless it concerns operational security. If it does, I screen things to ensure we aren't endangering our soldiers or Afghans.

Some days are more difficult than others depending on the amount of journalists on a convoy or at an event. Trying to get 3 media outlets the stories they want within a time limit for them is challenging. I have to be quick on my feet and know who is the best person to answer a question they may have.

That also means I have to know a lot about the PRT and as much as possible about Kandahar and how things work out here. I must know who the players are and how they fit into the picture.

If I don't do my job effectively, reporters cannot get accurate and factual stories about reconstruction efforts here, and there are many. Saying that, if there is a casualty on a given day, that will take priority in the news. I don't like it but that is life.

So that is what I do.

For the guy who asked me about working with ISAF and other PRT's, I don't really see that much in the PRT. It is a Canadian run camp with mostly Canadian people here. There is a representative from the U.S. Department of State here as this PRT used to be run by Americans before we took it over. I can say that the U.S. approach is different than ours. I can't comment on good or bad because that would be unfair to other countries. I really know best about our operations.