The psychological scars of war

Mmegi Editor | Monday January 16, 2023 06:00

A few days after the suicide, disturbing social media footage from the conflict zone emerged appearing to show SADC troops tossing dead insurgents onto a pile of bodies and burning them.

The incident is currently under investigation and, if verified, would be a travesty against international law combat.

Following the murder-suicide late last year involving Botswana Defence Force (BDF) troops in Mozambique, questions are naturally being asked about the psychological health of the men and women the region has deployed to the Cabo Delgado theatre of war.

For the BDF, the deployment to the Cabo Delgado insurgency marks the single longest conflict local troops have been continuously engaged in, having left for the battle in July 2021.

In addition, unlike their previous peacekeeping missions, the war in Mozambique features a uniquely callous and supremely sinister enemy who does not obey the rules of conventional warfare but delights in ever-increasing acts of terror and destruction. The insurgents running amok in Cabo Delgado have killed thousands, beheading, disembowelling and raping their way through the province since 2017, with a single-minded focus of terrorising not just the area, but the entire region into bowing to their nebulous demands.

Sending off Botswana’s contribution of troops to the SADC mission in July 2021, President Mokgweetsi Masisi, who is also the armed forces’ Commander in Chief, warned that the soldiers would face a “deceptive enemy” likely to use “underhand tactics”. From the recent incidents, it would appear that the 18 months of combat is beginning to take its toll on SADC troops, despite whatever mitigating measures the region and the various country-level military structures have put in place.

It is quite apparent that greater psychological support as well as assessments are required for the soldiers engaged in the forests of Cabo Delgado fighting an enemy whose dedication to evil knows no bounds. The erosion of morale and increasing psychological wear and tear are not unique to the BDF, SADC or the war in Cabo Delgado, as other countries have faced similar challenges when engaging in long term campaigns. Team leaders here and those stationed in Mozambique should urgently undertake an investigation into morale and psychological health amongst the troops there, with a view to improving their interventions, whether this involves shorter individual deployments, shifting areas of responsibility or engaging friendly partners to help with non-military activities.

Ultimately, however, the answers lie in the strategy SADC heads of state intend to use to achieve their objectives in Cabo Delgado. It is becoming increasingly clear that for all the hopeful and positive sounding statements of impending victory, the war in that province may not be “won” in the conventional sense of the word. The war may have to shift to one of containment or any other alternatives that can bring lasting peace for citizens in the area. Let 2023 be the year that the SADC heads of state devise a “winning” strategy for the sake of peace in the region.

Today's thought

“As professionals, you stand for much more than they do and must avoid emulating them and

sinking to their level.”

– President Mokgweetsi Masisi