American Heroes

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KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Springtime. Back home, Congress is in recess, the kids are out of school and the redbuds, dogwoods and cherry trees are about to bloom. Here, south of the Hindu Kush, opium poppies are in full blossom, the harvest is about to come in and it’s the start of what the locals call “fighting season.” Though people in both countries have come to accept those conditions as “patterns of life,” some here intend to change the archetype for the people of Afghanistan. If their plan succeeds, it could prove to be the undoing of the Taliban — and mark the beginning of the end of this long war. And most of the so-called mainstream media will have missed the moment.

Last week, three high-profile visitors came to Afghanistan, and all talked about the future of the fight. Our commander in chief came for six hours of meetings at Bagram Airbase and in Kabul. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was here for two days of briefings and meetings with U.S., coalition and Afghan commanders and troops. In both cases, major media reports focused on U.S. and civilian casualties, the upcoming “final offensive” here in Kandahar and the alleged corruption of Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s brother Ahmed, the head of Kandahar’s provincial council. But the visitor who may have made the most important contribution to bringing an end to the Taliban was the acting administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Michele Leonhart.

Leonhart, it should be noted, is a DEA special agent and the first administrator of the agency to make an official visit to an active war zone. More than 90 of her special agents and support personnel are deployed here, and in the past six months, three of them have been killed in action, and another was wounded. During her three-day inspection tour of Afghanistan, she conferred with U.S., coalition and Afghan officials to review and approve next steps in taking down what she calls the “Taliban narco-insurgency.”

In Afghanistan, farmers, insurgents and corrupt officials all rely on income derived from the spring poppy harvest. The goal of the plan — developed by Brig. Gen. Larry Nicholson’s Marine expeditionary brigade based at Camp Leatherneck, DEA specialists on the ground and “in-country” U.S. agricultural and development experts — is to undermine the networks that finance the Taliban and abet the corruption of Afghan government officials, without disrupting the livelihood of poor farmers who may have been coerced into growing opium by insurgent networks.

Breaking these connections without alienating the civilian population in what has been a Taliban stronghold is no small task. More than seven U.S. Marine and Afghan national security force battalions have been committed to the mission. So have significant resources of the DEA and the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, which will provide micro-grants to farmers who do not harvest the poppies they planted last fall. Cash will be given to stimulate small businesses and encourage repairs to economic infrastructure damage incurred during combat operations.

Our Fox News team accompanied Leonhart; Ambassador Anthony Wayne, coordinator of U.S. development and economic assistance in Afghanistan; and Thomas Harrigan, DEA’s chief of operations, to Marjah. There they met with those who will be the final arbiters of whether the plan succeeds — local officials and civilians.

“We all have a lot to do in this effort, but I’m optimistic. These are very entrepreneurial, hardworking people,” Wayne told me as we walked down a street where gunfights raged just a few weeks ago. The provincial governor, Gulab Mangal, widely regarded as one of the most competent in Afghanistan, has signed on, said one of the Marine officers involved in developing the plan. “That’s what we need,” the officer added.

There is more that is needed, as well, e.g., a hospital or at least a clinic, schools, roads, bridges, electricity, improved irrigation — the basic services government is supposed to provide or assure. And there is another element that is crucial for success — showing the people that their government is serious about cleaning up corruption. That’s a key part of what the DEA brings to the fight.

“The most effective judicial system in Afghanistan is the special narcotics court,” a Marine officer noted. “Marines prosecute enemy targets with bombs and bullets. The DEA, Afghan National Interdiction Unit and special investigative units collect evidence to prosecute targets differently but just as effectively.”

Leonhart agrees. Standing beside me on the dusty streets of Marjah, she said, “The DEA is completely committed to winning this battle. Our blood has been spilled here. Locking up corrupt officials involved with narcotics is not only good for the people of Afghanistan; it’s good for these Marines and the American people, too.” She’s right.

Until mid-February, the area known as Marjeh in southern Afghanistan was a sleepy agricultural area somewhat removed from the battles that had been fought in this country to date But the area had two big problems – it was Taliban-controlled and the majority of its “agriculture” was Opium. On 12 February, Marines descended from the sky in heavily-laden helicopters and began an offensive to drive out the Taliban. A month later, Marjeh is safe enough for Hamid Karzai to walk down the main street of the village and meet with its elders.

Secure: Check.

Next to the “hold” phase. Two battalions of Marines and four battalions of Afghans have set up shop in the area, and will remain there for the foreseeable future.

Now for the “build” phase. Here’s where we run into a small problem. Opium has, for years, been the foundation of Marjeh’s economy. The opium trade is highly profitable on a per-acre basis, and, unfortunately, is tied directly to our enemies, the Taliban. Local farmers normally have to borrow the money for the seed – loans called “salaam” that repaid at the end of the season in the real currency of this area: opium paste.

Years ago the US decided on a “poppy eradication” program. The state department shipped a fleet of helicopters to Afghanistan from Colombia, specially outfitted with chemical sprayers intended to kill off fields of poppy. But it didn’t take long to realize that this wasn’t the best plan – killing the poppies meant devastating the farmers, which doesn’t exactly fit with the US goal of winning hearts and minds. So the military shifted its tactics to hunting down the drug traffickers, those who collect and transport the opium to the rest of the world. This strategy has been fairly effective – with the help of agencies like the DEA, the military has rolled up thousands of mid-to high level drug runners in Afghanistan and has destroyed hundreds of millions of dollars of opium paste, heroin and precursor chemicals.

This brings us to the thorny problem being faced in Marjeh and elsewhere: what to do now? The farmers are still growning poppy: this year’s crop is almost ready for harvest. But we’re arresting or killing those who buy the opium from the farmers, which means the farmers won’t get paid for their opium, and won’t be able to pay off their loans or get money for next year’s crop.

The Marines have been attempting to circumvent this problem by handing out wheat seeds in Marjeh – trying to get the farmers to plant something besides opium. But the amount of wheat a man would have to grow to replace his income from opium would likely require lots more land, and more importantly, lots more water, which isn’t easy to come by in this desert climate. And if they DO manage to cultivate wheat on a scale that will make it profitable, how will they harvest it without heavy machinery? And to whom will they sell it?

All of a sudden, it’s looking like this will require much more than just substituting one crop for another. Its looking more like a complete overhaul of this country’s economy, and yes, even its culture.

One quick solution: Marines are offering farmers in Marjeh $500 a hectare NOT to harvest this year’s opium crop. Most of that money will likely be used to pay off salaam. The lenders? Well, you might have guessed it…the Taliban. So in order to win hearts and minds, we’ll be indirectly funding our enemies, at least for this Poppy season.

As you can see, the solutions aren’t cut and dried. But let’s hope this year’s poppy harvest won’t be either.