Negotiating an obstacle course.

When neil armstrong set foot on the moon it was celebrated as a giant step for mankind in general, and a crowning success for the usa, in particular. it was success that could not be argued with and no doubt the champagne flowed in abundance.but let us pause and consider a few points.

A.     The accomplishment was not by accident.

B.     It took a long and dedicated period of training leading up to the success.

C.     It was the stepping stone to further achievements.

Bearing in mind the above points, let us parallel them with our military perspective. one of the primary mandates of the jamaica defence force is to defend against external aggression (a situation which we have probably cast in the far recesses of our consciousness as a most unlikely possibility)

Physical and mental preparedness

In order to accomplish such a formidable task in the event it becomes necessary, one has to be properly prepared. this calls for training at all levels and in every category of military discipline. the most important area of concentration should be the development of the individual, the moulding of each soldier into becoming a mentally and physically fit person. this sets the foundation on which to build.

The total soldier

Physical fitness, presently, is an individual responsibility once we have left the training depot. this unfortunately is not given the attention required as in most cases we "promise" ourselves to dedicate time but never actually fulfill such promises.

To improve this situation in any real way, organised physical training should be more aggressively pursued at unit level, i.e. platoon and coy levels, in addition to personal efforts.

Once we have achieved this mental and physical fitness, it will be discovered that the soldier will more readily adapt to other areas of training, critical to his rounded development. this includes the abstract qualities expressed in the core values of the jdf: courage, honesty, loyalty, integrity, discipline and commitment.

Public relations and elocution

Without losing sight of our main purpose, in training, soldiers should also focus on dealing with the public at large. first and foremost, it must be established in the minds of our troops that the vast majority of the population are the good citizens whom we have sworn to protect and that they do look to us for that protection and security. this must not be conceived as being only the wall of aggressive firepower created by a throng of hostile looking men. when we are able to achieve friendly interaction with, and win the confidence of the populace, we will achieve tremendous and far-reaching benefits.

At the same time, one should strive to speak with the citizens in an educated manner, avoiding derogatory jargon and abusive language. politeness coupled with good standard english provides an approach that is difficult to reject even under trying circumstances.

In the event that troops are deployed to a particular area, (having already won the confidence of the populace) no undue hysteria would be experienced because it would be expected that they would do their job professionally and depart without leaving a trail of mayhem and panic.

Weapons, tactics and specialist training

Technology has rapidly advanced in recent years and has forced changes to which we must adapt if we are not to be dragged in the backwater of time. we should therefore focus on the possibility of improving our weapons system, surveillance, communication, transportation and other logistic support equipment on a timely basis.

Conventional tactics have seen changes but the basic principles remain pinned to the quality of support. specialist training has always been available to us from various sources although we may not have taken maximum advantage of it, for various reasons. we now need to vigorously explore these avenues with a view of capitalizing on them.

With the new century at our doorstep, we must realistically prepare ourselves to meet it and march in unison with the changes it will undoubtedly bring. The sacrifices might be great and costly now, but let us not lose sight of the adage, the more we sweat in training, the less we bleed in battle.