Female Engagement Team establishes bonds

LAGHMAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Naseema, 17,  holds her baby on her lap, smiling from beneath a white chadaa, or headscarf; which is folded over her forehead, tucked behind her ears, then wrapped about her shoulders. Her smile extends to her large brown eyes, and her laugh crinkles the bridge of her nose in a charming, young expression of true happiness.

Naseema’s engaging personality almost comes across as unseemly in contrast to the nature and dangers of her job.  She is a female Afghan Police Officer in war-torn eastern Afghanistan.

“Who takes care of your baby while you are at work,” asked 1st Lt. Shawna Woodard, of Norman, Okla., the executive officer with Company E, 700th Brigade Support Battalion, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, a member of the Laghman Femal Engagement Team.

The FET, comprised of Soldiers from the 45th IBCT, the Kansas Agri-business Development Team and law enforcement professionals from Forward Operating Base Mehtar Lam, visited the local Afghan police station Naseema and her fellow female officers are assigned to.
“She takes the baby with her to work,” the interpreter replies.

Once the male soldiers had left the room, leaving the women alone, Naseema and her 15 yearold sister-in-law, Leena, pulled the blue burkas over their heads, and folded them on the back of the chair. For a moment, this little office was a place for Leena and Naseema to discuss the successes and challenges they face in their daily lives.

“One female officer was shot 18 times,” says the interpreter, as she recalled a time when the female police officers accompanied American Soldiers during a raid. “She was such a wonderful, nice girl.”
 

The female Soldiers listened with great interest, as they told their stories.
Naseema bounces the baby on her knee as the fussy infant lets out a high-pitched laugh. Leena is particularly perceptive.

“She has 12 years of schooling, she can read and write, and use a computer,” the interpreter explains. “She took two grades worth of exams from her home, studying by herself, so that she could finish school early.”

“You know, you girls are doing so much at so young,” said young Spc. Ashley Bryant, of Glencoe, Okla. as she played with the infant tugging at his yellow shirt and cooed quietly on her lap. “You make us feel good about being here.”

The interpreter extends those words, and Leena smiles.

“We are inspired by the fact that, even though Afghanistan is not America, we can see you all here,” said Naseema with a flat palm indicating the body armor and M-4s that littered the room. “One day, Afghanistan will be okay with women doing these jobs.”

Naseema and Leena come from a very progressive family.

“My mother has been a police officer for more than ten years,” Leena says with a proud smile. “She’s in the United States right now for training.”

“Except for one teacher, our family are all Soldiers or police officers,” Naseema added.  Naseema’s husband, who is also Leena’s brother, is a fellow police officer with the local police force.

Naseema and Leena tried on the female Soldier’s hats and their body armor while the U.S. Soldiers donned the girl’s burka, gaining some perspective of each others lives and how they work.

After the handshakes, the hugs and farewells, the female Soldiers walked away with their heads filled with ideas of projects that may help these extraordinary women.  They  also left feeling the greatest sense of camaraderie.

These teenage girls are changing the course of history, doing the things that others are unwilling to do.
 
 “This is what we wanted to do,” said Spc. Darlene Cantrall, of Glencoe, Okla. as they walked away from the police compound. “Those girls are amazing!”