UNIFil MAGAZINE Volume 13 No.5 May 1988

"UNIFIL rriust remain deploved in southern Lebanon. This was the overallassessment", concluded in LITANI of JulV 1986, after an international workshopon UNIFIL, held in Oslo, the,capital of NorwaV in earlv JuIV, 1986.

broad context, and ended with adiscussion on the future of theForce. "Even if the UN Force insouthern Lebanon has not as vetmanaged to fuifill its mandate, itcan prove difficult to withdraw itdue to the unforeseeable conse­quences", the former UN .Under­Secretary-General, Brian Ur­quhart, said at a press conferencein connection with the workshop.

a single article has been receivedfrom the reading public. Yet at thepublication of the LITANI, quite anumber of telephone calls arereceived indicating among otherthings, complaints, suggestionsetc exactly what the LITANI col­umn "LETTERS TO THEEDITOR" is meant to do. If forany reason the writer wants to re­main anonymous, LITANI on itspart can just do that. But it shouldbe remembered that all the articlessubmitted must be signed andproperly addressed so that theEditor on his part can replywithout much difficulty.

The office of the LITANI re­mains open for your contribu­tions, It is' noteworthy\to realisethat the magazine is for all of ussoldiers and civilians alike. Byyour contributions you makeUNIFIL go round.

readers. This, in effect is an at­ternpt to improve the magazineand make it more interesting.

It is however, disheartening tonotelthat for two months now not

Commander of UNIFIL, U-Gen E.Siilasvuo from Finland, formerCOS of UNEF II and the coor­dinator of the UN peace-keepingmissions in the Middle East. Fur­thermore the UNIFIL spokesman,Timur Goksel, took part in theworkshop.

The workshop attempted toraise the question of UNIFIL in a

FROM THE

From LITANI Magazine of July,1986, we scissored this story,brought under the headline:"UNIFIL must stayl"

.,. "UNIFIL must remaindeployed in southern Lebanon.This was the overall assessmentmade by most of the participantsat an international workshop onUNIFIL held in Oslo, theNorwegian capital, from July 1.-4.1986. The workshop was organiz­ed by the Norwegian Institute forForeign Affairs\which\has for thelast two years been running aresearch project on peace-keepingin the Middle East. Among theseveral distinguished participantsat the seminar were U-Gen E.A.Erskine of Ghana, the first Force

In the Marchjissue\of LITANI aproposal was made whereby acolumn will be created in themagazine to publish the views,opinions and suggestions from

Assessments on the situa­tion in Southern Lebanonand of prospects of

developments in a broader con­text are frequent these days.Anyhow, UNIFIL must look uponits own role within such contexts,as a means of correctly definingthe values and yields of itspresenee in the area. This discus­sion has to be an ongoing proeess- and it certainly is.

LitaHiFILES

LITANI is the monthly UNIFIL newsblJlletin. Views and opinions expressedtherein are not necessarily thos.' of theUnited Nations or the Force Commander.Reproduction of articles and photographs iswelcome. Unless expressly authorised bythe United Nations. no reproduction may beused in advertising or for other commercialpurposes. Address; CMPIO, U.N. - POB7476, Beirut - Lebanon or CM PlO, POB75, 22100 Nahariya - Israel.

EDITOR

Lt-Col F E .A OUA YSON

Chief Military PublicInformatloll Officer

ASS!STANT EDITOR

Capt E K. ;-IOLTtT

ASSISTANT CM PlOEDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Ms JEANNETTE TROUVE

REPORTER

WOI E ADIH

PHOTOGRAPHER

WOI T. y MUSAHCONTINGENT PRESS

OFFICERSCAMP COMMAND

Capt E COLCLOUGHFIJIBA TT

Capt S. VATUFINBATTWOIII J JLJONALA

FRENCHLOG

llLt F. L1CHTEROWICZ

GHANBATT

MaJ J K. AGBOTSEIRISHBATT

Comdt T HALLIGAN

ITALAIR

Capt A. POLLINOMP COY

CC\ptP P THAPANEPBATT

Maj R B VAIDYANORBATT

Capt R. KRISTIANSENNORMAINTCOY21 LT O TORVIK

SWEDLOG

11 Lt J BERGSTAM

PR1'NTINGI DESIGNING

SERVICES

Y.M. MARKARIAN - Beirut

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Officer-in-charge at Tvre Log Base, Capt Jon Are Gran (right) and his second incommand, WO / Sven Lvden on the roof, overlooking the harbour under the UNf/ag.

The Base Where UNIFIThe shelter of Tyre log Base is still being kept fully equipped - with

dry food rations sufficient for the entire staft for at least eight days. Thememories of 11 August 1986 are still among the darkest in the recenthistory of UNIFIL. However. at present there is nothino to indicate thatthe UNIFil base in Tyre should again be attacked the way it was donewhen militiamen started firing at the base ane and a half years ago. To­day the UNIFil base in Tyre carries out its daily duties without such adaand press coverage.

The log Base is handlinghuge amounts of goods ofalmost every description ­

every day and week. For over twoyears, that the Tyre logistics Basehas been operational - it hasalways been the ultimate objectiveto prepare for future use the Tyreharbour as a place for handlinggoods and stores intended forUNIFil. The tasks are to handlethe goods in transit and ready toserve as forward depot to theSwedish Supply Company.

SHOWING THE UN FLAG- It is equally important that

we in this manner, on a dailybasis, show UNIFll's presence,that we are waving the UN flag,so to speak. We have a very goodrelationship and contact with thepeople of Tyre and surroundings,says the Officer-in- charge/CaptainJon Are Gran to L1TAN!.

With Summer season in\ sight,the staft of 23 from four nationsare already in light working

uniforms as temperatures climb to:J) degrees centigrades in peakhours about noon.

This is an important relief forfrom Naqoura after lunch arepacked with delicacies andnecessities alike, and of course,the roomy mail sack, companydailies and magazines with thelatest general news ...

- This is an important task forall of us three times a week saysCapt Gran. - Our work is excitingand we have variations and sur­prises every day. Anyhow, themai I is always of a particularlysignificance to those of us whoare living in the "province" , saysthe Captain.

VIGILANT OUTLOOKIn all there are 19 military

UNIFil staft and four civilians at

the base. Two of the military staftbelong to the Movement Control(Movcon) - among them theOfticer-in-Charge. Five staftmembers come from the Swedishlogistics and constitute an effec­tive supply team at the Tyre logBase. Twelve "watchdogs" fromGhana's contingent take care ofthe gate checks and are con­tinuously on the outlook for anyunusual developments outside.

- All incidents are to bereported to UNIFil OPS. Ourresponsibility is also to organizethe defence of the base, and thisis done in accordance with theSOP, says Capt Gran.

Part of the logistics Baseoperations is always unloadingand loading of goods for UNIFil,very often in the form of transferfrom civilian onto military UNIFil

Supplv convoV coming into the base in Tvre. In the first vehicle are sirring Pte Ken Henriksson, Swedlog and Pte Ofosu from Ghana. In the second car are CplHamid Appauh, Ghana and Pte Peter Granath, Sweden. Guard: L/Cpl K. Nzimah from Ghana.

L Supplies Are Securedvehicles for further transporta­tion.

CHARTER ED CONTAINERSHIP

Says U-Col Lars Weghagen,Commanding Offiver of Move­ment Control at the UNIFIL Head­quarters: ~ Our objective plans

'for the utilization of Tyre LogBase is two fold. First we have tosee to it that aur planned charter­ing of M/V "Evangelis" forregular transport to Tyre fromCyprus shall be effected withoutany hindrance. The idea is thatmost of the weekly supply needsfrom Cyprus are catered for bythis 838 tonnes DW containership.

Secondly the landtransports, from Tripoli and Beirutand also from Sidon, are to. bemade more effective by makingthe information system more effi­cient. The Tyre Log Base should

[Second in command, WO I Sven Lvden Ileft) inspects the incoming supplV convov from Naqoura. ConvoVs like th,s cometo Tvre three times a week.

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• Lt.tal!l 3188

Enhancing The Harbour Activities

Pte Eriksson from the Swedish supplV team in Tvre unloads a truck, assisted bV one of the cooks at the base, Appiahkubifrom Ghana.

.,.."'"

The road passing Tvre Log Base and leading to the harbour is now being reconstructed. This will pravide betler accessraute to the harbaur than befare.

[=:J 6 [

always be informed when a truckfrom Beirut is expected to arrive.The telephone lines may be downsometimes, and this makes it dif­ficult to communicate, says Lt ColLars Weghagen, Movcon.

- The Tyre staft enjoys goodrelationship with the civilianpopulation. For instance, when acrane is being put to UNIFIL'sdisposal by the official authoritiesof Tyre harbour. IPresently, theharbour at present is not atUNIFIL's disposal.

RICE AND VEHICLESWhen the LITANI team arrived,

a Lebanese ship was unloadinglarge quantities of rice at the pier.The ship from Beirut had been atthe location for a couple of davs.At times large ferries also comein to off-Ioad includingbrand new vehicles as well assecond-hand ones. The cars aresold in Tyre harbour rather cheap­ly, so that one might wonder howit's possible for dealers to keepprices at such an enviable level.Between four to eight ferries permonth dock at the Tyre harbour.

Cement and other necessitiesare also brought in shiploads, butgenerally the harbour activity islow.

- The roads are not the bestfor lorry transport either, said thesecond in command at the base,WO I Sven Lyden to LITANI. Anew road outside the base is nowbeing constructe<;i, so that sameof the traffic will ply between thebase and the shore of Tyre. Langdistant traffic is still hampered bybad road conditions, not forget­ting the stretch from Tyre to Na­qoura.

- A very important part of thejob is to keep machines, trueksand equipment of the base ingood shape. Swedlog cater forthe transport and that is not aheadache for us. But we have tosee to it that the base itself is pro­perly maintained. This implieskeeping the generators intact forelectricity supply on a continousbasis and also the water supply.sometimes it becomes a necessityfor water to be brought by tankfrom Normaintcoy in Tibnin, saidSven Lyden.

Once Again on High Alert

- very interesting spat, and we know we do an essentlal work, says the Officer

-In-Charge, Capt J. A. Gran

[

220.000 BUILDING BRICKSVVe have to check

everything. As to vehiclesreloading it's our job to check thedocument properly 50 that nomistake comes about. Right now220.000 burnt bricks are be­ing reloaded from civilian tractorsand trucks in the Tyre area ontoUNIFIL vehicles for furthertransport to Naqoura.

On the 7th April there was atense situation again in Tyre,however not as tense as in August

1986. But the recent fighting bet­ween militias in the Tyre areanecessitated putting every bOdy inthe base on alert.

- Normally we enjoy a quietand peaceful life here. Andtonight we shall again have a grill­party in the garden. Just tocelebrate Summer, says Capt JonAre Gran.

Text and Photoa:CAPT E.K. HOLTET,

D/CMPIO

Summertime and hot air and thirsty soldiers everywhere In the area. This re­quires beer .. Good beer, says Pte Karstram, handling the valuable supplies.

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Camp Command Awarded Medals

Proud/v receiving his meda/ from the Force Commander is 5gt Edward O'Nei/1.

Soldiers of Camp Com­mand were decoratedwith the UN Peace Award

at a medal parade held on Tues­day, 29 March 1988, at CampTara, Naqoura.

The Force Commander Maj­Gen Hagglund in a speech saidthat he was giving the award inrecognition of their services to theUnited Nations by virtue of thefact that they have left their'families and friends and havecome to Lebanon to play their partin bringing peace to a land thathas for too long had to live withtrouble and strife.

He observed that Camp Com­mand has changed through theyears. Originally, he recalled, thatCamp Command was made up oftwo contingents - Irish andGhanaian but due to changes inthe force structure, with theexception of one Ghanaian allwere redeployed elsewhere in theAO. The Irish contingent, heremarked, was reduced in size butvet this vital unit continues tofunction and to carry out all dutiesassigned to it in a most satisfac-

torv manner.

Maj-Gen Hagglund said that ad­ministrative support may not bethe most glamorous of jobs butvet it is essential to the smoothrunning of headquarters. Hewondered where would anorganisation be without its c1erks,typists, drivers, cooks, storemenand radioloperatorslwhO keep thecommunication going betweenthe HO and all the \personneloperating throughout the AO. Allthese, the FC observed, don 't justhappen. They are made to happenby the members of Camp Com­mand.

"Today's medal parade is smallonly because most of the 99!personnel who make up CampCommand have served in UNIFILbefore," observed the FC.

To those who have received theUNIFIL medal for the first time,General Hagglund advised thatthey should wear the medal withthe same pride that their col­leagues wore theirs.

"You have earned it and you

deserve it for it is not easy to leavehome and family and travel to astrange land in the hope of bring­ing peace to a part of the worldthat has known little peace thispast ten years," the FC exhorted.

Concluding, Maj-Gen Hag­glund said their service isrecognised by all peace-Ioving

people and tha he was grateful tothem for the contribution whichthey have made to the smoothrunning of the headquarters.

Go raibh maith agaibh go leir (Ithank you all very mueh.)

WOI . ADIHLITANI Reporter

GHANBATT EXCELSAT MEDAL PARADE

Friday, 8 April 1988, was theday when Ghanbatt Head­quarters, Marakah, became

the centre of attraetion to UNIFILpersonnei, foreign dignitaries, andthe Lebanese people as well. Theatmosphere at Marakah was in­deed agog with elegance. Thereason for the grandeur was themeda I parade for Ghanbatt 29.

Four contingents were onparade. As early as 0925 LT con­tingents under the command ofthe Command ing Officer, U-ColTom Nguah, took their positionsat the parade square waiting forthe start of events. For those whohave iseen Ghanaian troops onparade, it was just an extension ofan unbroken string of immaculateturn up on parades of this nature.The turn out was unquestionable.Well polished boots topped bywell ironed olive khaki green, andthe well trimmed haircut, neatlytucked under the blue beret addedcolour and grandeur to theirposture on parade.

The drill was a spectacle tobehold. Marching in slow andquick time, and command coming

The FC inspecting the parade. Left is the CO. Behind the CO is the R5M WO/ Owusu Enin.

CJ 8 r- l

WOI E, AdihLitani Reporter

No. I Contingent on the march with leyesI turned right as they march pass thesaiutIng dias. In front is the C. o. U-Col Tom Nguah.

dience were entertained tocultural drumming and dancing,

What is more after treating theaudience to this extraordinarypageantry, the Ghanaians enter­tained them witha wonderfuldisplay of silent drill. later the au-

The Force Commander con­gratulated the contingent for thesmart turn out and the im­maculate drill which he said are areflection of high standard andpersonal attention to detail.

families and loved ones to cometo this strife-torn part of Southernlebanon, and their contributionto peace in lebanon. The ForceCommander did not hide his feel­ings when he said, "The job ofpeace-keeping is not an easy one.As one former Secretary-Generalonce said, 'The job of peace­keeping is not a job for soldiers,vet only soldiers can do it." "TheGhanaian contingent," Maj-GenHagglund said, "has shown thatthey are up to the job," He wasalso delighted about the construc­tional progress made byrebuilding and reinforcing theirposition and maintaining the stan­dards which are required fromGhanaian soldiers,

in distinct 'military voice,troops responded with im-maculate footwork and accuratemovement, digging the heels andswinging the arms to the tune ofmilitary songs provided by adetachment of the central band ofthe Ghana Armed Forces,

The whole scene was one of ex­citement and admiration whichdrew generous applause from thenumerous spectators and who in­c1uded a high-Ievel delegationamong whom were Ghana's Chiefof Staft, at the PNDC HO U-Col(rtd) E,K,T, Donkor and Mr.S,K,D.' Kportufe from theDefence Ministry of Ghana,

The Force Commander in aspeech commended the Ghanaiancontingent which has resolutelysupported UNIFil since they firstjoined the force in 1978. He saidhe was awarding the UN meda I inrecognition of the sacrifices theyhave made in leaving their homes,

With their traditional drums and other gadgets the people of the northem region U-Col (rtd) E.K. T. Donkor pinning a medalon the chest of asoldier.of Ghana also entertained the guests to traditional drumming and dancing.

THE11MIKE PAPAS" DECORATEDThe Force Commander, Maj­

Gen Gustav Hagglund, on6 April 1988 presented to

the Military Police Company theUnited Nations medals for peacerecognition of their services inUNIFil,

In presenting the awards the FCcommended the MP, Companyfor its uniqueness in UNIFil inview of the fact that its membersare drawn from all contingents ofthe force, He observed thatbecause of its international com­position MP Coy is indeed a unitin the best tradition of the UnitedNations, Maj-Gen Hagglundthanked the Commanding Ofticer,U-Col Aasheim and his staft fortheir dedication in moulding thecompany into an efticient and har­monious unit to the ultimate

benefit of UNIFil.

He said the Military Police Com­pany's role in UNIFil is wide andvaried, It includes the enforce­ment of UNIFll's regulations,directives and the carrying out oftasks which require tact, diplo­macy and on certain occasionsthe strict application of discipline,This, he said, does not excludesetting the highest example to allmembers of UNIFil, To the Of­ficers, WOs and NCOs of theCompany the FC expressed hisappreciation for the very goodwork they have performed duringtheir tour of duty,

Their work, General Hagglundnoticed, can take them as faraway as Beirut, Tel Aviv andMetulla, and though they are outof sight they are not out of mind

The FC pinning a meda( on the chest of an MP reCIpient, Cpl Uhre of Norway.

and that their hard work did not all peace-Ioving nations' gratitudego unnoticed, helremarked, to them.

, . Finally, to those who are return-To the medal reclplents the FC ing home in the near future he ex­

advised them to wear the meda I tended his best wishes to the mwith pride as they are a symbol of and thier families,

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• Ltta#ti 5/88

FORCE COMMANDER VISITSGHANBATT

The FC discussing a poionr with COY oe Capt A. As/bi, with baton /17 hand is the C.O Lt Col. Tom Nguah second I.eftis the conringent commander Col. R B. Comme V I.Photo on top!.

The Fe check/ng the readings on a gun at mortar posn 8-47A. (Botton)

JK AGBOTSEMajor PlO GHANBATT

Later, at a reception organisedfor him in the Officer's Mess,Major-General Hagglund express­ed his appreciation for the highstandard of efficiency and profes­sionalism the Ghanbatt hadachieved within the short periodthat they were on the ground.

The Commander also used theoccasion to meet with the AM ALleadership during which they hadfruitful discussions of mutual in­terest.

The visit ended with both theFC and the AMAL leaders taking astroll to the RAP to visit CplAmankwaah who was recoveringfrom gunshot wounds he receivedwhen his vehicle was attacked byAEs last February.

great interest, moving from onegun position to the other stoppingthem intermittently to ask ques­tions and to check readings on thesights and to see whether thebubbles were being levelled cor­rectly.

From the companies the FCcame to the Ghanbatt Head­quarters where he inspected a col­ourful guard of honour mountedfor him by the Headquarters com­pany.

The tour of the company posi­tions ended with amortardemonstration at 8-47A. The FC,amortar officer himself, showed

pany positions inciuding theGhana Engineers Company posi­tions at Jwayya, where they weregiven operational briefing byCompany, platoon and post co m­manders.

Here, the CO and the OC, MajorApana gave the FC a detailedbriefing on the plans for move­ment of the company to a sightciose to \the Charlie CompanyHeadquarters. They also took himto the spot in the Camp where abomb exploded last Oecember inwhich a Lebanese youth was kill­ed. After this the FC and the teamtoured Charlie and Bravo Com-

The next place of importaneevisited was Kafr Ounin the formerGhanbatt Headquarters where theGhanbatt Maintenance Companyis stililocated.

From there, the team drove toposition 8-23 at As Sultaniyah inthe Alpha Sector. Position 8-23 isone of the trouble spots withinthe Ghanbatt AO where AE!iwishing to get to SLA and IOFpositions within the rishbattof ten attempted to force theirway through. It used to be just asmall post manned by five troopswhose duty was merely to showUN presence. Since taking over,Ghanbatt 29 had reactivated it in­to a check point.

Somewhere on the road bet­ween posn 8-23 and posn 8-' Athe FC was treated to a typicalMowag snap road-blockdemonstration by a troop of Bat­tal ion Mobile Reserve under thecommand of Capt EmmanuelTetteh-Akunor.

O n 28 March 1988, theFroce Commander,Major-General Gustav

Hagglund paid a one-day inspec­tion visit to Ghanbatt 29. He wasmet on arrival at Irishbatt CheckPoint 6-23A by the Ghanaian Con­tingent Commander Col RB Co m­mey and the Command ing OfficerLt-Col Tom Nguah.

T~e Day Italair Stopped Flying

..

E ven the famous dog in boxa very special kind of flyingdog) stopped waging its

tail: it was almost getting on thehelicopter, when suddenly theorder to cancel eve ry flight wasissued. With a sad look, the dogthat had been booked on theflight to EBEL, went away fromthe heli with its handler.

No, this is not a novel, but onMarch 23rd morning it happenedto the helicopter I was about to flyto EBEL. Five minutes before,Italair was given instructions fromItaly, 10 around all helicopters.One helicopter of the same makeand model had crashed earlier inItaly and the reason was a failurean oil pump.

All of us know well that in suchcases i1's necessary to conductchecks in order to avoid the pos­sibility, of a similar accident. Im­mediately work was started inearnest. While flying mechanicswere dismantling one engine attime, an Italian Air Force aircraftwas already taking off from Romewith the needed spare parts forthe replacement. This is one ofthe miracles that sometimes hap­pen. New oil pumps were comingto Naqoura in only one day, thesame day that the instructionswere issued to ground all helis.And what about medevaes? l1'san important matter. What wouldyou have done? Yes, Italair did thesame .

The 12 flight engineers weresplit in two teams, with shift of 4hours nonstop; so, also thehangar normally quiet during thenight, now has good friends.They broke the silenee with thetypical noise of a workshop in ses­sion. Under the careful check ofthe Chief of maintenanceD'ANGEL! and the Chief of

Workshop W03 PIGA, working atan incredible Ispeed enabled twohelicopters to be made ready onMarch 26th, and all the othersafter Monday March 28th.

Now a look inside the 1400 hpof our Agusta Bell 205, and youwill discover what actually hap­pened. A small failure, reallysmall. Due to this failure thehelicopter went down and wasdestroyed without any heavydamage to the crew. After carefulchecks the decision taken inItaly by the technical authoritieswas to change all the oil pumpswhich in the helicopters AB 205was responsible for the accident.Also it was to ensure that all themodels were rendered safe for fly­ing. To effect this change, it wasnecessary to strip down all theengines from the main frame ofthe helicopter. This was not allthat difficult, but it took a longtime and much patience due tothelarge number of screws, bolts,littie rods, support etc, that wouldhave made the puzzle easier. Theflight engineers of Italair are welltrained on this kind of Puzzle, andthey are able to make up thismosaie in a guinness record time.Now only the test flight was miss­ing to confirm that all was OK.Those flights don't disappoint, sanow we can again open flightreoularly.

The Italair's fleet apologise withthe flight " customers" for thedrawback due to technical pro­blems,'but she is glad tolwelcomeagain everybody on herhelicopters.

I am sorry, but I nearly forget torender my personal apology to

the dog in box: H 'fl' htave a mce Ig ,

CAPT ANTONIO POLLINOPlO ITALAIR

An eng/ne of ane of the helicopters completelv stripped readv ro be checked andoil pump replaced. In the picture is Anaschi Ferd/nando, a technician

Engineers and technicians busilV engaged on a helicopter engine during thecheck

Two of the helicopters on training exercise.

Two eng/neers satisfv themselves that the overhauled eng/nes ilre properlv inplace befare a test flight.

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CHANGE OF COMMANDAND MEDAL PARADE FOR OGL

WOI. E. ADIHLITANI REPORTER

PHOTOS BYWOI T.Y. MUSA

LITANI PHOTOGRAPHER

On the same day at 1415HrsIsraeli time, amedal presentationparade was organised at RecHouse, Nahariya, where medalswere presented to deserving of­ficers by U. Gen Vadset.

Signing the handover cenificate is Comdt Pat Fingalton. Waiting for his turn(sitting left) is Lt. Col. Muelier Fenback. Looking on is U-Gen M. Vadset.

of strict neutrality and without Gustav haggland and UNIFILany aims or objectives other than heads of departments.those established by the SecurityCouncil of the United Nations.Their effort in UNTSO as in otherUN missions, he said, is indepen­dent on understanding the prin­ciples of how UN works and onthe acceptance and cooperationof the people in the mission area.Concluding the Chief of Staffsaid, "We are here not todiscipline any ane but to assistevery one-if we are allowed-in br­inging peace"

Carthy in January and the abduc­ti on of U. Col William "Rich" Hig­gins in February which he right1ydescribed as tragic occurrences.

"While it is gratifying to see thedetermination to return to normal,we should always be mind~ul ofthe risks we face especially so inLebanon, and it is ofcourse ab­solutely essential for every bodyto continue to exercise utmostcaution and strictly abide by ex­isting directives concerning travelin Lebanon", the General advised.

Continuing U. Gen Vatset saidthat UNTSO has been operatingfor almost 40 years in the MiddleEast, and that their observerscarry out their duties on the basis

L t. Gen M. Vadset con­ducted change of com­mand parade for Observer

Group in Lebanon on 15 April,1988, at UNIFIL Headquarters,Naqoura. The cha0ge over wasbetween the Acting Chief of OGL,Comdt Pat Fingelton and the in­cumbent U. Col Muelier Fenback.The change over apparentlybecame necessary because of theabduction in February tl1is year ofthe substantive chief of OGL, U.Col William Higgins.

U.Gen Vadset could not helpbut to observe that the year 1988has proved to be a trying andtesting time for UNTSO. Herecalled the loss of Capt Peter Mc-

The Chief of UNTSO Li Gen Vadset pinning the UN medalon the chest of areceipient.

Present at the function was theForce Commander Maj.Gen

1/ A WHI and a Way to keep on fighting for Peace":

UNIFIL Veterans have got theirOrganization .The UNIFIL veterans have

established their ownorganization with Head­

quarters in Paris.. The organiza­tion, "Soldiers of Peace Interna­tional Association", wants to in­form the people in contributingcountries - and others - aboutthe peace-keeping operation2. ledby the United Nations and theircapability in the building of a morecivilized world.

The organization was originallycreated by young UNIFIL veteransin Lyon, France. Hence its officialname has the French following:

"Association Internationale desSoldats de la Paix" (AISPI. Itsmotto is: "A Will and a Way tokeep on Fighting for Peace".

In order to make known and ap­preciate the actions of the BlueBerets, the AISP wishes todevelop and increase the coopera­tion between existing or for­thcoming UN vets nationalassociations. This way, a betterinformation could be given to thepopulation and a mutual friend­ship could be raised in people'srelations.

Secondly the AISP wants to

keep on taking part inhumanitarian activities led by UNor Non-governmental organiza­tions. For such operations theAISP could be a "men of goodwill tank" and could bring somehelp in offering volunteers to fightfor peace again.

The AISP is already working forhumanitarian purposes inLebanon. It is at the same time acrossroad where UN Vets canmeet and contribute to preparinga better world by improving inter­national solidarity and friendship.- Any UNIFIL veteran is most

welcome to becoming a memberin our organization, says OlivierMa888rd to LIT AN!. Massard hasbeen elected President of the in­ternational organization and willtake up this duty with effect from1 July this year.

For more information one couldwrite to:

A.I.S.P.Association Internationale

døs Soldats de la Paix178, rue Garibaldi

69003 LYON (France).

C]12 (

OPERATIONAL REPORTDuring the Past four weeks,

many Irish and Nepalesepositions were hit in

erossfires when IDF/SLA mannedseeurity zone positions returnedfire to attaeking resistaneegroups. Two Nepalese positionsnear Siddiqine were hit with straybullets in Amal-Hizballah cIashesearlier in the Month. In the sameperiod, SLA militia men fired 11times into Irish positions aroundBeit Yahun, Haddatha, Tireh andonee to a'n Irish patrol. IDF troopsfired onee to a Freneh vehicle atRas el Bayyada and onee into anIrish position near Beity Yahun.Amal militiamen fired onee into aFijian position at Malkiyah.

During the past four weeks,Unidentified armed men issuedthreats against a Fijian positionAyn Baal and a finnish positionnear Srifa. Gunmen identified asthe believers resistanee threaten­ed anepalese position east of Sid­diqin. Israeli person nei eausedproblems at a Norwegian eheek­point near Kaoukaba and SLAmilitiamen at Norwegian eheek­points near Blate and kaoukaba.All these ineidents related to vehi­eie eheeks at UNIFIL eheekpoints.

Six anti-tank weapons, eighthandgrenades and 36rifles/ maehineguns were volun­tarily surrendered by private in­dividuals or armed men affiliatedwith variety of groups to UNIFILeheekpoints in all seetors.

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• Lttalti 5/88

MR. DIMITRIOS TSOUROS,Chief Procurement OfficerThe Chief Procurement Of­

ficer (CPO), Mr. DimitriosTsouros, is about to retire

after almost 28 years of servicewith the peace-keeping missionsof the United Nations: UNEF I,UNEF Il, UNYOM, UNIDOM, UN­MOGIP, UNTSO, UNDOF, andUNIFil. He has been servingUNIFil for the last 10 years. Mr.Tsouros is a Greek national mar­ried to an Irish lady, Teresa, andhas two daughters, Patricia andAthina.

He particularly remembers thedifficult days of hard work duringthe initial stage of setting-up themission with various problems en­countered, but he recalls that thesupport, guidanee and assistanceprovided to the mission by theField Service Operations Divisionduring this time as a major facto rfor to smooth operation of pro­curement activities.

He believes that now with theintroduction of the computersystem which is presently beingactively pursued, the variousbranches will improve in efficiencyand increase in productivitybenefitting the mission and-theUnited Nations as a whole.

He stated that the ProcurementSection is a vital part of the mis­sion's logistic support. It providesfor the requirements of the Force,and that the success of such anoperation largely depends upongood planning and organizationby logistics staff and other self­accounting managers and, theday-to-day close contact andcooperation between civilian andmilitary elements. To this, theCPO had on ly praise for thecivilian and military staff, and theBranches/ Sections Chiefs fortheir cooperation and the profes­sional manner that business hasbeen conducted. He would like toexpress his appreciation andthanks to all of those he hadworked with over the years.

Although Mr. Tsouros departsUNIFil, he leaves a definite markfrom his relentless work effort 'lndhis various contributions to themissions and UNIFil where hehas served as a dedicated UnitedNations civil servant.

We bid farewell to Mr. Tsourosand wish him and his family thebest of luck and contentment dur­ing his retirement years.

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Behinrl his desk, Mr. oimirris Tsouros smi/ing awav 28 vears of hard work wirh rhe U N.

A group phOlOgraph of rhe sraff of Procuremenr Seerion wirh rhe reriring Chief procuremenr Officer, Mr. D Tsouros siuing In rhe midd/e.

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It is livingScientists find it a phenomenonpoliticians' find it a topicRebels take it as a reason to rebelIt binds societyAnd vet segregates itIt i~ sensitiveIt 3hudders along with painAnd radiates with joyIt arouses the innermost loveA love that invokes hatredHatred that infers a curseAnd vet a love that infers privilegeIt can incite emotion causing a commotionBut vet suppress it to a chilling whisperNations have discussed it and remained puzzledIt is a Psychological, Sociological, Biological phenomenonIt is a bank of emotionsWhat can this puzzling phenomenon be?Hal It is on ly a mere skin.

By Jean-Pierre Leonard KwakuMarch 22nd 1988

:J ISC]

• ~talU' 5/88

What comes to your mind when Norway is mentioned? Snow, polarbears, mountains, fishing vessels and shipping? Certainly, all these arerelevant imaginations. However, in order to convey a more exact pic­ture of Norwegian reality, there could be added a few things. In barelythree quarters of a century, Norway has developed into a high ly in­dustrialised county. From fairly low standards at the beginning of the19208, the Norwegians have developed their industries, their agricultureand other areas into a "welfare society" with less than 2% unemploy­ment and a gross national product which is among the highest inEurope.

caught 2,4 mill tons of fish lastyear. New techniques and boatsare reducing the number ofworkers in this industry everyyear. The new thing is

. aquaculture, on "farms" wherethe fish is being cultivated, mostly

For sports fishing enthusl8sts, Norwav is an EI Dorado with its count/ess riversand waterfa//s where the sa/mon is rife and mightv ..

Among the items exported bythe various Norwegian industriesare ships and maritime equip­ment, electronics, chemical pro­ducts, minerals, fish and fish pro­ducts, paper and aluminium .

The Norwegian fishermen

INTO THE SPACE AGESince July 1987 Norway has

become a member of the Euro­pean Space Agency (ESAl and bynow takes part in its many promis­ing space programmes.

SCIENTIFIC PROGRAMMESIt is already said that Norway

has become a highly industrializedcountry. To bo ost export, theNorwegians have realized thatmoreindustrial research is a mustand therefore must spend onebillion Norwegian kroner everyyear in sophisticated research pro­grammes in the fields of informa­tion technology, biotechnology,offshore and advanced materials.

OIL AND GAS EXPORTERIn recent years, Norway has

become an oil exporter as well.Since 1968 the oil industries havegrown immensely. But whatseemed like becoming a "GoldenAge" 15-20 years back is aunstable income today. Oil isdependent on internationalpolitics and developments. And asa consequence of widespreadeconomic crises in the world andof turbulent currency conditions(the fall of the dollar) - thepetroleum prices have becomeequally unstable. Anyhow, theexport of oil and gas is still anadequate supplement to theNorwegian economy.

LOCATION: 13 13" 17"NORTH-SOiJTH2639 51" EAST H-WESTON THE SCANDINA­VIAN PENINSUAL.COASTLlNE: 54.984 KMDISTANCE FROMNOTH CAPE TO OSLO(THE CAPITAU, THESAME AS FROM OSLOTO ROME.THE FOURTH LARGESTCOUNTRY IN EUROPE,EXCEPT FROM USSRAND TURKEY. POPU­LATION: 4.2 Mill.CAPITA l: OSLO.CURRENCY: NORWE­GIAN KRONER (105DOllARS 6,18KROWN)

fACTS

ABDUT

"DPIAY

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Norway has become one of Eurapes major petroleum praducers and its export prafit is an adequate supplement for Norway's national fncome.

salmon and ranbow trout, andthis industry is growing fast.About 5% of the world's mer­chant fleet is Norwegian.THE HISTORY

When the ice left the

Norwegian mainland, about12,000 years ago, the first settlerscame to hunt and fish, andpopulated the country. From1380-1814 Norway was untiedwith Denmark and Sweden at dif-

ferent times. In 1814 theNorwegian constitution wasenacted on the 17. May, a day tobe celebrated as our National Day,also among the Norwegians inLebanon.

Norwegians in Lebanon. Nor­way has borders with Sweden,Finland and USSR in East InNorth there is the, Arctic Ocean,to the West the Atlantic Oceanand in the South the North Sea.

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• Lt'taltl 5/88

A KINGDOMNoeway is akingdm, ruled by aParliament. The religion is Protes­tant. The language is Norwegian,and is part of the Germanic groupof language.

Elementary education is givento everybody for nine years, andeveryone is expected to learn twoforeign languages, English andGerman.

After these nine years they aregiven to choose between techni­cal studies or high school, andthen university.

We asked you what comes toyour mind when Norway is men­tioned? Snow, icebears, moun­tains, shipping, tish? Concerningsnow, Norway have got a lot of it.Usual/y the winter lasts fromnovember unti/ April in most partsof the country.

In the North and in the moun­tain areas sometimes longer, inthe South and the coastal areasfor shorter time,

NO POLAR BEARSPolar bear in Norway is a

fairytale, they have never beenthere, except for the island ofSvalbard that lies in the ArticOcean almost closer to the Northpole than to the mainland of Nor­way. More than half of Norway's386,000 kliTlare mountain area andmostly uninhabited.

Norway is a member of NATO.The Norwegian defence forces in­clude the Army, the Airforce, theNavy and the National Guard,Norway's contribution to theUNIFIL is NORBATT and Nor­maintcoy: The first year in

The agneultural pOlicy of Norway has been very active and supportive in recent years, and the country is self-sufficient In

agricultural products.

Lebanon Norway a/so supportedUNIFIL with the helicopter unitand the medical unit.

The number of Norwegians inUNIFIL today is 830 men andwomen.

2. Lt Olaf TorvikPlO NMC

Norway's national day is May 17, and the day is celebrated all over the county.This picture shows the children's march in the main street of Oslo - right up tothe Royal Castle (upper right corner).

CJ18(

A highly industrialised country, Norway has had an immense growth in the last3-4 decades. The city of Tromsoe in the Northem part is a good example of rapidgrowth.

WOI E. AdihLITANI Reporter

rest of the play. In the thirtiethminute of the second half, theright winger of Irishbatt, the livewire of the Irish forward line wasinjured and had to be carried offthe. field. At extra timeGhanbatt's Osei Tutu scored thesecond and the deciding goal forGhanbatt to emerge the year'sUNIFIL soccer champions.

It is true champions die hard,and 62 Irishbatt died the hardway. But Ghanbatt 29 proved thebetter side.

Jubilant Ghanbatt players raised shoulder high CplOsei Tutu who scored thetwo goals for Ghanbatt.

goal, resumed the second halfwith much more determinationwritten on their faces. It was nowonder that before the Ghanaianscould settle for the second leg theIrish had the equalizer to theamazement of all. But this was adefensive blunder. A good shot atgoal from the right flank washeaded in by a Ghanaian defenderin an attempt to save it. Fromthem on the play became erraticand both team~ resorted to roughhouse play.

The play continued and Ghan­batt kept the pressu re on thei rcounterparts whose goal keeperwas kept working overtime for the

who without wasting any timebeat two defenders and sent apile-driver only to be deflected in­to a corner by a Ghanbattdefender. The corner was equallywell taken which again nearly gotthe net.

Irishbatt was able todisorganise the Ghanaian's pat­tern of play in the early stag es ofthe game but could not get theneeded goals because of erraticshooting at goal. In the fifteenminutes the good team work ofthe forward line of Irishbatt dribbl­ed their way through theGhanaian defense and the rightwinger of Irishbatt who had on lythe goal keeper to beat shot wild.

However the Ghanaians wereundaunted by this early upset.They quickly reorganized andswitched on the onslaught onIrishbatt. This time the forwardline. made of L/Cpl Tetteh, CplOsei Tutu, Pte Sayibu and LI BdrSayibu become very slippery andkept on probing for goals, and inthe thirtieth minute registered thefirst goal of the match for Ghan­batt. A well placed pass by Ghan­batt left winger LIC Tetteh Addo­quaye got Cpl Osei Tutu whobulldozed his way through theIrish defense and registered theneeded curtain raiser.

So the scores stood as Ghan­batt ORe, Irishbatt nil after the firsthalf of play.

The Irish, not happy by this

It!rt!t!~!3lj;!~!~!~!~!tj;! ~ ff !C&5J)GHANBATT29TRASHED

62 IRISHBA TTG hanbatt 29 trashed 62

Irishbatt by two goals toone in the finals of the

inter-contingent soccer competi­tion played at Tibnin on 13 April1988. The Ghanaians and theirIrish counterparts are old rivals inthe struggle for soccer honourssince the introduction of the gamein UNIFIL. It was not surprisingtherefore that both emerged outof the preliminaries to lock hornsfor the championship.

The seventy minutes of playwere· action-packed and full oftension as each team lookeddetermined to win at all costs. Asassociated with games ot this kindthere were exchanges of words,cat-calls, disagreements andmisunderstandings, but thesewere certainly human reactions tocompetitions. However, thestrong bonds of friendship andbrotherliness permeating the oc­casion submerged all other in­terests and considerations for theholier aims of internationalbrotherhood.

The game started at 2.35 LTwith each side playing cautiouslyand studying each other's patternof play. The slippery forwards ofIrishbatt detecting the trend ofplay. early kept on pressure onGhanbatt and nearly got the cur­tain raiser in the tenth minute ofthe first half. A pass from midfieldsaw number seven of Irishbatt

CplOsei Tutu in full control of the ball. This was one of the anxious momentsduring the dying stages of the match.

U-Col J. J. Farrel co, Irishbatt presentIng the championship trophv to Cpl Men­sah Captain of the Ghanbatt team.

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• Lttald 5/88

HIGH DISCIPLINAR ySTANDARD!The Military Police Company

at Naqoura is now "com­plete" in the present

UNIFil context with nine nationsrepresenting a staff of 78 men.latest to join the "MP Force" wasItaly who provided threecarabinieris with effect fromMarch this year.

- I am pleased with the factthat our M P coy now reflects theinternational set-up at this stageof UNIFil development, says LtCol Olav J. Aasheim, Force Pro­vost Marshal to LITANI.

While the battalionsthemselves still have the overallresponsibility for relevant MP mat­ters in "their" areas of operations,we need our headquarters anddetachments to be staffed andequipped to a minimum says, LtCol Aasheim.

The MP Coy of Naqoura dealswith a wide and varied range oftasks of which the traffic sectorrequires by far the heaviestworkload of them all. - In one

week there are only 6 reportedtraffic accidents, and even thoughthe figures show a satisfactorydownward trend since 1982 onecan not deny that much lowernumbers of accidents is wor­thwhile aiming at. - And we aimat that, says the Force ProvostMarshal. - wherever possible westress the need for safe driving.And when accidents occur withcivilians involved it is quite im­perative that the report is issuedpromptly to ensure a properhandling of a possible claim. Theinsurance companies require anMP report in all the traffic cases,says Lt Col Olav J. Aashem.

- What about disciplinary mat­ters? Picture bright or dark?

- Bright, says the Marshal em­phatically. - Even if we do not atthe HO have the full survey ofmatters in the battalions I have theimpression that things are goingfairly well around thereRemembers there are about 6000soldiers in UNIFil as a whole and

more than 4000 in Naqoura alone.Then look at the monthly figures.Not bad, comments Lt ColAasheim.

LITAN I picked the month ofJanuary 1988, which reflects arelatively accurate yearly reality inUNIFil. Theft cases top the listwith 13 cases . loss of ID cards (12cases) and speeding (withvehicles) .6 cases. Accidentaldamage is four on the list (5cases). Common assault: 2 cases.

- Many incidents can be avoid­ed, declares the Provost Marshal.- A large number of MP caseshandled by the detachments andHO's MP COY are due todrunkenness. Some cases willresult in disciplinary actions beingtaken against offenders. A fewwill result in insurance claim fordamage. Hewever, thedisciplinary actions are alwayshandled by the various nationalcontingents underlines the Col­onel. - as Military Police we in­vestigate cases according to nor-

mal procedures in a military set­up.

- The major problems arisewhen person nei are on leave, nor­mally in Israel which is the nearest"Ieave.-country" for UNIFil. Dur­ing weekends in Israel weusuillly have a certain amount oftrouble. As a rule it is the UNIFILMP which takes over such cases,since the Israeli police cannotkeep UNIFil person nei in custodyfor a longer period of time.

- I am happy to say that the in­cidents are relatively few. I amproud to say that UNIFil person­nei generally behave well. Wehave fine soldiers land II am proudof that, says the Force ProvostMarshal. - Grave criminal actsare practically non-existent. Andthe minor trouble we know ofcould be avoided only if the rate ofdrunkeness could be reduced a lit­tie.

Text: Capt E.K. HOLTETD/CMPIO

Two Milirary Police officers using a hand-opera red radar 10 check over-speeding

of UNIFIL vehicles in rhe AG.

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Traffic accidentsnearly halvedsince 1982

Once again good news from MP Coy in Naqoura: 1987 brought anotherrecord low figure for traffic accidents, making last year the best traffic­year in the history of the Force. - I am very satisfied, said the ForceProvost Marshal, Lt-Col Olav J. Aasheim to LITANI. - Moreover, hecommented, the initial figures of 1988 indicate that the fine trend con­tinues - like it has since 1982, when the accident rate soared a recordhigh.

The statistic shows the development clearly:

1980: ns accidents1981: 714 accidents1982: 821 accidents1983: 819 accidents1984: 580 accidents1985: 588 accidents1986: 487 accidents1987: 467 accidents1987: 467 accidents.

"MINGEY STREET"and the Story behind a Name

The "Mingev Srreer" ar Naqoura, UNIFIL HO wirh rhe rows of shops and stores lining rhe Srreer.

Every day in UNIFIL parlancethe word "MINGEY" cropsup. We have Mingey men,

Mingey shops, Mingey tapes,Mingey watches. The list isendless. "Mingistreet" is in thefocus of everyone working withUNIFIL. .

Where did the expressionoriginate?

The first Irish units to serve withUN were deployed to Zaire, thenthe Congo in 1960 as part of theONUC force. At the time theBelgian settlers were fleeing thecountry in large numbers andwere anxious to convert their localcurrency holdings to hard curren­cy. The normal rate was 64 Con­golese Francs to $1. Soon a blackmarket in currencies grew in thearea, with rates of exchange ashigh as 300 to $1.

This illegal money exchangewas conducted on the street cor­ners of Leopoldville andElizabethville. "Mingey" was thelocal dialect for "much", "many" ,"a lot of". To passing UN soldiersoff duty these exchange men call­ed out "Mingey, mingey franc fordollar". The exchange rate of theday quickly became known as"the mingey rate".

For those who engaged in thisillegal practise they soon foundthemselves with pockets bulgingwith trancs. The next logical ste pwas to spend the trancs onsomething. Souvenirs of carvedivory and ebony soon ac­cumulated. These were of coursereferred to as "mingeys". Thetraders who sold them became"mingey men", and when rota­tion time came around thesouvenirs were of course packedin "mingey boxes".

In 1963 Irish soldiers wereredeployed from the Congo toCyprus as part of UNFICYP. Theytook with them enhanced skilis inpeacekeeping. They also took"Mingey". Very soon Turkishcypriot tailors were putting"mingey tailor" signs outside theirshops. Good business men thatthey were, the Greek Cypriots alsoquickly adopted the word. It wasin common use for ten years inCyprus until the wandering Irish

peacekeepers came to UNEF II inSinai. Soon the "mingi men" of EIArish and EI Nagela came on thescene. ane notable mingiestablishment stood as a lone sen­tined in the middle of the desert- beside an Irish camp By thetime the Irish came to UNIFIL in1978 the word was being used bya second generation of Irishsoldiers. The sons of Congopeacekeepers used mingi in every­day conversation, scarcely know­ing that it was their fathers whohad brought it back from Africaeighteen years before.

A/most immediately the"mobile mingimen" arrived in Tib­nine, setting their wares out of thedoors of what were of course call-

ed "mingi mercs". As the interimforce became a more permanentfixture, more permanent shantiesstarted to appear whose signsread "Genuine Lebanese MingeyShop". Ten years have passed.Naqoura has become a city.Mingey shops cropped up outsidethe camp. Soon a whole street ex­isted and what could be morenatural than to call it "MingeyStreet" .

Usage of the word developedalso. It was used to describesomething which wasn't quite thegenuine article. Hence you have"Real Lacoste" and "MingeyLacost". Lebanese electricitywhich broke down regularlybecame "Mingey Power". ane

should finish by quoting one Irishsoldier talking to another as theygazed up at the crusader castle inTibnine:

"Do you know why thecrusaders built their castle onsuch Iprecipituous slopes?"

Defence, I suppose~', answeredthe student of history.

"Sorry, not at all boy I Theybuilt them there so that themingey men couldn't build theirshops up against the wall".

Lt.Col. McMahon,UNIFIL, Naqoura,

)ZIC]

• LttaHi 5/88

Water supply to Ebel es Saqi:

Despite all the working, the bovs are alwavs In a good mood From the left Tore Eliassen, Sven Arild, Olsen, Ote Aas andMorten Hensen, all from the camp command in Ebel es Saqi

DAYANDNIGHTSER­VICEA very, very intense sun­

shine from a cioudiesssky. A burning heat that

makes the climate unbearable, 50to speak. Sweating and dried upbodies, crying for cooling down.What is more natural than havinga shower of course. But it's notthat easy, when serving with theon. For instance up in NORBATT,where between three and fifteenmen has to use the same shower?Problems? That's for surel Maybetoo many of us are very spoilt,compared to Norway, where youcan take a shower as long as youwant. And where you're notdependent on.a big water-tank on

the roof, which has to be filled upwhen it is empty.

But, of course, the system is 50different in UNIFIL. You can askthe "watermen" in NORBATT,driving from early in the morningto late in the evening, just to givesatisfaction to bodies "hungry"for a shower.

By the help of two vehicles thefour soldiers from the camp com­mand, are driving day and night,delivering a dailyaverage of~,CXXllitres to the personnellivingin Ebel es Saqi, where theNorwegian HO is situated. About300 Norwegians are living in Saqi.There is no wonder that the fourboys are begging thepersonne to

have no more than one shower aday, 1maximum considering thatthey have to work up to fifteenhours a day. Seven days aweek!

2 LT CHRISTENSEN,ex NORCO (A/PlO)

A Test-pilot's hobby:

SILENCEWO Maurizio Magnolini left Italair

for good after his one year long tour ofduty in UNIFil. Even if not all peoplecan remember his face, we think thateverybody has eomplained at leastonce because of him and the noise hohas produeed during several months.In faet he was Italair's test pilot. Whena ehopper was very noisy flying duringthe "siesta time" over Naqoura Camp,it was WO Magnolini who was playinghis own game with instruments andflying controis.

Bom in Rome on 2nd Deeember,

1950 he had served in Italian Armysinee September 1970; he was licene·ed as helicopter pilot in 1972. From1979 he beeame the test pilot in aMaintenanee Unit in Rome where he'ssupposed to continue to produeeamounts of deeibels.

He's married and he's father ofSimone, 15 and Fabrizio, 12.

His hobbies are; eooking, courtizingwomen (so he says) and SllENCE.

CAPT ANTONIO POLLINOPlO ITALAIR

Toavoid and kili dangerous bacteria in the water, ir is of verv grear Imporrance 10add chlorine 10 rhe warer, even if ir IS nor so very popular-Bur rhe bad smell ISmuch berter rhan being ill. And nor 10 forger rhar rhe warer rhen is clean,underlines IL T Per Gvlrerud, hvgiene officer In rhe bartalion. Here he ISinstruc­ting how 10 chlorine the warer.

FA THER AND SON SER VINGIN UNIFIL TOGETHER

IWOI TAYI YAWI!MUSAHI

WOI T.Y. Musah alias PaaMoonson, has been UNIFll'sphotographer for the past fivemonths covenng the Force Com­mander's itinerary and mostevents in UNIFil HO and the AOs.A seasoned and energeticphotographer WOI Musah is aveteran in peace keeping opera­tions. He served in UNEF II inSanai as a phtographer for Ghan­batt 5 in 1976.

Again he was the photographerin UNIFil for Litani Magazine in1981.

WOI Musah was born at Ekpuin the Western Region of Ghana.

He joined the army in 1964 androse through the ranks to the pre­sent rank of Warrant Officer ClassOne.

At home Paa Moonson is theChief Instructor at thePhotographic Section of the Arm­ed Forces Public Relations Direc­torate.

WOI Musah is about to end histour of duties and will be returninghome to assume his former dutiesas Chief Instructor at thePhotographic Section.

His hobbies are boxing, foot-ball and listening to music.

THE FATHER WOII SRARASEA IS SERVING INMP COY AND SON SGT SRARASEA IS SERVING INFIJIBATT H.O. WOII SRARASEA IS 50 YEARSOLD AND THIS IS HISFIRST TIME IN UNIFIL.HOWEVER SGT SRARASEA 25 YEAS OLDIS SERVING UNIFIL FORTHE THIRD TIME. HECAME HERE FIRST TIME

IN 1982 AS CPL, SECONDTIME IN 1984 AS CPL ANDTHIRD TIME IN '1988 ASSGT. IN FIJIBATT H.O.

WOII RARASEA EX-PLAINS THAT HE IS VERYHAPPY TO BE HERE AS APEACE-KEEPER. TOACHIEVE PEACE HESA YS, WE (ALL CON­TINGENT) MUST WORK,HELP AND LOVE EACHOTHER.

)23C]

• Lttalti 5/88

Goodbye to Maj Serriconi

Maj. Francesea Serrlconi (second from right! with WOII. Pinadi Giovanni (extreme right! and WOIII Fausta Livi (extremeleft!. The C. o. Italair U-Co!. Oetta is third from the right. Apart from the C. o. all have left UNIFIL for ItalV

·From President Gemayel on UNIFIL's•8DDIversary

It is always sad to say good byeespecially when one is leavingfriends, relatives and col­

leagues. Here in UNIFil, wherethe environment makes bothmilitary andlcivilian personnei feellike one big family, it is indeedmemorable whenone is leavingthe mission area.

This is the nostalgia MajorFrancesco Serriconi, the pilot andalso the Press Information Officer(PlO) for Italair will have now thathe is back home in Italy after histour of duty with UNIFil.

Major Francesco, as he ispopularly known, served withItalair for one year. As a pilot heundertook several flying missionsand contributed immensely to thelitani magazine. On the occasionshe performed duties at CASO of­fice he was full of smiles. Whenasked why, he replied: "smiles arethe trademark of every pilot,whether military or civilian. Onehas to be cheerful because youcannot put on a moody facebefore flight otherwise you willconfuse the flight control panelyourself." When questionedaboul his experiences in UNIFilhe had this to say: "Honestly andsincerely, I would like to confessthat my tour with UNIFil has

Even though the tenthanniversary of UNIFILpassed wlthout any fan­fare, many dignltaries in­cluding President AmineGemayel of Lebanonsent a mesaage of good­will to the force. Belowis the full text of Presi­dent Gemayel'smessage:

"General GUSTAVHAGGLUND

commander-in-chiefUnited Nations interim

force

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been most rewarding. Beforecoming to the mission area I wasin doubt whether I would be ableto cope, especially when my profi­ciency in the English languagewas suspect. However, on my

On the tenth anniver­sarv of the United Na­tions interim force inlebanon, I am pleasedto extend my warmgreetings to the com­mander, officers, andsoldiers of the force andto express my deepgratitude for the effortsof UNIFil in maintainingpeace and security inSouth lebanon.

I greatly appreciatethe role you are playingat this delicate period of

departure Irealised that I havebeen able to improve my 'little'English and now can co m­municate without the fear which,entertained at the beginning," heconcluded.

Lebanon's history and Ilook forward to the daywhen these forces areenabled to fulfill theirmandate in accordancewith the resolutions ofthe security council.

I take this opportunityto recall the valor ofthose brave members ofyour forces who havegiven their lives indefense of the rights ofmy people and indefense of internationalcommitments for theserights.

Major Francesco Serriconi hasnow left for Italy but those of uswho worked and flew with himwill remember him. We all wishhim well in his new appolntmentin Italy.

I will be grateful if youwill kindly transmit tothe officers and soldiersof your force my thanksfor your efforts and myadmiration for thewisdom and couragewith which you are per­forming your mission inSouth lebanon.

Sincerely yoursAMINE GEMA VEL

President of the republicof Lebanon

Lttalt[ 5/88.

« IFAREWELL ... FAREWELL ... FAllA FAREWELL PARTY

WAS HELD IN THE OF­FICERS CLUB ON THEEVENING OF 11THMARCH '88 BY THE OF­FICERS OF FRENCH HO,FRENCH GENDARMES OFUNIFIL MP COY ANDFRENCHLOG. FOLLOW­ING THE TASTING OFSANGRIA, LOCAL WINESAND SAVOURING SOMESPECIAL FRENCHMEALS. A PRESENT A­TION TO ACOS OPS, COL.B. PELTIER, CO UNIFILMP COY AND FPM LT­COL. O. AASHEIM ANDCO FRENCHLOG LT-COLJ.L. SUBLET BYMEMBERS OF THEFRENCH CONTINGENT OFMP COY. GUESTS EX-PRESSED tHEIRREGRETS ON SEEINGTHEM LEAVING ANDSAID THEM: 'AU

REVOIR'. Li-Col O Aasheim, CO MP COv being presentedwith a plaque.

A group photograph of the French militarv pOlice person neI.

l2Sc::Jle=================- _

•..

• •6:talU 5/88

L t.Col. Lennart Johanssonthe new Chief Medical Of­ficer, was barn on 22

January 1948 in Vasteras,Sweden.

After completion of hispreliminary education he enteredthe Uppsala and Linkoping univer­sities where he obtained an M.D.degree in medicine in 1973. Hewas confirmed medical officer in1974 after serving a ane-yearhousemanship and becamespecialist in general surgery in1981. In 1983 he took a Ph.D.degree with thesis in intestinal in­juries in abdominal trauma.Lt. Col. Johansson is also agraduate of the Nordic U. N. StaffOfficers course in 1987. Hestudied neuro surgery andanaesthesiology for six and eightmonths respectively. His specialfield of interest is emergency anddisaster medicine, having attend­ed conferences in Pittsburg,

Rome and Jerusalem as well asdisaster drilIs in New York Rome,jerusalem and Sweden.

Lt. Col Lennart Johansson serv­ed as a junior surgeon at theMotala hospital from 1974 to1977, and then at the Universityhospital of Linkoping from 1977to1983. He became Chief MedicalOfficer of the SwedishAutomobile Sports Federation in1984. From 1984 to 1985 he wasAssistant Medical Director at theMedical Board of the SwedishArmed Forces.

He was promoted to LieutenantColonei in 1985 and appointedMedical Director at the LifeGrenadier Regiment andlDefenceDistrict Staff of Ostergotland ,Linkoping.

U.Col. Johansson is marriedwith three children. His hobbiesare folk dancing and music.

The new Commanding Officerof Frenchlog is U-Col. Jean-LouisPujo. Barn in Tarbes, Franee in1943, U-Col. Pujo enlisted intothe French Army in 1962 and wascommissioned in the infantry bat­talion in 1967.

Appointments held since com­missioning include Platoon andCompany Commander, Instructorat a military academy, Staff Of-

THE VETERAN OF 'DEVIDUTT'

Befare coming to Lebanon,Han U SIVAJI BISTA sa calledSubedar Major was promoted tothe present rank. The rank of HanU awarded to him is for his langdedicated service of 31 years inthe Royal Nepalese Army. Duringhis service he toa k part in manyoperations like the action duringinternal disturbances in the coun­try, Out Y with the Royal Guards,at the Royal Palace and withUNIFIL in '78.

Our hand same, strong andcheerful Veteran retires im­mediately after completion of hispeace keeping duties in Lebanon.(NEP BATT 14 Wishes him everysuccess in the years aheadl.

PlO Major R.B. VAIDYA

ficer in an armoured division andOperation Officer in an Alpine bat­talion. He is a graduate of theStaff and War College in France.

U-Col. Pujo was made a Knightof the French National Merit Orderin 1985. He is married with threechildren. His hobbies are skiing,mountain climbing, tennis andsailing.

HUMOUR IN UNIFORM:

Our Adjutant was extremelysticky about giving leave toanybody. If a jawan said, "Sir, myfather is seriously ill," he wouldsay, "Yes, yes, my father wasseriously ill last year, but I didn'tga on leave" Or if somebody saidhe had to attend his sister's wed­ding, the Adjutant would retort,"My sister also got married, but Ididn't take leave for her wedding"

Hence, it surprised all of uswhen a Sergeant had his leavesanctioned. Curious, we askedhim how he had managed it. "Itold the adjutant that my wife hadeloped with my neighbour in thevillage," said the Sergeant with abig wink, "and that my motherhad asked me to return home atonee."

Adjutant: "Did you shave thismorning, GC?"

GC: "Yes, Adjutant."Adjutant: "Weli, next time

stand a bit closer to the razor."

First saldier: What made youga into the army?

Second saldier: I had no wife .and Iloved war, sa I went. Whatabout you?

First saldier: Well, I had a wifeand loved peace, sa I went.

PlO NEP BATT