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Tom Richmond: A teenage hero sacrifices his life as our cowardly rulers hide their faces
THEIR voices were raw with emotion – but their pride was palpable. Their words were spoken from the heart, unlike the hollow-sounding utterances of Gordon Brown and his Government.
To them, Rifleman James Backhouse – or plain Jimmy to those who knew the likable 18-year-old – was a hero who died while serving his country in Afghanistan. In the language of war, he was far more than the forgettable few words read out by the PM in the Commons.
He joined the Army, said his family and friends, because most school-leavers growing up in the close-knit community of Castleford have only three career choices – the Armed Forces, college or unemployment.
He died, they said, because he was trying to bring about some stability in Afghanistan, but they had little understanding about the UK's wider war objectives. They did not mention the wider "war on terror" or the Government's latest mission statement.
Tellingly, they said that for every British family grieving for the loss of a loved one, there were 100 Afghan families mourning the loss of a relative who had been killed by the Taliban. Their hearts went out to them.
This enormously moving interview, on Radio Four's Today programme, was remarkable for its innocence.
They knew Jimmy died doing a job that he loved, but they had little idea, when he departed for Helmand, that they would never see him again. They had not contemplated their hero returning in a coffin.
To them, the war, and its aims, was almost a mystery, even though it was their son and brother who was on the front line.
If they don't understand the mission's objectives, how can the Government keep public opinion on-side?
It is a question that the PM cannot ignore as the UK fatalities approach the 200 mark – and the Yorkshire Regiment prepares for another tour of duty in one of the nearest places on earth to "hell".
Jimmy Backhouse was clearing a route for his colleagues to carry a number of injured comrades to safety (they had been blown up by a roadside bomb) when a second device was detonated in Sangin on July 10. Three of the five killed were just 18 years of age.
He was was one of eight UK fatalities during a grievous 24 hour period –which prompted a war of words between the Government, and military top brass, about whether our soldiers are adequately equipped.
His commanding officer, Major Alistair Field, added: "He was 'always on the ramparts' as we say and quick to volunteer for any task, especially those which took the fight to the enemy – there were many of those."
A fitness fanatic, the ex-Airedale High School pupil's future was still ahead of him. He only missed his batallion's tour of Kosovo last year because he was not 18.
Now he's one of the youngest UK fatalities in a struggle that few people understand – and which has seen less than heroic leadership from the Government.
For, judging by the response of Gordon Brown, and Bob Ainsworth, the underwhelming Defence Secretary, this battle is all about statistics and numbers.
They appear not to recognise, in public at least, that lives are being lost – including those of young men who have never voted in a General Election because of their tender years.
Take the Prime Minister, who resorted to the language of accountants when questioned by Tory leader David Cameron about the number of helicopters at the disposal of service personnel in Afghanistan.
Showing no empathy towards those mourning loved ones, Brown told MPs in the style of a sixth form lecture: "The number of troops in Afghanistan has risen from just over 7,000 to 9,000 over the last two years.
"The number of helicopters has risen by 60 per cent. That is a higher percentage rise."
Why does the PM not admit that the Armed Forces do not have sufficient helicopters, or resources, for a war that has the potential to escalate into Britain's Vietnam if sufficient reinforcements are not sent to Afghanistan as a matter of urgency? Doesn't he realise that the Taliban threat has changed out of all recognition, and many more soldiers now have to travel by air?
It's not just the families of the fallen who are saying this. Defence chiefs are saying so with great candour. John Hutton, the recently resigned Defence Secretary, says so. The soldiers on the ground are saying so in their war chronicles. And, last week, the UK suffered the ignominy of General Sir Richard Dannatt – the head of the British Army –being flown around Afghanistan in American helicopters.
General Dannatt was, of course, too diplomatic to blame the Government, and Brown's penny-pinching when he was Chancellor.
His point had been made – he would not have flying in a US helicopter if the shortage was not so severe.
And, when the Commons Defence Select Committee warned that a shortage of helicopters is undermining the "protection" of troops in Afghanistan, the PM repeated his lecture about a "60 per cent" increase with one added caveat. He could not comment now on precise numbers because of security reasons.
Talk about changing the rules of engagement after his lecture to MPs on the economics of war.
However, people like Rifleman Backhouse's family deserve better than figures and statistics from a PM who has been economical with the truth throughout his entire time in office
This is not a Tory versus Labour spat over domestic policy. This is a matter of life and death. Those soldiers fighting in Afghanistan are not commodities. They are human beings. They have families in the UK who dread the knock on the door from a military officer to tell them, as humanely as possible, that the worst has happened.
The people of Wootton Bassett recognise this. It's why so many of its townsfolk line the streets, in silent tribute, for every repatriation ceremony.
Contrast this with the Government's response which borders upon the shameful. Not only has Britain just appointed its fourth Defence Secretary in four years, which exposes the lack of continuity on the political front line, but not one Minister has had the courtesy to stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Wootton Bassett.
Gordon Brown talks about the "courage" that continues to be shown by the Armed Forces. He's even written books on this theme.
So why doesn't he lead by example, have the guts to attend a repatriation ceremony – and then tell the families of the fallen that he should, and could, have done more to help the Armed Forces?
Yes, it will require "bravery" on his part. He won't be able to hide behind meaningless statistics. But Rifleman Backhouse, and all those who have fallen in the war, had no hiding place.
Despite their tender years, they were asked to show courage in abundance. So, too, are those families grieving over the loss of loved ones – sons and brothers who had so much to live for. And so should their political masters.
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Friday 25 May 2012
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