Kiwis aim at buildings, not bombs
First the Taleban terrorised Bamiyan, razing the spectacular Buddha statues and massacring hundreds of men from the local Shi'ite Hazara community. Then the Americans bombed it and drove the Taleban away. Now, the New Zealanders are helping rebuild and keep the peace.
A large cutout of a kiwi adorns the entrance to the military base where 106 soldiers from the New Zealand Defence Force, along with personnel from the US and Britain, make up the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team, which combines policing of Afghanistan's central highlands with some much-needed development work.
They help build schools and bridges, run computer courses, and are the sole implementing agency for New Zealand Aid.
Poppy cultivation has taken root in Bamiyan, as in much of Afghanistan. The warlords control the opium trade, but if the promised international crackdown begins, the Kiwis will find themselves in charge of destroying the poppy fields.
