International Relations lecturer awarded Dutch Military Medal

USQ International Relations lecturer Richard Gehrmann has been awarded the Dutch Medal for Peace Operations.

The medal is usually awarded to Netherlands military personnel who served in the International and Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, and as one of a small number of Australian liaison and medical staff who served under Dutch command, Richard was honoured to receive the medal.

‘The medal is a special reminder of a very demanding, rewarding and difficult time, and is something I will always treasure,’ Richard said.

‘We worked long hours and missed family and friends, but the deaths of Australian, Afghan and Dutch soldiers were a constant reminder of the far more significant sacrifices made by others.’

Richard is in the Australian Army Reserve, and spent 8 months as a liaison officer embedded with the Dutch military in southern Afghanistan’s Uruzgan Province, from October 2008 to June 2009.

‘I enjoyed working with the Dutch and Afghans in what was a challenging environment. Although there is a long way to go, it was rewarding to see positive changes occurring in Afghanistan’.

Even though the official language of the mission was English, working all day 7 days a week in a non-English language environment created special challenges.

‘Apart from a few phrases, the Afghan languages were a challenge I knew I would not master in the time available, and when working with Afghans I relied on the brave and hardworking interpreters.

‘It was easier working with the Dutch, who tend to have very good English language skills. Also, when I travelled in southern Africa several years ago, I had picked up some words and phrases of Afrikaans, a language closely related to Dutch.

‘I combined this with a phrasebook and a sense of humour to bridge the gap between cultures.’

The international mentoring and reconstruction force provided assistance to the civil and military authorities of Afghanistan who faced the considerable challenges of rebuilding after 30 years of conflict.

‘I teach international relations, and working in the reconstruction and mentoring environment during a conflict gave me the chance to apply many of my academic skills, and also gave me the opportunity to bring skills and experiences learnt in Afghanistan back to my own students at USQ.

‘The deployment was made easier because of the support from colleagues and friends, whose morale boosting packages of Tim Tams were always welcomed - this was one part of Australian culture my Dutch colleagues really seemed to appreciate!’