The Ottawa Citizen from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • 27

MONDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2001 THE OTTAWA CITIZEN SECTION Days of theTay River Hearings that may decide the fate of the Tay begin tomorrow. C3 CITY News: page C6 Classified: page C9 Editor: Rob Warner, 596-8581 citythecitizen.southam.ca 'All we can do is wait and pray' Faith groups worry fallout of air strikes will 'impact everybody' If PC Ottawa 'couldn't cope' if attacked Counsellors would be overwhelmed By Dave Rogers Ottawa probably could not cope with the initial emotional shock of a major terrorist attack, says a psychologist who helped run a trauma training workshop for police officers and victim counsellors. Wayne Corneil, a University of Ottawa psychologist who helped grief counsellors after the Swissair Flight 111 crash near Peggy's Cove in 1998, said help would be needed from across Canada in the event of a terrorist attack here because area counsellors would be too close to the crisis. The four-day Algonquin College workshop, which ended last week, was organized months ago, but the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S.

were on the minds of many participants. Mr. Corneil said the attacks increased awareness of the need for emotional trauma courses for disaster workers. "God forbid that this should happen in our community," he said. "But we should have resources available so we can make sure that those people we count on in a crisis can continue doing their work," Mr.

Corneil said. "If it was a large event, we couldn't cope. There is not a community anywhere including New York City that could. "The people who live in this community may be impacted by the event and may not be the front-line responders. In some cases, we would keep back and get people from outside to do the initial work." Interest in mental-health support for police officers and other disaster workers has increased since the 1993 Oklahoma City bombing.

Mr. Corneil said some frontline workers were not well-trained and did more harm than good in their attempts in counsel victims' families. The officers and counsellors at the workshop were told that grief after terrorist attacks and natural disasters is normal. Mr. Corneil said it is important to reassure police officers and disaster workers that they are not going crazy.

"Crying at the scene is normal," Mr. Corneil said. "The people we are concerned about are those who are having difficulty functioning. "People are haunted by the images, the sights, the sounds and smells and can't get rid of them." Const. Lynne Turnbull, who trains Ottawa police officers, agreed that the force would need outside help in case of a major terrorist attack.

"You need somebody to come in who isn't affected by the crisis," Const. Turnbull said. "We have lots of emotional support people in place but, on the scale of something like New York, we would need outside help." Anna Baranowsky, a trauma psychologist who spoke at the workshop, said Canadians have the same capacity to cope as anybody in New York. "Human beings are remarkably resilient and most of us will stretch our minds and abilities to cope with a new world, which is what we are trying to do." PAT MCCRATH, THE OTTAWA CITIZEN Nigel Fisher, UNICEF's special representative to Afghanistan, is in charge of arranging relief for millions of children. UNICEF aid worker afraid for Afghanistan's children Afghanistan.

When the bombs fall in Kabul, the buildings collapse, just like they did in New York," he said. "For me, it's an emotional thing. These (refugees) are people of my faith. "One act of terror does not condone another act of terror. It's a vicious cycle, and somebody has to break the cycle." And the retaliatory attacks also came just one day after a vigil for non-violence marked the meeting of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly downtown.

"Obviously, I probably feel like a lot of other people feel: here we go again," said Richard Sanders, co-ordinator of the Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade, who believes a peaceful protest is planned downtown on Thursday. "We've got our work cut out for us. We're not going away." About 50 of Ottawa's religious leaders met a week after the Sept. 11 attacks, in a healing session designed to bring a common message of peace back to their congregations. Pandit Sahasrabudhe said a similar session may be called for again, though not right away.

"There will be time for healing and other help that people might need," he said. "All we can do is wait and pray. That's what I'm doing. We can't change the direction this is taking. It's not in our hands." Ottawa Afghans fear for families in homeland Turkey dinners eaten while watching CNN by Patti Edgar Ottawa Afghans stayed close to their television sets last night, praying family and friends in their home country would escape the first night of U.S.

and British bombing. Mohammad Akbari said his family was spending a solemn Thanksgiving together, the TV tuned to CNN while the turkey cooked in the oven. With brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles in Kabul and other Afghan cities, the family's thoughts focused on the safety of their relatives last night. While he doesn't support the Taliban government or terrorist acts, he said he values the lives of innocent Afghani people caught for nearly three decades in war. "I don't care if the military dies, they are choosing to fight.

But if a civilian dies, I will be unhappy," he said. "Every day we watch TV and see that people are dying of starvation in Afghanistan. They don't need to die from missiles." Abdul Hamidi, a technology worker in Ottawa, said he doesn't know much about the politics behind the U.S.-led bombings. See AFGHANS on page C2 An Ottawa relief worker tells Melanie Brooks how the military action will affect a country already devastated by war. By Carolynne wheeler On a day set aside for giving thanks, communities of all faiths instead watched television images of the first American air strikes on Afghanistan.

"I am stunned, (though) we were expecting this," said Hindu Pandit Madhu Sahasrabudhe, chairman of Ottawa's interfaith council. "We are going to go through some difficult times because a military action is serious. It will have an impact on everybody in the region. But (the attack) was expected." Reports of mosques being defaced and Muslim men, women and children being harassed were received almost immediately after the Sept. 11 attacks that killed thousands.

Ottawa went on high alert immediately and police have continued higher levels of security around embassies, mosques and other potential "flashpoints." The city's emergency response team is ready to meet again on short notice if required. Now, uncertainty and grief are compounded by the reports of United States-led air strikes on Afghanistan. "This probably further unsettles people who are still trying to piece together the sense of grief," said the Very Rev. Shane Parker, who is the Anglican Dean of Ottawa and rector at Christ Church Cathedral. "Here we are in the wake of Sept.

11, another violent event in our world," he said. "What happened on Sept. 11 was an evil thing and we must be careful not to perpetuate anything close to that in our fight against terrorism. "The Islamic fundamentalist connection that's been made in this makes it imperative that people of all faiths stand together and say this is not what faith is about." The news came near the end of a seminar at the University of Ottawa teaching Muslim-Canadians how to deal with media interviews and coverage of last month's events. Riad Saloojee, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations Canada, said many Muslims are worried about the thousands of refugees living in squalid conditions as they flee Afghanistan.

He said his office has continued to log four or five complaints of harassment each day from Muslim-Canadians, and fears that will increase if more people are killed in conflict. "I think a more multilateral and more diplomatic solution should have been explored, much more than it has been," Mr. Saloojee said. "I'm not sure this is going to be very effective in combatting global terrorism." Suleiman Gardee, a Kanata family doctor who is also an elder at the Jamia Omar mosque in Bells Corners, said he is afraid to let his daughters-in-law go out without his sons accompanying them for fear they'll be harassed. And while he condemns what happened in New York City and Washington, he says two wrongs don't make a right.

"We cannot accept murderous actions on innocent civilians, whether in New York or in 1 Julie While an international coalition unleashes its wrath on Afghanistan, an Ottawa man sits at home thinking of the 70 UNICEF workers and their families he left behind there. Nigel Fisher is the special representative of UNICEF to Afghanistan, in charge of arranging relief for the millions of children affected by the long years of war. He came home to visit his family in Ottawa for Thanksgiving, only a day before the attacks began. "We have talked to our workers, and they're all safe so far," he said. "As of today, with the actual military attack starting, we've told our staff to look after their own security and the security of their families as a priority.

They can leave if they want, but they have all chosen to stay and help." Mr. Fisher wants to be there with them, but after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, the UN ordered all its international workers to stay out of the country until their security can be ensured. Since then, Mr. Fisher has been organizing the aid mission from Islamabad, Pakistan.

In his 24 years with the aid Yesterday's military attacks have changed UNICEF's mission in Afghanistan, which was operating long before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S. Now, they are focused on helping the refugees that are flooding across the border into Pakistan. But Mr. Fisher said the real crisis is within Afghanistan.

There are a million children in Afghanistan who need emergency assistance, said Mr. Fisher. Many of them are in camps around the big cities like Kabul, but there are many in isolated areas, making it hard for UNICEF workers to reach them. "The real drama is going to be inside Afghanistan," said Mr. Fisher, who hasn't been able to get into the country since late August.

"The worst off people are the ones who can't afford to even get to the border, to the refugee camps. "Winter is only six weeks away. The best we can do is lessen the number of children who will starve or freeze to death. Last winter, before this war, dozens of children died in Herat alone because of the cold." U.S. President George W.

Bush said yesterday the attacks on Afghanistan will be accompanied by drops of food and medical aid to the Afghani people. See UNICEF on page C2 Willi if- 'Trr'Stu t.j; agency, he has dealt with situations like this before, in Mozambique, Iraq, and Rwanda. After earning his masters degree in political science at McMaster University in Hamilton more than 30 years ago, his career has been spent helping people in war-torn countries, teaching children in Nigeria and working with the International Development Research Centre before joining UNICEF. His determination earned him the Meritorious Service Cross from former governor-general Romeo LeBlanc for his commitment to improving the lives of children in Rwanda. "Despite the military action, we continue operating as much as possible," said Mr.

Fisher, 54. "Even at the height of the Gulf crisis 10 years ago, I went to Tehran, to negotiate with the Iranians a convoy of emergency supplies. So even at the height of the Gulf War, the planes came into Tehran and we established a convoy in. We will do the same thing now. "When an area appears safe, we will go there.

If it changes, we will stop. You have to be very flexible." "ir rrrnAr a) nr rti Ih Wednesday, November 14, 2001 --4 irO h1? Fnday-0ctobcr 26-2001 7, Vnt-" JSJi IWfTV'T rrluay, NOvemDer UU I (requiring proof) Smyth 596-8411 jsmyththecitizen.southam.ca 1..