[Jack Moroney (RIP)]

If you want to win indig support for anything you need to understand what it is that makes them tick and help them realize those goals that are most meaningful to them within the constraints of common sense and cultural reality. For instance, when we brought in a bunch of displaced folks after a major operation and they needed a place to live we got the local village chief to give them the land and folks pitched in a helped them build their homes. Now we could have used tin for the roof but we made sure they used indigenous material not only so that they were not looking to us the next time they needed a new roof but also not to afford them special status that the other indig did not have available to them. You always have to consider the long term effects of whatever you do, understand the operational environment, anticipate and control psychological effects, ensure long term sustainment to state but a few of what we call the Special Operational Imperatives. What works in one area will not necessarily work in another. You mention healthcare for instance. In a FID or UW environment when you are trying to establish a rapport with the indig your medics just might be the most important player on the team. However, if you are dealing with folks that are steeped in the mysteries of black magic and the medic represents a threat to his power you are going to have to look to other things to win them over first without undermining their beliefs and internal power structure. There is no cookie cutter answer, that is why things like area studies play such an important role in what we do when we start mission planning. Hope that answers your question, this is a whole lot more involved than this paragraph and it will vary with not only the situation but the skills and qualifications of your team members.

Jack Moroney