[BRIEF NOTE] On Rick Hillier's departure

[rfmcdonald]

From the Canadian Press:

Gen. Rick Hillier, the country's top military commander and most articulate spokesman for the war in Afghanistan, submitted his resignation to the prime minister Tuesday.

It is expected to become effective July 1. Prime Minister Stephen Harper praised Hillier in the House of Commons, saying he has worked well with the government.

"He is a great Canadian and we are very proud to have worked with him," Harper said during question period.

But the prime minister released no other details.

Hillier was caught by a television crew leaving National Defence headquarters over the lunch hour, but said nothing. He was expected to make a statement later in the afternoon.

Appointed just over three years ago as chief of defence staff, Hillier, 52, has been the most visible military leader in a generation and a political lightning rod over his often blunt assessments of Canada's enemies and defence policy.

He has been both a blessing and a curse for the Conservative government, making a case for the combat mission in Kandahar when political leaders seemed unable or unwilling to defend it.

But his popularity has often overshadowed his political masters and became a liability last summer.

Hillier wound up in a public tussle with former defence minister Gordon O'Connor over how long it would take for Canadian troops to train their Afghan counterparts - key to Canada's exit strategy. The contradiction between the two was widely believed to have cost O'Connor his job.

Harper and his Liberal predecessor, Paul Martin, have said they relied heavily on Hillier's military advice.

[. . .]

A recent book, co-authored by a former Liberal insider, claimed Hillier's persuasive arguments persuaded an uncertain Paul Martin to approve the deployment in 2005.

The man who recommended Hillier's appointment to Martin said the general is a forceful personality.

"He brought a combination of drive, intelligence and experience ... that made him in the end the logical choice," said former Liberal defence minister Bill Graham.

Hillier has a long history of being a vocal supporter of Canada's continued involvement in the Afghanistan conflict, even calling for increased involvement. Back in February, he even argued that public debate on the war threatened Canadian troops.

Canadian parliamentarians shouldn't drag out the debate on the country's military mission in Afghanistan since troops are currently vulnerable to attacks from the Taliban who wish to influence the decision, Canada's top soldier said Friday in a speech to the Conference of Defence Associations.

Gen. Rick Hillier, the outspoken chief of the defence staff, also raised the possibility Friday that this week's deadly suicide bombing in Afghanistan, which targeted a Canadian convoy, was meant to sway opinions in the Canadian debate.

And he was greeted with lengthy applause from the military crowd when he added: "the least our soldiers could expect" in Afghanistan is that after the pending vote on extending the mission to 2011 is completed, all MPs in Parliament give unanimous support to a motion backing Canadian troops.

But Liberal Leader Stephane Dion said later he was certain MPs in all parties support the troops. He also called the Conservatives' recent suggestions that that those who don't support the extension of the Afghanistan mission to 2011 are supporters of the Taliban, "odious."

He dismissed Hillier's suggestion that a speedy debate is needed, saying the Taliban are out to kill Canadian soldiers regardless of what Parliament decides on the mission.

NDP MP Dawn Black said Hillier's speech was inappropriate in several instances.

"It seems incredible to me that Gen. Hillier would make these comments and I think they're quite out of line," said Black in reaction to his linking suicide attacks to the Canadian debate.

Myself, I tend to think that in a democracy, the civilian government should determine military policy and that it shouldn't be the other way around. Perhaps it's a quaint belief; perhaps I'm out of date. In any case, good-bye and good riddance to General Hillier. Here's to hoping that the next head of the Canadian military has a bit more respect for civil society.