Battle of Baghak hero abandoned
AS the bullets came flying in from all sides of the Shikari Valley, Trooper James Baldwin instinctively threw himself over the body of the badly wounded friend he was treating.
Baldwin’s patrol team had been in the thick of the fighting during the infamous Battle of Baghak in Afghanistan’s Bamyan province on August 4, 2012.
‘‘It was carnage,’’ he said yesterday at his Te Awamutu home.
Baldwin has come forward in response to the Stuff Circuit documentary The Valley, to speak out about his treatment by the New Zealand Defence Force and Veterans’ Affairs.
Baldwin protected Lance Corporal Pralli Durrer’s body as the able-bodied cleared the rest of the wounded to safety.
Durrer’s injuries were unsurviveable, and he died en route to hospital. Lance Corporal Rory Malone also died in the firefight, and six other New Zealanders were wounded.
Baldwin is humble about the Commendation for Gallantry he received from Chief of Defence Force Tim Keating in 2016. Everyone on the ground that day – from his officer commanding Major Craig Wilson down – deserved recognition.
But upon his return to New Zealand, Baldwin was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He was 20.
Initially he received treatment from a Defence Force-appointed psychiatrist. But he found it difficult to adjust to life back in the barracks. ‘‘Then when I left, all the help was cut.’’
After three years of struggling, he sought help through the public health system, was prescribed anti-depressants, and assigned a psychologist.
When Baldwin’s doctor recommended he approach Veterans’ Affairs, it was a frustrating fight with a seemingly uncaring bureaucracy.
Baldwin’s paperwork landed with Veterans’ Affairs in November 2016 but it took six months to get an appointment to see a psychiatrist who, again, diagnosed him with PTSD.
It then took Veterans’ Affairs 95 days to approve his funding, when legislation insists it should only take 30.
‘‘At that time I was hitting rock bottom. They say the hardest thing is admitting you need help. But that was the easiest part. The hardest part was getting help.’’
Baldwin’s wife Rebecca said they were planning to lodge an official complaint with Veterans’ Affairs.
‘‘They retraumatised him by seeking help.’’
James Baldwin is speaking out in the hope other veterans will learn that it’s okay to ask for help. He doesn’t blame the staff at Veterans’ Affairs, it’s the system that is broken.
‘‘A lot of people wouldn’t be as lucky as me with the support I’ve had. A lot of veterans are falling through the cracks.’’
An independent review of the Veterans’ Support Act is being held by Professor Ron Paterson, and is expected to be released by the end of 2017.