Western Morning News (Saturday)
UK veterans of Afghanistan ‘still our heroes’ – MP
MP and military veteran of the Afghanistan campaign Johnny Mercer has spoken up for those who fought to rid the country of terrorists and said they should still feel pride in their achievements, despite the crisis of recent days.
The Plymouth Moor View MP, who served as a captain with 29th Commando Regiment, Royal Artillery, posted a video on Twitter, to bolster the morale of fellow veterans and remind them that they should not devalue the service they gave.
He spoke out in support of the veterans charity, Help for Heroes, which has received a boost from celebrities posting online comments under the hashtag Still Our Heroes across social media platforms.
TV presenter and Army veteran Rav Wilding and Help for Heroes patrons Ross Kemp, Lorraine Kelly and Sun columnist Peta Cavendish are among those to get behind the #StillOurHeroes hashtag on Twitter and Facebook.
Help for Heroes launched the campaign after the Afghanistan withdrawal prompted questions asking of the military service and sacrifice: “Was it worth it?” That led to many veterans questioning the value of their time in Afghanistan, which has now fallen back into the hands of the Taliban and was the subject of a deadly terrorist attack by a rival group on
Thursday. The charity says its clinical staff are dealing with many veterans having to handle painful memories, sights and sounds that are triggering traumatic experiences, affecting their feelings of self-worth and having a direct impact on their mental health.
Thousands have now engaged with the #StillOurHeroes campaign online, with many members of the public posting positive messages of support and appreciation to veterans.
In a powerful message on his own Twitter feed Johnny Mercer said: “I wanted to just briefly speak to veterans of the Afghanistan campaign on behalf of Help for Heroes and their latest campaign, Still Our Heroes, particularly to those who feel that what’s going on in Afghanistan at the moment devalues their service and what we did all those years ago.
“I don’t think anything can take away what we did in Afghanistan.
I think the moments – and they were far too brief – of peace and security that we brought to communities in Now Zad, in Nad-E Ali and Laskkah Gah, in Kajaki and places like that... the people who experienced that will never forget it and you can be so proud of operating in such a difficult environment against an enemy that was horrific and barbaric and brutalised the local population. You stood up for what was good when the nation called for you to serve, you served and you can be incredibly proud of your service.”
Mr Mercer said he shared the feelings of many and admitted these were “difficult days.” but he went on: “Please do not question your service. I’m incredibly proud of you. I’m incredibly proud of what you did at the time. It’s defined me, it’s maybe defined a lot of you. Nobody will take that away and please don’t devalue it by what is happening now, you cannot control it and be proud of your service and what we did in some of the harshest conditions the British Army’s ever fought in. So hold your heads up high; don’t lose heart and we will get through this period, hopefully with a stronger veterans support network than we went into it.”
Earlier this year Mr Mercer stood down as the Veteran’s Minister after complaining that efforts to win more backing for ex-service personnel facing legal action for historic incidents during active service were being ignored by government.