SA man held in Afghanistan

2009-10-09 09:28

Erika Gibson

Pretoria - A South African man who is being detained by police in Afghanistan, has no idea what will happen to him, his brother said from Johannesburg on Thursday.

"Considering the circumstances, my brother's doing rather well," said Pat Young about his brother, Phil Young, who is being held in Lashkar Gah in Helmand province.

No charges have been laid against him.

Young hails from Cape Town and works as a security specialist in Afghanistan, for the American government's anti-narcotics-initiative (CNAT) to put a stop to the cultivation of opium poppies.

Young was detained last Thursday after he allegedly shot an Afghan subordinate - apparently in self-defence.

Shots were fired

He had dismissed one of his subordinate Afghan guard commanders, after the man was involved in a fight with one of the other guards.

The man who was dismissed and a number of his friends later went to Young's office. Young warned the man that he had been fired and was not allowed to bring a firearm into the office.

The Afghan then cocked his weapon - an AK47 attack rifle - and shot at Young, who then returned fire.

Two of Young's colleagues - also foreigners - were arrested along with him, and the three were detained separately in shipping containers.

The two colleagues have subsequently been released, while Young has been handed over to the Afghan security police.

They are allowed to detain him for 15 days, even without any complaints being laid against him.

Another one of the Afghan guards has also been arrested since the incident and is still being detained.

Treated well

"I spoke to my brother very briefly, since he couldn't say very much," said Pat.

"He just told me that I shouldn't worry. He said he was being treated well, and that he was allowed to keep his cellphone with him. The British embassy's office in Lashkar Gah also told me that their officials were monitoring the case," said Young's brother.

"I'm constantly worried about my brother, since he happens to find himself in an unpredictable warzone. I won't allow him to disappear somewhere in that country's legal system - Phil has family and friends who think about him every day, and I believe he knows that."

Young has three children who all live in Cape Town.

With American leadership and financing, CNAT is mainly operated by Afghans.

Of all the opium in the world, 93% comes from Afghanistan.

- Beeld