The deserts of Iraq are no joke, especially when your job is to disarm bombs in conflict zones. Under the pen name RJ Malan, the author of this new book sheds light on the life of bomb disposal units. Taking a sip of his morning coffee, RJ Malan stares in front of him, deep in thought as he recounts some of his experiences over the five years he spent abroad.
Not all his memories are fond ones, because five years in the deserts of the Middle East, defusing improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in countries where you are not always welcomed with open arms, can leave a man with some emotional scars. But between navigating physical and cultural minefields – either of which could cost you your life – and hopping across borders without passports, he managed to pen his experiences in his journal. After returning to home soil in South Africa, those notes have evolved into a book that Malan hopes will shed some light on the dangers of working in an Explosive Ordinance Disposal Unit and the plight of the vulnerable families and communities living in countries torn apart by continuous conflict.
It is important to note that RJ Malan is his pen name – a mix of his real name and characters he met along the way – to protect the identities of his family, friends and colleagues, some of whom are still running operations in Iraq and its neighbouring countries. Malan, 36, was born in Nelson Mandela Bay and grew up in Kariega. He attended the Technical High School Daniel Pienaar and after matriculating in 2007, spent a year working in the construction industry before successfully applying to join the South African Navy.
Read Full Article on Daily Maverick
[paywall]
“Like most boys my age, I grew up watching action movies and dreaming about doing cool and exciting things. Joining the military sounded like a dream job, and while my time in the navy was a great experience, it wasn’t as exciting as I had built it up in my mind,” Malan said. From 2009, he was deployed at the Saldanha, Wingfield and Simon’s Town naval bases, where he trained and worked as an engine room attendant.
In 2012, he applied for placement in De Aar, where he joined the SANDF Ammunition Corps and was trained to become an ammunition fitter. “I was young and naive and thought this would finally be my chance to blow sh*t up!” Malan laughed. “But being a so-called ‘peace-time soldier’ involved a lot of training, but very little real action.
We learnt everything about explosives, and we knew how bombs worked back to front. I knew how to make a broken one work, and I learned how to deactivate a live one. But I felt like my knowledge and skills were going to waste.”
[/paywall]
