The thrill of the chase: Orla Guerin, a life on the frontline

“To be honest I didn’t have a clue what I was letting myself in for but I just took my notebook and off I went.”

These are the words of foreign correspondent Orla Guerin, speaking to me from somewhere in the depths of (what sounds to be) the bustling city of Kabul. She is describing her first trip to the former Soviet Union when, at the tender age of 23, she was thrown into the biggest story of her life.

It is such light-hearted frankness which belies the perilous nature of the job and catches this young journalist off-guard. Since this first glimpse behind the Iron Curtain she has covered some of the most dangerous conflicts in recent memory, Kosovo,the Middle East, Pakistan, Libya and her recent most posting, Afghanistan, yet she has done so in such a no-nonsense way.

Her enthusiasm for the job is unmistakable and despite having spent over 25 years broadcasting, this Dublin-born journalist’s excitement at her new assignment is palpable.

“It’s the classic example of still having to learn in this job, Afghanistan is a new story for me and I am thrilled to be here. I think if you are doing foreign news you have to really enjoy it and you have to feel like it’s your life and not just your work.”

The BBC presenter feels the presence of the worlds’ media is crucial to preserving the fragile peace that has been eked out over the last decade of foreign occupation. This relative calm is imperilled by the likely removal of US troops in the not too distant future, as is the modest improvement in the lives of Afghani women.

“One of the stories I’m running at the moment is about the advances that have been made in women’s’ rights over here in the last 10 years but how insecure these advances are and what will happen when foreign forces pull out in 2014.”

Far from being bystanders, these women have fought at great personal cost to reclaim some of their independence.

“I’ve met some of the most extraordinary women over here, activists and business women who have managed to carve out extraordinaryroles for themselves and defy the conservatism in society.”

“One of the politicians we’ve interviewed has had assassination attempts and one of the businesswomenhas to worry about the safety of her workers. They are operating in a very precarious situation and taking risks every day. They are so determined to change the country for the good of their daughters and for coming generations.”

Orla believes these inspirational individuals along with the rest of their society must not feel abandoned by an international community who have promised so much.

“The people who arrived 10 years ago claiming that the abuse of women’s rights was one of the reasons for foreign invasion are the very ones now getting ready to leave without trying to secure the advances that have been made.”

For someone whom has felt that the door to success has always been open, the horrendous conditions that these women face are hard to understand.

“I have worked in many places over the years where women are the victims of dreadful things and face conservative social values such as the Middle East and Pakistan but Afghanistan is a whole other level.”

“It’s staggering, but every day you just sit back and think that so much is determined by the accident of birth. I can’t think of a moment that being a woman has held me back in any way but a woman can serve longer in jail over here for adultery than a man would for murder.”

It is this ‘human cost of war’ that the world must be kept informed about if the incremental process of democratisation is to continue.

“I thinks it’s tremendously important that the spotlight is still kept on this area and that all of the difficulties and messy consequences of the war and of international involvement be kept before the public eye. It has been a huge international endeavour and I think people must examine what has been achieved and what hasn’t.”

The former RTE correspondent received an MBE in 2005 and such integrity and dedication to the human cost of war are perhaps important reasons in her success.

“You also have to be very dedicated to getting it right, you must make absolutely sure your stories are reliable and that people feel they can believe what you’re telling them because credibility is something you can only lose once.”

It’s clear that this newscaster has lost none of the thirst for news she had when she stepped off the plane in Moscow over 20 years ago, perhaps it was her first experience of foreign news that has kept her on the frontline.

“I was absolutely astonished that I was in Moscow and I also had a very strong sense of being in the middle of a momentous period of history. You were waking up every day and thinking, what jaw dropping historic event can happen today and every day there would be something.”

What is also striking is her straightforward approach as to what makes a good journalist: she makes it very clear that gender is not a deciding factor.

“This idea is pedalled that men want to be on the front line counting the bullets and women want to be in the refugee camp counting refugees, I just don’t think that’s the case. I think that good journalists follow the story, the human costs of war are extremely important and a good journalist will want to cover both.”

Somewhat buoyed by such revelation, this young reporter shamelessly attempts to extract further counsel from her remarkable interviewee.

“Someone once gave me a very good piece of advice when I was starting out, it may sound very obvious but it was ‘don’t take no for an answer.’ I don’t mean that in an obnoxious way but you have to be prepared to chase and chase and chase, first to get the work and then to get the story, you have to want it.”

And so I will revisit my own endeavours with a new vigour and I too will chase and chase and chase until I find my big story, whatever that may be.