A Troop Surge Can Only Magnify the Crime against Afghanistan
Dan Clore
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smygo
http://tinyurl.com/yhwn5we
A troop surge can only magnify the crime against Afghanistan
If Barack Obama heralds an escalation of the war, he will betray his own
message of hope and deepen my people's pain
by Malalai Joya
After months of waiting, President Obama is about to announce the new US
strategy for Afghanistan. His speech may be long awaited, but few are
expecting any surprise: it seems clear he will herald a major escalation
of the war. In doing so he will be making something worse than a
mistake. It is a continuation of a war crime against the suffering
people of my country.
I have said before that by installing warlords and drug traffickers in
power in Kabul, the US and Nato have pushed us from the frying pan to
the fire. Now Obama is pouring fuel on these flames, and this week's
announcement of upwards of 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan will have
tragic consequences.
Already this year we have seen the impact of an increase in troops
occupying Afghanistan: more violence, and more civilian deaths. My
people, the poor of Afghanistan who have known only war and the
domination of fundamentalism, are today squashed between two enemies:
the US/Nato occupation forces on one hand and warlords and the Taliban
on the other.
While we want the withdrawal of one enemy, we don't believe it is a
matter of choosing between two evils. There is an alternative: the
democratic-minded parties and intellectuals are our hope for the future
of Afghanistan.
It will not be easy, but if we have a little bit of peace we will be
better able to fight our own internal enemies � Afghans know what to do
with our destiny. We are not a backward people, and we are capable of
fighting for democracy, human and women's rights in Afghanistan. In fact
the only way these values will be achieved is if we struggle for them
and win them ourselves.
After eight years of war, the situation is as bad as ever for ordinary
Afghans, and women in particular. The reality is that only the drug
traffickers and warlords have been helped under this corrupt and
illegitimate Karzai government. Karzai's promises of reform are
laughable. His own vice-president is the notorious warlord Fahim, whom
Brad Adams of Human Rights Watch describes as "one of the most notorious
warlords in the country, with the blood of many Afghans on his hands".
Transparency International reports that this regime is the second most
corrupt in the world. The UN Development Programme reports Afghanistan
is second last � 181st out of 182 countries � in terms of human
development. That is why we no longer want this kind of "help" from the
west.
Like many around the world, I am wondering what kind of "peace" prize
can be awarded to a leader who continues the occupations of Iraq and
Afghanistan, and starts a new war in Pakistan, all while supporting Israel?
Throughout my recent tour of the US, I had the chance to meet many
military families and veterans who are working to put an end to the wars
in Iraq and Afghanistan. They understand that it is not a case of a "bad
war" and a "good war" � there is no difference, war is war.
Members of Iraq Veterans Against War even accompanied me to meet members
of Congress in Washington DC. Together we tried to explain the terrible
human cost of this war, in terms of Afghan, US and Nato lives.
Unfortunately, only a few representatives really offered their support
to our struggle for peace.
While the government was not responsive, the people of the US did offer
me their support. And polls confirm that the US public wants peace, not
an escalated war. Many also want Obama to hold Bush and his
administration to account for war crimes. Everywhere I spoke, people
responded strongly when I said that if Obama really wanted peace he
would first of all try to prosecute Bush and have him tried before the
international criminal court. Replacing Bush's man in the Pentagon,
Robert Gates, would have been a good start � but Obama chose not to.
Unfortunately, the UK government shamefully follows the path of the US
in Afghanistan. Even though opinion polls show that more than 70% of the
population is against the war, Gordon Brown has announced the deployment
of more UK troops. It is sad that more taxpayers' money will be wasted
on this war, while Britain's poor continue to suffer from a lack of
basic services.
The UK government has also tried to silence dissent, for instance by
arresting Joe Glenton, a British soldier who has refused to return to
Afghanistan. I had a chance to meet Glenton when I was in London last
summer, and together we spoke out against the war. My message to him is
that, in times of great injustice, it is sometimes better to go to jail
than be part of committing war crimes.
Facing a difficult choice, Glenton made a courageous decision, while
Obama and Brown have chosen to follow the Bush administration. Instead
of hope and change, in foreign policy Obama is delivering more of the
same. But I still have hope because, as our history teaches, the people
of Afghanistan will never accept occupation.
--
Dan Clore
New book: _Weird Words: A Lovecraftian Lexicon_:
http://tinyurl.com/yd3bxkw
My collected fiction: _The Unspeakable and Others_
(Wait for the new edition: http://hplmythos.com/ )
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Skipper: Professor, will you tell these people who is
in charge on this island?
Professor: Why, no one.
Skipper: No one?
Thurston Howell III: No one? Good heavens, this is anarchy!
-- _Gilligan's Island_, episode #6, "President Gilligan"
VFW
Dan Clore <cl...@columbia-center.org> wrote:
> better able to fight our own internal enemies � Afghans know what to do
> with our destiny. We are not a backward people, and we are capable of
> fighting for democracy, human and women's rights in Afghanistan. In fact
> the only way these values will be achieved is if we struggle for them
> and win them ourselves.
>
> After eight years of war, the situation is as bad as ever for ordinary
> Afghans, and women in particular. The reality is that only the drug
> traffickers and warlords have been helped under this corrupt and
> illegitimate Karzai government. Karzai's promises of reform are
> laughable. His own vice-president is the notorious warlord Fahim, whom
> Brad Adams of Human Rights Watch describes as "one of the most notorious
> warlords in the country, with the blood of many Afghans on his hands".
>
> Transparency International reports that this regime is the second most
> corrupt in the world. The UN Development Programme reports Afghanistan
> is second last � 181st out of 182 countries � in terms of human
> development. That is why we no longer want this kind of "help" from the
> west.
>
> Like many around the world, I am wondering what kind of "peace" prize
> can be awarded to a leader who continues the occupations of Iraq and
> Afghanistan, and starts a new war in Pakistan, all while supporting Israel?
>
> Throughout my recent tour of the US, I had the chance to meet many
> military families and veterans who are working to put an end to the wars
> in Iraq and Afghanistan. They understand that it is not a case of a "bad
> war" and a "good war" � there is no difference, war is war.
>
> Members of Iraq Veterans Against War even accompanied me to meet members
> of Congress in Washington DC. Together we tried to explain the terrible
> human cost of this war, in terms of Afghan, US and Nato lives.
> Unfortunately, only a few representatives really offered their support
> to our struggle for peace.
>
> While the government was not responsive, the people of the US did offer
> me their support. And polls confirm that the US public wants peace, not
> an escalated war. Many also want Obama to hold Bush and his
> administration to account for war crimes. Everywhere I spoke, people
> responded strongly when I said that if Obama really wanted peace he
> would first of all try to prosecute Bush and have him tried before the
> international criminal court. Replacing Bush's man in the Pentagon,
> Robert Gates, would have been a good start � but Obama chose not to.
>
> Unfortunately, the UK government shamefully follows the path of the US
> in Afghanistan. Even though opinion polls show that more than 70% of the
> population is against the war, Gordon Brown has announced the deployment
> of more UK troops. It is sad that more taxpayers' money will be wasted
> on this war, while Britain's poor continue to suffer from a lack of
> basic services.
>
> The UK government has also tried to silence dissent, for instance by
> arresting Joe Glenton, a British soldier who has refused to return to
> Afghanistan. I had a chance to meet Glenton when I was in London last
> summer, and together we spoke out against the war. My message to him is
> that, in times of great injustice, it is sometimes better to go to jail
> than be part of committing war crimes.
>
> Facing a difficult choice, Glenton made a courageous decision, while
> Obama and Brown have chosen to follow the Bush administration. Instead
> of hope and change, in foreign policy Obama is delivering more of the
> same. But I still have hope because, as our history teaches, the people
> of Afghanistan will never accept occupation.
In article <Xns9CDB6C8CACB9Cbb...@216.196.97.131>,
Bert Byfield <bertb...@nospam.not> wrote:
> Yes, of course, the United States can win in Afghanistan,
<snipped>
but, I believe they don't want to "win". they want to stay on occupying
as long as necessary to
* Be centrally positioned to';
* Make sure Iran doesn't go Nuke crazy and attack Israel.
* Keep an eye on Exxon's Oil deal.
* Keep the profits of the Heroin in the international bank's profit
column.
* Keep various war profiteers in business , fat and happy./
* And be nearby if they can drum up an excuse to Invade Pakistan to grab
their Nukes.
\Still think they are on a "Time-Table " to leave anytime soon?
I hope I"m, wrong.
--
money; what a concept!
VFW
VFW <geor...@toast.net> wrote:
and;
read Jon Carroll .. the SFGate.com
And yet, how can you discuss Afghanistan without discussing the opium
trade? It funds both the government and the Taliban and a lot of smaller
groups fighting for power in a specific region. It allows organized
crime to have a say in the political affairs of the country. It
routinely encourages people to engage in illegal activities because to
do otherwise would bankrupt their families. It's the economic backbone
of the country we hope to save from itself. Good luck on that one.
for the rest of the story;
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/12/04/DD1T1AU2H8.DT
L