Re: [casi] War is over? (and Peace?)

["k hanly" <khanly@DELETETHISmb.sympatico.ca>]

>
> While I agree with some of your posting portions of what you say strike me
as
> positively weird to put it politely. No one needs to assume that because X
is good Y is bad or vice versa.
This seems a variation of the criticism that condemning Bush entails
supporting or approving Hussein.
Absolutely goofy.
Another part suggests rightly that alliances will often involve dirty hands.
But how dirty and for what end?  Richard Perle remarked whenasked about the
US alliance with Dostum that he would have preferred Mother Teresa but
presumably choosing Dostum was more pragmatic. Criminal and a betrayal of
the Afghan people would be a more accurate description.

> One doesnt need to assume that the Northern Alliance are bad there is
ample
> proof of their atrocities. In fact one of the reasons the Taliban got into
> power in the first place was the atrocities of Alliance warlords. One need
> not assume that the Americans were and are perpetrators of war crimes.
There
> is ample proof. Here is just a sample from the CBC documentary Convoy of
> Death. General Dostum was a notorious member of the Northern Alliance a
> warlord and war criminal still happily ruling his fiefdom.
>
> On the program Disclosure last night there was a gruesome documentary
about
> the massacre of Taliban prisoners being transferred from one prison to
> another in the area controlled by General Dostum.
>      Prisoners were loaded in containers and shipped in searing heat. Many
> died on the way. Truck drivers were interviewed as well as others
involved.
> Shots were fired into some containers to give ventilation but with
prisoners
> inside. At a stop on the way a taxi driver mentioned to the proprietor
that
> there was a terrible smell. The guy said look behind you. There was a
> transport with blood running out filled with prisoners.
>     Shots at the arrival point showed , presumably US soldiers at the
> reception point. Several container loads were shipped out into the desert
> many prisonrs inside still alive. They were  shot and buried. Reporters
were
> shown the
> remains. Witnesses claimed US forces were involved.
> The website is at:
> http://www.cbc.ca/disclosure/archives/030408.html#afghan
>
> If you need teaching materials for war crimes, I would get this film.
> Unfortunately some people interviewed have been killed and others tortured
> since even though voices were disguised and faces blanked out.
>    General Dostum claims he welcomes an international investigation but
> could  not guarantee the investigators security. In fact one can surmise
he
> would guarantee their not being safe. Since the Americans were involved
> according to all accounts Dostum is safe.
>
> Cheers, Ken Hanly
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Peter Brooke" <pbrooke@ukonline.co.uk>
> To: "H Sutter" <citext@chebucto.ns.ca>; <casi-discuss@lists.casi.org.uk>
> Sent: Thursday, April 10, 2003 3:31 AM
> Subject: Re: [casi] War is over? (and Peace?)
>
>
> > Dear Elga and list
> >
> > > One of the most distasteful things about the George Bush/Tony Blair
view
> of
> > the world is its deeply immoral and antichristian black and white view
of
> > the world (Chrisianity, though many Christians seem to have forgotten
the
> > fact, is rooted in the consciousness of Sin as an inescapable part of
our
> > everyday life). Saddam is bad, therefore George and Tony are good. It is
a
> > trap we too are only too prone to fall into ourselves (George and Tony
are
> > bad therefore ...). The people rejoicing in Afghanistan may have been
> > largely the Northern Alliance but why should I automatically assume that
> > just because George and Tony chose to ally with the Northern Alliance
for
> > their own reasons the Northern Alliance are therefore Bad? Whatever we
do,
> > whatever side we take, we cannot help being implicated in evil
> consequences.
> > Which is, incidentally, how I understand the story of Adam eating the
> fruit
> > of 'the kowledge of good and evil'.
> >
> > Best wishes, and thanks for some very useful and moving mailings
> >
> > Peter Brooke
> >
> > >
>



_______________________________________________
Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss
To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk
All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk