REQUIEM FOR IRAQ!

REQUIEM FOR IRAQ (2003)

By

John Roberts(2003)

Some weeks have elapsed since the invasion and destruction of Iraq commenced and it may safely be averred that the bulk of the killing has been accomplished. All that remains from the “Coalition” viewpoint, is a little mopping-up of the odd sniper, here and there. In addition to the slaughter of an unknown but, evidently, substantial number of Iraqis, both military and civilian, there has been a great deal of damage caused to the country.

We have not been shown much of the effects of the bombing on the Iraqi military forces. Here and there a burn-out tank is depicted and the occasional body being thrown into a mass grave. Some publicity has been given to the fact that children and women have been killed and injured, as if such calamities were totally unforeseeable by the invading armies. We have had reports of anti-personnel bombs which are continuing to kill and maim Iraqi civilians: women and children, again. (As at the present moment, it is known that similar devices, dropped by US Aircraft upon Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia during the 70’s, are daily killing or maiming men, women and children in those far-away lands.) What we have not been informed about, is the extent to which radioactive, (Depleted Uranium) weapons have been used in this War. One recalls hearing reports, during the Gulf and Serbian Wars, of the continuing danger to civilians from the contamination of areas, such as roads and bridges, used by ordinary people from day to day. Even United States troops were contaminated by Depleted Uranium during the Gulf War and suffer to this day. Many men and women who served in the Gulf have died or been incapacitated as a result of exposure to Depleted Uranium, although their own Government continues to deny liability for their personal tragedies.

Many scenes have been depicted on our TV screens of rejoicing by Kurdish and Shi-ite Iraqis, many of whom must, indeed, be glad to witness the departure of their oppressors. Latterly, however, many Iraqis are demonstrating in favour of the early departure of the occupying forces. They are not to be fooled into thinking that the Americans and British are there for their own good. Even our own tiny Australian contingent is to be kept in the region for longer than anticipated when the War began. One wonders what advantage there can possibly be in such a course?

Not the least important facet of such wholesale destruction is the fact that a great deal of looting was carried on by the impoverished people of this country. We are informed that the Museums and Art repositories have been stripped of priceless treasures and that the banks have been systematically raided and, where possible, stripped of their cash. It appears that much of this lawlessness has been the work of organized gangs, which have carried out theft and destruction under the very noses of the invading troops.

No protection was afforded to these irreplaceable national treasures, many of which have, no doubt, been spirited out of the country, to be sold on the illegal international art market. It also seems likely that many will find their way, inevitably, into the United States, where collectors and Museums alike will benefit from the availability of such desirable artefacts. That the United States Commanders were aware of the danger from uncontrolled looting seems evident, in view of the fact that specific military protection was given to the building housing the administrative records of the Oil Ministry. However, looting of Art Treasures and from other Public Buildings was carried on, systematically, under the very eyes of troops responsible for maintaining “law and order”.

Much has been made of the discovery of large sums in US Dollars, hidden away by the former leaders of Iraq. Much of this has been recovered and will, we are informed, be used towards the re-building of Iraq. That is, no doubt, comforting to the Iraqi people themselves, who have witnessed the destruction of their land by their “liberators”.

That the United States itself is the most glaring example of inequity and injustice, in which the greedy and powerful appropriate to themselves, not merely the wealth of a nation, but the property of the people of the entire world. Such is the extent of the power and influence of this sick society, that it controls and misapplies tremendous resources, for the sole purpose of effecting and maintaining its world dominion. If we are about to cast the slur upon other nations and expose the rapacity and injustice of their leaders, we should, ourselves, be free from the taint of such vices. Sadly, this is not the case with the United States, whose entire system represents a monstrous perversion of its basic constitutional principle of universal freedom and equity.

Several fugitives, alleged to be former members of Saddam’s Government and named on a list of fifty or so individuals who are “Wanted” by the Bush Regime, have been arrested. What legitimate authority has the United States, and its aiders and abettors, to go about in Iraq, apprehending its citizenry? The answer to this question is a positive, “None whatsoever!” In fact Bush’s authority is that of the Bandit, who holds a gun at his opponent’s head and says, “Stand and Deliver!” For George W. Bush and his henchmen to claim the right, now that they have devastated Iraq, to continue to harass and imprison its citizenry, under the specious claim of the pursuance of criminals, is an international outrage, with grave implications for the future peace and stability, not only of the Middle East, but of the world itself. No longer will those who anger the USA, be able to do so with impunity but they must face the resentment of US officials, who will find ways and means to deal with them as they see fit. The “Roy Bean” mentality is in charge of US Justice, these days, and that jurisdiction extends, evidently, throughout the length and breadth of the entire planet. What is happening to those who are now in US Custody? Will they, too, be transferred to the Tiger Cages of Guantanamo Bay, where US torturers can deal with them as they see fit?

George W. Bush has affirmed the desire of the USA to remain in Iraq and establish bases from which to intimidate surrounding nations. Those principally at risk from this belligerent behaviour are, of course, Syria (a Socialist Nation) and Iran, formerly in the “Bad Books” of the United States and subjected to prolonged intimidation by the latter for many years from the l980’s. During this period Saddam Hussein was used as a destructive instrument of US Policy and induced to invade Iran, resulting in death or injury to hundreds of thousands of young men on both sides. Eventually, both combatants realized the futility of their behaviour and ceased fighting each other. This was not before Iraq had gassed thousands of Iranian soldiers.

One does not need to be a prophet to foresee disaster if the USA is permitted to retain military bases in Iraq. The Jews in Palestine will be delighted, of course, as it is they who will profit from the weakness of their Muslim neighbours. In the meantime, the butchery of the Palestinians continues apace, with little international condemnation.

Of course, nobody doubts the intention of the USA to set up a system for Iraq in which its oil will be channelled into the US economic machine. It will be an interesting question as to whether the United Nations under its present weak and US-compliant Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, will have the moral fortitude to resist American attempts to control the nation of Iraq, contrary to the wishes of its people.

The signs of joyful acceptance of US intervention are rapidly fading in this country and it will not be long before the resentment of the Iraqi people, against the occupation of their land, will be made clearly evident, in ways more readily understood by the men of violence and ambition, who have set the ball of bloodshed and violence rolling once again.

It continues to disturb me, to observe that the media here in Australia and those Politicians who support what has happened, both in Afghanistan and Iraq, appear to dissociate themselves from the concept of what has truly taken place. Reporting is matter-of-fact, and unconscious of the underlying brutality of these actions, as if people are not concerned by the thought of a nation being butchered: with the fact that thousands of people have been blown to pieces and maimed or blinded: that two nations have been destroyed. Although, it has to be conceded that Afghanistan was already suffering from the continued consequences of both an extended civil conflict and the Russian War.

Do Australian people really not care about what has taken place in those countries and do they really not feel that there is something terribly wrong about these entire proceedings? Is it the fact that Americans speak our language and appear, to us, to be normal people who dress and look as we do and who share our interests and tastes. Let us not be deceived! The United States is a nation, which has evolved in the melting pot for four-hundred years and differs widely from other English-speaking people. It was for many years a barbarous, frontier nation, much of it populated by slave-holding individuals, whose personal philosophy did not question the morality of their attitude towards the blacks, whom they, with exceptions, treated with contempt and the most abandoned cruelty. The descendants of these arrogant, slave-keepers are those, such as the Texan, George W. Bush, (elected President via fraud and collusion), who are running America today. Their mentality differs little from the slave-flogging, nigger-lynching individuals who were their grandfathers, and they bring these principles to bear, when seeking to extend the power and influence of their country.

The clouds of aggression are, indeed, looming over our World and with them the thought that so-called Christian Morality is rapidly dying. Both in the USA and in Great Britain, it appears to me that fewer and fewer individuals are capable of thinking about the mess we are creating. By lending its puny weight to American aggression, Australia is endorsing this murderous and unprincipled Banditry. US Law at the present time, is the law of the “Lynch Mob”. It has to be changed and this can only be brought about by the concerted influence of those nations of the world who are not blinded or influenced by the prospect of favours to come from association with this monstrous criminal mentality. Arabs, particularly, must unite and form a solid opposition to US expansionism in their midst. If they do not, Bush or his successors will isolate and destroy the Arab nations, one by one. The signs are already evident: the threats to Syria and Iran are just the start of a process of continued intimidation. North Korea is also in the firing line.

When, one might ask, is it all going to end?

In conclusion, today (25th April) is a great occasion in Australia, for it “celebrates” the slaughter of fifty-thousand Australian boys, of mainly British Birth, in the Great War of l914-18: the “War to end all Wars!” These young men joyfully enlisted to defend the Empire and went off to be butchered in the carnage that followed. Enough has been said in my various essays, on this web site, to emphasize the horrors of that and the subsequent Wars that have plagued the human race during the 20th Century. Yet we have not learnt, except one great lesson and it is that, in this modern world, the aggressor has to be in an invulnerable and invincible position. The mere possession of great armies is insufficient to guarantee success. One has to have the technology of slaughter at its highest level, otherwise there will be “no contest”. This is what is happening today: the USA is King of the World and the “Bush Killing Corporation” is master of all it surveys. Little Nations just have to submit and accept their fate.

“Thank God!” Says John Howard: “we are on the right side!”

Finis

John Roberts

Sydney, Australia.

25th April 2003

mailto:robertsjno@gmail.com