|
I wish the people in Iraq would be able to dream
of a happy new year. Unfortunately, thousands of them may soon be
killed and thousands more maimed by bombing if America decides to
attack the country.
Americans have made undeniable contributions
to world culture and civilization. Among other things, they
significantly contributed to the advancement of science,
literature and the entertainment industry.
The foreign policies of the U.S. government,
however, have failed to a large extent to reflect the American
people's values. Many Americans find it hard to relate to those
policies. In fact, the harshest critics of U.S. foreign policies
come from American citizens.
In his book 9-11, American author
Noam Chomsky says: "We shouldn't forget that the U.S. itself
is a leading terrorist state," adding the U.S. is the only
country condemned for international terrorism by the World Court.
He cites examples of U.S. attacks in Nicaragua, Beirut, Sudan, and
Iraq during and after the 1991 Persian Gulf War.
The U.S. government has been almost
continuously at war with one country or another for the last 50
years. It is the only country to use atomic bombs to kill hundreds
of thousands of civilians.
Under the banner of fighting terrorism,
thousands of Afghans were killed last year. Russians are using the
same banner to kill Chechens. The same goes for the Israelis in
the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and even President Robert Mugabe
uses it in Zimbabwe.
What if other countries followed the U.S. in
launching pre-emptive attacks on other countries? Could India
attack Pakistan? China attack Taiwan?
Most worrisome are the messages perceived by
the international community. If you are in doubt, attack. And if
you are not militarily strong, you might be invaded. Could this
lead to a new arms race?
After a year of launching the war against
terrorism, and in the name of protecting freedom, many freedoms
are actually being diminished. The U.S. media are being
manipulated. Dissent is labeled"siding with terrorism."
The original target of war, Osama bin Laden, seems to have
vanished into thin air and the despotic, unjust Taliban are still
alive and well.
America's injured national pride won't be
healed by war. No war, no act of revenge will bring loved ones
back or ease their pain. If war and violence bring peace, then the
Mideast would be the most peaceful area in the world.
Just imagine investing the money allocated
for the Iraq war (more than $100 billion) on educating and
creating jobs for the world's poor.
Today, the world lives in more fear and
insecurity than ever.
Is the world slipping into the black hole of
a new dark age, devoid of human rights and global justice? Are we
wiping out real signs of civilization?
Flexing military muscles should be replaced
by supporting fairness and spreading peace, compassion, tolerance
and acceptance between nations. There is nothing Christian, or
Muslim, in violence, war, arrogance or oil greed.
If we are interested in preventing future
atrocities, then we should look for the reasons behind the past
ones and admit to the West's contribution to their occurrence.
The culture of greed, hate and revenge
should end.
Dr. Ali Mekky is a member of the Star's
community editorial board.
Copyright 1996-2003. Toronto Star
Newspapers Limited
|
