George Bush and Tony Blair proclaimed to be so outraged by abuses of human
rights in Iraq that they considered this reason enough to invade a sovereign
country, topple its leader and have occupied the territory, all in the name of
liberating the Iraqi people.Seen through the eyes of many Iraqis, it seems that one brutal and repressive
regime has been replaced by another.
There have been many allegations of brutal, humiliating and degrading treatment
of Iraqis at the hands of coalition troops, all of which has been strenuously
denied by the authorities. But now the cat is out of the bag; beaten, bruised
and mistreated, but plain evidence that shows such offensive activity has been
taking place.
Allegations of mistreatment are hard to prove without documentary evidence, but
with such evidence in our hands it speaks volumes for itself. It casts doubt on
the credibility of those who tell us there is no wrongdoing in Iraq by
coalition forces, and lends credence to those Iraqis who say that this is just
the tip of the iceberg.
It is easy to say that such abuse is isolated, and especially so for those in
the US where the recent disclosures are acutely embarrassing, but that is neither
here nor there; without the photographs we have now seen, there was no evidence
that even these criminal abuses had taken place, and it is well documented that
the Pentagon had leant hard on CBS in order to prevent them going to air.
There are still those who are in denial that such abuse is abuse at all, and
seek to claim it is a 'staged prank' or demand that we wait for all the
evidence to come in before judging.
Side-stepping is all that is. Even the US Military is convinced that the abuse
did take place, and it is virtually unheard of for a case to reach Court Martial
only to be thrown out through lack of evidence. The legal process of military
law offers many opportunities for a case to be thrown out or dealt with before
it reaches a Court Martial, and the military does not seek to wash its dirty
laundry in public when it can avoid it.
In a fifty-plus page report completed in February 2004, Major General Taguba
concluded that institutional failures in US run prisons in Iraq
were devastating. In the last three months of 2003, Taguba found numerous
examples of "sadistic, blatant, and wanton criminal abuses" at the Baghdad
prison.
Taguba reports that the systematic, and illegal, abuse of prisoners was
undertaken by the 372nd Military Police Company and by members of the American
intelligence community. The offences committed by those tasked under
international law with respecting and upholding the rights of prisoners and
detainees are extensive.
They include pouring cold water and phosphoric liquid from chemical lamps on
prisoners, beatings with chairs and broom handles, threats of rape, sodomy with
a chemical light, and other offensive behaviour. The recently revealed
photographs show Iraqis naked, humiliated, forced to partake in real or
simulated sex acts, while the photograph of a hooded Iraqi, forced to stand on
a box with electrodes attached will endure as the iconic image
of what US liberation means to many people.
These are not some vague allegations made by disgruntled Iraqis seeking to
undermine the good work that the coalition claims to be doing in Iraq, and it
is not propaganda from insurgents, liberals, communists, or those who stand
against the War on Iraq; these are allegations made by the US military itself
after a long investigation and every opportunity to bury the report entirely.
It is however only by accident that we ever got to see the report which was
never meant to be released to the public, and considerable pressure has been
applied to keep its contents from public scrutiny, and it is not surprising
why.
The West has acted with outrage over mistreatment of civilians captured by
those they call insurgents in Iraq, and yet it is now shown to have acted in
pretty much the same way.
The US has blown its 'moral high-ground' defence. When charged with committing
abuse and undertaking torture, its patronising, "we don't do that", won't
wash any more; yes you do, and we have the evidence to prove it.
To many, it is no more than was expected from the US. This is not the first
time that brutality by the US military has been alleged ( and few can have
forgotten the My Lai massacre ), and indicative of why the US refuses to
acknowledge the International Criminal Court and has leant hard on countries,
with threats of aid removal, to secure guarantees that US troops will not be
brought to account for their actions. It is hard to dismiss allegations that
the US has a policy of brutality and mistreatment when confronted with such
overwhelming evidence of it.
Whatever good the coalition has done in Iraq, and beyond removing Saddam it
seems that Iraqis see very little, all that has been wiped away by the
wrongdoing that has now been revealed. The US Army has damaged itself more so
than al-Qaeda and any number of anti-American insurgents could ever have hoped
to achieve. The sinking ship of American morality and respectability is dragging
all those who supported her down, and frantically rushing to join the enraged
crowd does not save Blair and cohorts from having rushed to board her. The
ripples of the creaking and sinking beast will spread wide and far.
When the incensed citizens of Falluja attacked, killed and mutilated four
civilian contractors - or 'mercenaries' depending upon your political view - it
was declared an outrageous act of violence for which those in Falluja would be
punished. And collectively punished they were; over 600 dead in retribution for
the crimes of a few, with US snipers shooting ambulances, doctors and hospital
staff, along with civilians, women and children alike.
With coalition crimes such those we are now seeing in their gory nakedness being
experienced by many Iraqis it is surprising that the country has not turned on
its foreign occupiers before now.
Al-Jazeera has repeatedly reported on such atrocities and in return has been
condemned by the US authorities. It has been accused of lying, encouraging
insurgents, undermining the coalition and appears to be considered a legitimate
target for American military action. It turns out that al-Jazeera have been
telling the truth.
It may well still be an enemy of the US, but it is an enemy for no reason than
daring to reveal the truth behind US-led occupation.
While reports of systematic abuse have been downplayed, ignored or simply
refuted by those accused of committing it, the public has been suckered by the
military machine that would do anything to ensure that its nasty tactics
are allowed to continue. For those who have sought out news reports away from
the mainstream, evidence of such abuse has been clear for some time.
The recently revealed abuse by US troops in Abu Ghraib prison was widely known
about in early 2004 and yet the whole coalition has tried to keep it quiet,
only condemning the outrageous acts once it became general public knowledge.
Until then, it was still being denied that such abuse had even taken place.
There have been numerous US Court Martials in Iraq but the military would prefer
that we did not hear about them, and the right-wing press of America is happy to
oblige, keeping any reports they do make low-key. When the BBC and others have
dared to step over the line of silence, they have been accused of being
ultra-left wing, partial, biased, anti-war, anti-government, communists, evil,
terrorist sympathisers and much more. The worse type of character assassination
undertaken to keep the public from hearing the truth. Nothing has changed; war
reporting from within the war machine is no different to that in the last
century. We are lied to, fed the official story the authorities want us to
hear, and damn the truth.
The belated 'outrage' from Bush and Blair carries an air of insincerity giving
the impression that they are not so infuriated by the acts themselves, but that
the knowledge of such acts has made it into the public domain.
The muted response to the revelations from the American public stands in marked
contrast to the extensive indignation expressed elsewhere. Whether John and
Jenny Doe believe they "have to support American troops" or not, it gives no
defence for failing to give deserved complaint against unwarranted actions being
taken in their name. Their silence does nothing but align them as supporters
of the perpetrators of despicable acts, and casts them as morally spineless.
Some of those who partook in the atrocities at Abu Ghraib do offer a defence
of their action, but it is incredulous to most. That they never read rules and
regulations provided, nor had the Geneva Convention explained to them is no
defence at all. No one should have to check in the manual to see that such abuse
is uncalled for and is an offence against mankind. Just what sort of evil, sick,
perverted f--kers are these people ? And what of the army that enrols such
people ? Just how representative of the American people as a whole are they ?
With the majority of Americans proclaiming to be
self-confessed, True Believing Christians of the One Nation Under God, it seems
that they make poor ambassadors for their adopted faith, lack moral judgement,
are simply incapable of telling right from wrong, or are too afraid to
speak out lest they offend their President. It would seem that freedom of
expression is as well controlled in the States as ever it was in Iraq. That
some have actually suggested that the Iraqis may have deserved their degrading
and illegal treatment reveals that there really is evil in their midst.
That many in the west truly are outraged and offended by the behaviour of the
occupying forces in Iraq is nothing compared to what the average Iraqi must
feel every day at the mercy of a soldier's boot and at the
end of a firearm, controlled by an itchy-finger, a view that collateral damage
is something justifiable, backed up by a belief that Iraqis and Muslims
are some kind of sub-human species which doesn't deserve to live anyway.
The coalition may well have simply wanted to liberate the Iraqi people ( even
though the seizure of resources and control by US authorities suggests that is
a lie ), but it has done little more than turn the country into a united
whole of resentment against foreign occupation. Mind you, that is an amazing
feat in itself.
When George W Bush proclaims he wants to see democracy in Iraq, he means he
wants to see his democracy placed on Iraq. A democracy driven by the NeoCon
agenda, the Plan for a New American Century, with God on America's side. Benign
plans they tell us, but we can all now see what that amounts to.
And the Iraqi people can see it more clearly than we can. They are prisoners
and victims in their own land. They are denied real democracy while the US
insists on retaining control, or holding on to it through what most view as a
puppet government of Iraq.
Iraq, far from being a country on the brink of civil war as was feared just a
few months ago, has become inflamed and united against its occupiers. It is
laughable for the US Administration to insist that those who stand against it
are a handful of insurgents, mainly Saddam loyalists or foreign mercenaries with
a grudge against the US. It is clear that the rejection is far more widespread
and covers a far wider political spectrum, but yes, they do have a grudge
against the US and the coalition, and it is not hard to see why.
While UK troops have generally tried to win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi
people, US troops chose a path of ruthlessly suppressing those who dare stand
in its way or criticise the US. Concepts of common decency, respect for the
indigenous population and their beliefs and understanding that the citizens of
Iraq are no less worthy than any American seem to be entirely lacking.
Arrogance and imperialism is delivered as a blow to the back of the head, a
face pressed into the dirt, and at the end of a rifle as innocent people are
frog-marched into detention in the dark of the night. The jack-boot of the US
brings back the memories of past evils.
And no one expected the country to rise up en-masse and turn on its occupiers ?
The recent revelations about US abuse of those detained, and allegations that
the UK has undertaken the same, will do nothing
but pour petrol upon the growing fire of resentment against US occupation in
Iraq and amongst its neighbours. Far from stabilising the Middle East the US
has stuck its hand in a hornet's nest and is shaking it furiously. And many
say that it was a deliberate plan to do so.
Whatever the reason, it is now clear that the US has f--ked up in a big way. The
true face of what life is like under American liberation is laid bare for all
to see.
Those who have unleashed their horror upon the people of Iraq must take
responsibility for the revenge and retribution which will be returned.
The Abu Ghraib Photographs
When CBS's 60 Minutes aired just a few photographs of the abuses carried out by
US troops in Abu Ghraib prison ( and according to US military sources who
investigated, there are many more such photographs ), they were considered too
shocking for many in the press to publish.
Shocking they are. The photographs show naked Iraqi detainees being toyed with
and abused by their so-called American liberators.
One prisoner has been made to stand on a box with electrodes attached and was
told that were he to fall he would be electrocuted. Some
have been hooded and made to parade naked while being humiliated. Others are
being forced to engage in real or simulated sex acts.
While detainees are forced to form a naked pile on the floor, American guards
laugh and give the 'thumbs-up'. Despicable, degrading, inhuman and unwarranted
behaviour is a joke to people who can be called little else but sadists.
In one photograph we see a dead Iraqi, apparently beaten, wrapped in cellophane
and dumped in ice. A pitiful and sorry way to leave a country under occupation
of a foreign power.
These photographs may be considered offensive by many people, and viewer
discretion is advised.
See the pictures
