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| Flt Leuf. Jerry John Rawlings |
Ex-
President Jerry Rawlings has admitted that some of the generals that his Armed
Forces Revolutionary Council government executed in the wake of the June 4 1979
coup were innocent people who could not be said to have been corrupt; but had
to be “sacrificed” to appease some people.
Speaking
at the closing ceremony of the International Youth Fellowship in the Volta
Region, the ex-President stated “some of the Commanders were innocent good
people but it had to be done because the rage in the country was too high, too
much”. He however stated that General Acheampong (ex Head of State) and General
Utuka were “very corrupt Generals” who
needed to be executed.
He
however did not explain the extent of their corruption, whether they equaled
his own record of selling state companies (such as Nsawam Cannery and GNTC
shops) to his wife’s organization.
Sounding
sanctimonious and loud, he said that General Afrifah (another ex-Head of State)
and others had to be executed to save the country from implosion. He added ““We
had no choice. We thought ‘Let two go’. Acheampong and a certain Utuka, very
corrupt Generals. They were sacrificed. It was not enough. Ladies and
gentlemen! Ten days later, we had to sacrifice another six; and some of the
Commanders were innocent good people. But it had to be done because the rage in
the country was too high, too much”,
He
said that they had to do this sort of house-cleaning to cleanse the country of
corruption and “kalabule”.
He revealed that the coup was not so much about saving the country, but more of saving the reputation of soldiers and the armed forces. He recounted instances when in the pre-June 4 1979 days, market women would throw urine at soldiers just because the women thought that all soldiers; both lower ranks and senior officers were corrupt. He also alluded to a feeling of antagonism between other-rank soldiers and officers, whose deeds were making Makola women throw urine at them. He revealed that in moments like these, the other-rank soldier would like to take hold of his General and kill him if he ever got his General.
He revealed that the coup was not so much about saving the country, but more of saving the reputation of soldiers and the armed forces. He recounted instances when in the pre-June 4 1979 days, market women would throw urine at soldiers just because the women thought that all soldiers; both lower ranks and senior officers were corrupt. He also alluded to a feeling of antagonism between other-rank soldiers and officers, whose deeds were making Makola women throw urine at them. He revealed that in moments like these, the other-rank soldier would like to take hold of his General and kill him if he ever got his General.
He
said he was surprised that people were attacking the AFRC instead of attacking
the root cause, which was corruption. He would however not say whether the
corruption in 1979 was more or less than the level that we are seeing these
days when he himself sold state companies to his wife. .
Although Jerry Rawlings claimed that the actions of AFRC in the June 4, 1979 uprising had the were supported by the ordinary people he did not explain why the AFRC soldiers were stripping ordinary women naked and whipping them. Surely, the women were neither corrupt army officers nor soldier’s wives.
He recounted: “When the explosion happened in that ‘79, ask anybody, your older folks, your parents, ‘let the blood flow was the signature tune of those day’. You know, when you humiliate people to the extent that I have seen over and over in this country – it happened in France, the Revolution in Russia etc etc, - in Ghana we even managed to contain it. When you humiliate people to that extent, you take away their dignity and respect, the day they explode, you can give them the diamond…they will kick it right back in your face and they’ll want your neck, your blood. That is what we witnessed in those days in “79”.
While saying all these, Ex- President Rawlings forgot to explain to his young audience why he could not root out the corruption in the nineteen years when he was in power but had corruption at a level higher than that of the generals he executed.
Although Jerry Rawlings claimed that the actions of AFRC in the June 4, 1979 uprising had the were supported by the ordinary people he did not explain why the AFRC soldiers were stripping ordinary women naked and whipping them. Surely, the women were neither corrupt army officers nor soldier’s wives.
He recounted: “When the explosion happened in that ‘79, ask anybody, your older folks, your parents, ‘let the blood flow was the signature tune of those day’. You know, when you humiliate people to the extent that I have seen over and over in this country – it happened in France, the Revolution in Russia etc etc, - in Ghana we even managed to contain it. When you humiliate people to that extent, you take away their dignity and respect, the day they explode, you can give them the diamond…they will kick it right back in your face and they’ll want your neck, your blood. That is what we witnessed in those days in “79”.
While saying all these, Ex- President Rawlings forgot to explain to his young audience why he could not root out the corruption in the nineteen years when he was in power but had corruption at a level higher than that of the generals he executed.
Editorial
HE KILLED FOR NOTHING
We are
appalled to hear from ex-President Jerry Rawlings that his regime of the AFRC
killed innocent senior army officers although they were good men. He has admitted
that they were only made to serve as sacrificial lambs just because people were
angry about the level of corruption in the country in and around 1979.
He said that
General Acheampong and General Utuka were corrupt. He however, cannot show us
what wealth they amassed or stole from this country. In his case at least, we know
that when he got the opportunity to rule the country, he sold state companies
to his wife. The wealth that he and his wife are currently enjoying today is a thousand
times more than what Acheampong and Utuka were rumored to have amassed.
Surely, it can
now be said with certainty that, as a young army officer, Rawlings had those
senior army officers executed out of pure envy. Otherwise, how could anyone execute
people for corruption and turn round the following day to be more corrupt than
those whom he had executed?
If the same
yardstick were to be applied to ex-President Rawlings today, what would be his
fate? But he says such things today because he has been spared from the firing
squad although he sold state companies to his wife, an act of corruption! Did
Acheampong do that?
What sort of
morality is this? It is time to hold a national debate on how we could live in
harmony with ourselves when we acquiesce to such barbarity of our former
leader.
Export Promotion fears GMOs may reduce exports
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| Gideon Quarcoo, CEO, Ghana Export Promotion |
The Ghana Export Promotion Authority
(GEPA) has warned of detrimental consequences on Ghana’s non-traditional
exports (NTEs) should the country adopt genetically modified organisms (GMOs)
into crops grown locally.
GM foods or GMOs are most commonly used to refer to crop plants created for human or animal consumption using the latest molecular biology techniques.
The authority said there were concerns over the health and risk concerns about GMOs across Europe where the bulk of the country’s NTEs went and the United States, which was affecting its sales and pushing consumer preference to non-GMO foods.
“The potential economic harm would be incalculable if Ghana were to be labelled a GMO haven exporting GM crops to the world,” the Chief Executive Officer of the GEPA, Mr Gideon Qaurcoo, said this in a statement made available to the Daily Graphic.
The release explained that in view of the overwhelming evidence of the EU and Western world’s attitude to GM foods, it would be detrimental for Ghana to introduce the organism into its crops as all products stood the risk of being rejected and thereby reducing the percentage of exports to the region.
The GEPA has been at the forefront of promoting and developing the country’s non-traditional exports, including processed and semi-processed agricultural products, handicrafts and services.
Through its efforts, earnings from NTE increased from US$1.164 billion in 2007 to US$2.364 billion in 2012, with a target to reach US$5 billion in 2017.
In 2012, 44.55 per cent of Ghana’s non-traditional products were exported to the European Union and other developed countries and the GEPA hopes to increase this percentage in order to achieve the US$5 billion target set by the government for 2017.
The GMO debate
The GEPA referred to recent debates in the country about adopting genetically modified organisms into crops produced in Ghana, where pro-GMO promoters believed the biotech could increase pest resistance and decrease crop losses to ensure adequate food supply to the growing world population.
However, this assertion, has been disputed by environmentalists, public interest groups, professional associations and religious organisations that have raised concerns about GM foods and criticised the proponents for pursuing profit without concern for potential hazards.
The GEPA statement maintained that although governments had not been fully responsive to the mounting evidence of harm from GMOs, consumers were reacting in greater numbers, saying “the impact can be significant and world-changing.”
Background
In Europe, after the media publicised significant health risks of GMOs in early 1999, a tipping point of consumer rejection forced the food companies to commit to remove GM ingredients from that continent.
Now consumer rejection in the U.S. appears to be setting the stage for the removal of GMOs in that country as well. Consumer concerns over GMO health risks has driven unprecedented demand for non-GMO products.
An executive at the national food store chain, Whole Foods, said when a product became verified as non-GMO, sales increased between 15-30 per cent.
The GEPA did not understand why sales of non-GMO labelled products in the United States increased more than any other health and wellness category in 2012, according to the Nielsen Health and Wellness Claims Performance Report, while Ghana would still want to pursue a course to adopt the technology.
GM foods or GMOs are most commonly used to refer to crop plants created for human or animal consumption using the latest molecular biology techniques.
The authority said there were concerns over the health and risk concerns about GMOs across Europe where the bulk of the country’s NTEs went and the United States, which was affecting its sales and pushing consumer preference to non-GMO foods.
“The potential economic harm would be incalculable if Ghana were to be labelled a GMO haven exporting GM crops to the world,” the Chief Executive Officer of the GEPA, Mr Gideon Qaurcoo, said this in a statement made available to the Daily Graphic.
The release explained that in view of the overwhelming evidence of the EU and Western world’s attitude to GM foods, it would be detrimental for Ghana to introduce the organism into its crops as all products stood the risk of being rejected and thereby reducing the percentage of exports to the region.
The GEPA has been at the forefront of promoting and developing the country’s non-traditional exports, including processed and semi-processed agricultural products, handicrafts and services.
Through its efforts, earnings from NTE increased from US$1.164 billion in 2007 to US$2.364 billion in 2012, with a target to reach US$5 billion in 2017.
In 2012, 44.55 per cent of Ghana’s non-traditional products were exported to the European Union and other developed countries and the GEPA hopes to increase this percentage in order to achieve the US$5 billion target set by the government for 2017.
The GMO debate
The GEPA referred to recent debates in the country about adopting genetically modified organisms into crops produced in Ghana, where pro-GMO promoters believed the biotech could increase pest resistance and decrease crop losses to ensure adequate food supply to the growing world population.
However, this assertion, has been disputed by environmentalists, public interest groups, professional associations and religious organisations that have raised concerns about GM foods and criticised the proponents for pursuing profit without concern for potential hazards.
The GEPA statement maintained that although governments had not been fully responsive to the mounting evidence of harm from GMOs, consumers were reacting in greater numbers, saying “the impact can be significant and world-changing.”
Background
In Europe, after the media publicised significant health risks of GMOs in early 1999, a tipping point of consumer rejection forced the food companies to commit to remove GM ingredients from that continent.
Now consumer rejection in the U.S. appears to be setting the stage for the removal of GMOs in that country as well. Consumer concerns over GMO health risks has driven unprecedented demand for non-GMO products.
An executive at the national food store chain, Whole Foods, said when a product became verified as non-GMO, sales increased between 15-30 per cent.
The GEPA did not understand why sales of non-GMO labelled products in the United States increased more than any other health and wellness category in 2012, according to the Nielsen Health and Wellness Claims Performance Report, while Ghana would still want to pursue a course to adopt the technology.
Mahama Rides On
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| President John Dramani Mahama |
President John Dramani Mahama will go down in history as the
only known Ghanaian leader who never caught his breath after he had assumed
office before he was besieged with mountains of insurmountable problems.
Even before he was sworn into office on January 7, 2013,
Nana Akufo-Addo, the candidate he defeated in the 2012 Presidential Elections,
had filed a petition at the Supreme Court (SC) challenging the validity of his
victory.
Therefore, until the petition case was determined on August
29, 2013, with the validation of his victory by the SC Justices, President
Mahama had to govern the affairs of the country whilst contending with the
eight-month long court proceedings.
Governing the affairs of the nation and contending with the
SC petition became the biggest challenge that the President had to cope with.
Never in the history of Ghana have we had a leader going to court for eight
gruelling months to justify his election by the Electoral Commission while also
running the affairs of the nation.
But through all these changing scenes, President Mahama made
some positive strides within his first year in office which are worth noting.
Below are some of the successes he chalked during that period.
REMOVAL OF
FUEL SUBSIDIES & LPG
Maintaining subsidies on fuel and utilities have been the
bane of every government in Ghana’s political and economic history. These subsidies
always contribute to putting a deep hole in the country’s fiscal discipline.
Due to political expediency, no government has had the courage to remove those
subsidies.
But on July 1, 2013, President Mahama did what many
considered unthinkable by removing subsidies on fuel and LPG as consumers of
petroleum products especially petrol and diesel were made to bear the full cost
of buying these products for the first time in the history of the country.
As a result of the removal of fuel subsidies, Ghana is going
to save 760 Million cedis annually. The country has also been able to clear an
outstanding $80 million debt that it incurred as a result of subsidizing
petroleum products.
It is worth mentioning that these subsidies used to have a
consequential delay in letters of credit payments that resulted in the delay for scheduled
delivery of petroleum products onto the Ghanaian market.
Therefore, its removal is bound to help restore fiscal stability after
Ghana overshot its budget deficit target by nearly 100 percent in 2012.
BUI HYDRO
POWER PROJECT
In May 2013, President Mahama commissioned one of the four
units of the Bui Hydro Power Project which started in April 2008. This unit
provided about 133 megawatts of power to augment the energy supply in the
country.
In December 2013, President Mahama again inaugurated the
final phase of the $800 million project in the Brong Ahafo Region to complete
the total 404 megawatts of power project which has helped in curtailing the
power outages which swept the country from August 2012.
Ghana resorted to a long drawn load shedding when the West
Africa Gas Pipeline which supplies power to the 200 Megawatt Sunon-Asogli Power
Plant was ruptured by a ship.
The power situation in the country worsened when the
Achimota sub-station in Accra and the Aboadze Thermal Plant in Takoradi
exploded in 2013.
The hue and cry which engulfed the country following the
daily power load shedding was unprecedented. Therefore, the timely repair works
at the Achimota sub-station, the Aboadze Thermal Plant and the completion of
the Bui Hydro Power Project under the leadership of President Mahama is very
commendable.
KWAME NKRUMAH
CIRCLE INTERCHANGE PROJECT
President Mahama cut the sod for the commencement of work on
the $100 million three-tier Kwame Nkrumah Circle interchange in Accra.
The project expected to be completed in two years and is being
funded by a credit facility from the Brazilian government and the government of
Ghana, will provide an ultra-modern interchange in the city and also help to
reduce the perennial traffic flow in the city tremendously.
A fire station, a police station, an ambulance centre would
be built under the interchange to cater for emergencies and criminal activities
within the vicinity.
TEMA MOTORWAY
President Mahama announced in 2013 that his government will
expand the Tema Motorway into a six-lane with an interchange at the Tema
roundabout.
The interchange at the Tema roundabout alone will clear the
huge traffic block which confront motorists every day.
The expansion of the Tema Motorway has become necessary and
its completion will help in easing traffic congestion and also avoid the numerous
accidents along the road.
COMPLETION OF
THE GANG OF 4 AND OTHER PROJECTS
After Ghana was able to raise $740 million from the
Eurobond, President Mahama announced that $200 million which is 27% of the total
proceeds will be devoted towards the payment and completion of the on-going
capital intensive projects in various sectors of the economy.
The Sofoline
Overpass in Kumasi, the Okponglo/Madina road in Accra, the Anyinam-Konongo-Nkawkaw bypass, the Ho-Fumey road and the Asankragua-Enchi
road will all be completed under the $200 million release.
The Sakumono Sea Defence, some agricultural
and fisheries projects, electrification projects under the Self-Help
Electrification Project (SHEP 4), as well as some transportation and other
social infrastructure projects will also see light under the $200 million.
EARNINGS FROM
CRUDE OIL
Under the watch of President Mahama, Ghana was able to save
$279 million from revenue earned from crude oil export during the first half of
2013.
As a result, $202 million has been put to the Stabilization
Fund to cushion the country in times of crude oil price volatility while $77
million was also set aside for future generations in the Heritage Fund.
GHANA’S
EXTERNAL RESERVES
Improvement in the energy sector and the Eurobond
contributed in the climb of Ghana’s external reserves to $5.7 billion in August
2013.
The bump means Ghana’s external reserves can cover three
months of imports. The reserves which stood at 4.9 billion in July 2013 rose to
that huge level due to various gains chalked up in the economy and some sound
economic interventions by the government.
SETTLING OF
ALAVANYO/NKONYA 90-YEAR OLD CONFLICT
President Mahama, through three-days of mediation talks in
Accra between government officials and chiefs and elders of Alavanyo and Nkonya
and other stakeholders signed a peace deal under which the two towns will never
again to use conflict to settle their differences.
The 90-year old conflict which has lingered since 1923 over
a disputed boundary land which has often led to intermittent clashes and deaths
between the people of Alavanyo and Nkonya was buried when both sides pledged to
respect the declaration and also ensure that their subjects do same.
Following the settling of the conflict which the National
Peace Council of Ghana played a prominent role, a football club, called Alankos United, has been established to start the
process.
PAY CUT BY THE PRESIDENT,VICE & MINISTERS
In the spirit of partnership,
President Mahama, his Vice, Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur and all ministers in
government will take a voluntary 10 per cent pay cut in 2014.
The amount to be deducted by the
Controller and Accountant General would be deposited in a special fund to be
dedicated to maternal and neonatal health.
GHANA’S GDP GROWTH FOR 2013
In spite of Ghana having to use
over 70 percent of its income to pay salaries and allowances of public sector
workers, following the implementation of the Single Spine Salary Structure
(SSSS), its real GDP growth for 2013 stood at 7.4% compared to 7.9% in 2012.
Even though the GDP was down by
.5%, it shows that the various interventions aimed at sealing the deep hole in
the economy are working.
EUROBOND
Ghana was able to get $750 from the $1 billion Eurobond lodged
into her kitty by the international capital market in 2013 for infrastructural
development.
Prominent among the projects to benefit from the Eurobond is
the Ghana Gas Infrastructure Project at Atuabo in the Western Region.
CLEARING OF
GHOST NAMES FROM GHANA EDUCATION SERVICE
As a result of audit conducted by the Ministry of Education,
over 2,913 ghost names had been detected and removed from the Ghana Education
Service’s payroll in seven regions.
The number of ghost names will even climb up when the
exercise which is still on-going covers the three northern regions. Image if
the 2,913 ghost names that had been deleted were each receiving 200 Ghana cedis
every month, how much it will translate in a year? We are talking about government
paying 6,991,200 Ghana cedis to non-existent employees annually.
If this is not something worth talking about, then I will go
hiking instead of wasting everybody’s ears.
WAGE INCREASE
FOR PUBLIC SECTOR WORKERS
The government increased the base pay for teachers and other
government workers by 10 per cent in 2013.
As a result, the base pay which was previously pegged at
4.84 Ghana cedis went up to 5.32 Ghana cedis to help improve the financial
status of public sector workers.
WAGE FREEZE
FOR 2014
But due to the high wage bill of public sector workers,
President Mahama again did what many will consider as suicidal by freezing
salary increases for public sector workers for 2014.
Even though the announcement has received criticisms from
various quarters including the Trades Union Congress, the government is bent on
implementing the wage freeze decision since it paid between 3.5 to 4 billion
cedis more than what it should have paid under the SSSS.
PARKING OF
VEHICLES AFTER CLOSE OF WORK
In an effort to cut down on the huge government expenditure on
fuel and vehicle maintenance cost, President Mahama enforced a directive which
disallows state officials from using government vehicles after working hours.
The office of the Chief of Staff started the rigorous
implementation of the directive, by taking an inventory of all government
vehicles last year.
With the directive, state officials including ministers are
required to report and leave their respective workplaces in their private
vehicles. The order is also to ensure that state vehicles are not misused while
the general public monitors their use.
RE-REGISTRATION
OF ALL STATE VEHICLES
The Ministry of Transport has started the re-registration of
all state vehicles throughout the country.
With that all state vehicles will be given new registration
numbers to ensure that ministries and other governmental agencies do no abuse
the usage of those vehicles during and off office hours.
USAGE OF
PRE-PAID METERS BY MINISTRIES AND MINISTERS
For the first time in Ghana’s history, President Mahama
directed that pre-paid meters be installed in the official residences of all
ministers and presidential staffers. In addition members of the executive were
also expected to pay their utility bills.
The move was aimed at helping to improve the financial
health of the utility companies and also reduce the huge debts owed them by
government.
The policy has been extended to
cover other categories of senior public servants when the 2014 Budget was
presented to Parliament.
GYEEDA PROBE
AND RESTRUCTURING
Ghana Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Development
Authority (GYEEDA) program which has received heavy doses of mismanagement came
under sharper focus when government placed a ban on the award of new contracts.
A new CEO, Mr. Kobby Acheampong has been appointed by
government to help restructure the whole program. Government is also taking a
legal action against officials of GYEEDA who were found to have misconducted
themselves.
Some officials have been asked by government to refund
monies they misappropriated under the GYEEDA program while the Ministry of Justice
and Attorney General has been asked to expedite action on the GYEEDA bill in
order to decentralize its projects and programs.
ABROGATION OF
SUBAH INFO-SOLUTION CONTRACT
In order to forestall financial discipline, President Mahama
abrogated the Subah Info-Solutions contract and ordered investigations
concerning how payments were made for little or no work done by the company.
Subah Info-Solutions was contracted by the Ghana Revenue
Authority to effectively track the call volumes by the Telcos. But due to some
issues with the Telcos involving privacy, Subah was unable to do exactly what
they were contracted to do, yet the company managed to scoop 144 million Ghana
cedis from government coffers.
NO PURCHASE
OF BUNGALOWS & STATE VEHICLES BY GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS
In order to stop the practice of ministers buying state
vehicles and the bungalows they live in, President Mahama has banned the
practice by announcing that no government official would be allowed to buy a
state bungalow or state vehicle.
The measure is to enable the government to stop the
practice where ministers and other public officials were given the option to
buy official vehicles and bungalows they were using during their tenure of
office.
The government is however working to come out with a
measure that would enable all government officials to acquire their vehicles on
hire purchase basis.
ONLINE
COMPLAINT FORUM
To ensure maximum transparency in the country, President
Mahama announced in 2013 that he will soon launch an online complaints forum
for people to send their concerns and complaints for attention.
The online complaint forum is also aimed at helping to
strengthen the fight against all forms of corruption in the country.
CANCELLATION
OF CHRISTMAS HAMPERS
To further cut down on wastage of public funds, President
Mahama in the first week of December 2013 banned all Ministries, Departments,
Agencies, Metropolitan,
Municipal, and District Assemblies from using public funds for Christmas
and New Year gifts such as hampers.
This singular act by the President saved Ghana a whopping 11
Million Ghana cedis which otherwise would have been used to buy gifts.
PAYMENT OF
TAXES BY COMPANIES WHO CLEARED GOODS FROM BONDED WAREHOUSES
The Special Operations Unit under the office of the Chief of
Staff, last year uncovered that 290 importers have conspired with some customs
officials to clear their goods worth 735 Million Ghana cedis from government
bonded warehouses without paying for them.
Warning letters to the importers who duped the nation have
yielded positive results with some of the importers paying back to the state.
To date the nation has recovered almost 320 million Ghana cedis from the
importers who duped the nation.
OVERALL IMPRESSION
There are many more achievements which I did not highlight,
but if President Mahama was able to glide through and make inroads in multiple
areas in 2013 in spite of the huge distractions, then 2014 holds a lot of hope and
promise for Ghana.
What we all need is to rally behind President Mahama for him
put his vision into better perspective for the overall development of the
country. Daily criticisms that are chunked out and political battering will not
cut it for the country.
We must learn to tone down on how we tear people apart but
rather help with our ideas in moving the country forward. You do not only have
to be president to help Ghana in your small area of operation. Unsung heroes always
perform from the sidelines.
African
truth of Israeli apartheid
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| African Migrants In Israel |
By Finian Cunningham
For more than six decades since its creation in 1948, the
Israeli regime has hidden its crimes against native Arab people with the façade
of “national security”.
The Israeli usurpers have
systematically stolen land from the native Palestinians, killed them,
brutalized them, and pushed millions into exile or into squalid ghettos.
Yet when charged with these blatant
crimes against humanity, the Israeli regime defends its racist genocidal
conduct in terms of security against “Arab terrorism”. It has gotten away with
this despicable charade and affront to international law and morality in large
measure because of the cynical indulgence of its patron in Washington.
American presidents repeat the
mantra of “Israel’s right to security” – even as that regime shoots down
Palestinian children, as it did again this week, and launches air strikes on
family homes, schools and hospitals.
Nevertheless, this outrageous
distortion is now being laid bare from a surprising quarter, as impoverishing
African refugees residing in Israel rise up to expose its barbaric policies.
And the Israeli regime is dealing with this mounting African refugee problem in
the only way that it knows how – through ruthless racist repression.
Tens of thousands of Africans who
fled to Israel for political asylum in recent years have this week taken to the
streets of Tel Aviv to protest at the inhumane conditions being imposed on
them.
In the past five years, Israel has
seen a wave of refugees from Africa. Most of them have entered by crossing the
Egyptian border, often after enduring hazardous journeys and running the
gauntlet of smugglers and armed gangs.
There is estimated to be some 60,000
Africans – mainly from Sudan and Eritrea – seeking asylum in Israel.
Officially, Israel is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on Refugees
and is therefore legally obligated to offer asylum to these people.
However, with the Israeli regime
grappling to deal with record levels of poverty and unemployment among its
eight million population, it is responding to the African refugees with
draconian measures.
Last month, the Israeli parliament
gave the go-ahead to round up all Africans and put them in detention centers,
pending their deportation back to countries of origin. On returning to their
countries, the refugees will almost certainly face persecution or death.
Such a callous move is in direct
contravention of international law. Faced with imprisonment in specially built
Israeli jails in the Negev Desert and subsequent forced repatriation, the
Africans are embarking on protest marches to gain international attention. “We
are human beings, not animals,” read banners held by protesters, who marched
outside the embassies of the US and European states in Tel Aviv, appealing for
international help.
The African demonstrators were
reportedly taunted with racist slurs by Israeli crowds. “Infiltrators”. Go back
to Africa.” “You are taking over our land.”
The irony of such vilification could
hardly be less bitter. Racist attacks in Israel against Africans have soared
over the past year, with women and children assaulted in the streets by angry
white mobs. Most of these racist attackers are themselves newcomers to Israel,
brought in from the US, Russia and South America, and given fast-tracked Israeli
citizenship simply because they are Jewish. These settlers live on lands that
the Israeli regime has illegally usurped from Palestinians.
This week as Africans were pleading
for refugee status, the Israeli regime announced new plans to construct hundreds
more settler units in the Jordan Valley and other parts of the West Bank. This
was while US Secretary of State John Kerry was on a visit to Jerusalem,
allegedly to promote “peace talks” between the Israeli regime and the
Palestinians, whom the Israelis have been dispossessing unabated for six
decades.
Many people around the world are
waking up to the fact that the Israeli regime is nothing less than an
abomination. For too long, its persecution complex, ably assisted by American
administrations, has distorted international perception. But not anymore, it
seems.
The growing boycott movement against
the Israeli regime marks a tidal shift. This year has been declared the
International Year of Solidarity with Palestine. People are realizing the truth
that the regime is a sectarian “Jewish-only state” that has constructed itself
on apartheid laws of discrimination against native Palestinians.
Campaigners against illegal Israeli
occupation of Palestinian lands have compared the regime with the criminal
South Africa apartheid. They say that international sanctions must be likewise
brought to bear on the Israeli regime in order to bring its systematic crimes
against humanity to an end.
Israeli racial oppression of
Palestinians more than qualifies the regime as an apartheid state deserving of
censure and pariah status.
For too long, though, Israeli and
American government propaganda has shielded the racist illegal occupation of
Palestinian land with a bogus narrative of “security” and “defence”.
This narrative, always threadbare,
is now being seen as a flagrant lie through the barbaric mistreatment of
African refugees.
What security threat could women and
children from poverty-stricken African countries pose to the Israeli regime?
Their gross mistreatment in violation of international law just proves the real
and only nature of the Zionist entity – it is a racist state of oppression that
must be abolished.
Al-Qaeda’s
real origins exposed
 |
| US Secretary of State John Kerry with Saudi King Al-saud |
By Finian Cunningham
The US secretary of state vowed Washington’s support for the
Iraqi government in its fight to regain control of towns in its western
province taken over by militants belonging to the Islamic State of Iraq and
Syria (ISIS).
That’s rich. The government of Syria is battling to root out
these same al-Qaeda-linked militants. But in that country, Washington offers no
such support. In fact, the priority there for Washington is to sack the
government of President Bashar Al-Assad.
So, how does Kerry square that contradiction? In Iraq,
al-Qaeda is a threat that needs to be defeated, whereas in Syria the very same
organization is apparently not a threat, but the Syrian government is.
What’s even richer is that Kerry was issuing his warnings
about al-Qaeda in the region surrounded by senior members of the House of Saud,
who are known to all the world as the bankers, recruiters and weapons suppliers
of this network.
Only a few months ago, media reports disclosed American
diplomatic cables - going back to 2009 - in which the former US ambassador to
Iraq explicitly stated that Saudi Arabia was financing and arming al-Qaeda
extremists in Iraq.
American Ambassador Christopher Hill said then that
intelligence showed that Saudi Arabia was “inciting sectarian violence” in the
country.
Hill added, “Intelligence sources reported that Saudi Arabia
is based in the effort to destabilize the [Iraqi] government of Prime Minister
Nouri al-Maliki.”
Al-Qaeda in Iraq has since re-branded itself as the ISIS,
also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). It is closely
aligned with other extremist groups, such as Jabhat al-Nusra, Ahrar al-Shams,
Liwa al-Islam and the Islamic Front.
The alphabet-soup nature of these myriad groups does not
alter the fact that they all share the same extremist Saudi Wahhabi ideology,
they operate under the flag of al-Qaeda, they have conducted the most vile
atrocities against civilians, including Sunni, Shia and Christians, and they
are all sponsored by Saudi Arabia.
Officially, the House of Saud maintains the risible fiction
that it only supports “moderates” belonging to the so-called Free Syrian Army.
But the unavoidable fact is that the oil-rich kingdom is the banker for the
al-Qaeda-linked networks, as the former US ambassador to Iraq attested.
Even the mainstream Western media cannot hide that fact. In
October 2013, the New York Times reported US officials admitting that
weapons supplied to Saudi Arabia supposedly for the FSA were ending up in the
hands of the extremist militants in Syria.
Iraqi sources this week confirmed that Saudi weapons
supplied to the likes of the ISIS in Syria are now being used in that group’s
resurgence in Iraq’s Western Anbar Province.
So there you have it. American weapons supplied covertly to
Saudi Arabia are being used by al-Qaeda to inflict sectarian mayhem in Iraq, as
well as in Syria, destabilizing both countries.
And yet John Kerry sitting alongside the Saudi terror
sponsors has the audacity to publicly warn that al-Qaeda has become “the most
dangerous player” in the region.
Kerry said during his Saudi visit, “This is a fight that
belongs to the Iraqis.” Well actually, no. This is a fight in Iraq against
terrorists sponsored by Saudi Arabia and the US.
Even more absurd was the American diplomat’s offer of
military support to the Iraqi government against militants who have been armed
by the US and its Saudi client.
“We are not contemplating putting boots on the ground [in
Iraq]. This is their fight, but we’re going to help them in their fight.”
Already, Washington has supplied the Iraqi government with
Hellfire missiles and has promised to also send drones to the country,
allegedly to combat al-Qaeda.
By boots on the ground, Kerry was referring to US troops, as
opposed to al-Qaeda boots on the ground, which the US and the Saudis have
already helped to mobilize, first in Syria, and now in Iraq.
That raises the seemingly bizarre scenario where the US is
arming both sides in Iraq - the government and the al-Qaeda militants.
This should not, however, be seen as a contradiction, but
rather as a cynical boon for the American weapons industry. First, create a
terror problem, and secondly supply weapons to deal with that problem. That
makes for a win-win outcome for American business.
None of this should be in the least bit surprising. The US
has been working covertly with Saudi Arabia and British military intelligence
for more than three decades to foster and fuel al-Qaeda extremists, beginning
in Afghanistan to fight the Soviet Union from the late 1970s until 1990.
Since then, al-Qaeda has served as a protean ideological
cover for imperialist predation in the Middle East and beyond. It has undergone
many reinventions with mercurial name changes along the way. But the bottom
line is that it is a Western/Saudi creation, which alternates between an enemy
of convenience and a ruthless proxy for waging regime change.
The old Western ruse of “enemy” may have worked a few years
back. But now the contradictions are playing simultaneously and in neighboring
countries in such way that the ruse is exposed as a blatant lie.
Kerry and his Saudi terror cronies may like to fool
themselves, but they are fooling no one else.
Wars, Will
America Ever Learn?
 |
| United States troops |
By Lawrence Wittner
When it comes to war, the American public is remarkably
fickle.
The responses of the Americans to the Iraq and Afghanistan
wars provide telling examples. In 2003, according to opinion polls, 72 percent
of Americans thought going to war in Iraq was the right decision. By early
2013, support for that decision had declined to 41 percent. Similarly, in
October 2001, when US-led military action began in Afghanistan, it was backed
by 90 percent of the American public. By December 2013, public approval of the
Afghanistan war had dropped to only 17 percent.
In fact, this collapse of public support for once-popular
wars is a long-term phenomenon. Although World War I preceded public
opinion polling, observers reported considerable enthusiasm for US entry into
that conflict in April 1917. But, after the war, the enthusiasm melted away. In
1937, when pollsters asked Americans whether the United States should
participate in another war like the World War, 95 percent of the respondents
said “No.”
And so it went. When President Truman dispatched US troops
to Korea in June 1950, 78 percent of Americans polled expressed their approval.
By February 1952, according to polls, 50 percent of Americans believed that US
entry into the Korean War had been a mistake.
The same phenomenon occurred in connection with the Vietnam
War. In August 1965, when Americans were asked if the US government had made “a
mistake in sending troops to fight in Vietnam,” 61 percent of them said “No.”
But by August 1968, support for the war had fallen to 35 percent, and by May
1971, it had dropped to 28 percent.
Of all of America’s wars over the past century, only World
War II has retained mass public approval. And this was a very unusual war – one
involving a devastating military attack upon American soil, fiendish foes
determined to conquer and enslave the world, and a clear-cut, total victory.
In almost all cases, though, Americans turned against wars
they once supported. How should one explain this pattern of disillusionment?
The major reason appears to be the immense cost of war - in
lives and resources. During the Korean and Vietnam wars, as the body bags and
crippled veterans began coming back to the United States in large numbers,
public support for the wars dwindled considerably.
Although the Afghanistan and
Iraq wars produced fewer American casualties, the economic costs have been
immense. Two recent scholarly studies have estimated that these two wars will
ultimately cost American taxpayers from $4 trillion to $6 trillion. As a
result, most of the US government’s spending no longer goes for education,
health care, parks, and infrastructure, but to cover the costs of war. It is
hardly surprising that many Americans have turned sour on these conflicts.
But if the heavy burden of wars has disillusioned many
Americans, why are they so easily suckered into supporting new ones?
A key reason seems to be that powerful, opinion-molding
institutions – the mass communications media, government, political parties,
and even education – are controlled, more or less, by what President Eisenhower
called “the military-industrial complex.” And, at the outset of a conflict,
these institutions are usually capable of getting flags waving, bands playing,
and crowds cheering for war.
But it is also true that much of the American public is very
gullible and, at least initially, quite ready to rally ‘round the flag.’
Certainly, many Americans are very nationalistic and resonate to
super-patriotic appeals. A mainstay of US political rhetoric is the sacrosanct
claim that America is “the greatest nation in the world” – a very useful
motivator of US military action against other countries. And this heady brew is
topped off with considerable reverence for guns and US soldiers. (“Let’s hear
the applause for Our Heroes!”)
Of course, there is also an important American peace
constituency, which has formed long-term peace organizations, including Peace
Action, Physicians for Social Responsibility, the Fellowship of Reconciliation,
the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, and other antiwar
groups. This peace constituency, often driven by moral and political ideals,
provides the key force behind the opposition to US wars in their early stages.
But it is counterbalanced by staunch military enthusiasts, ready to applaud
wars to the last surviving American.
The shifting force in US public opinion is the large number
of people who rally ‘round the flag’ at the beginning of a war and, then,
gradually, become fed up with the conflict.
And so a cyclical process ensues. Benjamin Franklin
recognized it as early as the eighteenth century, when he penned a short poem
for A Pocket Almanack For the Year 1744:
War begets Poverty,
Poverty Peace;
Peace makes Riches flow,
(Fate ne’er doth cease.)
Riches produce Pride,
Pride is War’s Ground;
War begets Poverty &c.
The World goes round.
There would certainly be less disillusionment, as well as a
great savings in lives and resources, if more Americans recognized the terrible
costs of war before they rushed to embrace it. But a clearer understanding of
war and its consequences will probably be necessary to convince Americans to
break out of the cycle in which they seem trapped.
Lawrence Wittner (http://lawrenceswittner.com) is professor of history emeritus at SUNY/Albany. His latest book is a satirical novel about university corporatization, What’s Going On at UAardvark?
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