February 15, 2003
Awakened Woman's Circle is working for peace
In Porto Alegre, She is on her way
Part 5 - War
by Stephanie Hiller
Opposition to the impending war against Iraq was actually widespread at the Forum. The war was seen as the epitome of American arrogance, proof of its ambition for global hegemony regardless of the human cost, and another example of the tyranny of the market. And the U.S. was consistently referred to as "The Empire." It was staggering, and very humbling, to be an American in such a setting.
On the subject of the war, the most compelling speaker was, not surprisingly, a man. Men understand these things.
Tariq Ali is a respected political observer, a Pakistani who has lived for 30 years in the UK and speaks a fine English. He knows how to address a crowd, and his argument was cleanly stated.
Bush claims that he must attack Iraq because it has weapons of mass destruction, said Ali, but in fact "the only country in that area which has weapons of mass destruction is Israel."
So what are the real reasons for attacking Iraq. Of course the main reason is oil, which the US needs. "Then they will change the map of that region, including Syria and of course they have their eyes on Iran.
"The US has never tolerated democracy in the Arab world…because then they will nationalize their oil fields" which of course the US does not want. "This is a process we also see happening in Latin America." Applause. He gave the example of Venezuela, which has been threatened by a massive media attack on its democratically elected government. "The Bush doctrine is that we have the right to defend our interests as we interpret them anywhere in the world. If anyone challenges the economic hegemony of the US, it can be attacked. What we are witnessing in the case of Iraq is the beginnings of a new process, to assert the rights of the only empire in the world," a situation which is unprecedented. The military budget has been increased by $38 billion, approximately the total budget of China. "After 9-11 the Bush regime sat around the table and said, how can we use these events to our advantage. The second day after 9-11 some of them wanted to attack Iraq instead of Afghanistan."
In Afghanistan the military occupation is costing $1 billion a month, of which $25 million is spent on so-called foreign aid, he explained. Outside Kabul big terminator helicopters patrol to keep down insurrection.
The key to this form of terrorism "is not their own strength -- they are only two to three thousand people -- but the flow of recruits and why they go to this organization. Unless you solve the political problems of that region, terrorism will continue. Unless you form a state for the Palestinian people and stop the sanctions against Iraq, it will not stop. Occupying Iraq will not stop terrorism. And that is why it is so important to have a powerful anti-war movement." Applause. "Why it is so important that 500 Israeli soldiers refuse to fight in the occupied territories and 400,000 have marched against their own government in Washington DC. 77 percent of Germans and 75% of the French, a majority in Britain is against the war.
"Supporters of the empire had thought the days of the anti-war movement were over, but there is a younger generation coming up and most of the people in these marches are under 25 years old."
Can we stop the war? Two things that could do it. "One is a new intifada all over the Arab world but that looks unlikely. The second is the total isolation of the US by Europe." [wild applause]
"We have a long struggle ahead.
"Do not imagine that these wars are unrelated to the WTO and the global economy. Fifteen years ago they said Argentina was the model of the global economy; look at it today. Then they said Cardoza in Brazil was the model. And now they're trying to overthrow the democratically elected government of Venezuela.
"Latin American unity against globalization and war would be powerful, because this was the first victim of the American Empire beginning with the Monroe Doctrine. It's not accidental that the resistance has begun here.
"Brazil, China and India are the three largest countries in the world. The whole world is watching the Brazil experiment. "
By now the auditorium was completely packed and the applause was intensifying. The picture Ali had drawn was vibrantly clear. Brazil is the hope of the world.
"One million peasants are against the military in Pakistan. Their slogan is 'land or death.'" 40 percent are Christians, they are unified with the Moslems "and in those sections the fundamentalists don't get a vote. But there's no coverage of this movement in Pakistan. They take their inspiration from the Brazilian landless peasant movement, and they send to you this message: Please convey our respect to Brazil and tell them we have learned from them."
Needless to say, this was quite a different story from what we hear daily in the US, about the threat of Saddam Hussein, and the moral imperative for war.
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