US War Machine Against Peace, Security And Development
By Anu Muhammad
23 March, 2012
Countercurrents.org
It is said that US Special Forces are present in five South Asian countries, including Bangladesh , as part of capacity building in ‘counter-terrorism efforts'. US Pacific Commander Admiral Robert Willard informed this in a Congressional hearing, reports BBC online on March 2, 2012.
He said that ‘we have currently special forces assist teams -- Pacific assist teams is the term -- laid down in Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, as well as India.' Willard also made it clear that they ‘are working very closely with India with regard to their counter-terrorism capabilities and in particular on the maritime domain'...‘not necessarily department of defence but other agencies assisting them in terms of their internal counter-terror and counterinsurgency challenges.'
The same story, same rhetoric. We cannot forget our global experience. Without any exception, whenever US Empire talks about peace, it brings war; whenever it talks about democracy it brings repression; whenever it talks about development it brings destruction; whenever they talk about countering terrorism, they bring terrorism in a larger scale. We have come across history of its operation- full of blood, killing, occupation, lies and destruction.
Records of terror
What is the record of the US ‘security' missions? In Killing Hope (2003), William Blum narrated many events. He compiled often forgotten historical moments, showed its linearity, ‘....atomic bombs on the people of Japan; carpet-bombing Korea back to the stone age; engulfing the Vietnamese in napalm and pesticides; providing three decades of Latin Americans with the tools and methods of torture, then turning their eyes away, closing their ears to the screams, and denying everything...and now, dropping 177 million pounds of bombs on the people of Iraq in the most concentrated aerial onslaught in the history of the world.' He continued, ‘from 1945 to 2003, the United States attempted to overthrow more than 40 foreign governments, and to crush more than 30 populist-nationalist movements fighting against intolerable regimes. In the process, the US bombed some 25 countries, caused the end of life for several million people, and condemned many millions more to a life of agony and despair.' Presidents change in the White house but war machine: the corporate-military complex does not. Therefore war crimes continue.
With this very explicit record they are now working in South Asia to ‘counter' terrorism and to ‘ensure' peace in the region! Who else is the global terrorist then, who else is the worst threat for peace and democracy?
International rules and norms under war machine
Where does UN stand? What has International criminal court (ICC) done on US led crime against humanity in the last six or seven decades? Jesse Helms, as the Chairman of the US senate Foreign Relations Committee, categorically stated US position on international rules, norms and institutions, ‘American people (read administration) will never accept the Secretary General's (UN) claim that the United Nations is the ‘sole source of legitimacy on the use of force' in the world. He said that, ‘true the US Senate ratified the UN charter fifty years ago, yet in so doing, America did not cede one syllable of it's sovereignty to the United Nations,' and ‘the Court's (UN International Criminal Court) supporters argue that Americans shall be willing to sacrifice some of their sovereignty for the noble cause of international justice. This, frankly, is laughable.' He further said that, ‘no UN institution...is competent to judge the foreign policy and national security decisions of the United States '. No doubt, global people and environment, past present and future, are the clear victims of ‘security decisions of the United States '.
This is not the beginning for Bangladesh
US army presence in Bangladesh is not surprising at this moment. At least three secret agreements can be mentioned those were signed during 2003-4 to give legal authority to the US corporate-military complex in this land.
First, Christina Rocca, the then Assistant Secretary of the State and ex-CIA official, while visiting Bangladesh in March 2003 signed agreement that gave US blank check to bring anything necessary for the development of ‘science and technology', it also allowed to bring anything for ‘security purpose'!
Second, in August 2003 an agreement was signed in Washington DC , that made Bangladesh bound to allow US military and civilian officials to commit any crime they wish in this country. The news of signing this agreement was disclosed in Dhaka after one month of signing, the details of the agreement is still secret. According to press report, ‘under this agreement no U.S. soldier or officer charged with criminal offences can be tried in Bangladesh or be extradited to the International Criminal Court for prosecution'. The agreement ‘stipulates that if any American soldier or officer is charged with criminal offence in Bangladesh , or is prosecuted in another country and takes shelter here, he cannot be handed over to the International Criminal Court.'
And third, Rocca signed another agreement on 19 May 2004. This agreement has also been kept secret. Ministry official said to the press that the agreement would make it ‘binding on the government to take care of every single US interest including protection of US citizens and installations.' The report further said that the deal was also aimed ‘to protect American interests in the country and extend full cooperation to the US in identifying individuals or groups suspected of working against US interests' (Daily Star, 20 May 2004).
Even with the changes of governments these agreements remain secret and intact. Governments of this country have given free access to anything or anybody coming with US government's tag, it passed to them total authority, made commitment to give total service to find and take actions against those who are considered as hostile to the US (corporate military) interests, it also declared immunity to the US nationals specially US military from any trial for their crime in any nature. They can commit any crime, and they will be given protection!
US hidden Agenda
William Blum reiterated that, ‘the engine of American foreign policy has clearly not been fueled by a devotion to any kind of morality, nor even simple decency, but rather by the necessity to serve other masters.' He has broken down their objectives into four: ‘(1) making the world open and hospitable to American transnational corporations; (2) enhancing the financial statements of defense companies at home who have donated generously to members of Congress and residents of the White House; (3) preventing the rise of any society that might serve as a successful example of an alternative to the capitalist model; (4) extending American hegemony.' These are the hidden agenda behind rhetoric of ‘counter terrorism' and ‘security'.
Our collective struggles
The fake slogan of ‘global fight against terrorism' is repeatedly proved to be a cover for global mission of occupation and plunder with the means of terrorism. Who are the people hostile to the US government and who are the people friendly to them? Governments engaged in oppressing its own people, be it Muslim or non-Muslim, appear as closest allies of the US . But people all over the world including the US are not. Anybody who loves freedom, who cares human dignity, independence, who wants to save this planet from killers, plunderers and occupiers, who dreams of a world without discrimination of color religion class and gender, who oppose war and bloodshed, everybody of them is opposed to US imperial vulgar design and barbaric acts.
People of Bangladesh have been on the struggle confronting global capital and its local agents for long. Question is to strengthen struggles to recapture resources, recapture countries, and recapture future of our lives and the planet. With growing crisis, US imperialism have become more aggressive for their own existence, now there is no alternative to fight back to save this world, people and environment. We need global resistance to global terrorism.
Anu Muhammad is a social activist from Bangladesh
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