Lee on Iraq; 5th Anniversary Rally in Sydney

The senior statesman of Singapore, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, recently wrote an article, commenting that American troops cannot afford to leave Iraq now as it would leave a power vacuum which would be filled by lawless private militia who will cause societal disorder and sectarian violence. Just in case Mr Lee is in the dark, Iraqi society is already in tatters and is on the brink of a civil war (though some might argue that it already has happened). He further argued that America needs to continue having a presence in Iraq but that they ‘clearly cannot stay in Iraq alone’. Instead, he suggested a ‘multilateral approach’ in the form of a ‘coalition force’.

The solution that is proposed by Mr Lee, not only smacks of arrogance and ignorance, but also blatant disregard for the human rights and sufferings of the Iraqis. By suggesting that the Americans and a coalition force be stationed in Iraq, he is not only disregarding the astronomical and tragic cost and destruction of the invasion, but also implying that Iraqis are incapable of sovereignty.

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In the Troops Out Now of Iraq and Afghanistan Rally and March, organised by the Stop The War Coalition in Sydney, commemorating the 5th anniversary of the Iraqi Invasion, as many as 200 people are reported to have turned up for the protest.

The rally which started at Belmore Park, near Central Station, around 1 pm, and saw a few prominent activists took to the stage to address a wide range of issues in the Middle East. Primarily on the political, social instability and turmoil in the region which be chiefly attributed to the grand American imperialist project.

Federal Greens Senator Kerry Nettle quoted statistics from Jospeh Stiglitz, former Chief Economist of the World Bank, who calculated that the Iraqi Invasion has amounted to three trillion dollars. She also related personal accounts from war veterans who said that they acted differently in the presence of the press.

Peace and non-violent Christian activist, Donna Mulhearn, reminded Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, of the significance of Palm Sunday. She lambasted Rudd on various issues including him for leading a motion to honour Israel’s 60th anniversary Day of Independence as an affront to the sufferings of the Palestinians. She also reiterated that it is time to bring all the troops home; and that Australia should boycott the Olympics in China for their grave human rights violations, especially, with regards, to its violent suppression of the peaceful Tibetan uprising.

Kathy Black from US Labour Against The War, spoke of the detrimental effects of the war not just to Iraqis, but also to the poor in America and the faltering US economy. Keyser Trad from Islamic Friendship Association related the personal anti-Islamic experience he faced and the climate of Islamophobia whipped up by the war on terror.

After the speeches, the protest march began to make its way to the Department of Defence to drive home the point of protesting against the war, before making a loop back to Belmore Park. The march was made more theatrical with the presence of three protestors, who had their faces painted white, dressed suitably, in white t-shirts, each with one of the words, ‘Stop The War’. Along the way, they pretended to drop dead or climb onto structures to draw attention to themselves and their message of protest.

Overall, it was an informative and highly charged rally. The fervour and passion of the protestors shows that there are still enough people out there who care enough to take it to the streets to protest against the disastrous American foreign policies in the Middle East.

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References:

1. The Cost Of Retreat In Iraq, Washington Post, 8 March 2008, Lee Kuan Yew

2. Sydney rally calls for Iraq withdrawal, Sydney Morning Herald, 16 March 2008

The Great Escape of Mas Selamat Kastari - Revisiting ISA

Mas Selamat Kastari, the alleged leader of Jemaah Islamiah, who has been detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in Singapore, was reported to have escaped the high security Whitley Road Detention Center while he was in the restroom before a scheduled visit with his family.

As soon as news of his prison outbreak was made public, the Singapore blogosphere greeted the incident with alarm and disdain.

Alex Au, in Asia Times, calls into question the ‘security arrangements’ of Singapore and whether ‘Western allies can and should depend on them’.¹ while Gerald Giam felt the Singapore government was not transparent enough and professed his doubts on the credibility of the panel in the independent commission which had been set up to investigate the escape. Like the former commentator, Gerald believed that Singapore’s ‘international reputation for security and competence’ has suffered due to this incident.²Andrew Loh, in another piece for online citizen, criticized the leadership, in particular, the Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Hsien Loong for being silent on this issue. He wrote unflatteringly,‘His leadership at a time like this is crucial.’³A cursory glimpse from responses by other bloggers, aggregated by online citizen, revealed similar sentiments. Deen Yusof wrote, “Since he escaped, shouldn’t the Commisioner give a “Shoot at Sight” order? For the safety of the people?” . Concurrently, Chemical Generation demanded openness. He lamented that, ‘the government was open about the arrest of JI members in the past, and ISD should be open about its horrifying lapses when the time comes soon.’

Based on the immediate responses, the Singaporean bloggers, in general, tend to share two common assumptions.

Firstly, Mas Selamat Kastari is a dangerous criminal who will endanger Singapore’s security, and has indirectly tarnished the country’s reputation; and that, the Singapore government needs to re-arrest him soon, and be held accountable for this incident.

The flurry of comments, whether, from reputable writers like Alex Au or anonymous bloggers such as Chemical Generation, however, reflected the most disturbing assumption generally agreed upon - the assumption that Mas Selamat Kastari is guilty as charge. This is despite the fact that the man has been held in prison under the ISA, a legislation which allows indefinite detention without trial.

By making the assumption that Mas Selamat Kastari is guilty and taking the government’s words at face value that this is a dangerous man at large, the Singapore blogosphere is indirectly agreeing that it is perfectly acceptable to detain someone without a due process of court, and that human rights can be sacrificed for the perceived good of social stability. To stretch this logic further, the Singapore blogosphere is comfortable with and believe that the war on terror is one that can be won even at the expense of eroding human rights.

If anything, the escape of Mas Selamat Kastari should have opened a window of debate for the Singapore blogosphere, not to indulge in rumour mongering, finger-pointing or conspiracy theories, but rather, to re-ignite the controversy of the draconian ISA legislation. The fuss should not be about the great escape but why we need to do away with ISA.

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1. Suspicions over Singapore jailbreak, Asia Times Online, 8 March 2008, Alex Au

2. Escape has yet to dent govt’s hubris, theonlinecitizen, 6 March 2008, Gerald Giam

3. Has our Prime Minister gone missing too?, theonlinecitizen, 5 March 2008, Andrew Loh

4. Mas Selamat wants to watch the Olympics too!, 29 February 2008, Deen Yusof

5. An Apology Means Little Until the Escaped Terrorist is Caught, 28 February 2008, Chemical Generation

Torture R US

In a disgusting move, Bush has vetoed legislation that would have prevented the CIA from using such torture methods as waterboarding, forced standing and extreme temperatures.

Bush has now allowed the CIA to torture, in explicit contravention of the UN Declaration of Human Rights Article 5:

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

The operative words are “No one“… not some, but no one. To permit torture of anyone degrades us all. As an Australian, we should hold our allies to the highest standards, and I expect my government to voice their concerns to the US administration.

Bush in my mind will forever be the President that not only condoned torture, but permitted the continuing use of torture. I wonder how this sits with his christian beliefs?