Freedom Rider: America Brings Hell to
Somalia
by BAR editor
and senior columnist Margaret Kimberley
"The Muslim religion is used as a convenient scapegoat to
further the aims of war."
What does the word "Islamist" mean? The millions of people
around the globe who practice Islam are called Muslims, but this new term has
crept into the language without question or investigation. It seems to apply to
Muslims who fight against the occupation of Iraq, or Somalians who don't take
kindly to the U.S.-backed Ethiopian government invading their country and
killing their countrymen and women. In short, an Islamist seems to be any
Muslim who has the nerve to act in opposition to the American government. Like
anyone else deemed an enemy, a new word has to be invented in order to
dehumanize. If Somalian resistance fighters were called just that, then
Americans might question their government's decision to keep killing them.
America's intervention gave Ethiopia license to invade
Somalia and begin a horrific cycle of violence. According to Amnesty
International, more than 600,000 Somalis have fled from their homes, at
least 6,000 are dead and 90,000 children in refugee camps are in danger of
death from starvation and lack of hygiene and medical care.
The so-called war on terror is in fact a war of terror
practiced against millions of people all over the world. The Muslim religion is
used as a convenient scapegoat to further the aims of that war and Somalia is
just one of the victims. Somalia is now in the grip of one of the worst
humanitarian crises in the world, and it is all happening under the direction
of George W. Bush. In a clear violation of the Geneva Conventions and all
international human rights standards, a U.S. naval vessel sent cruise missiles
into the city of Dusa Mareb to commit an extra judicial killing, an
assassination, of Hashi Aden Ayro, the leader of al-Shabab. Al-Shabab is
dedicated to fighting the American backed Ethiopian occupation and is therefore
tagged as "Islamist," "terrorist," and "linked to al-qaeda."
"A U.S. naval vessel sent cruise missiles into the city of
Dusa Mareb to commit an extra judicial killing, an assassination."
The corporate media, who make no pretense of independently
reporting the news, repeat the administration's well worn phrases about
Islamists and al-Qaeda connections but never bother to tell their readers and
listeners about the atrocities committed on their behalf or about resistance to
them.
At least 1,000 residents of Dusa Mareb gathered to protest
the killing of Ayro and at least 20 other civilians in the bombing. "Down
with the Bush administration," was the marchers slogan of the day. To their
credit, Somalis who are in harms way from American bombs have a greater
willingness to take to the streets and condemn
Bushism than American citizens
do.
If American warships are sending cruise missiles into
Somalia, shouldn't Congress have authorized this use of force? Obviously they
should have, but they aren't interested in fighting the lame duck Bushies.
There will be no impeachment, no investigation of torture, and no pesky
questions about military attacks on the Somali people. Like the Iraqis,
Somalians have done America no harm but die in large numbers at the hands of
Americans nonetheless.
While Americans turn a blind eye to yet another act
committed by its rogue government, Somalians are not suffering in silence.
Thousands protested
in Mogadishu against soaring food prices. The Somalians' food crisis is a
direct result of the terror inflicted upon them. Ethiopian and Somalian
government troops raid
local food markets and literally take food from the mouths of the people.
So much evil, so little time to protest.
"Somalians have done America no harm but die in large
numbers at the hands of Americans."
As the Democratic presidential nomination winds down, there
should be opportunities to protest and make the war on terror extinct when Bush
leaves office. This campaign provided an opportunity to put both Barrack Obama
and Hillary Clinton on notice that the status quo must be gone with Bush. It is
foolishly optimistic to think that the same people who allowed the political
twins to fight over so little of substance would suddenly begin making demands.
So the next president, McCain or a Democrat, will continue the war on terror
that kills so many people. The Democrats are accessories to all of the Bush
administration evil doing. It takes foolish optimism to think that the willing
accomplices to crime will change their ways when Bush is gone.
The Amnesty International report diplomatically states that
all parties are responsible for the atrocities carried out against Somalian
civilians. That is not true at all. There is one force more to blame than
any other. "...the bankroller, armorer and trainer of the Ethiopian invaders, the
paymaster of the Somali warlords, the missile-striker, the refugee-bomber, the
âextrajudicial' assassin, the renditioner, the wielder of death squads: the
United States government, under the direction of George W. Bush, and with the
full and willing complicity of the entire political establishment."
God damn America.
Margaret Kimberley's
Freedom Rider column appears weekly in BAR. Ms. Kimberley lives in New York
City, and can be reached via e-Mail at
Margaret.Kimberley(at)BlackAgandaReport.Com. Ms. Kimberley maintains an
edifying and frequently updated blog at freedomrider.blogspot.com.
More of her work is also available at her Black Agenda Report archive
page.
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