People's Voice Editorial
The war in Afghanistan remains fresh in the minds of Canadians, including the deaths of thousands of innocent civilians as a result of the NATO occupation. Yet the Harper Conservatives are now trying to soften up public opinion for another war.
This time the target is painted on Syria, a much tougher nut for imperialism to crack than Libya. Despite the tragic events in their country, Syrians are strongly opposed to outside intervention. Small numbers of western troops have already entered Syria to assist the "rebel" forces, and Canada has become a vocal advocate of military action against the elected government of Bashar al-Assad. The Harper government hints that a bombing campaign may be near, and Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird has expelled diplomats from the Syrian embassy in Ottawa.
This sabre-rattling can only encourage the armed opposition to escalate its attacks rather than seeking peaceful, negotiated solutions to the crisis. By openly taking sides in this civil conflict, Canada's hands are already stained with Syrian blood.
The Tory justification for ratchetting up the war threat has been the massacre in the town of Houla. But as military analyst Scott Taylor writes, "the accounts of the Houla incident vary greatly, but the single consensus on the casualty list indicates that more than 100 were killed, including 49 children." Taylor lists other cases in which "the enemy" was demonized using similar accusations later shown to be false.
Unfortunately, while millions of Canadians are appalled at the danger of yet another "regime change" war, our sentiments are not reflected in Parliament. The Harper Tories and the opposition parties must hear a louder chorus of voices condemning the drive to yet another shameful war. This applies in particular to the NDP. Mr. Mulcair's party must be choose: peace or war? Will it speak out against endless NATO interventions, or will it surrender to the Tory militarist agenda?
(The above article is from the June 16-30, 2012, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)