05) THE PLAGUE OF IMPERIALISM

 

People's Voice Editorial

 

            With each passing day, the death toll from the Ebola virus rises, and the responsibility of the imperialist system becomes more obvious. Over a trillion dollars are wasted each year on militarism and war-making, the bulk of this by the US and its NATO allies. Yet when an epidemic strikes one of the poorest regions of the world, these "great powers" find it nearly impossible to help avert disaster.

 

            Ebola does not have to be a death sentence. As the World Health Organization admits, seven in ten of those affected die because of the lack of proper healthcare facilities. And why are clinics and hospitals woefully lacking in Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia? Because Africa has been plundered by the Western powers, from the days of the hugely profitable slave trade, to the present day when high public debts keep African states and their economies enslaved to the IMF, the World Bank and the big corporations.

 

            As the World Federation of Trade Unions points out, Ebola spreads in conditions of poverty, malnutrition, the lack of basic health care, and limited access to free public education. Courageous medical personnel are risking their own lives without proper safety measures such as gloves and masks, while the pharmaceutical transnationals profit from suffering.

 

            Our world is infected by a virus: the drive by big capital for maximum profits, whether through the sale of weapons or expensive drugs. The cure is the power of the working class, which can overthrow the private profit system and win a future based on peace, equality, democracy, social justice, and an end to all forms of exploitation and oppression. We can see a glimpse of this world in the 50,000 Cuban doctors and medical personnel who work in 66 countries around the world, including 4,000 in 32 African countries. This practical solidarity shows that socialism is the future!

 

(The above article is from the November 1-15, 2014, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading socialist 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.)