Human Rights Debate Could Expose Divisions at Commonwealth Summit – October 23,2011
Posted on October 25th, 2011
Ira de Silva London, Ontario
The Editor
Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa, Ontario
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
Dear Sir:
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
Reference your news item by Mark Kennedy that human rights debate could expose divisions at the summit, itƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ is a foregone conclusion. It is correct that the countries that adopt a holier than thou attitude on human rights such asƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the U.K., Australia, Canada will be pushing for “reforms” which is another term for imposing their will on other countries. The problem is that their will has been to the detriment of the countries that they are trying to impose it on. Although western media and white colonies of Britain such as Australia and Canada are blind to this fact, other countries that form the Commonwealth who are mostly countries whose people have suffered fromƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ colonisation and imposition ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ western rulesƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to their detriment, will have a different point of view and since in the Commonwealth every member has equal rights it is to be hoped that they will stand up against this new form of colonialism and imposition of the will of a few.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
The duplicity of the west is well known to the members of the Commonwealth. In the case of Sri Lanka, as stressed by the High Commissioner, it was fighting a real war on terrorism, not a fake one as was fought by the west. Furthermore, it was citizens of these western countries that funded the terrorism in Sri Lanka aided and abetted by the politicians of these countries. While these same countries are fighting wars or supporting and funding rebels, as in the case of Libya, and using their air forces as a part of the rebel offensive, Sri Lanka fought it’s war,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ which was an internal war, to protect it’s own citizens and remove the scourge of terrorism that had plagued the country for almost thirty years.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ It is ironic that your paper also carried an article today stating that the NATO commander claims that he had no specific knowledge that Gaddafi was in Sirte when all the news media around the world were broadcasting for weeks that he was. Just last week there were elaborate diagrams etc. of the NATO air strike on Gaddafi’s convoy and reports of much jubilation in the west and by the western trained and funded rebels on the ground and the information that intelligence units called in the strike as they had been doing for months. How then can this claim of no knowledge be accepted?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ That Gaddafi was captured and then killed is known to the whole world. If he was captured alive in battleƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ should not the international rules of war apply?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Will the investigation that has just been announced be credible when NATO and their agents on the ground are going to be investigated?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Will all the civilians who were killed in the air strikes, and those who were surrounded and hounded from the air and land be accounted for or as usual will it be that accountability and transparency etc.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ is applicable only when it suits the west. If the NATO countries have any say in the investigations the world can be assured that it will be a sham. The other countries that make up the Commonwealth are well aware of this duplicity which is not new but has been the norm for decades.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
Mr. Harper it is stated has adopted a high profile stance threatening to boycott the 2013 summit. To attend or not is his choice, he is one of fifty-four.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Before 2013 it is hoped that Canada too will show accountability on human rights because in the case of Sri Lanka, terrorism was funded and supported from Canada soƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Canada is accountable. Regarding the unfolding situation in Libya too, will Canada be accountable? I quote from an editorial that I read today commenting on NATO and Libya – “Yugoslav Slobodan Milosevic, it may be recalled, had to bear individual criminal responsibility for war crimes, according to the ICC indictment against him, because he ‘knowingly and willfully’ participated in a joint criminal enterprise in Bosnia, ‘while being aware of the foreseeable consequences of this enterprise’. Milosevic was also accused of providing financial, material and logistical assistance to local Croatian-Serb bodies, including paramilitary groups and of creating and using armed forces to fight in Croatia”. In the case of Libya, there is not a shadow of doubt thatƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ NATO provided financial, material and logistical assistance to the local rebel forces and that they were well aware of foreseeable consequences of their enterprise. Are they then not in the same frame as Milosevic? Will the indictment by the ICC be the same – not likely based on those who are responsible.
Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa, Ontario
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
Dear Sir:
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
Reference your news item by Mark Kennedy that human rights debate could expose divisions at the summit, itƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ is a foregone conclusion. It is correct that the countries that adopt a holier than thou attitude on human rights such asƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the U.K., Australia, Canada will be pushing for “reforms” which is another term for imposing their will on other countries. The problem is that their will has been to the detriment of the countries that they are trying to impose it on. Although western media and white colonies of Britain such as Australia and Canada are blind to this fact, other countries that form the Commonwealth who are mostly countries whose people have suffered fromƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ colonisation and imposition ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ western rulesƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to their detriment, will have a different point of view and since in the Commonwealth every member has equal rights it is to be hoped that they will stand up against this new form of colonialism and imposition of the will of a few.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
The duplicity of the west is well known to the members of the Commonwealth. In the case of Sri Lanka, as stressed by the High Commissioner, it was fighting a real war on terrorism, not a fake one as was fought by the west. Furthermore, it was citizens of these western countries that funded the terrorism in Sri Lanka aided and abetted by the politicians of these countries. While these same countries are fighting wars or supporting and funding rebels, as in the case of Libya, and using their air forces as a part of the rebel offensive, Sri Lanka fought it’s war,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ which was an internal war, to protect it’s own citizens and remove the scourge of terrorism that had plagued the country for almost thirty years.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ It is ironic that your paper also carried an article today stating that the NATO commander claims that he had no specific knowledge that Gaddafi was in Sirte when all the news media around the world were broadcasting for weeks that he was. Just last week there were elaborate diagrams etc. of the NATO air strike on Gaddafi’s convoy and reports of much jubilation in the west and by the western trained and funded rebels on the ground and the information that intelligence units called in the strike as they had been doing for months. How then can this claim of no knowledge be accepted?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ That Gaddafi was captured and then killed is known to the whole world. If he was captured alive in battleƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ should not the international rules of war apply?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Will the investigation that has just been announced be credible when NATO and their agents on the ground are going to be investigated?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Will all the civilians who were killed in the air strikes, and those who were surrounded and hounded from the air and land be accounted for or as usual will it be that accountability and transparency etc.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ is applicable only when it suits the west. If the NATO countries have any say in the investigations the world can be assured that it will be a sham. The other countries that make up the Commonwealth are well aware of this duplicity which is not new but has been the norm for decades.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
Mr. Harper it is stated has adopted a high profile stance threatening to boycott the 2013 summit. To attend or not is his choice, he is one of fifty-four.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Before 2013 it is hoped that Canada too will show accountability on human rights because in the case of Sri Lanka, terrorism was funded and supported from Canada soƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Canada is accountable. Regarding the unfolding situation in Libya too, will Canada be accountable? I quote from an editorial that I read today commenting on NATO and Libya – “Yugoslav Slobodan Milosevic, it may be recalled, had to bear individual criminal responsibility for war crimes, according to the ICC indictment against him, because he ‘knowingly and willfully’ participated in a joint criminal enterprise in Bosnia, ‘while being aware of the foreseeable consequences of this enterprise’. Milosevic was also accused of providing financial, material and logistical assistance to local Croatian-Serb bodies, including paramilitary groups and of creating and using armed forces to fight in Croatia”. In the case of Libya, there is not a shadow of doubt thatƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ NATO provided financial, material and logistical assistance to the local rebel forces and that they were well aware of foreseeable consequences of their enterprise. Are they then not in the same frame as Milosevic? Will the indictment by the ICC be the same – not likely based on those who are responsible.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
Yours truly,
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
Ira de Silva
London, Ontario
October 26th, 2011 at 7:17 pm
Sri Lanka should pull out of the ‘Commonwealth’ end of story.