Comments on: Why are we fighting in Afghanistan? http://www.crikey.com.au/2009/05/04/why-are-we-fighting-in-afghanistan/ now with extra source Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:03:37 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: James O'Neill http://www.crikey.com.au/2009/05/04/why-are-we-fighting-in-afghanistan/#comment-26012 James O'Neill Tue, 05 May 2009 23:43:29 +0000 http://www.crikey.com.au/?p=55163#comment-26012 There are important issues touched on in Mr Walters' article that really need more detailed analysis. For example, the Afghan's had a secular nationalist government which came to power in 1978. Almost immediately the CIA, asssited by Saudi and Pakistani military, launched a large scale intervention into Afghanistan on the side of the ousted feudal lords, reactionary tribal chieftains, mullahs and opium traffickers. In September 1979 CIA asset Amin seized power in a coup. He attempted to reverse the reforms of the Tariki government. Within 2 months he was overthrown. All this happened befoere the Soviet intervention which occured at the request of the government. Carter's national security adviser Brzeninski admitted that the US government was providing huge sums to Muslim extremists to subvert the Afghan government. One of the mujihideen leaders financed and supported by the US was Osama bin Laden. After the events of September 11 2001 as Mr Walters says, the Americans demanded that bin Laden be handed over. The ostensible reason for the demand was bin Laden's alleged masterminding of the 9/11 attacks. We now know that the attacks had been decided on in July 2001 and were linked to the refusal of the Taliban government to agree to Unical's pipeline plans. Two major executives of Unical were Condi Rice and Hamid Khazai. The Taliban not unreasonably demanded evidence of OBL's involvement. The Americans refused. It is important to note that the FBI's website does not list OBL as wanted for the 9/11 attacks. When they were questioned about this they replied that they had "no hard evidence" linking OBL to 9/11. Colin Powell promised a White Paper on the evidence of OBL's involvement in 9/11 and had to withdraw that promise very soon after. The British duly stepped in and produced a document that even they admitted would not stand up in a court of law. Good enough to wage war on apparently, but not good enough for a court. There is plenty of evidence as to the true source of the 9/11 attacks, not that you will find any of that in the Australian media. The UN Charter provides a limited legal basis for countries to attack another. Neither of the conditions permitted by the Charter pertain here. In short the involvement of Australia in Afghanistan has no foundation in international law and is therefore illegal. The ostensible reasons are manifestly false and significantly have changed over the 7+ years we have been engaged in this futile and illegal exercise. The time is long past when the involvement of Australia in Afghanistan is subject to critical scrutiny and Mr Walters' article is to be commended on that basis. Much however remains to be said and done. There are important issues touched on in Mr Walters’ article that really need more detailed analysis. For example, the Afghan’s had a secular nationalist government which came to power in 1978. Almost immediately the CIA, asssited by Saudi and Pakistani military, launched a large scale intervention into Afghanistan on the side of the ousted feudal lords, reactionary tribal chieftains, mullahs and opium traffickers. In September 1979 CIA asset Amin seized power in a coup. He attempted to reverse the reforms of the Tariki government. Within 2 months he was overthrown. All this happened befoere the Soviet intervention which occured at the request of the government. Carter’s national security adviser Brzeninski admitted that the US government was providing huge sums to Muslim extremists to subvert the Afghan government. One of the mujihideen leaders financed and supported by the US was Osama bin Laden.
After the events of September 11 2001 as Mr Walters says, the Americans demanded that bin Laden be handed over. The ostensible reason for the demand was bin Laden’s alleged masterminding of the 9/11 attacks. We now know that the attacks had been decided on in July 2001 and were linked to the refusal of the Taliban government to agree to Unical’s pipeline plans. Two major executives of Unical were Condi Rice and Hamid Khazai. The Taliban not unreasonably demanded evidence of OBL’s involvement. The Americans refused.
It is important to note that the FBI’s website does not list OBL as wanted for the 9/11 attacks. When they were questioned about this they replied that they had “no hard evidence” linking OBL to 9/11.
Colin Powell promised a White Paper on the evidence of OBL’s involvement in 9/11 and had to withdraw that promise very soon after. The British duly stepped in and produced a document that even they admitted would not stand up in a court of law. Good enough to wage war on apparently, but not good enough for a court. There is plenty of evidence as to the true source of the 9/11 attacks, not that you will find any of that in the Australian media.
The UN Charter provides a limited legal basis for countries to attack another. Neither of the conditions permitted by the Charter pertain here.
In short the involvement of Australia in Afghanistan has no foundation in international law and is therefore illegal. The ostensible reasons are manifestly false and significantly have changed over the 7+ years we have been engaged in this futile and illegal exercise.
The time is long past when the involvement of Australia in Afghanistan is subject to critical scrutiny and Mr Walters’ article is to be commended on that basis. Much however remains to be said and done.

]]> By: michael crook http://www.crikey.com.au/2009/05/04/why-are-we-fighting-in-afghanistan/#comment-25943 michael crook Tue, 05 May 2009 04:06:43 +0000 http://www.crikey.com.au/?p=55163#comment-25943 I liked the article very much. The warlords and remnants of the Northern Alliance who control much of Afghanistan are certainly no better than the Taliban, and in many ways a lot worse, eg It appears that they are the ones responsible for the return to pre-Taliban levels of opium production. The real point is here though, what are we doing there and do we have any justification for being there. The answer to 1/ is: because the US wants us there, and 2/ NO. It is time perhaps that we learned the lessons that Cuba learned after Angola, that exporting doctors and teachers will win you lot more friends than exporting cluster bombs and hate. Mike Crook I liked the article very much. The warlords and remnants of the Northern Alliance who control much of Afghanistan are certainly no better than the Taliban, and in many ways a lot worse, eg It appears that they are the ones responsible for the return to pre-Taliban levels of opium production. The real point is here though, what are we doing there and do we have any justification for being there. The answer to 1/ is: because the US wants us there, and 2/ NO. It is time perhaps that we learned the lessons that Cuba learned after Angola, that exporting doctors and teachers will win you lot more friends than exporting cluster bombs and hate.

Mike Crook

]]> By: Gavin Moodie http://www.crikey.com.au/2009/05/04/why-are-we-fighting-in-afghanistan/#comment-25929 Gavin Moodie Mon, 04 May 2009 13:24:15 +0000 http://www.crikey.com.au/?p=55163#comment-25929 But surely Walters' piece was dovish, not that of a fairweather hawk. Afghanistan's underlying problem is its very weak economy, so you should start by fixing that if you want to meddle in other peoples' affairs. But surely Walters’ piece was dovish, not that of a fairweather hawk. Afghanistan’s underlying problem is its very weak economy, so you should start by fixing that if you want to meddle in other peoples’ affairs.

]]> By: Daniel Batt http://www.crikey.com.au/2009/05/04/why-are-we-fighting-in-afghanistan/#comment-25917 Daniel Batt Mon, 04 May 2009 09:09:39 +0000 http://www.crikey.com.au/?p=55163#comment-25917 Oh, how I loathe the fair-weather hawks who gleefully recapture 1839 and the British Army. Doesn't that just prove how right we have all been all this time? Yeah, right. Look, once the Taliban staked its future with al Qaida, that was it for the Alliance: no more of either could be allowed to rule Afghanistan. The whole problem has been the excursis into Iraq and the one to two trillion dollars that could have transformed Afghanistan getting lost in Iraq and thousands and thousands of US casualties. While it is five years too late, there is still time to fight the Afghan war properly and let freedom and justice reign where it can. The Afghanis often talk of being left to the Taliban after the US used them to drive out the Soviet Union. While things might get tough, this is the one site in the world where the Koran is being literally enacted in a brutopia that can be fought. Those who want to walk away betray the regular Afghanis with their peverse reasoning. It's time we finished more ethically what we started less well. Oh, how I loathe the fair-weather hawks who gleefully recapture 1839 and the British Army. Doesn’t that just prove how right we have all been all this time?

Yeah, right. Look, once the Taliban staked its future with al Qaida, that was it for the Alliance: no more of either could be allowed to rule Afghanistan.

The whole problem has been the excursis into Iraq and the one to two trillion dollars that could have transformed Afghanistan getting lost in Iraq and thousands and thousands of US casualties.

While it is five years too late, there is still time to fight the Afghan war properly and let freedom and justice reign where it can. The Afghanis often talk of being left to the Taliban after the US used them to drive out the Soviet Union. While things might get tough, this is the one site in the world where the Koran is being literally enacted in a brutopia that can be fought. Those who want to walk away betray the regular Afghanis with their peverse reasoning. It’s time we finished more ethically what we started less well.

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