The Obama Government's First Massacre
by Emir Sader
Monthly Review
One may have more or less sympathy for the new US
president, more or less believe in his words, more or less
value the change in the US government's tone when handling
its differences with other governments. But there is a
limit when it comes to judging the character of a president
and a government. That limit has now been reached, with the
massacre of at least 150 civilians in Afghanistan.
There had already been deaths, in the previous week, of
some hundreds of alleged militants at the hands of the
Pakistani Army, whose credibility is nil and makes one
suspect that the dead were largely civilians exhibited as
Taliban, in an attempt to minimally restore the army's
image. The US government can pretend to believe in that
version.
But now the stories of the Afghan massacre are coming from
the very authorities of Afghanistan, a country occupied by
Western troops, commanded by the US. At least 150 people --
the vast majority of them women and children, a clear
indication that they were civilians – became victims of
bombings by Western troops. Nothing can hide it, nor is
there any room for doubt.
What stance will the new US president take? Consider these
deaths as "unwanted collateral damage"? Or as "risks that
come with all military conflicts"? Or as "civilians who
were human shields for terrorists"? Or "open a rigorous
investigation to establish responsibilies"? Or "offer
apology to the Afghan people for this unforgivable
mistake"? Or "order relief efforts for involuntary victims
of war"?
Nothing will serve as excuse for Obama. Massacres are and
will be inevitable as long as the war of occupation
continues in Afghanistan. Having won the Democratic Party
primaries with a generally progressive platform, Obama went
on to face his Republican opponent, who accused him of
being "soft" and unprepared to accept what he considered to
be US interests in the world -- a synonym for "endless
wars" unleashed by the Bush government against all
international law. In order to extricate himself from that
accusation, while keeping his promise to withdraw the
troops from Iraq, Obama set up an equation according to
which the US shall withdraw its troops from Iraq and
transfer them to Afghanistan.
Strange reasoning. What difference is there between the two
epicenters of "endless wars," except that in the Afghan
case, still under the impact of the attacks that it had
suffered, the US obtained the UN Security Council's
endorsement for the invasion? Is there any other difference
between the two cases of invasion and subjection of the two
peoples to foreign troops? Are the governments of these two
countries freely chosen by their peoples or are they the
occupying authorities imposed, in both cases, by force of
arms? If some element of similarity had been missing, the
Obama government's first massacre came to confirm the
absolute similarity of the two cases.
The character of a person is made clear primarily by his
actions, and so is that of a government. We know so many
cases of people personally involved in torture who
continued to be good family men. Is it possible to regard
them as persons of good character? Can contingent private
virtues absolve public vices?
For those who are carried away by the captivating smile of
Obama and the elegance of Michelle, this first massacre
should serve as the test of his character, private and
public. The Obama government will not be the same once it
becomes impossible not to see the brutality of what the
troops of his country, under his command, are doing in
Afghanistan and in Iraq. No government can remain the same
once it begins to live with such massacres as this, for
which it is directly responsible. The relatives of the
Afghan dead -- women, children, old people, their families,
and the Afghan people -- expect and deserve a word from
Obama; their deaths didn't happen because of what was done
when Obama was just a kid, but because of his government
and his decision to intensify, rather than end, the brutal
occupation of Afghanistan.
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