Gideon Polya, “Iraq Invasion 5th Anniversary. World writers slam Iraqi Holocaust”, MWC News, submitted 17 March 2008.
Iraq Invasion 5th Anniversary. World writers slam Iraqi Holocaust
Australian, British and American forces illegally invaded the sovereign nation of Iraq on 20 March 2003. The invasion occurred after a 12 year period of bombing and sanctions associated with 1.7 million excess deaths (avoidable deaths, deaths that should not have happened), 1.2 million under-5 infant deaths and 0.2 million violent deaths in the Gulf War. The excuses for war were numerous and FALSE and it is now estimated by several US scholarly think tanks that the Bush Administration told 935 LIES about Iraq in the 2 years after the 9/11 attacks (for which there is NO evidence of any Iraqi involvement).
Five years on and the cost of this illegal invasion based on falsehood is horrendous. A recent Congressional Report informed by US Economics Nobel Laureate Professor Joseph Stiglitz (Columbia University) and Professor Linda Bilmes (Harvard University) estimated an accrual cost of $3.5 trillion. American war dead total about 4,000 and the wounded total about 30,000.
However what is utterly horrifying is the Indigenous Iraqi human cost as of March 2008. Authoritative estimates from the world’s top Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, USA and the UK ORB organization are of 5-year violent deaths of 0.91 million and 1.36 million, respectively, and estimates from UN Population Division data are of 5-year non-violent excess deaths of 0.77 - 0.87 million.
Thus post-invasion violent plus non-violent excess deaths in Occupied Iraq total 1.7 - 2.2 million as of March 2008. In addition one can estimate 1.7 million Sanctions excess deaths (1990-2003), 1.2 million under-5 infant deaths under Sanctions, 0.2 million Iraqi Gulf War deaths, 0.6 million post-invasion infant deaths (UNICEF) and 4.5 million Iraqi refugees (UNHCR).
This is an ongoing Iraqi Holocaust and an ongoing Iraqi Genocide as defined by the UN Genocide Convention which defines “genocide” as involving “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group” (sustained, remorseless killing being clearly intentional) (see: http://www.edwebproject.org/sideshow/genocide/convention.html ).
As a decent, anti-racist, humanitarian scientist, for 5 years I have endlessly reported the mounting carnage to media throughout the world and to Australian politicians. MPs from the decent pro-Peace, pro-Humanity, pro-Planet Australian Greens and Australian Democrat parties have asked questions about Iraqi deaths on my behalf in the Federal Parliament and several formerly Opposition MPs have also raised the issue of Iraqi deaths in Parliament or in Committee. The highly-intimidated Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) permitted ne to make a nation-wide broadcast entitled “Australian complicity in Iraq mass mortality” (see: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/science/ockham/stories/s1445960.htm ) and I occasionally got several letters (out of THOUSANDS sent in total) published in the Mainstream media about this ongoing carnage. The rest has been Silence.
Do an Australia-specific Google Search for the phrase “Iraqi Holocaust” or “Iraqi Genocide” and you will get about 20 and 90 URLs, respectively. However do an Australia-specific Google Search for the phrase “weapons of mass destruction” – the BIG LIE used to justify Australian invasion of Iraq – and you will get about 73,000 URLs. “Politically correct” racist (PC racist), war criminal, climate criminal Australia is indeed the Land of Flies, Lies and Slies (spin-based untruths).
So much for insignificant me and my largely unsuccessful attempts to tell racist White Australia about the carnage of the Iraqi Genocide. The racism, lying and holocaust-ignoring of the Australian Mainstream media reflects that of the racist, lying Mainstream media in the other Western Murdochracies.
However what have the greatest minds of the World been saying about the Iraqi Holocaust, the Iraqi Genocide? Of particular note are those outstanding writers and scholars who actually USE this terminology e.g. Dr Mark Weissbrot (chairman of Just Foreign Policy.org, a group of distinguished American scholars and representatives that reports believable estimates of Iraqi deaths due to the US invasion), Dr Paul Craig Roberts (outstanding conservative economist, Father of Reaganomics, editor, journalist, academic and author of numerous books) and John Pilger (outstanding, award-winning expatriate Australian writer based in the UK ).
The Brussels Tribunal on Iraq is a humanitarian organization of world intellectuals opposed to the war criminal occupation of Iraq. On the occasion of the 5th Anniversary of the invasion of Iraq it asked many eminent writers to make brief 350-word comments ( I was very privileged and honored to be asked to make a comment). The statements have been published and people are encouraged to disseminate these statements in the interest of Humanity (see: http://www.brusselstribunal.org/Messages190308.htm ).
The lead statement from the Brussels Tribunal, the Preface to “95 statements from all over the world, in solidarity with the people of Iraq”, reads as follows: “20th March 2003 – 5.30 am: the American army and its allies bombard Baghdad. The War in Iraq has started. The blood and ink flow in abundance. Five years later, we, as writers, are sending a message to the people. We would like to appeal to each and every one of you and make you think.”
Here is a selection of comments from some very famous humanitarian writers.
Tariq Ali (English/Pakistani writer, historian, journalist and film-maker): “Now we know the exact costs of war and occupation. It has cost the United States and its allies three trillion dollars to kill one million dead Iraqis, wound a million more and drive two million Iraqis out of their country as refugees. The human cost of this war would, if some other country were doing it, be labelled genocide. The leaders who went to war would be tried as war criminals, but this is the war of 'western civilization' against Islamo-barbarians, Islamo-fascists and all the other names given to the new enemy. Abusing, defaming, killing Muslims is now calmly accepted in Euro-American culture. The people who do this have institutionalised the judeocide of the Second World War as the only universal crime. As long as you denounce that crime, you can commit your own crimes today. This is the world we live in. This is the world of double-standards. Why the surprise when those under fire refuse to accept these standards. A modest proposal. Perhaps the Nobel Prize Committee should institute a new award: the Nobel Prize for War Crimes.”
Felicity Arbuthnot (a major Journalist who has visited, written and broadcasted widely on Iraq, since the 1991 Gulf War): “Former Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson, chief U.S. prosecutor at the first Nuremberg trial, reminds that waging aggressive war is ' the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.
The calls for legal redress with Bush and Blair at the top of the list are growing. In a recent move, two Vermont towns, Battleboro and Marlboro voted to impeach President Bush. In Britain too there are constructive moves to bring former Prime Minister Blair to justice. Such actions may be dismissed as 'the mouse that roared', but those who remember the film will recall that the 'mouse' won.”
Dahr Jamail (non embedded War Journalist in Iraq, USA): “In five years the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq has killed over one million Iraqis, and displaced over four million. There is no end in sight for this brutal, immoral and unlawful occupation, if the U.S. Government is allowed its' way. It is up to all of us to redouble our efforts and our demands for justice as we acknowledge this tragic anniversary.”
And, finally, the most succinct and devastating summary from 2005 Nobel laureate for Literature, Jewish British playwright Harold Pinter:
“The invasion of Iraq was a criminal act.
The occupation of Iraq remains a criminal act.
The British government under Blair and the United States administration are war criminals.
It’s as simple as that.”
Please bring these statements to the attention of everyone you can.