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--Mr president, please withdraw and join the coalition of the just
Letter from Toronto By Opiyo Oloya
Dear Mr President, in the wake of relentless bomb-attacks on Iraq by American and British forces which have killed and terrorised hundreds of innocent Iraqi civilians, it is time for Uganda to withdraw its support from the so-called Coalition of the Willing. Such an about-face may sound cowardly, even disloyal to the US and British but a cool-headed analysis will show that it makes perfect sense. Foremost, regional and continental cooperation are the cornerstones of Uganda’s foreign policy. It is our immediate neighbours and those with whom we share the African continent that are our closest allies, friends and economic partners. Internationally, we share solidarity and kinship with those nations in Asia and Latin America who, like us, are on the threshold of development. Politically, therefore, Uganda cannot isolate itself from its traditional allies in Africa, friends in the Middle East, Asia and Latin America while moving closer to Britain and the US. For instance, as a very well regarded and staunch member of the 116-strong Non-Aligned Movement, Uganda was behind the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on Iraq adopted last February at the 13th NAM Summit in Malaysia that called for “diplomacy to diffuse the conflict”. Today, Uganda is one of only 16 NAM members that appear to condone the carnage in Iraq. It should also be noted that Uganda, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Rwanda stand alone like lepers in support of the war in Iraq from the 20-member Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the 53-member African Union (AU). Secondly, apart from Britain, Australia, Spain, South Korea and Japan, the majority of the so-called “Coalition of the willing” is in it for the money and will receive U.S. aid under Bush’s budget request. For example, Israel will receive $1billion in direct military assistance and $9 billion in loan guarantees that could help Israel weather the economic shock of a war with
Iraq. Other beneficiaries include Jordan $700 million, Egypt $300 million, Turkey $9.5 billion in direct loans or loan guarantees, Pakistan $175 million for border security and to buy aircraft and radar systems, Afghanistan $127 million, Colombia $34 million to combat drug trafficking and terrorist activity, and $15 million each to Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. Other beneficiaries include Romania, Slovakia, and the Philippines, according to White House documents. Given the fact that these countries stand to gain financially from the war, one must question their motivation regarding the war on Iraq. Is this war really about fighting terrorism and disarming Iraq? From all appearance, the “coalition of the willing” seems more like the “coalition for blood money and profits”. Which then begs the question, why is Uganda doing this if not for the money like everyone else?
You have been very clear from the beginning that Uganda’s motivation is to support the global war on terrorism.
In this regard, you are not alone as virtually every freedom loving country supports the fight against terror groups such as Al Qaeda. However, the repressive government of Saddam Hussein has never been linked to any terror group, a point conceded by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
In fact, several very close US-allies such as Canada, Mexico and Chile have refused to join this war precisely because the US failed to make a credible case to show that Baghdad promoted terror and therefore must be attacked now. In essence, Mr. President, Coalition forces are now using your original support for the fight against global terror as a blank cheque to wage war on a sovereign nation. While this may seem okay because the war is far from Uganda, it presents a potential problem in the future. For example, in the current tension between Rwanda and Uganda, Kigali could invade Uganda on the pretext of fighting terrorism. In such a scenario, the Americans already racked by guilt for not doing enough to stem off the Rwanda genoc
ide in 1994, will almost certainly support Kigali. More important, if we accept the argument that it is okay to wage war on Iraq because the US says Saddam Hussein is guilty of harbouring weapons of mass destruction, we also accept the argument that in a world with just one dominant superpower you are guilty as charged by that superpower. It sounds simplistic, but in the affairs of nations, the simple arguments often carry the day. Let us not shoot ourselves in the foot by appearing to condone the aggression of a superpower on a smaller albeit oil-rich nation. Mr. President, Uganda has no business being listed among the coalition of the willing. Instead, we should follow the example of the Slovenian Prime Minister Anton Rop who last week said the United States had made a mistake when it named his country as part of the coalition of the willing. Consequently, Slovenia is no longer listed among coalition partners.
Mr. President, in closing, Uganda must stand tall to be counted among those small countries like Slovenia, Cameroon, Angola, and Guinea that have shown tremendous courage under fire to stand for justice and fair play. Uganda must pull out the “Coalition of the Willing” now and join the 4.8 billion strong who make up the Coalition of the Just.
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Ends
Published on: Wednesday, 2nd April, 2003 |
