Events in Indo/China, Libya, Nigeria. Are they perchance related? – Tim Veater
Events in Indo/China, Libya, Nigeria. Are they perchance related? – Tim Veater
Events in Indo/China, Libya, Nigeria. Are they perchance related? Tim Veater.
Now since writing the piece on message and media, I started to think about in
addition to America’s involvement in Iran (“the clock is ticking”), Syria –
another meeting of the “eleven friends”, Ukraine where direct CIA and military
“advice” has been admitted, and Egypt where the military with American backing
are now firmly in control, we have four more high profile international
developments from which we maybe discern a pattern:
1. CHINA. “Chinese military officials charged with stealing US data as
tensions escalate. Eric Holder says the case ‘demands an aggressive response’
but Beijing calls allegations ‘extremely ridiculous’. The US Justice Department
has indicted five Chinese military officers with stealing data from six US
companies and unions on Monday, inaugurating a major escalation of tensions with
China over economic spycraft. “(1)
Note not only the “message” but also the “medium”. The US has rejected
diplomatic channels. The language is confrontational. The venue very public,
designed to make as big a “splash” as possible. The decision to name and
photograph employees of the Chinese military is a direct challenge and
humiliation to its government. The “Wanted” poster is immediately reminiscent of
the “9/11 hijackers” and George Bush’s comment “Wanted dead or alive” and we
know where that led. The announcement was made by the Attorney General Eric
Holder, giving it a semblance of independence and respectability. In the light
of what we now know about 9/11 and NSA/CIA cyber monitoring via Snowden, it is
hard not to view the US position other than a cynical and hypocritical intended
to raise tensions with China.
Nor should this event be seen in isolation from the disputes that have recently
flared up with Japan and Vietnam over territory and resources, nor the still
unresolved mystery of the loss of MH 370.
Why are all these issues coming together at this time? Are they just
coincidental or part of a strategic global plan? Is it a clash of ideals or just
the outward manifestation of long developing realisation of super power politics
and the need to secure limited natural resources? The unequal balance of trade
between the US and China and the huge dependence of the former to maintain its
currency and economy cannot be unrelated to what is happening surely? We have to
ask what advantage is it to the US to cause a deterioration of relations with
its main lifeline? It runs completely counter to its stated foreign policy
position since Nixon.
2. THAILAND. “Thailand’s army has declared martial law “to keep law and order”
after six months of violent unrest and anti-government demonstrations and one
day after the country’s caretaker prime minister refused to step down. Three
people were killed in explosions and a shooting attack against anti-government
demonstrators last Wednesday as the country’s electoral commission called for a
July election rerun to be postponed. The deaths raised the nationwide toll since
protests began last November to 27 dead and 800 wounded.”
“A senior US defence official told the Associated Press news agency last week
that the US was “reasonably confident” that Thailand’s military would not launch
a coup, although analysts have warned the nation’s political crisis could
trigger armed conflict. ” (2)
US involvement in Indo/China since the Second World War is notorious for its
savagery and deceit. As usual whilst professing support for democracy and
“freedom”, it has tended to back corrupt and dictatorial regimes that represent
a wealthy and influential elite. The current coup is a re-run of this familiar
pattern and given US history in the region, it is beyond belief that it is not
involved and supportive of the military takeover whilst publicly claiming the
opposite.
“Government corruption is not just a problem in Thailand, it is a way of life.
Like every bureaucracy, the Thai government has elaborate organizational charts
marking out neatly delineated areas of authority. To the uninformed observer
it seems to function much like any other meritocracy, with university graduates
occupying government posts, careers advancing step by step, and proposals
moving up and down the hierarchy in a more or less orderly fashion. But all of
these these charts and procedures were (and are) a façade, behind which
operate powerful military cliques whose driving ambition is to expropriate
enough money, power, and patronage to become a government within the
government. These cliques are not ideological factions, coteries of plotters
united by greed and ambition.” (3)
3. LIBYA. “Fears of a confrontation between rival groups mounted when the
commander of the Tobruk air base announced he was putting it under the command
of Khalifa Hiftar, a US-linked figure said to have been behind an attack on the
parliament in Tripoli during weekend fighting which left about 80 people dead
and 160 injured.”
“Gunmen first stormed then suspended Libya’s parliament on Sunday in an
anti-government rebellion that is spreading across the country.”
“Most of the casualties were in Benghazi, Libya’s second city, where Hiftar’s
men attacked Ansar al-Sharia, a fundamentalist organisation that has been
designated by the US as a terrorist group.”
“The former general, who defected to the US in the 1980s, took part in the
Nato-backed uprising against former president Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, but says
the congress (parliament) in Tripoli lacks legitimacy. He has insisted he is not
trying overthrow the government but to fight terrorists.” (4)
Who could disagree that here we see a sequel to the Libyan “revolution”,
engineered, aided and abetted by western nations on a pretext of humanitarian
protection, being played out. Khalifa Hiftarby is clearly a CIA asset working
under American direction to gain control over valuable oil assets in
particularly the eastern part of the country. For cover, the now threadbare
excuse of “fighting terrorists”. Does anyone believe that nonsense any longer?
This is about American hegemony in the world, and particularly the control of
oil.
Again from the Guardian article: “Hiftar sits at the head of a loose coalition
of tribal and army forces united by little more than opposition to the
Islamist-led congress. He enjoys solid support in the eastern province of
Cyrenaica and in the west, both crucial because these are the oil-producing
areas that have mounted a 10-month oil blockade that has strangled state
finances.”
“”When Gaddafi fell, the different militias did not share a vision of how the
country should evolve,” Prof Youcef Bouandel of Qatar Univeristy told Al-Jazeera
TV. “All the signs are that it is a failed state. The signs are that the
violence is going to continue.”
Catherine Ashton, the EU’s foreign policy chief, expressed concern about the
“continuing deterioration” and the European Council for Foreign Relations
warned: “With reliance on Russian energy supplies now in question across Europe,
the EU cannot afford to have a failed state crucial to energy security and to
stemming illegal trafficking 350 km south of Malta and Lampedusa.”
So you see “the EU cannot afford to…” Having helped to create a failed state,
how disingenuous is that of “Lady Ashton” and what does her statement portend –
further military involvement?
4. NIGERIA. “Nigerian president faces increasing pressure over kidnapped
schoolgirls. Calls for Goodluck Jonathan to stand down over a perceived failure
to react quickly to Boko Haram’s mass abduction. Activists from the
#BringBackOurGirls group said they will present a “charter of demands” to the
president, including calls for a more effective presence in militant strongholds
and greater engagement with the community of Chibok, where the girls were
abducted by Islamic militants more than a month ago. ”
” A march planned for Thursday, risks provoking a harsh response from the
security forces. Last week police in Abuja moved in to disrupt a rally and
disperse protesters who were shouting, “Bring back out girls now and alive!” (5)
So we have a repeat of the expected elements. Radical Islam. Violence and a
shocking event to western sensibilities, this time the abduction of girls from a
Catholic schools. Calls by western leaders, even the US Presidents wife that we
“must do something”. Britain and America deploy “advisers” and spy planes.
Public agitation and unrest widely publicised leading to calls for either a
tyrant or incompetent or corrupt leader to be replaced. Heavy handed government
response to protests leads to shooting and deaths which in turn leads to a
spiral of public disorder and riots leading to effective foreign takeover and
large scale military involvement strictly for humanitarian and anti-terrorist
purposes. Oh and not forgetting OIL. Countries can be as corrupt, violent and
chaotic as they like, but if they have oil our consciences are suddenly pricked
and the case for intervention becomes overwhelming. Strange isn’t it?
Another strange co-incidence is the fact that this latest terrorist outfit “Boko
Haram” (6) has become increasingly violent but no-one seems to pose the question
where it is getting its arms and financial support from and no one appears
interested in finding it out. There is no doubt that the violence is increasing.
What is not so clear is who is ultimately behind it. One thing is apparent, it
is led by a man called Abubakar_Shekau who is reported to be an extreme
Muslim and has been put on America’s most wanted list.(7)
However rather strangely other authoritative sources state he is not even a
Muslin which is enough to make the ALARM BELLS RING.(8) He can be viewed here
(9) Rather surprisingly he is obviously quite fluent in English. There are
obvious similarities with the tirade from from the Woolwich killer Michael
Adebolajo with whom he shares certain commonalities(10) This is in direct
contradiction of a recent CNN report as follows: ” He’s a polyglot
He speaks several languages fluently: Hausa, Fulani, Kanuri and Arabic. But
English isn’t one of them. After all, he heads a group that rejects all things
Western.”
It adds: “Analysts describe Shekau as a loner and a master of disguise. He does
not speak directly with members, opting to communicate through a few select
confidants. He uses many aliases: Abu Bakr Skikwa, Imam Abu Bakr Shiku and Abu
Muhammad Abu Bakr Bin Muhammad Al Shakwi Al Muslimi Bishku among them.” (12)
Further alarm bells ring in response to this BBC report: “”He hardly talks, he
is fearless,” says Ahmed Salkida, a journalist with such good access to Boko
Haram that, at one stage, he was suspected of being a member. He says he only
escaped summary execution by police in Maiduguri after an intelligence officer
intervened.” (11)
Now why would an intelligence officer – it does not reveal of what nationality –
save and presumably release him after his boss, Muhammad Yusuf, died in police
custody in July 2009? Shekau was once said to have been killed by security
forces in 2009 – only for him to reappear in videos posted on the internet less
than a year later as Boko Haram’s new leader.
Questions arise in my head. Is it the same man or was he replaced by a stooge of
western agencies. History tells us this is not as far fetched as it might seem.
That he is now a loose canon and a sadistic murderer seems to be generally
agreed. Whether he is who he says he is and ultimately operating at the behest
of those he describes, is far less certain given the murky ground on which we
tread.
CONCLUSION
The case is made: America and the European block, with a little help from the
Israelis, have engineered unrest and chaos throughout north Africa and the
Middle East, replacing unhelpful tyrants with helpful ones. On a strategic level
it appears to have been successful. On a human, economic and social level for
the countries involved, it has been an utter disaster. The same game plan has
and is being extended to Syria and the Ukraine it would seem, with Iran, and
now Nigeria and Indo-China in the pipe-line. Are the electorates of our
countries being advised of the strategy or its dangers? I think not. Perhaps
they should be. END.
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