Kia ora,
The war in Iraq is and the government’s decision to send NZ troops there has not been made public but all the signs that the decision has been made are there. They just don’t show videos of it.
We didn’t send troops to Saudi Arabia yet their record of ill-treatment of their own civilians let alone the ones they’re at odds with is well documented as are most of the similar acts are in at least a dozen countries – the only difference is they don’t make videos of it – or if they do, they don’t publicise them.
Because the government wants to buddy up with the United States we fly a flag at half-mast when the President of Saudi Arabia dies, turn a bind eye to USA ongoing torture of prisoners in whichever of their secret prisons they are held. This is well documented, everyone knows it’s continuing, no-one does anything. I have not heard one NZ politician utter a word about this. It’s the elephant in the room of diplomacy. They just don’t show videos of it.
If we are to align ourselves with torturers, if we are to align our country with people who rape, torture and kill women for going to school or driving a car or marrying someone their family doesn’t want them to in you name the country, then we are saying these things don’t matter, we are saying the only thing that matters is to be able to say ‘I had dinner at the White House’. They show clips of this.
At this time when, it seems, everyone on radio, film, TV, is paying tribute to the men and women who fought or nursed or worked in the First World War, and laments the loss of young lives, caused in large part by old men’s incompetence, it is truly horribly ironic that we are going to be party to doing this again.
In a hundred year’s time will New Zealand be having another such time of remembrance? Will the videos of what is actually going on be shown then?
Renée
