Empire stands stripped
The United States is supposed to be the Leader of the
Free World, the haven of democracy, freedom, human rights and
good governance. It is looked upon as a role model by many the
world over, including those in the Third World.
Further, the United States claims to be so. It has even a
declared policy of exporting democracy, human rights and good
governance for which a myriad of ways and means is used
including the grants of aid to promote those hallowed values.
Sceptics, specially those in the Left, however, have
challenged these declared intentions and have accused it of
double-dealing. They charge that the United States under a
facade of promoting democracy and human rights is following a
policy of world domination and hegemony, installing and
defending dictatorial regimes and undermining those regimes that
do not pay obeisance to Washington
From Vietnam to Indonesia in Asia, from Chile to Peru in
South America or from Iran to Israel in West Asia or from Egypt
to Congo in Africa one could give ample examples to show how the
United States propped up dictatorial regimes, invaded
independent countries and trampled democracy and human rights in
the name of democracy and anti-Communism. Contemporary history
thus substantiates the claims of the critics over the official
claims of the US.
However, the world at large, including the critics paused and
hoped for change when Barack Obama became the President of the
United States promising change. Even such harsh critics of the
Empire such as Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez extended a welcome
hand. Halfway through his term President Obama has been either
unable to effect the promised change being a prisoner of the
establishment run by Wall Street and the Pentagon or he seems to
have become a willing partner in continuing the same old foreign
policy followed by his predecessor.
It is in this context that the exposures resulting from the
publishing of US diplomatic documents by the whistleblower
website WikiLeaks has to be viewed. The new revelations confirm
the worst fears of the sceptics. The empire stands stripped and
exposed.
The documents not only contain evidence of espionage carried
out by the State Department against friendly countries and even
the United States in violation of accepted norms of
international relations. The rhetoric and overt policies have
been heavily compromised. The list of countries about whose
leaders and dealings US diplomats have sent adverse and
unfriendly comments include China, Russia, France, Germany, the
United Kingdom, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia and many more.
It is truly an embarrassing moment for President Obama and
his team despite the possibility that the President may not have
been privy to some documentation. The Secretary of State Hilary
Clinton and the State Department, however, stands accused of
unethical and dangerous conduct.
The State Department has found fault with the whistleblower
and threatened legal action. Whether he has breached United
States law or not is another matter. WikiLeaks should be
congratulated for exposing the hypocrisy and double standards of
Washington. The website has only stood up for the Right to
Information of the public. It's an act of bravery in defence of
human rights.
Of course, this is not the first time that the United States
had to face embarrassment from such exposures. At every such
instance it has, however, been able to wriggle out with
considerable ease. The first was the revelation that the United
States knew there were no Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) in
Iraq prior to invading that hapless country on the pretext of
finding WMDs. This was followed by indecent interrogations and
detention under sadistic conditions of Prisoners of War at Abu
Ghraib prison. This was followed by torture at Guantanamo
prison. Abu Ghraib type detentions still continue. Guantanamo
prison has not been closed though promised by Obama during his
election time. This is despite strict strictures by a UN Panel
of Experts.
Already the United States is sounding its allies in crime to
conduct a witchhunt on Julian Assange, the whistleblower and
feed stories to the international media to discredit the
exposures as unethical and unwarranted. He has been also
labelled an anarchist. More in the same vein would follow.
Had another country faced such an exposure the public would
have been bored to death from the strictures and condemnations
emanating from Capitol Hill within the first 24-hours itself.
The United States is still the sole superpower. Therefore, even
the silence of the affected could be understood. Nevertheless,
the Empire stands stripped.
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