What happened to the war that would end all
wars? The Twentieth Century proved itself
to be the bloodiest of all centuries, marred
by two World Wars (1914-1918; 1939-1945),
Colonial and post-Colonial conflicts (Algeria,
the Boer War, Vietnam, Falkland Islands, etc.),
the barbarism of genocide (the Jewish and
Armenian holocaust), ‘ethnic cleansing’
(former Yugoslavia), and a variety of small
and large scale civil conflicts (Sudan, Sierra
Leone, etc.). With the recent (re)invasion
of Iraq by American and British forces (accompanied
by an assortment of satraps), we can see that
the Twenty First century will not be one of
peace.
For
most of the Twentieth Century, as well as
preceding ones, war was often accompanied
by nationalistic fervour inspired by ruling
elites justifying the mobilization of hundreds
of thousands of troops – often in the
interest of peace. Even during the carnage
of the first “Great” War, the
deplorable conditions of the Front were masked
by propaganda and never confronted by any
serious or broad ranged anti-war sentiment.
During the 1960’s however, with America’s
involvement in Vietnam, the peace and anti-war
movements truly gained wide acceptance and
provided an antidote to unchallenged nationalism
and jingoism, especially in Western nations
(Western Europe, Canada and the United States).
With the introduction and proliferation of
mass communications such as the Internet,
fax and wireless technology, wars in the most
remote portions of the globe cannot remain
hidden from the world – not even the
most horrendous atrocities that occupying
forces do their best to conceal. Though globalization
cannot be solely blamed for war, genocide,
or civil repression, it surely has not meant
the eradication of such realities. With corporate
entities playing an even larger role in international
affairs as market relations and institutions
become increasingly powerful and hold sway
over national policies, it is no coincidence
that companies such as Halliburton for instance,
are intricate and friendly partners within
the close knit military-industrial-globalization
complex.
Anti-globalization
and anti-war movements find themselves on
the same side of the line in many respects,
especially considering that the most powerful
nations are often the strongest proponents
of globalization. The mobilization of activists,
mass demonstrations, and education campaigns
in the two “anti-“ camps go hand
in hand. As the War Resisters League sees
it, “economic injustice, which is a
result of globalization, as one of the causes
of war and armed conflict. Therefore, as a
movement against war, we need to engage in
the struggle against economic globalization,
and join forces with anti globalization actors
coming from other movements and backgrounds.
At the same time we urge the anti globalization
movement to acknowledge the links between
globalization and militarism…”(1)
Endnotes:
(1) War Resisters League http://www.warresisters.org/nva0901-1.htm
Bread and Puppet Theatre
Food Not Bombs
The Nausea.com (shows the very graphic realities of war) (http://www.thenausea.com/)
War and the Anti-globalization Movement
http://www.geocities.com/youth4sa/s11-globalization.html
Pictures from the Anti-War Movements from around the World
http://www.ccmep.org/2002_articles/Iraq/102702_pictures_of_anti.htm
War Resisters League http://www.warresisters.org/nva0901-1.htm