Fearless – The peace movement and war propaganda

In view of the escalating cold war against Russia and the numerous imperialistic interventions by NATO countries and their allies, the question as to the peace movement’s functions has taken on a new urgency. One component of the war propaganda in all past military and political interventions and attempts at regime change has been to ensure that the forces which support peace are unable to mobilise. Admittedly, these efforts have sometimes succeeded. In the case of Libya in 2011, those who pointed out that the claim that Muammar al-Gaddafi was bombing his own population was a war lie were discredited as supporters of the Libyan regime. In the case of Syria, those who pointed out early on that radical Islamist terror groups were being supported by the West, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar were said to be fans of Bashar al-Assad. And those who pointed out that the West is primarily responsible for the conflict in Ukraine were vilified as sympathisers with Russia. A simple propaganda scheme, but an effective one, since it is omnipresent in the mainstream media and advanced by both the Federal Government and the Greens.

This offers at least a partial explanation for the fact that, while a large majority of the population is opposed to NATO’s build-up on Russia’s border, for example, the number of people taking to the streets has so far been limited. Those who want a new spring for peace in this country must advocate a new fearlessness on the part of the peace movement. This would mean immunising ourselves against war lies, instead of being driven by war propaganda into maintaining an equal distance from both NATO and Russia. The main enemy is at home. The warmongers in Germany are seizing every opportunity to exploit the rise of a Germany which engages in military intervention around the world alongside the United States. These warmongers are helping to drive forward the policy of escalation with regard to Russia, and are seeking to align themselves with the US policy of war in the relevant transatlantic networks. The networks in question are certainly not insignificant organisations promoting German-American school exchanges. And these warmongers are now describing the Saudi bombing of Yemen, in which a great many civilians are dying, as legitimate, and are continuing to supply arms to the Gulf dictatorships. Fearlessness is the order of the day. Then the peace movement, too, will experience a new spring.

The author is spokeswoman on international relations for the Left Party parliamentary group in the German Bundestag, and a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs

Quelle: junge welt