[A-List] Central Asia: of good and bad dictators

["tony black" <tal@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

----- Original Message -----
From: <camp@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>

Sent: Thursday, May 19, 2005 4:00 PM
Subject: Central Asia: of good and bad dictators


> 1) Uzbek popular movement does not fit US designs
> 2) Analysis: the cycle of the WSF draws to a close
> 3) Ex-guru Toni Negri supports European Union
> 4) Preparatory meeting Iraqi Resistance conference
>
> ***
>
> 1) Of good and bad dictators
> Why the Uzbek popular movement does not fit US designs
>
> Only two weeks ago Bush, visiting Tbilissi, has been praising the series
of what he happened to call “democratic revolutions” in Ukraine, Georgia and
ultimately Kyrgyzstan. What he actually meant were palace coups within the
pro-US oligarchy using and canalising the popular discontent with the
dictatorial capitalists elites to bring to power puppets even more servile
to Washington – but not less corrupt. The most striking example was the
Ukraine where the movement against the oligarch Kutchma, who had sent troops
to Iraq to serve his masters, had chosen as its icon the main figure of the
mafia which enriched herself by stealing state property in connivance with
Kutchma, namely Timoshenko. No different in the other places. Under the
guise of “democratic revolution” opening the security valve for the popular
unrest was used to recycle the regime and to install even worse figures.
This was possible as the popular dissent had no organised form but could be
modelled by US-funded !
> NGOs according to the example of Otpor in Serbia half a decade ago.
>
> Now in Uzbekistan everything is different. Karimov is by far the most
cruel and corrupt tyrant of the region being tapped the new Tamerlan. (The
legendary last nomadic ruler of the Central Asian plains used to order
pyramids of skulls to be erected after battles to better terrify subdued
populations.) By extinguishing in the name of the war against “Islamic
terrorism” even the most moderate opposition he has been pleasing his
Washington masters. They have been pouring in year by year hundreds of
millions of dollars to military back the regime which in return handed over
the strategic Khanabad air base.
>
> The occasion of the recent revolt in the Fergana valley was the political
trial against quietist Islamic businessmen who by building a network of
Islamic charity organisations frightened the slaughterer of Tashkent. So he
cracked down also on those who did not only have renounced armed struggle
but also politics in general. Karimov’s dictatorship goes thus far that he
is closing down countless mosques while the population is turning back to
Islam. In this way he is denying the elementary right of religious
worshipping.
>
> While Karimov is claiming the eruption of popular unrest as usual on
“Islamic terrorists” it is actually a genuine expression of the quest of the
impoverished masses for livelihood and elementary political, religious and
cultural freedom. The problem for the US is that – different to other former
Soviet republics – that the movement is led by well-organised Islamic
anti-imperialist forces opposing both the US as well as Russian hegemony.
Where ever the people cannot be any more manipulated according to the
imperial designs, brute force is unleashed and all empty talk of “democracy”
evaporates.
>
> Although the US is engaged in also weakening its allies like Russia
wherever possible, the “anti-terrorist” alliance prevails. Consequently both
Washington as well as Moscow have confirmed their support to the mass
murderer who killed in Andijan alone more than 500 people in cold blood. It
is their dictator, thus a good one, according to the old imperial doctrine.
>
> The US support is not even altered by the fact that Karimov seems to have
understood that the slavish subordination to Washington is neither tenable
in front of the popular masses nor pays for his personal fate. He has seen
how easily the US gets rid of former puppets if they cause them troubles and
can be replaced by more functional ones. So he turned back to Russia for
support even starting anti-US rhetoric (he left the pro-US GUUAM pact while
not touching the “security co-operation”) which is acceptable for the US as
long as they hope to thus contain a greater enemy that is the popular masses
led by Islamic organisations.
>
> The Anti-imperialists must not fall in the trap to set their hopes on the
Russian capitalist oligarchy led by Putin. He might try to preserve his
sphere of influence against US intrusion but regarding the main question,
the global pre-emptive war on “terror” that is popular anti-imperial
resistance, Washington and Moscow are unified.
>
> Our only hope is the struggle of the popular masses for social and
political rights regardless whether they are Islamic or not. We support them
in their battle against the US empire and its allies like Russia, the EU and
even China which is in full support of the “anti-terror alliance” when it
comes to suppress the popular movements even more when they are let by
Islamic forces.
>
>
> Support the struggle of the Uzbek and the Central Asian people for
democratic, social and national rights!
> Down with the tyranny of Karimov and his regional homologues!
> US and Russian military bases out!
> Down with the US empire and the Russian hegemonic drive!
>
>
> Anti-imperialist Camp
> May 18, 2005
>
> ***
>
> 2) The cycle of the World Social Forum draws to a close
> Anti-imperialist Forum to emerge
>
> When the Brazilian president Lula addressed the inaugural session of the
World Social Forum (WSF) taking place in January in Porto Alegre, he was
rocked by loud protest chants expressing the widespread disappointment with
the unfulfilled promises for a significant social change. It was symbolic
importance that Lula subsequently flew directly to the World Economic Forum
in Davos, Switzerland, against which the anti-globalisation movement had
been emerging. Later in the week, when the Venezuelan president joint the
gathering, signs read “Chavez yes, Lula no”. The development of the
Brazilian Worker’s Party (PT) and Lula’s personal career emblematically show
the turn the WSF – of which the PT is an integral and leading part – took
towards integration into the global capitalist system.
>
> Meanwhile the Iraqi resistance can and must serve as the icebreaker for
the formation and unification of the anti-imperialist forces and tendencies.
Everybody understands that the Iraqi resistance is today the main challenge
to the US war and Empire. If it succeeds it would mean a severe set-back for
the US hegemony pushing ahead other focuses of resistance.
>
> Full article:
> www.antiimperialista.com/view.shtml?category=9&id=1116509470
>
> ***
>
> 3) Toni Negri calls to support ultra-liberalist and imperialist EU
constitution
>
> In a recent interview Negri for Libération (May 13, 2005), the former icon
of the anti-globalisation movement, calls for the unbelievable, namely to
vote in favour of the EU constitution in the forthcoming French referendum.
Negri does not even try to cover the extremely liberalist and imperialist
character of the constitution. He openly admits his motivation: to “make
disappear the shit of the national state” and to stop what he called
backlash of the US imperial designs. As his Clintonian dreams of a
globalised capitalism without national state which would transcend into the
realm of emancipation vanished with the real capitalism assuming the form of
the US Empire, he turned into an apologist of the multinational co-operation
and the EU commission in Bruxelles.
>
>
> Extract on Toni Negri of the article under 2):
>
> The “backlash” of the pre-emptive US war
>
> Toni Negri spoke of an Empire without power centre and territory. Within
this globalised capitalist Empire the new emancipated Empire would emerge
transcending one into the other. Whether this new Empire would arise as a
social society or as Gnostic inner experience was not quite clear. While the
esoteric aspect was a minority position within the movement, the political
consequences of this thinking were widely shared. It implies not only that a
revolution destroying the imperialist state machine is no more necessary,
but that state power as it is fading out by itself must be neglected,
ignored thus ruling out not only the seizure of state power but also the
struggle for serious social reforms. Thus the return of the state as the
central factor of politics in the form of the pre-emptive war waged by the
US came as a kind of shock destroying the phantasms of globalisation which
supposedly should have ended the role of the state. Consequently Toni Negri,
who did not want to ac!
> cept the reality which put his nice theories into the rubbish bin, called
the US war a “backlash”, a temporary return to the already overcome
traditional capitalist-imperialist society.
>
> ***
>
> 4) Florence 4 June, 2005
>
> On 4 June there will be an international preparatory meeting for the
Conference in Support of the Iraqi Resistance scheduled for 1-2 October in
Rome. Whoever wants to participated should contact us for the details.
>
> Call for the conference:
>
www.antiimperialista.com/iraq_conference_2005/view.shtml?category=53&id=1116
281632&keyword=+
>
> Updated endorsers’ list:
>
www.antiimperialista.com/iraq_conference_2005/view.shtml?category=53&id=1116
281705&keyword=+
>
>
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> www.antiimperialista.org
>
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