Paul,
I note that in this response you neither answered my question nor addressed
Niall's concerns . . .
I find it interesting, by the way, that you seem to lump "Western powers,"
UN peacekeepers, and "white troops" together, as if these are all one and
the same. Surely you are merely resorting to shorthand here and don't really
mean that at all . . .
Becky
-----Original Message-----
From: [log in to unmask] [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 1999 11:46 AM
To: 'Critical Geography Forum'
Subject: Attitudes to re-colonisation
Becky Kennison wrote:
>
> Paul,
>
> So let me see if I have this right: it's OK for Indonesia to
colonize East
> Timor, with great loss of life, as has been going on since 1975,
but not OK
> for the UN member-states to attempt to stop loss of life resulting
from
> out-of-control militias who support those Indonesian colonialist
practices
> by slaughtering and terrorizing people who several weeks ago voted
> overwhelmingly to reject all colonization and become an
independent nation?
This is exemplary of the change in values, which I think is worth
attention. I
think that even 10 years ago it would have been taboo in the
English-language
academic world, to suggest that violence in the ex-colonies
legitimised
re-colonisation. Millions of people have been killed in ex-colonies,
in much
bloodier wars than in Timor: but until a few years ago no-one in the
international policy elites seriously considered re-colonisation.
Attitudes
have shifted dramatically, not in the least among public opinion.
This is
partly because, rightly or wrongly, public opinion thinks such
interventions
now have minimal casualties.
It *is* an attitude shift, to claim an invasion by western powers is
legitimate, simply because a slaughter is occurring. I emphasise
that people
seem to have very short memories on this issue. Again, people have
been
slaughtered all over sub-Saharan Africa since de-colonisation. but
for most of
that time only a few politcally marginalised figures advocated
sending in
white troops to retake any territory. That however, is exactly what
is
happening in Timor.
pt
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