Depending on which newspaper is read or on which television outlet is viewed or on which talk radio station is listened to, the War in Iraq is either going well for the coalition force or is being opposed vigorously by Saddam Hussein's determined, out-classed fighters. In combination with the source of one's news, the particular editorial slant of the newspaper/television outlet/radio station and the individual reporter's political bent, one is left with a muddied, often conflicted picture of the War in Iraq. On the one hand, the War is almost over and the U.S.-U.K. coalition has won whereas on the other hand it has just begun in that urban warfare will take its toll on the coalition force. American CNN shows constant pictures of how well the U.S. and U.K. forces are doing while Arabic stations give viewers shots of mutilated bodies, mostly women and young children in hospitals or lying in the rubble of a bombed out Baghdad building. The U.S. station utilises former military personnel to explain the war and couples that with comments from various well-qualified reporters who provide insight into the action. Combined, the balance seems to be presentable and not overly pro-American; that said, however, the nagging thought remains that perhaps CNN [and its pale Canadian, weak, leftist, apologetic outlets] are masking - for better or for worse - what the Arabic stations show continually. The War is seen through the eyes of those there on the ground and through the political view of the stations' owners. If those eyes are pro-coalition, then the viewer receives a pro-coalition viewpoint and a counter Arabic viewpoint; the opposite can be said for the Arabic community that sees the American-led coalition force as an invading, conquering army that must be opposed on all fronts.
When the War on the ground is over, the war for the minds of Iraqis will begin. Iraq is an ancient country that has three religious groups each vying for supremacy. In the North, the Kurds [15-20 %] claim their right to a homeland, in the centre the Sunni [32-37 %] hold sway through decades of Hussein and in the south the Shi'a [60-65%] feel that with the overthrow of Saddam Hussein their time has come. The ethnic background of Iraq is: Arab 75-90%, Kurdish 15-20% and five per cent for 'others.' Uniting these groups into a cohesive, co-operative, functioning country will take time, money and a fierce determination on the part of each participant. Where to begin?
The United States has stated that it will take the lead in rebuilding Iraq. The U.S. has shown in the past that it can do this and has done rather well: Germany and Japan following the end of World War Two are prime examples of how the U.S. turned defeated, wastelands into prosperous, vibrant, contributing countries each of which rose from the ashes of war to take its place among the nations of the world. The United Kingdom, on the other hand, is more prone to utilising the United Nations - with considerable input from the European community - and less American input. It is clear that the U.S. will not be denied and will take the lead but will, however, accept some input on humanitarian grounds from the United Nations. Both the U.S. and the U.K. it seems will achieve their individual objectives. Where, one is compelled to ask, will Canada be in all this and what can it be expected to contribute to a re-built Iraq?
The fence-sitting act of Canada's prime minister and foreign affairs minister has pretty well written finis to any role Canada might have been able to play as a partner to either or both the U.S./U.K. coalition or the UN. By not supporting the U.S. initially and the U.K. latterly, Canada [or at least the pacifist Liberal government] has shown the world that it is not worthy of consideration in any post-war repair of Iraq. Mores the pity because Canada has an ability to provide humanitarian aid and to oversee the establishment of a quality national police force and to establish a competent form of election apparatus and to render to the Iraqis a compassion that might not be so clear coming from the United States.
By sitting on the fence and by talking out of both sides of its face, the Government of Canada has insulted its closest allies, has disparaged true Canadians and has spit on the Maple Leaf. Welcome to the land of has-beens.
Bob Orrick is a private tutor of English grammar, literature, poetry and Canadian history to off-shore youngsters. His pupils hail from such places as Taiwan, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Korea and Venezuela. He was previously in international marketing, was a ministerial assistant to a provincial cabinet minister, spent a few years as a reporter then editor of a community newspaper and enjoyed a career in the Royal Canadian Navy.
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