The United States considers itself the leader of the free world. Militarily and economically, it is the only superpower left in the world today. With power and prestige comes responsibility and accountability.
At this historic moment as we step into the next millennium, Americans must ask themselves: What kind of world do we want to leave for our children and grandchildren in the twenty-first century and beyond? Do we want a world that is plagued with the virus of violence and hatred between religious and ethnic groups? Or, do we want our children to inherit a world that is truly a global village where all neighbors live in peace and harmony? If we want a world where nations and people live together in peace and tolerance, we must take whatever steps we can to penalize and weaken Slobodan Milosovic and others like him who are driven by a lust for power and thrive on destroying the natural harmony between people.
In my opinion, there is a political as well as moral argument in favor of the American action. Indeed there is a short-term cost to action in resources and even in lives of citizens, but in the long run because we act today to stop tyranny, the world will be a better place for future generations. If the Allies had intervened forcefully to stop Hitler in 1939 or before, perhaps millions of lives and billions of dollars could have been saved. If the voices of Robert Dole, Joseph Leiberman, and McCloskey who had argued during the early days of the Bosnian conflict that the Milosovic regime should be militarily punished, and the American and European governments should help arm the people of Bosnia for self-defense, perhaps this great tragedy in Kosovo could have been avoided.
There are also strategic arguments in favor of this involvement. The problem in Kosovo is first a European problem. Kosovo is in the backyard of Europe. In Bosnia, since the European leaders were slow to act, the Americans could not act forcefully in a timely manner. The world stood by and witnessed the shame of massive ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity right in the heart of Europe. History has shown that local ethnic conflicts can easily spread and proliferate, especially when a demagogue is fanning the flames. The virus of ethnic hatred is a strong virus and can easily infect neighbouring nations causing great destruction. Both Turkey and Greece are a part of NATO. The citizens of these countries are connected to this region by religious and family ties. These nations may get entangled in this conflict if nothing is done to control this virus of hatred. This would pose a greater crisis for NATO. Second, given Mr. Milosovic's track record, Kosovo is only part of a grand design for greater "pure" Serbia.
President Bush had warned Milosovic that if he takes his ethnic cleansing policies to Kosovo, he could face military retaliation. Now Milosovic has done exactly that. His next target is likely to be Macedonia and perhaps Montenegro in his drive for a greater ethnically pure Serbia. Therefore, it is a strategic goal of NATO and its allies to try to contain this problem before it spreads into a wider conflict. Clearly, Milosovic and his military alone are responsible for this war. The Yugoslavia government can bring this war to a quick end, not by surrendering, but simply by agreeing to abide by international laws of human rights and democracy for all of its citizens.
There is a strong moral argument in favor of military intervention. Whether we are Christians, Muslims, Jews or members of another faith, our religious traditions teach us love for fellow humans, non-violence and an abhorrence for war. However, most scriptures also support action when faced with tyranny, oppression and violence. The scriptures are not tolerant of those who suppress others' human rights and dignity! Everyone has a basic human right to defend themselves and their family from injustice, harm and dishonor. The concept of a "just war" exists in every major faith. The dictatorship of Slobodan Milosovic has committed massive human rights violations in Bosnia, Croatia and other places before Kosovo. He has been called a serial ethnic cleanser in the international media. In scale this may not yet be genocide, but his actions could lead to that. The scale of tyranny is mind-boggling and so is the brutality that he has condoned or his forces have directly committed. It is feared that many more than those killed by guns may be killed by hunger and starvation in the months to come.
There is no doubt in my mind that there is a strong case to indict Milosovic as a war criminal and try him for crimes against humanity. Once again, it is the moral obligation of all nations and people who believe in the charter of human rights to act to stop this madman and his military machine. As a nation that takes pride in its democratic values, emphasis on human rights, and support for liberty and freedom, America cannot stand on the sidelines as an entire people are uprooted and their dignity violated.
The critics to the U.S. involvement in Kosovo point out that the U.S. cannot be the policeman of the world. There are so many trouble spots in the world that one country, even a superpower, cannot by itself control all of these situations. They say that the U.S. must not dissipate its resources and risk the lives of its citizens unless national interests are clearly threatened. These critics suggest that the U.S. must get involved only in those conflicts where our immediate and measurable national interests are at stake. I do not question the good intentions of people such as Congressman John Hostettler of Indiana or Charlie Reese, the columnist. However, I disagree with the premise that just because America cannot help solve all the problems in the world, we should not act at all as good citizens of the world. Just because the U.S. and the western powers were unable to prevent a massacre in Rwanda, Sudan, Somalia, or Bosnia does not mean that we must allow another genocide in the Balkans. In my opinion, one important lesson from these sad episodes is that early outside intervention can save lives. As a nation that believes in a civilized world, America must be a partner with other nations in working for such a just world order. There are critics like Charlie Reese who are so determined to bring down Mr. Clinton that anything he would do is faulty to them. What is sad is that in order to bring down the President, they would go to any extent including ignoring facts that are available to all and can be verified by them. Deliberately belitting a great tragedy is unethical and immoral. True, the foreign policy of this country in the past has often been misguided, resulting in American support for many undemocratic and oppressive regimes. I am aware of the credibility problem these critics point to. However, we must be hopeful that the high moral principles enshrined in the constitution that have guided the founding fathers will eventually prevail in both domestic and foreign policy despite temporary deviations.
The end of communism did not mean the end of history or the end of regional and national conflicts! Wars and dictatorships will continue. An America that is true to the ideals of its founding fathers must continue to be engaged in the struggle for liberty for all people of the world. There is also an argument that we must remain part of the team, precisely because acting alone is becoming more and more difficult. When members of NATO feel strongly enough to risk the lives of their citizens and spend their resources, how can the U.S. stand by in isolation? My argument is mainly against indifference and inaction. I believe there are many ways we can act to resolve a conflict peacefully. I believe that force must be used only as the last option. In the present conflict in Kosovo, diplomacy was tried for years, and should always remain on the table. In this sense I believe a temporary limited halt in the bombing campaign is consistent with the strategy of forcing the Milosovic regime to come to the table. If this gives him an opportunity to save face, so be it. This is much too important to be a prestige issue of the leaders. However, nations and people cannot completely give up the option of the use of force. When faced with grievous tyranny, a strategy of non-violence is morally unjustifiable. Reasonable force used in a balanced and calculated manner must remain an option for the states. One feels for the democratic forces in Yugoslavia, for the people of faith who are opposed to Milosovic's genocidal policies, and for the innocent civilians who invariably suffer in a war. All attempts should be made to minimize the loss of civilian life and property. The rogue leaders and their administrations should be isolated and indicted. A concerted attempt should be made to collect evidence of atrocities and these should be taken to the world court and to the United Nations. There should be no doubt that some day international war criminals will face trial and be indicted as war criminals in the world court. Senators Lieberman and Helms have put up sensible proposals to isolate and personally penalize those at the highest policymaking authority in Serbia. Other nations should cut off all political and cultural ties and use economic embargo, although this is more painful for the ordinary citizens than for the people in power. We can impose no-fly zones on them and delink all communications. Eventually concerted action by all nations using non-violent means can create a pressure that would become unbearable for the rogue governments. We can train and help the people of Kosovo to defend themselves. After all, the Chechnians and the Afghans were able to defeat a much bigger and better equipped Russian army. The people of Kosovo are fully capable of defending themselves and taking their land and homes back. They should be allowed and helped to defend themselves. The arms ban should be removed and the KLA and other resistance organizations should be equipped and assisted. It is a basic human right for the people to defend themselves. All they need is help from the community of nations to fight for their homeland and their rights. Fortunately, there is legislation in the Senate that would do this. The UN-imposed arms ban on Bosnia that crippled the Bosnian people, making them an easy prey for the well-armed Serbian forces, was one of the great injustice for which the West has bears responsibility.
In conclusion, as individuals we must do everything we can to help the displaced people of Kosovo. As the news gets stale, the media will move on and we will see less and less of their misery. But the great need is still there. Perhaps, soon some of the refugee families will arrive in Evansville sponsored by local churches and organizations. They will need all the help you can give. Please donate generously to the international humanitarian aid organizations such as: The American Red Cross (PO Box 37243, Washington, DC20013), Oxfam America (26 West St, Boston, MA 02111), Doctors Without Borders (6 East 39th Street, 8th floor, New York, NY 10016), Church World Service (28606 Phillips Street, PO Box 968, Elkhart, IN 46515), Islamic African Relief Agency USA (PO Box 7084, Columbia, MO 65205), UNCHR (1775 K St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC, 20006) and others as they struggle to help and comfort these refugees. A comprehensive list of humanitarian organizations involved in relief work in Kosovo is available at:. www.interaction.org This list was produced by InterAction, a coalition of more than 160 US-based private relief, development and refugee assistance agencies. InterAction members have agreed to abide by a set of standards to ensure accountability to donors, professional competence and quality of service. The homepages of many of these organizations allow online donations. Please also remember the people of Kosovo and the other innocent victims of this conflict in your prayers.
E-Mail Mr. Quddus.
