Archive for the ‘Conflict’ Category

Posted on October 25, 2008 - by Frank

Palestinians and Christian Reductionism

Warning - this post may offend many. The situation I am about to address is a firebrand that causes high emotion for many people. I am not seeking to make any friends with this, I have just decided that for the first time, I wish to air publicly, some of my privately held opinions on this matter and I believe it entirely relates to the point of this site. I cannot, in good conscience, remain silent on this issue only to protect my own reputation. If it ruins this site and my reputation, I will walk away with a clear mind and heart. Peace.

Let’s be clear from the outset that when I use the term “reductionism”, I am not using it in the sense of scientific inquiry where reductionism refers to investigating something by reducing it to the study of the components within it. I am instead referring to the reduction of complex situations and arguments to oversimplifications that simply heighten and negatively feed already volatile situations.

Allow me to also be clear that when I approach the situation, my Christian faith and position as a Christian Minister is one large part of me that informs my approach to the problem – I am especially interested in the many varied factors of religion playing out.

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Posted on September 1, 2008 - by Frank

Clarity in the Georgia and Russia Conflict

The recent conflict between Georgia and Russia, centering around the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia, has been a perfect example of the use of propaganda in modern media, with both sides twisting stories to suit their own agendas. Sadly this has only been further exacerbated by the interjection of other states such as the U.S and other NATO members that clearly have interests in the area - namely oil. Surprise.

Trying to sift through conflicting reports is a minefield where truth is nearly impossible to determine - reports of genocide being perpetrated by Georgian forces amongst the people of South Ossetia; displaced people pouring across into Russian territory; Georgian incursions into South Ossetia at the start of the Olympics to reclaim control of the semi-independant territory; reports of unprovoked Russian agression; headlines declaring the Russia was invading beyond South Ossetia and entering Georgia proper; talk of ceasefires and allegations that agression was continuing beyond those negotiations and mentions of plans to get Georgian troops out of Iraq and into the area prior to the break out of violence (suggesting premeditation between Georgia and the U.S).

Thankfully, it may be of interest to those who have followed this conflict and all the confusion that would understandably result from any research, to know that the Office of the International Criminal Court Prosecutor is analysing allegations made of crimes committed under ICC jurisdiction.

The allegations seem to involve attacks on civilians.

Georgia is a state that ratified the Rome Statute that saw the formation of the ICC, Russia is not. If Georgia is in any way implicated in crimes investigated by the ICC, it will have serious ramifications for those involved, for as long as they reside in Georgia, they fall under the jurisdiction of the ICC.

Confirmation of this analysis taking place was first released on August 20.

Posted on July 17, 2008 - by Frank

Rape as a Method of Warfare

Often in war times, woman, children and the elderly are abused and mistreated. Seen as the weakest in society, they make easy targets and the crimes committed against them amount to crimes against humanity.

Sexual violence against females, both young and old, is a dark and often unspoken method used in many current war situations. Darfur has helped to highlight this situation, being the biggest case of rape being used as a systematic weapon of warfare, ever.

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Posted on July 13, 2008 - by Frank

Darfur and the ICC

This in from the International Criminal Court:

On Monday 14 July, Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will submit to the Judges of Pre-Trial Chamber I his evidence on crimes committed in the whole of Darfur over the last five years. The filing will be public and a summary there of will be made available. After submitting the filing to the Judges the Prosecutor will brief the press together with Deputy Prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda.

This case has been building for some time and Reliefweb reports that this update could include the release of an arrest warrant for the Sudanese President, Omar Hassan al-Bashir with charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Humanitarian organisations are being cautioned because of possible outbreaks of violence should this occur.

Posted on July 12, 2008 - by Frank

Darfur - A Summary

The crisis in Darfur is a problem many have heard of but have failed to grasp. This article is designed to be a quick summary rather than an exhaustive explanation. It is designed to give people a quick understanding of the crisis.

To see a visual/video summary, go to the end of the post.

To understand the history that feeds into the situation and to see the most organised current humanitarian efforts see the Wikipedia article on the situation and visit www.savedarfur.org, an alliance of over 100 faith based, humanitarian and human rights organisations.

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