Opinion West Asian adventures

“The Libyan adventure was meant to hijack the Arab popular uprising. After the Tunisian and Egyptian popular uprisings overthrew the despotic governments there,Israel felt increasingly isolated. In the second phase,the US and its allies have in the name of democracy and support to popular uprisings carried out the successful operation in Libya. Syria is the next target and finally Iran,” the editorial in People’s Democracy argues.

The editorial links West Asia policy fo the financial crisis in the West,too. For the debilitated economies of the US and Europe,the capture of the resources of West Asia is a “prize much coveted”,it says.

The CPM believes the bringing of Libya under Nato influence has

enormous implications. Washington can now find a base for its African Military Command and the Mediterranean can now be converted into a Nato lake. The French,on the other hand,can now breathe easy as Gaddafi’s challenge to their traditional influence in West Africa has been terminated. “Nato is now the global military arm of imperialism reaching into Africa,Asia and all parts of the world,” it concludes.

It points out that the “Nobel Peace Prize-winning President Obama” has begun to ratchet up tensions in Iran. The US is also devising ways to effect a regime change in Syria. “Faced with declining popularity and the presidential elections coming up next year,Obama is seeking to shore up his support among the pro-Israel lobby by making hostile manoeuvres against Iran,” it says.

Peace in Nepal

The CPI’s New Age focuses its attention on the 7-point agreement reached by the political parties of Nepal recently,saying it may prove to be a turning point in the history of that country if implemented sincerely. The lead editorial says the agreement should also help “extremist forces” in the entire region draw some positive lessons and stop dreaming of a “corridor of revolution” across several national boundaries.

“The protagonists and managers of international finance capital shamefully exploit the futile experiments of these so-called Left extremists who go under the umbrella of Maoists,either by slandering the entire Left for their misadventures or by using them for much of the undesirable activities that ultimately harm the common people,” it says.

It argues the accord could not only pave the way for much-needed stability in Nepal,but also soothe the entire region’s political situation. For,it says,the political bickering in Nepal has made relations with neighbours including India into a sore point — and “undesirable elements” had used the chaos in Nepal to promote terror and export weapons.

The final crisis

Keenly watching the unfolding “Occupy Wall Street” movement in the US,the Left in India — excited and euphoric — believes it marks the beginning of a whole new historical phase of resistance. Prabhat Patnaik argues in People’s Democracy that previously,protests and resistance movements focused on some particular issue,project or policy: “These are not to be pooh-poohed,but they do not pose a challenge to the system as a whole. Capitalism can live with such movements,conceding something here,negotiating some settlement there,risking a prolonged face-off somewhere else.”

This movement is,however,qualitiatively different in nature,he claims: “The Occupy Wall Street movement by contrast is not concerned with any such specific demands; indeed,to the chagrin of the pundits,it does not even have an agenda of any description. It is simply,conceptually,a rejection of the system as a whole. This rejection is not based on any intricate theoretical arguments; it is simply visceral.”

The other distinct feature of the movement,he claims,is that it has gone beyond mere “morality” to the question of “property”. It is not an attack on the state,it is an assault on finance capital,and hence,by implication,on capitalist property.