SIR Jock Stirrup, the British army commander, has admitted that the great majority of the British people are opposed to the imperialist war in Afghanistan, and that 63 per cent of those polled by the BBC urge that the troops be withdrawn at once, while 64 per cent consider the war to be unwinnable.
A further 53 per cent felt that the degree of corruption in the Karzai government make this a war that is not even worth fighting.
Stirrup’s reaction to this democratic opposition was dictatorial – that ways and means will have to be found to change the minds of the British people, to continue the slaughter.
He makes it clear that in matters of strategic importance to the ruling class – and having a grip on the oil and gas fields of central Asia, is certainly a strategic issue – what the majority of the people want is irrelevant, especially if it is getting in the way of the war.
Sir Jock told BBC1’s Andrew Marr programme that it was ‘incredibly important that we do better at explaining the successes we are having’.
Among the successes are the just-rigged election, where the chief rigger has been handed the presidency by the western powers, without the bother of an election.
Another success is the record poppy production taking place in the area under the rule of the British military, Helmand province. From there, record exports of heroin to the streets of various European countries are creating more addicts.
It is now admitted that the profits from these ven-tures go to people who are very close to President Karzai, and have a direct interest in him remaining the president of Afghanistan.
This is no war for democracy. It is another dirty imperialist war.
The general’s contempt for democracy has been echoed by the Labour Party Defence Secretary, Ainsworth. He also said on Sunday that the UK’s presence in Afghanistan could not be determined by public opinion. As far as he is concerned, it is a matter for the ruling class alone.
Sir Jock also stated that the current strategy requires more force and that ‘if that force is not forthcoming we will have to think again’.
A recent debate in the House of Lords shows just how the British military is ‘thinking again’.
Three ex-chiefs of the defence staff launched a scathing attack on the Brown government, with Lord Boyse saying that the government ‘did not realise we are at war’, while Lord Inge said the armed forces never really believed Brown was ‘on their side’, and Lord Guthrie accused Brown of ‘dithering’.
The military message is clear: ignore democracy, put more solders and resources into the field, and that there must be a government that is on their side, meaning a Tory Cameron government with the ex-chief of staff Dannatt as Defence Minister and head of a war cabinet.
It is clear that the death toll of British troops and Afghan civilians will accelerate, as the generals demand, and receive, a greater and greater expenditure, while the health and education budgets, amongst others, are further slashed.
As they sink deeper and deeper into the Afghan quagmire, the generals will blame the politicians, and the lack of support from the workers back home as the reason for their defeats.
The policy being carried out in Afghanistan will bear poisonous fruit at home, with a crop of political generals emerging, who will seek to impose a regime of colonels.
The working class must respond to this situation by advancing from passive opposition to the war to taking action to secure the complete withdrawal of all British troops from Afghanistan.
The TUC must give its support to all British troops who refuse to take part in the dirty Afghan war and must take action to stop the war by bringing down the Brown government, and going forward to a workers’ government.
