From: Mark Steven Heyman (markheyman@infoproconsulting.com)
Date: Sun Jun 06 2004 - 04:55:09 BST
Nicaragua, 1978-89:
When the Sandinistas overthrew the Somoza dictatorship in 1978, it
was clear to Washington that they might well be that long-dreaded
beast-"another Cuba." Under President Carter, attempts to sabotage
the revolution took diplomatic and economic forms. Under Reagan,
violence was the method of choice. For eight terribly long years, the
people of Nicaragua were under attack by Washington's proxy army, the
Contras, formed from Somoza's vicious National Guard and other
supporters of the dictator. It was all-out war, aiming to destroy the
progressive social and economic programs of the government, burning
down schools and medical clinics, raping, torturing, mining harbors,
bombing and strafing. These were Ronald Reagan's "freedom fighters."
There would be no revolution in Nicaragua.
-----------
El Salvador, 1980-92:
El Salvador's dissidents tried to work within the system. But with
U.S. support, the government made that impossible, using repeated
electoral fraud and murdering hundreds of protesters and strikers. In
1980, the dissidents took to the gun, and civil war.
Officially, the U.S. military presence in El Salvador was limited to
an advisory capacity. In actuality, military and CIA personnel played
a more active role on a continuous basis. About 20 Americans were
killed or wounded in helicopter and plane crashes while flying
reconnaissance or other missions over combat areas, and considerable
evidence surfaced of a U.S. role in the ground fighting as well. The
war came to an official end in 1992; 75,000 civilian deaths and the
U.S. Treasury depleted by six billion dollars. Meaningful social
change has been largely thwarted. A handful of the wealthy still own
the country, the poor remain as ever, and dissidents still have to
fear right-wing death squads.
----------
Grenada, 1979-84:
What would drive the most powerful nation in the world to invade a
country of 110,000? Maurice Bishop and his followers had taken power
in a 1979 coup, and though their actual policies were not as
revolutionary as Castro's, Washington was again driven by its fear of
"another Cuba," particularly when public appearances by the Grenadian
leaders in other countries of the region met with great enthusiasm.
U. S. destabilization tactics against the Bishop government began
soon after the coup and continued until 1983, featuring numerous acts
of disinformation and dirty tricks. The American invasion in October
1983 met minimal resistance, although the U.S. suffered 135 killed or
wounded; there were also some 400 Grenadian casualties, and 84
Cubans, mainly construction workers.
At the end of 1984, a questionable election was held which was won by
a man supported by the Reagan administration. One year later, the
human rights organization, Council on Hemispheric Affairs, reported
that Grenada's new U.S.-trained police force and counter-insurgency
forces had acquired a reputation for brutality, arbitrary arrest, and
abuse of authority, and were eroding civil rights.
--------
Afghanistan, 1979-92:
Everyone knows of the unbelievable repression of women in
Afghanistan, carried out by Islamic fundamentalists, even before the
Taliban. But how many people know that during the late 1970s and most
of the 1980s, Afghanistan had a government committed to bringing the
incredibly backward nation into the 20th century, including giving
women equal rights? What happened, however, is that the United States
poured billions of dollars into waging a terrible war against this
government, simply because it was supported by the Soviet Union.
Prior to this, CIA operations had knowingly increased the probability
of a Soviet intervention, which is what occurred. In the end, the
United States won, and the women, and the rest of Afghanistan, lost.
More than a million dead, three million disabled, five million
refugees, in total about half the population.
--------
Libya, 1981-89:
Libya refused to be a proper Middle East client state of Washington.
Its leader, Muammar el-Qaddafi, was uppity. He would have to be
punished. U.S. planes shot down two Libyan planes in what Libya
regarded as its air space. The U. S . also dropped bombs on the
country, killing at least 40 people, including Qaddafi's daughter.
There were other attempts to assassinate the man, operations to
overthrow him, a major disinformation campaign, economic sanctions...
msh
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