Just this month, there have been a number of major events that could have — should have — sparked a serious debate in the mainstream media about Canada’s continued participation in the occupation of Afghanistan: the early removal of the top U.S. commander in the war; a D.C. summit with Obama and embattled re-election-seeking Afghan President Karzai; and, that same week, reportedly the worst single incident of Afghan civilians killed in a U.S. bombing since the war began in 2001.
Alas, none of this seemed to generate serious dissent or even debate about Canada and the war. It’s not just here — a colleague in Barcelona sent me this graphic representation of the media’s role in silencing debate, originally published in Diagonal Periodico.
We’ll keep working to bring you more news and analysis from Afghanistan. One Canadian blog, maintained by a Vancouver-area researcher, continues to provide invaluable coverage of the war. Today, there is the news of the latest statement from dissident Afghan MP Malalai Joya, who is/was an elected MP for Farah, the province where the latest air strike outrage took place:
“As an elected representative for Farah, Afghanistan, I add my voice to those condemning the NATO bombing that claimed over 150 civilian lives in my province earlier this month. This latest massacre offers the world a glimpse of the horrors faced by our people.”
“However, as I explained at a May 11 press conference in Kabul, the U.S. military authorities do not want you to see this reality. As usual, they have tried to downplay the number of civilian casualties…”
In the coming months, rabble.ca will be adding a special issues page for our coverage of the war. And in the meantime, of course, a number of our columnists and bloggers will continue to provide the kind of critical commentary that is sorely missing in the mainstream.
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