Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-12-16-Speech-3-160"
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"en.20091216.14.3-160"2
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"Madam President, at first sight, the Council’s conclusions about Afghanistan appear to be a welcome contrast to the belligerent attitude of the United States and the United Kingdom. When looked at more closely, it is actually a mixture of naivety and complicity in their methods. The Council is thoroughly naive in trying to plant the delicate flower of Western democracy in the inhospitable soil of Afghan tribalism. The vertical divisions in society and the domination of tribal loyalties over personal judgment would make that impossible. It wants to remove corruption but simply does not understand that the bureaucratic model of objective judgment and financial and resource decisions would not stand a chance of being respected. This is not because Afghans are endemically dishonest but because Afghan tribal society sees looking after one’s own family and tribe as a self-evident virtue.
The Council would like to counter the production of opium poppies. However, removing the Taliban from government was not the best way of reducing that production. The Taliban government reduced it by 90% but, since the invasion of Afghanistan, Afghanistan is again the world’s leading opium producer. The report says ‘Insecurity in Afghanistan cannot be addressed by military means alone’. That can only mean that military action has a legitimate part to play. In my view, it does not. We have had three failed wars against Afghanistan in the 19th and early 20th centuries; we really ought to have learnt our lesson.
The Taliban oppresses women, has contempt for democracy and is killing British soldiers: it is a thoroughly unpleasant organisation. But we could stop it from killing British and allied soldiers tomorrow by removing our troops. It is a murderous, pointless war that simply cannot be won."@en1
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