Armies aren’t meant to fight their own people
What is the job of an army anymore? Traditionally – defend a countries’ borders against invasion by another country. Fair enough role. But seems every army these days is fighting their own civilians.
India: (maybe not the army, but the government) vs. anti-corruption hunger striker. Gone are the days when he would be accused of being a Pakistani agent, enemy of the people, foreign sympathizer, etc. Now, it seems he can be nothing but a pissed off local boy. One of the common people fighting the government, which, while ‘elected’ does not seem to be ‘of the people’.
Syria: the army is busy in a war against Homs. Which is a Syrian city! Back when I was student, we read about how the Israelis ran rings around the Syrians and took the Golan Heights. Now, the Syrian tanks no longer have to go to the border to be surrendered. They just drive to a nearby town and surrender their tanks there!
Israelis too! The Israeli Air Force is busy flying missions against its own people. (If the Israelis will not let the Palestinians be a separate country, then the Palestinians must be part of Israel, and bombing Palestinians must therefore be bombing their own people.) Even if their ‘own’ people are next door in Egypt, and five Egyptian soldiers get killed along the way. And the Israelis seem no longer interesting in fighting a war against any army in any mountains or on any of their borders.
Libya: there is a case of the Libyan army fighting the Libyan people. Certainly no NATO jets seem to come under threat from the Libyan ‘Defense’ forces. And the Libyan Army seems to be losing, most likely lost, to the Libyan civilians.
The DRC: well, whatever. Who really knows what is going on there, even the DRC citizens and residents! To many countries on the borders. Each with their own cross border opposition forces. The Lord’s Resistance. The Interhamwe. The ZNA diamond mines. The Angolans. The Katangese. One of the best roads I drove on in DRC was built by the Zambians, so Zambians could get from one part of Zambia to another part of Zambia the quickest way!
Cote D’Ivoire: But since Laurent Gbagbo was winkled out of his country – which turned out to be a hole in the ground (underground bunker) in a military camp, (but he still thought of it as ‘his’ country, talk about living with your head up your ass!) – that army is not longer fighting its own civilians. And now that Gbagbo is gone from his hole in the ground, who is the army? Who belongs to the army, or who does the army belong to?
Sudan: finally! Now that South Sudan is a country, there really is an external threat across the border!
So here, it makes you wonder, if Tsvangirai is a threat to national security… who are invading us? The Chinese? Botswana? Or, what is ‘National’ security? Who exactly are the ‘nation’ (he is also a Zimbabwean, isn’t he?) he is making insecure?
So what is role of the ZNA? Why is it any bigger than 15000? Or even that big? The Foreign Ministry keeps us safe from threat of invasion – we are at peace with all our neighbours. Aren’t we? We even had to send the army two countries away to lose a war, in the DRC. And who was the enemy there, what foreign country was invading them? And threatening the ZNA diamond mines?
Which brings to mind a sight, going to the range (The Gun Range, Harare Shooting Sport Complex). To get there, enter though the entrance gate of the Cleveland Ranges, Arcturas Road. The military 1000 meter range. The president’s medal has been held every year, probably going back to Southern Rhodesia days. And since Zimbabwe, RG Mugabe has been handing it out to the best rifle shot in the military.
Suddenly, for the first time since I came here in 1971, and started shooting there in 1976 there is a gate and a boom and gate house and presentation platforms and flags and flag poles (and the HSSC sign has been pushed flat so no one can see it). All this suddenly at President’s medal time, for presentation and all the rest. Who is trying to impress who? Is the Army trying to make Bob feel ‘elevated’, or is Bob throwing money and works at the army to make them feel like they really have anything to do? Or are the Generals throwing stuff at the ranks to make them feel they are part of the ‘big bucks’ going around?