Adopted Attitudes: Canadian Soldiers Gun Down Civilians
by C. L. Cook
 As Canadian and NATO casualties rise in Afghanistan, an incident Friday reveals a hardening of attitude by Canadian soldiers there to the local population. Canadian Forces spokesperson Major Mario Couture described Saturday the killing of two civilian men and the wounding of three others as they approached a military cordon, saying; the soldiers were "forced" to open fire on a minivan that, "demonstrated no intention to slow down."
It's an old story, told hundreds of times by America's occupation forces in both Iraq and Afghanistan, but it's a next move towards the "Americanization" of Canada's military overseas.
Most instructive is the Canadian Forces' (CF) expressed opinion, the men were likely not innocents caught in a hail of bullets by an accident of fate, but were up to no good.
Couture describes his doubts, saying;
"We are far from convinced that these guys were not testing our procedures and techniques."
That Canadians would respond to the killing of two unarmed men, and the grievous wounding of three others by essentially blaming the victims is a chilling reminder of the deleterious effect war and occupation has on the oft quoted "first victim of war: Truth," and soldier's perception of the humanity of those caught in the crossfire.
Apparently, Major Couture, and presumably the higher ups he represents to the press, actually believe the people of Afghanistan, following generations of hostile occupation, believe life so cheap they are willing to expend the lives of six men to "test the procedures" of occupation forces. As if there remains any within Afghanistan who does not know exactly what civilian interaction with foreign soldiers has meant for thousands killed, maimed, orphaned, and rendered homeless.
No, the Canadian Forces don't buy the fact these guys were on their way home, or to work, or to a wedding, or whatever when they came suddenly upon a roadblock where no roadblock existed before. It must be, the CF apparently believes, some kind of conspiracy to discover just how far the locals can push the trigger-happy occupiers before they wipe out a van load of Afghanis.
Escalation-of-Force
The CF regard this as an "escalation of force incident." This "escalation" may be in regards to the so-named 'Operation Panther's Claw' currently escalating the body count on both sides of the eight year-old occupation-resistance struggle. Five Canadian soldiers have died from combat wounds in July, bringing close to fifty the number of NATO forces killed. This escalation likely has much to do with the response at the roadblock to the car filled with unnamed victims.
In this context, occupation twitchiness is understandable, but less so is the intransigent attitude of Major Couture and his betters. According to CanWest Global's news service reporting from Afghanistan, the "battle" status of those killed and wounded Friday is still to be determined. A disquieting thought considering past practices of western military forces where prisoners, wounded and otherwise, are concerned.
Worse yet, to bolster its unproven belief those shot up were something other than they would say they are, Couture cites the telltale refutation of innocence, saying the vehicle in question contained only "males of fighting age."
Wherever invading armies have ventured, throughout the long and blood history of conquest, it is exactly these "males of fighting age" rounded up and dispatched without mercy or regret.
Couture says the soldiers at the improvised roadblock employed both hand and voice signals at the car, but acknowledges the difficulties the soldiers have, saying;
"It is decision (a soldier) has to make very quickly if you feel threatened. Given the circumstances and what is going on in theatre (now) and previous incidents where we have lost soldiers to suicide bombers, we had to take action to protect ourselves and Afghans."
A Period of High Tension
Following president Obama's decision to "surge" (escalate) offensive operations in Afghanistan as former president Bush had done in Iraq, the number of civilians killed, both those suspected of being "insurgents," (a broad category including all males of fighting age according to Major Couture's reckoning) and those other hapless victims has predictably skyrocketed, contributing to what U.S. General Stanley McChrystal says is an "alienation" of the people. McChrystal's choice of words is undoubtedly not ironic.
The simple fact is: Afghanis do not like foreign interference in their affairs. Of course, no-one appreciates meddlesome outliers dropping bombs on they and their neighbours, but the tribes of what the British named Afghanistan are especially noted for their historical objection to occupation.
Reassuringly, Major Couture says Canadian Forces incidents like the killing of two and wounding of three men Friday, (a sixth man apparently escaping the hail of bullets on foot) is rare. According to Couture;
"The last one we had was in March."
What seems certain though is these incidents becoming more common as Obama's surge continues, and the rising number of innocent Afghanis killed in roadblocks and air raids fueling retribution and further periods of "higher tension."
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