#AllLivesMatter from Paris to Raqqa

Firstly, any acts of violence perpetrated against any person or a people should be offensive to our humanity and the impact not to be diminished. 

We must condemn these horrendous attacks done in the name of religion and stand resolute with our French counterparts especially the youth.

In showing your support you might be one of the millions of people across the world showing solidarity with the people of Paris, after the recent terrorist attacks by using the French flag photo

filter on your social media accounts. The level of social awareness at an all time because of social media and it connectivity that reaches beyond boundaries and borders, allowing us to react, empathize and sympathize simultaneously as events occur in different parts of the world.

With many of us choosing western mainstream media outlets that are often for domestic markets like CNN – we end up not receiving the deeper coverage of stories that accompanies internationally focused media. This is inadequate for the formulation of balanced views and interpretation of world issues, it therefore leads me to submit that the current show of solidarity and outcry has been woefully disproportionate to the impact of terrorism and the so called ‘war on terrorism’ when comparing west and east.

Why I chose a Syrian Flag Filter?

Although the Refugee crisis gains considerable coverage, it still is being referred to as a “migrant crisis” – with the highlights being Europe’s response not the basis of the crisis that has led over 9 Million Syrians to leave their homes from the start of civil war in 2011.If you get pass the surface of mainstream reporting, there are facts and data that gives insight into the true devastation of terrorism and the war against it. 

The Institute of Economics and Peace (IEP), in its Global Terrorism Index 2015 states that, “terrorism remained highly concentrated in just five countries, with Iraq, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Syria accounting for 78% of terror-related deaths in 2014.” 

The town of Raqqa in Syria is the stronghold of Islamic State and has been completely destroyed by the ongoing civil war, IS and bombings by the US, Russia, France and other allied forces. Hospitals and schools are nonexistent at this point.

While the reasons for the filter is to make us feel better about our own inaction or inability to change the world but let’s not put a western cap on our solidarity. 

#TruthBeToldThursday: #TivoliCOE

Truth be Told:  

We must complete the Tivoli Commission of Enquiry, at the any cost (cheapest possible cost included, of course) - It was nothing but a serious injustice that the state could have killed over 70 people within a single community and the masses of the population didn't decide in outrage to protest such a criminal act against our own people - then again - we all heard the whispers of some (not so nice) Jamaicans "yea man, killed them off", "a only badman live there".  Even as we call for the expected money of 350 million being budgeted to run the Commission off Enquiry in its entirety to be dispersed as compensation to the people of Tivoli Gardens, we must not be ignorant of the significance of getting to the truth and apply the expected recommendations as to not repeat the events of the past. We must not allow our apathy and contempt of the system/process rob us of our rights - the Jamaica Labour Party must own up to the cause and structure of this enquiry - it was the government lead by Bruce Golding that decided to carry-out the incursion and it was their decision not to be apart of the enquiry in its planning stages, so this flurry of concern over cost is a bit overdone. 

ISIS Attack Caused by Inaction in Syria

 

As the Al Qaeda linked terrorism organization ISIS makes their presents known across the middle east especially in the nations of Syria, Iraq and Libya – all three having varying degrees of intervention from the International community led by the United States of America whether from the front through an Invasion based on a hubris in case of Iraq or from behind as not to directly be involved with the disposing of an ally who had fallen from grace in Libya.

With the Syrian civil war being the worst and longest of any of the Middle East uprising mainly due to the influence of the jihadist belonging to those familiar terror groups we associate with the word terrorism, with all the attention that the ongoing crisis in Syria had received before; with the whole world pushing for an international consensus to go into Syria with as much force as the allied nations did in Libya to force President Bashar al-Assad out of power. 

Unfortunately, Jamaica’s new best friends in the form of Russia and China decided to block any action that the UN security council would have taken to earlier in the conflict and possibly would have found that ISIS growing and taken decisive action.

 Geo-politics and capitalism have been the grim reaper for over 150, 000 lives in Syria thus far, will Western and Eastern powers take responsibility for their inhumane blunder that will now threaten their precious Middle East oil fields that fuel their economies – now that the US has resend troops to Iraq after a full withdrawal following a decade of war. We could applaud Syria’s denuclearization but the Olympus-like hypocrisy hangs too low.

ISIS is now the main threat and International community, including Russia is beginning to throw everything but the kitchens sink at Iraq, Syria and ISIS strongholds in neighbouring territories be it military or diplomatic help – but the truth is the real Syrian crisis will remain intact and bloody.