Humanitarian Intervention

Noam Chomsky
Boston Review, December, 1993 - January, 1994
The first question that comes to mind about "humanitarian interention" is !hether the cate"ory
e#ists$ %re states mora& a"ents' (r !ere )achiae&&i, %dam *mith, and a host of others correct in
conc&udin" that they common&y act in the interests of domestic +o!er - in *mith,s day, the
"merchants and manufacturers" !ho !ere "by far the +rinci+a& architects" of +o&icy and !hose
interests !ere "most +ecu&iar&y attended to," !hateer the effects on others- in ours, cor+orate
and financia& +o!er centers, increasin"&y transnationa& in sca&e' % second obious question has
to do !ith those !ho are to be in char"e. !hat do their institutions and record &ead us to e#+ect'
There is am+&e documentary materia& su++ortin" the be&ief that states are mora& a"ents, in fact
uniform&y so$ /ithout hain" read the te#ts, 0 +resume that !hen the inasion of %f"hanistan
be"an to "o sour, +re-1orbache 2rada +ortrayed it as hain" be"un !ith "b&underin" efforts to
do "ood" thou"h most +eo+&e no! reco"ni3e it to hae been a "disastrous mistake" because
4ussia "cou&d not im+ose a so&ution e#ce+t at a +rice too cost&y to itse&f-" it !as an "error" based
on misunderstandin" and naiet5, yet another e#am+&e of "our e#cess of ri"hteousness and
disinterested beneo&ence$" The quoted +hrases are those used to describe 6ennedy,s inasion of
*outh 7ietnam, &ater e#+anded to a&& of 0ndochina, at the dissident e#treme, !e&& after the Tet
offensie coninced 8* business &eaders that the enter+rise shou&d be &iquidated 9%nthony
:e!is, John 6in" ;airbank<$ There is no need to sam+&e the harsher +arts of the s+ectrum$
;urthermore, these e#am+&es "enera&i3e, thou"h it is true that on&y in cu&tures !ith a dee+&y
tota&itarian strain do !e find such notions as "anti-*oiet" or "anti-%merican," a++&ied to the
miscreants !ho see somethin" other than ri"hteousness and beneo&ence in the actions of their
nob&e &eaders- ima"ine the reaction to a book on "anti-0ta&ianism" in )i&an or 4ome, or any
society !ith a functionin" democratic cu&ture$
The +attern is fami&iar since bib&ica& days$ =ut the conentiona& +ronouncements +&ain&y do not
suffice to refute ske+ticism about the mora&ity of states$ 0t is necessary to reie! the record,
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!hich reea&s, unequioca&&y, that the cate"ory of "humanitarian interention" is anishin"&y
sma&&$
(ne mi"ht take the heroic stand that in the s+ecia& case of the 8nited *tates, facts are irre&eant$
Thus the >aton 2rofessor of the *cience of 1oernment at ?arard instructs us that the 8nited
*tates must maintain its "internationa& +rimacy" for the benefit of the !or&d, because its "nationa&
identity is defined by a set of uniersa& +o&itica& and economic a&ues," name&y "&iberty,
democracy, equa&ity, +riate +ro+erty, and markets" 9*amue& ?untin"ton<$ *ince this is a matter
of definition, so the *cience of 1oernment teaches, it !ou&d be an error of &o"ic to brin" u+ the
factua& record$ /hat may hae ha++ened in history is mere&y "the abuse of rea&ity," an e&der
statesman of the "rea&ist" schoo& e#+&ained 3@ years a"o- "rea&ity itse&f" is the unachieed
"nationa& +ur+ose" reea&ed by "the eidence of history as our minds ref&ect it," and that sho!s
that the "transcendent +ur+ose" of the 8nited *tates is "the estab&ishment of equa&ity in freedom
in %merica," and indeed throu"hout the !or&d, since "the arena !ithin !hich the 8nited *tates
must defend and +romote its +ur+ose has become !or&d-!ide" 9?ans )or"enthau<$
%ssumin" these doctrines, it !ou&d be an e&ementary error, in ea&uatin" /ashin"ton,s +romotion
of human ri"hts, to consider the c&ose corre&ation bet!een 8* aid and torture, runnin" ri"ht
throu"h the Carter years, inc&udin" mi&itary aid and inde+endent of need, an inquiry that !ou&d
be +oint&ess to undertake as *hu&t3, %brams, et a&$ took the reins$ %nd our &oe of democracy is
a&so immune to em+irica& ea&uation$ /e may +ut aside the conc&usions of years of scho&arshi+,
recent&y u+dated for the 19A@s by 4ea"an *tate De+artment officia& Thomas Carothers.
democrati3ation in :atin %merica !as uncorre&ated 9in fact, ne"atie&y corre&ated< !ith 8*
inf&uence, and the 8nited *tates continued "to ado+t +rodemocracy +o&icies as a means of
re&iein" +ressure for more radica& chan"e, but ineitab&y sou"ht on&y &imited, to+-do!n forms of
democratic chan"e that did not risk u+settin" the traditiona& structures of +o!er !ith !hich the
8nited *tates has &on" been a&&ied$" /e need not !aste !ords on the nature of these "traditiona&
structures$" 0n +ractice, "democracy" has been defined in terms of outcome, not conditions and
+rocess$ =ut that cannot affect !hat is true by definition of our "nationa& identity$"
Those !ho are sti&& not satisfied can be offered the doctrine of "chan"e of course," sober&y
inoked !heneer the stance of nob&e intent becomes im+ossib&e to sustain$ True, bad thin"s
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hae been done in the +ast for understandab&e reasons, but no! a&& !i&& be different$ *o our
terrorist !ars a"ainst the church and other deiants in Centra& %merica in the 19A@s, &eain" the
re"ion &ittered !ith hundreds of thousands of tortured and muti&ated ictims and ruinin" its
countries +erha+s beyond recoery, !as rea&&y a !ar !ith the 4ussians$ No! !e !i&& "chan"e
course" and &ead the !ay to a bri"ht future$ The same &ine of ar"ument had been used to dismiss
as irre&eant the enthusiastic su++ort for "that admirab&e 0ta&ian "ent&eman" )usso&ini 9;D4,
1933< and for the moderate ?it&er, both barrin" the =o&sheik threat- the resurrection of fascist
co&&aborators and destruction of the anti-fascist resistance !or&d!ide after the /or&d /ar- the
oerthro! of democracies and su++ort for neo-Na3i monsters throu"hout the !or&d in subsequent
years- and on, and on$ *imi&ar&y, the second su+er+o!er inoked the threat of the >i& >m+ire as
it carried out its atrocities at home and in the re"ion$
To ea&uate these usefu& doctrines, !e must a"ain inesti"ate cases, im+ossib&e here$ /hat such
inquiry reea&s is that for both su+er+o!ers, the threat of the other sered +rimari&y as a deice
of +o+u&ation contro&, +roidin" +rete#ts for actions taken on quite different "rounds$
;urthermore, !e discoer that +o&icies !ere hard&y different before and after the Co&d /ar$ True,
/oodro! /i&son needed different +rete#ts$ ?e !as +rotectin" the country from the ?uns, not the
4ussians, !hen he inaded ?aiti and the Dominican 4e+ub&ic, !here his !arriors - as icious&y
racist as the %dministration in /ashin"ton - murdered and destroyed, reinstituted irtua& s&aery,
dismant&ed the constitutiona& system because the back!ard ?aitians cou&d not see the merits of
turnin" their country into a 8* +&antation, and estab&ished the Nationa& 1uards that ran the
countries by io&ence and terror after the )arines fina&&y &eft$
The story has been the same since the ori"ins of the 4e+ub&ic$ The first "reat massacre, of the
2equots, !as im+osed u+on us by "base Canadian fiends," the 2resident of Ba&e 8niersity
e#+&ained$ Thomas Jefferson attributed the fai&ure of "the beneo&ent +&an !e !ere +ursuin" here
for the ha++iness of the abori"ina& inhabitants of our icinities" to the >n"&ish enemy, !ho forced
u+on us "the confirmed bruta&i3ation, if not the e#termination of this race in our %merica$ $ $ $"
%nd on throu"h the conquest of the nationa& territory, the 2hi&i++ines, the maraudin" in our
"backyard," and the rest of the dis"racefu& history, continuin" throu"h the Co&d /ar !ithout
essentia& chan"e - thou"h as a "&oba& +o!er, the 8nited *tates by then +&aced Third /or&d
interention in a much broader conte#t of domination and contro&$
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%s the Co&d /ar ended, ne! +rete#ts had to be deised$ 1eor"e =ush ce&ebrated the fa&& of the
=er&in /a&& by inadin" 2anama, insta&&in" the re"ime of a tiny minority of bankers and
narcotraffickers !ho, as +redicted, hae turned 2anama into the second most actie center for
cocaine money &aunderin" in the /estern ?emis+here, the *tate De+artment concedes, the
8nited *tates sti&& ho&din" first +&ace$ The 4ed )enace hain" disa++eared, he !as +rotectin" us
from ?is+anic narcotraffickers &ed by the arch-demon Norie"a, transmuted from a&ued friend to
reincarnation of %tti&a the ?un, in standard fashion, !hen he be"an to disobey orders$ %nd !e
!ere soon to &earn that in the )idd&e >ast, &on" the maCor tar"et of our interention forces, the
"threats to our interests $ $ $ cou&d not be &aid at the 6rem&in,s door" 9=ush Nationa& *ecurity
*trate"y 4e+ort, )arch 199@<- after decades of dece+tion, the *oiet +rete#t can no &on"er be
dred"ed u+ to Custify traditiona& 2enta"on-based industria& +o&icy and interention forces, so it is
"the "ro!in" techno&o"ica& so+histication" of the Third /or&d that requires us to stren"then the
"defense industria& base" 9%6% hi"h tech industry< and maintain the !or&d,s on&y massie
interention forces - a shift of rhetoric that at &east has the merit of ed"in" c&oser to the rea&ity.
that inde+endent nationa&ism has been the +rime tar"et throu"hout$
The end of the Co&d /ar has broader effects on interention +o&icy than chan"e of +rete#t$ %s 8*
forces bombarded s&ums in 2anama, >&&iott %brams noted that for the first time, the 8nited *tates
cou&d interene !ithout concern for a *oiet reaction any!here$ )any hae obsered that the
disa++earance of the *oiet deterrent "makes mi&itary +o!er more usefu& as a 8nited *tates
forei"n +o&icy instrument $ $ $ a"ainst those !ho contem+&ate cha&&en"in" im+ortant %merican
interests" 9Dimitri *imes, *enior %ssociate at the Carne"ie >ndo!ment for 0nternationa& 2eace,
Dec$ 19AA<$ *uch considerations aside, a rationa& +erson !i&& reco"ni3e that +o&icy f&o!s from
institutions, institutions remain stab&e, and thus interention is &ike&y to be undertaken, !hen
deemed necessary, for much the same reasons as before$
0t is in this &i"ht that a reasonab&e +erson !i&& ea&uate +o&icy +ronouncements$ *u++ose that
=re3hne had announced that the 8**4 !ou&d no &on"er be content !ith containin" the >i&
>m+ire- rather, it !ou&d moe to a +o&icy of "en&ar"ement" of the community of free and
democratic societies$ 0f they did not mere&y co&&a+se in ridicu&e, rationa& +eo+&e !ou&d ask Cust
ho! the 8**4 had been defendin" freedom and democracy before$ %nd they !ou&d react e#act&y
the same !ay !hen C&inton,s Nationa& *ecurity %diser e#+&ains that !e can no! "o beyond
Page 4 of 11
containment to "en&ar"ement - en&ar"ement of the !or&d,s free community of market
democracies," addin" that !e are "of course" un&ike others in that "!e do not seek to e#+and the
reach of our institutions by force, subersion or re+ression$" % reasonab&e +erson !i&& ask Cust
ho! !e hae been +rotectin" democracy and markets, and !i&& quick&y discoer our anta"onism
to democracy 9un&ess "to+-do!n" ru&e by the traditiona& "ent&e hands can be assured< and to
markets 9for us, that is- they are fine, indeed ob&i"atory, for the !eak, !ho are not entit&ed to the
massie state interention and +rotection that has a&!ays been a &eadin" feature of +o&icy, as in
eery successfu& dee&o+ed society<$ %s for our distaste for "force, subersion or re+ression" -
a"ain, no !ords need be !asted$
0t is a usefu& e#ercise to com+are the actua& reaction to %nthony :ake,s announcement of the ne!
C&inton forei"n +o&icy !ith the reaction that minima& rationa&ity !ou&d dictate$ /e can &earn a
"ood dea& about our +o&itica& and inte&&ectua& cu&ture by carryin" it out$
0t is not that the reaction &acked honesty$ Thus The New York Times,s chief di+&omatic
corres+ondent, Thomas ;riedman, out&ined "the %dministration,s forei"n +o&icy ision" quite
accurate&y. its "essence" is "that in a !or&d in !hich the 8nited *tates no &on"er has to !orry
dai&y about a *oiet nuc&ear threat, !here and ho! it interenes abroad is increasin"&y a matter
of choice"- the insi"ht of *imes and others, !hen !e understand the "nuc&ear threat"
a++ro+riate&y$ The "essence" of +o&icy !as c&arified further the fo&&o!in" day in a re+ort on the
conc&usions of the /hite ?ouse +ane& on interention, announcin" the end of the era of a&truism$
No more "nice "uy," as in the days !hen !e turned much of the !or&d into "raeyards and
deserts$ ?enceforth interention !i&& be !here and ho! 8* +o!er chooses, the "uidin"
consideration bein". "/hat is in it for us'" - the !ords hi"h&i"hted in the Times re+ort$ To be
sure, the "ision" is c&oaked in a++ro+riate rhetoric about "democracy" and a&& "ood thin"s, the
standard accom+animent !hateer is bein" im+&emented, and by !hom, hence meanin"&ess -
carryin" no information, in the technica& sense$
The dec&ared intent, the record of +&annin", and the actua& +o&icies im+&emented, !ith their
+ersistent &eadin" themes, !i&& not be oer&ooked by someone serious&y considerin"
"humanitarian interention," !hich, in this !or&d, means interention authori3ed or directed by
the 8nited *tates$
Page 5 of 11
Consider, for e#am+&e, the torture of Cubans, intensified !ith Co&d /ar +rete#ts remoed$ 0t has
t!o maCor e&ements. first, to ensure that the is&and is returned to its status as a 8* economic
de+endency and haen for rich tourists, dru" traffickers, and the &ike, +erha+s under a facade of
democracy 9!ith outcome contro&&ed<$ *econd, to +unish Cubans for the crime of disobedience$
*erants e&se!here must be tau"ht the heay cost of standin" u+ to the >nforcer$
*ince these are natura& +o&icy im+eraties, !e find them quite "enera&&y$ 0t !as not enou"h to
s&au"hter mi&&ions of +eo+&e in 0ndochina and destroy three countries- t!o decades &ater, its
+eo+&e must sti&& be "round to dust by economic !arfare to teach the +ro+er &essons, !hi&e in our
+ecu&iar&y %merican !ay !e !him+er +iteous&y about the tra"ic fate !e hae suffered at the
hands of our 7ietnamese tormentors, settin" ""uide&ines" that they must fo&&o! for entry into our
"cii&i3ed !or&d" - and re&a#in" our "ri+ on&y !hen the business community comes to fear that
substantia& +rofits are bein" sacrificed$
(r consider Nicara"ua, no! reduced by 8* io&ence and economic !arfare to irtua&&y the &ee&
of ?aiti, !ith thousands of chi&dren starin" to death on the streets of )ana"ua and far !orse
conditions in the countryside$ 0ts +eo+&e must suffer much more- the 8nited *tates is no!here
near satisfied$ 0n (ctober 1993, the 8*-run internationa& economic institutions 90);, /or&d
=ank< +resented ne! demands to the "oernment of Nicara"ua$ 0t must reduce its debt to 3ero-
e&iminate credits from the nationa& bank- +riati3e eerythin" to ensure that +oor +eo+&e rea&&y
fee& the +ain - &osin" !ater, for e#am+&e, if they cannot +ay$ Nicara"ua must cut +ub&ic
e#+enditures by DE@ mi&&ion, irtua&&y e&iminatin" much of !hat remains of hea&th and !e&fare
serices, !hi&e infant morta&ity rises a&on" !ith disease, ma&nutrition, and staration, offerin"
ne! o++ortunities to condemn the "economic mismana"ement" of the des+ised enemy$
The DE@ mi&&ion fi"ure !as +erha+s se&ected for its symbo&ic a&ue$ :ast year the a&ready
+riati3ed banks shi++ed DE@ mi&&ion abroad, fo&&o!in" sound economic +rinci+&es. +&ayin" the
Ne! Bork stock market is a far more efficient use of resources than "iin" credits to +oor bean
farmers$ The bean harest !as &ost, a catastro+he for the +o+u&ation, thou"h the so+histicated
understand that such considerations are irre&eant to economic rationa&ity$ Nicara"ua has no!
been ordered to fu&&y +riati3e banks, to ensure that !hat ca+ita& there is !i&& be efficient&y used,
!ith consequences that are eident$
Page 6 of 11
(n Nicara"ua,s %t&antic Coast, 1@@,@@@ +eo+&e are no! starin" to death, !ith aid on&y from
>uro+e and Canada$ )ost are )iskito 0ndians$ Nothin" !as more ins+irin" than the &aments
about the )iskitos after a fe! do3en !ere ki&&ed and many forcib&y moed by the sandinistas in
the course of the 8* terrorist !ar, a "cam+ai"n of irtua& "enocide" 94ea"an<, the most
"massie" human ri"hts io&ation in Centra& %merica 9Jeane 6irk+atrick<, far out!ei"hin" the
s&au"hter, torture, and muti&ation of tens of thousands of +eo+&e by the neo-Na3i "an"sters they
!ere directin" and armin", and &audin" as ste&&ar democrats, at the ery same time$ /hat has
ha++ened to the &aments, no! that 1@@,@@@ are starin" to death' The ans!er is sim+&icity itse&f$
?uman ri"hts hae +ure&y instrumenta& a&ue in the +o&itica& cu&ture- they +roide a usefu& too&
for +ro+a"anda, nothin" more$ Ten years a"o the )iskitos !ere "!orthy ictims," their sufferin"
attributab&e to officia& enemies- no! they hae Coined the ast cate"ory of "un!orthy ictims"
!hose far !orse sufferin" can be added to our considerab&e account$ The +attern is remarkab&y
uniform in time and +&ace, a&on" !ith the im+ressie inabi&ity to +erceie it$
Not sur+risin"&y, terrorism has the same status$ /hen the *tate De+artment confirmed that its
?onduran-based terrorist forces !ere authori3ed to attack a"ricu&tura& coo+eraties, )ichae&
6ins&ey, a"ain at the &ibera& doish e#treme, cautioned a"ainst thou"ht&ess condemnation of this
officia& +o&icy$ *uch internationa& terrorist o+erations cause "ast cii&ian sufferin"," he a"reed,
but they may neerthe&ess be "sensib&e," een "+erfect&y &e"itimate," if they "undermine mora&e
and confidence in the "oernment" that /ashin"ton seeks to oerthro!$ Terror is to be ea&uated
by "cost-benefit ana&ysis," !hich !e are authori3ed to conduct to determine !hether "the amount
of b&ood and misery that !i&& be +oured in" yie&ds "democracy," in the s+ecia& sense of 8*
+o&itica& cu&ture$ (ur !ho&esa&e terrorism need satisfy on&y the +ra"matic criterion- retai&
terrorism by others, !ho &ack our innate +erfection, is the "+&a"ue of the modern a"e" to be
+unished !ith arbitrary harshness by the same Cud"e and e#ecutioner, amidst a chorus of +raise
for his un+ara&&e&ed irtue$
%s in the case of 7ietnam and Cuba, so !e no! stand in Cud"ment oer Nicara"ua for its crimes
a"ainst us$ 0n *e+tember, the *enate oted 94+-4 to ban any aid if Nicara"ua fai&s to return or
"ie adequate com+ensation 9as determined by /ashin"ton< for +ro+erties of 8* citi3ens sei3ed
!hen *omo3a fe&& - assets of 8* +artici+ants in the crushin" of the beasts of burden by the tyrant
!ho had &on" been a 8* faorite, and !hose murderous Nationa& 1uard !as su++orted by the
Page 7 of 11
Carter %dministration ri"ht throu"h its massacre of tens of thousands of +eo+&e in Ju&y 19F9 -
and beyond$ *hort&y before, the *enate had cut off aid unti& Nicara"ua +roes that it is not
en"a"ed in internationa& terrorism, the stern Cud"es bein" those !ho !ere condemned by the
/or&d Court for the "un&a!fu& use of force" a"ainst Nicara"ua, and ordered to +ay com+ensation,
!hich !ou&d hae amounted to bi&&ions of do&&ars- natura&&y /ashin"ton, !ith the a++&ause of
inte&&ectua& o+inion, dismissed the Court !ith contem+t as a "hosti&e forum" 9Ne! Bork Times<$
8* threats fina&&y com+e&&ed Nicara"ua to !ithdra! the c&aims for re+arations after a 8*-
Nicara"ua a"reement "aimed at enhancin" economic, commercia& and technica& dee&o+ment to
the ma#imum e#tent +ossib&e," Nicara"ua,s a"ent informed the Court$ The !ithdra!a& of Cust
c&aims hain" been achieed by force, /ashin"ton has no! abro"ated the a"reement, sus+endin"
its trick&e of aid !ith demands of increasin" de+raity and "a&&$ The +ress maintains its fami&iar
deafenin" si&ence$
Torture of 7ietnamese, Cubans, Nicara"uans, 0raqi chi&dren, and others, is a +o&icy +riority for
the reasons a&ready mentioned, !hich are understood in the Third /or&d, thou"h e#c&uded from
our !e&&-insu&ated +o&itica& cu&ture$ The +reai&in" mood !as ca+tured by a &eadin" =ra3i&ian
theo&o"ian, Cardina& 2au&o >aristo %rns of *Go 2au&o. throu"hout the *outh "there is hatred and
fear. /hen !i&& they decide to inade us," and on !hat +rete#t'
The Nicara"uan case raises another issue that !i&& not be oer&ooked by serious +eo+&e
considerin" the +ros+ects for "humanitarian interention$" The &eader of such interention !i&& be
a state that is remarkab&e not on&y for its io&ence, im+udence, and mora& co!ardice, but a&so for
its &a!&essness, not on&y in recent years$ /ashin"ton,s dismissa& of the /or&d Court decision had
its counter+art !hen /oodro! /i&son effectie&y disbanded the Centra& %merican Court of
Justice after it had the audacity to u+ho&d Costa 4ican and *a&adoran c&aims that the 8nited
*tates !as io&atin" their soerei"nty by im+osin" on Nicara"ua, safe&y occu+ied by /i&son,s
troo+s, a treaty "rantin" the 8nited *tates +er+etua& ri"hts oer any cana&$ The 8nited *tates has
sou"ht to undermine the 8N eer since it fe&& "out of contro&" in the 19E@s$ /ashin"ton is far in
the &ead in etoin" *ecurity Counci& reso&utions in these years, fo&&o!ed by =ritain, !ith ;rance
a distant third and the 8**4 fourth$ The record in the 1enera& %ssemb&y is simi&ar on a !ide
ran"e of issues concernin" human ri"hts, obserance of internationa& &a!, a""ression,
disarmament, and so on, thou"h the facts are rare&y re+orted, bein" use&ess for +o!er interests$
Page 8 of 11
The 8nited *tates record at the 19A9+-9@ /inter session of the 8N, ri"ht after the =er&in /a&&
fe&&, is +articu&ar&y informatie in this res+ect- 0 hae reie!ed it e&se!here, and there is no s+ace
to do so here$ *uch facts, aai&ab&e in abundance, hae yet to disru+t the chorus of se&f-+raise$
The standard rendition of the unre+orted facts is that "the *oiet eto and the hosti&ity of many
Third /or&d nations made the 8nited Nations an obCect of scorn to many %merican +o&iticians
and citi3ens," thou"h !ith these disru+tie e&ements "one and the 8N safe&y under 8* ru&e, "it
has +roed to be an effectie instrument of !or&d &eadershi+, and, +otentia&&y, an a"ency that can
effect both +eace and the ru&e of &a! in troub&ed re"ions" 9Daid =roder, /ashin"ton 2ost<$ The
same messa"e has resounded throu"h the doctrina& system !ith scarce&y a discordant note - yet
another achieement that any dictator !ou&d admire$
Nothin" chan"es as !e moe to the ne! %dministration$ C&inton !on "reat +raise for his coura"e
in &aunchin" missi&es at a defense&ess enemy !ithout &oss of %merican &ies 9on&y e#+endab&e
0raqi cii&ians<$ 0n a ty+ica& reaction, the /ashin"ton 2ost +raised him for "confrontin" forei"n
a""ression," re&iein" the fear that he mi"ht not be !i&&in" to resort to io&ence as free&y as his
+redecessors- the bombin" refuted the dan"erous be&ief that "%merican forei"n +o&icy in the
+ost-Co&d /ar era !as destined to be foreer ho"tied by the constraints of mu&ti&atera&ism" - that
is, by internationa& &a! and the 8N charter$ %t the *ecurity Counci&, C&inton,s %mbassador
defended the resort to force !ith an a++ea& to %rtic&e H1 of the 8N Charter, !hich authori3es the
use of force in se&f-defense a"ainst armed attack unti& the *ecurity Counci& takes action, such
se&f-defense bein" authori3ed !hen its necessity is "instant, oer!he&min", and &eain" no
choice of means and no moment for de&iberation," accordin" to standard inter+retations$ To
inoke %rtic&e H1 in bombin" =a"hdad t!o months after an a&&e"ed attem+t to assassinate a
former +resident scarce&y rises to the &ee& of absurdity, a matter of &itt&e concern to
commentators$
The +ros+ectie &eader of "humanitarian interention" is a&so notorious for its abi&ity to maintain
a se&f-ima"e of beneo&ence !hateer it does, a trait that im+ressed de Tocquei&&e 1H@ years
a"o$ (bserin" one of the "reat atrocities, he !as struck that %mericans cou&d de+rie 0ndians of
their ri"hts and e#terminate them "!ith sin"u&ar fe&icity, tranqui&&y, &e"a&&y, +hi&anthro+ica&&y,
!ithout sheddin" b&ood, and !ithout io&atin" a sin"&e "reat +rinci+&e of mora&ity in the eyes of
Page 9 of 11
the !or&d$" 0t !as im+ossib&e to destroy +eo+&e !ith "more res+ect for the &a!s of humanity," he
!rote$ *o it has a&!ays been, to this day$
*eera& qua&ifications must be added$ The 8nited *tates is not si"nificant&y different from others
in its history of io&ence and &a!&essness$ 4ather, it is more +o!erfu&, therefore more dan"erous,
a dan"er ma"nified by the ca+acity of the e&ite cu&ture to deny and eade the obious$
% second qua&ification is that interention undertaken on the norma& "rounds of +o!er interests
mi"ht, by accident, be he&+fu& to the tar"eted +o+u&ation$ *uch e#am+&es e#ist$ The most obious
recent one is 7ietnam,s inasion of Cambodia in December 19FA after years of murderous
6hmer 4ou"e attacks on 7ietnamese border areas- under com+arab&e conditions, the 8nited
*tates !ou&d +robab&y hae nuked 2hnom 2enh$ The 7ietnamese inasion remoed 2o& 2ot,
terminatin" maCor atrocities, thou"h that !as not the motiatin" factor$ %nd !e reca&& the
res+onse in the /est to the +rime e#am+&e of "humanitarian interention" in recent years$ The
8nited *tates and its a&&ies at once reconstituted the defeated 6hmer 4ou"e at the Thai border so
that they cou&d resume their de+redations$ There !as furious denunciation of the "2russians of
%sia" !ho had dared to remoe 2o& 2ot 9Ne! Bork Times<$ The doctrina& system shifted "ears.
instead of inokin" the issue of )0%s, !e !ou&d henceforth +unish 7ietnam for the crime of
riddin" Cambodia of the 6hmer 4ou"e$ /hen it became im+ossib&e to deny that 7ietnamese
troo+s had !ithdra!n, the system shifted smooth&y back to the o&d +rete#t - !hich remains
unsu&&ied by any notice of the &ack of interest about )0%s from ear&ier !ars, the atrocious 8*
treatment of 2(/s in 7ietnam, 6orea, and the 2acific /ar, or the obscenity of the entire
enter+rise of ho&din" 7ietnamese to account for !hat they hae done to us$
;urthermore, un&ike states, +eo+&e are mora& a"ents$ (ccasiona&&y, the +o+u&ation has com+e&&ed
the state to undertake humanitarian efforts$ 0 need not discuss the *oma&ian interention,
trans+arent&y cynica& from its first days$ =ut consider a rea& e#am+&e. the +rotection 3one that the
=ush %dministration re&uctant&y e#tended to the 6urds in northern 0raq, after tacit&y su++ortin"
*addam ?ussein as he crushed the *hiite and 6urdish u+risin"s$ ?ere +ub&ic o+inion +&ayed a
decisie ro&e, oercomin" the %dministration,s commitment to the ru&e of a unified 0raq by an
"iron fist," !hether !ie&ded by *addam or some c&one, as /ashin"ton e#+&ained by !ay of the
Times chief di+&omatic corres+ondent$
Page 10 of 11
The sincerity of the concern for the 6urds is demonstrated by !hat ha++ened as +ub&ic attention
!aned$ They are subCect to 0raqi embar"o in addition to the sanctions a"ainst 0raq$ The /est
refuses to +roide the +idd&in" sums required to satisfy their basic needs and kee+ them from
*addam,s hideous embrace$ The 8N De+artment of ?umanitarian %ffairs +re+ared a 1IJ bi&&ion
do&&ar re&ief and rehabi&itation +ro"ram for 6urds, *hiites, and +oerty-stricken *unnis in centra&
0raq$ The C&inton %dministration - "haunted by the +ictures of 6urdish !omen and chi&dren cut
do!n by +oison "as," the 2resident assured the 8N - offered D1H mi&&ion, "money &eft oer from
contributions to a +reious 8N +ro"ram in northern 0raq," the director of )idd&e >ast /atch
re+orts$
;ina&&y, the conc&usions that a rationa& obserer !i&& dra! about 8*-&ed "humanitarian
interention" do not ans!er the question !hether such interention shou&d neerthe&ess be
undertaken$ That is a se+arate matter, to be faced !ithout i&&usions about our unique nobi&ity$ /e
can, in short, ask !hether the +ursuit of se&f-interest mi"ht ha++en to benefit others in +articu&ar
cases, or !hether unremittin" +ub&ic +ressure mi"ht oercome the demands of the "+rinci+a&
architects" of +o&icy and the interests they sere$
There is a&so a more fundamenta& question. Can our +o&itica& and inte&&ectua& cu&ture, our society
and institutions, under"o the radica& transformations that !ou&d be required for an %merican
citi3en to use such +hrases as "%merican humanitarian interention" or "en&ar"ement of the
!or&d,s free community of market democracies" !ithout shame' The fate of much of the !or&d
de+ends on the ans!er !e "ie to that question$
Page 11 of 11