Crean on the war: troops should stay

Wednesday, April 16, 2003 - 10:00

BY ALISON DELLIT

Federal Labor leader Simon Crean has signalled yet another retreat on Labor's "anti-war" position. Speaking to the ABC's AM program on April 11, Crean said, "If we are part of the occupying force, the ability to bring [the troops] home is pushed far into the future... To get the troops home as quickly as possible can only happen if what Australia insists upon is for the UN to be involved in the civil administration [of Iraq]."

While calling for this to happen, Crean was adamant that Australian sailors, pilots and elite SAS killers were needed to help "reconstruct" Iraq until it did. It is hard to see how they will be useful for anything other than attacking Iraqis who resist the occupation.

Crean's argument is an extension of his March 23 statement that troops should "finish the job as quickly as possible and return home", to which he added: "I want the troops to win.".

This position was contradicted (or "clarified" in ALP-speak) by several Labor MPs, and the office of Senator John Faulkner, which claimed the ALP was still calling for the return of Australian troops.

Some still appear to believe this is the case. In a press statement released on April 10, shadow defence minister Chris Evans explained: "In the absence of a request from the UN, the Howard government should fulfil its earlier promise and immediately commit to bringing our troops home at the end of the war."

Crean, however, clearly has other ideas. Asked by AM interviewer Linda Mottram if Australia should leave soldiers in Iraq "to help with the reconstruction", Crean answered: "Not only do we have a responsibility, as an occupying force, we must — under the Geneva conventions. It's a legal obligation."

Crean's argument that Australian troops should remain until a UN-appointed administration is established (and should remain if the UN requests it) is, in effect, a call for them to remain for some time. No international plan yet calls for the UN to administer Iraq.

From Green Left Weekly, April 16, 2003.

Visit the Green Left Weekly home page.