Cyprus-Forum.com

[miltiades]

Taken from the Times of London
A Question of Honour
Britain is still failing to protect its interpreters and their families in Iraq

It is six weeks since the Government promised an “urgent review” of the situation of Iraqis whose lives are in danger because of their work as interpreters for the British Army. During that time, the 5,000 British troops have pulled back from central Basra to the airport, mainly for their own safety. Nothing has been done for the interpreters. Several have already been tortured and killed. Some have received death threats from militia thugs who accuse them of collaboration. Their homes are unprotected and their families live in terror. Out of loyalty and honour, they remain at their posts, helping British troops understand the dangers and the confusion. In return, they have been contemptuously brushed aside, as though they were trouble-makers demanding special favours. This is utterly shameful.

There have been vague promises that the men will not be abandoned when Britain finally leaves � though all the talk is of “relocating” most of the interpreters, rather than guaranteeing them and their families asylum in Britain, far from the violence. The Home Office and the Ministry of Defence try to slough off responsibility, hiding behind the excuse of a “review”. Spokesmen insinuate that extending the guarantee agreed for the 91 full-time interpreters would set a precedent encouraging up to 15,000 Iraqis to demand entry into Britain. Furthermore, they argue, lawyers would claim that Afghans should also have a right to asylum, forcing Britain to admit thousands of impoverished tribesmen.

Such talk is as dishonest as it is immoral. This has nothing to do with immigration policy and everything to do with British integrity. That quality seems disgracefully thin, compared to the immediate and unconditional guarantees given to their interpreters by Spain, Italy and Denmark before they withdrew their forces from Iraq.

In fact, Britain’s indifference is doubly culpable. For it is not the final pull-out that needs now to be addressed, but the situation today. The troops are still in Iraq and the interpreters are still needed. Some are so frightened that they are forced to remain on base all the time. Nothing is being done to guard their families. In desperation, they have appealed to correspondents to tell the world of their plight. And with weasel-worded insouciance, Army spokesmen maintain either that those threatened want to have their dignity and anonymity respected or that there is no record of those who have recently been murdered ever having worked for the British. The Government would prefer you to read jolly stories about the troops playing cricket in the desert than about brave Iraqis facing torture and death. ""

The British government is failing not only its own troops but also those decent Iraqis who risk their lives in order to be of service to the British army. Our government is a shambles , recently an MP announced his standing down at the next general election after being found out that not only was he paying out of public funds his son supposedly working for constituency office but also paying the son's boyfriend !!
Bloody corrupt lot , most of them are there purely to line their own pockets , they fucked the country up and now they are fucking the Iraqi translators .Shame on them !

[Eliko]

miltiades, the only thing surprising about the above article is that anyone should be surprised.

[Eliko]

If one views the plight of those Iraqi translators from the perspective of the 'Enemies' of the British, it is easy to determine the reasons for why they live in so much fear of reprisals.

They are, after all, likely to be seen as 'Traitors' by those who struggle against the oppressive 'Democratization' of their native land.

The British attitude toward the translators is also quite obvious, they are well paid and well used for the payment, thereafter, they are treated with the same contempt (in my opinion) as any 'Traitor' should be, regardless of the fact that they may be of some use at the time.

Wherever there is conflict, there is bound to be opposition, the trick is to find which force has justice in it's cause.

In the case of Iraq, I think it is obvious to most of the civilized world that the nation and it's people have been subjected to gross injustice, the employment of 'Traitors' in order to inflict more suffering on the Iraqi's says more about the British than those who oppose them.

Or do you imagine that a government which was proven to be prepared to lie to it's people in order to commit the murder and mayhem which has resulted in the slaughter of hundreds of thousands, would care for the welfare of a handful of 'Traitors' ?.

Leave the 'Traitorous Dogs' to wander their (now devastated) OWN country in order that they may see the evidence of their involvement in it's destruction, hopefully they will come to realize the folly of their actions before the 'Grim Reaper' knocks upon their door.

[tessintrnc]

I am very surprised that so many Iraqi's put themselves and their families in such danger for mere "vague promises" of relocation!! The attitude of the British is the same as it has always been, with the old Colonial viewpoint that the "natives" are and always will be expendable. I assume that these interpreters have had some education and therefore not "unintelligent" so why in God's name do they expect anything else? Their country is far worse off now than it ever was, and of course some of their countrymen see them as traitors and act accordingly. As for the British attitude - again, what else did they expect? When has Britain ever REALLY cared for foreigners - they are only in Iraq because their master America wanted to legitimise an illegal war by having other nations armies involved - and look how many are now pulling out. Those Iraqi translators chose to take the money - and now they are paying the price. It's very sad - but really of no surprise and I will be amazed if any of them get to England - perhaps they should have made them British Citizens at the time of employment? In such circumstances as they find themselves in, Britain should do the decent thing and get them out of harms way, but that is most unlikely isn't it? As I said, they are expendable.

Tess

[Get Real!]

I never thought I'd see the words "honour" and Britain" in the same sentence...

[Eliko]

tessintrnc. "Happy Valentine's Day" to you, and here is a lovely subject to kick off with .

I find it rather strange that people can be so gullible as to expect any action of 'Honour' to be forthcoming from a 'Dishonourable' source.

The British government have (by their actions in Iraq) revealed to the world just how much store they place in such principles as 'Honour' and 'Integrity'.

Not that they haven't done so severally in the past, this time their lies and chicanery have been proven and revealed to the entire world.

The future of Cyprus may well depend on the same band of thugs that perpetrated the misfortunes of the innocents of Iraq.

Or are we to believe that these 'Leopards' may change their spots ?.

[Eliko]

I never thought I'd see the words "honour" and Britain" in the same sentence...

Get Real, you can blame 'miltiades' for that, he started it !!.

[tessintrnc]

Happy Valentines day to you too Eliko!!!

There is no honour in Britains actions abroad and in a few years all will be forgotten - I remember people crying out for justice a few years ago (in the form of a proper pension) for the Ghurkas who so faithfully served the "Empire" - Honour? They don't know the meaning of the word!!!
Tess

[FreeSpirit]

Happy Valentines day to you too Eliko!!!

There is no honour in Britains actions abroad and in a few years all will be forgotten - I remember people crying out for justice a few years ago (in the form of a proper pension) for the Ghurkas who so faithfully served the "Empire" - Honour? They don't know the meaning of the word!!!
Tess

I will have worked for 50 years when I'm 65 in April, I have paid all my taxes and dues, my pension forecast arrived this week; £103 per week.
It would seem that not only the Ghurkas are short changed.

[FreeSpirit]

recently an MP announced his standing down at the next general election after being found out that not only was he paying out of public funds his son supposedly working for constituency office but also paying the son's boyfriend !!
Bloody corrupt lot , most of them are there purely to line their own pockets , they fucked the country up and now they are fucking the Iraqi translators .Shame on them !

What about the Speaker of the Commons he's up for it now; he's been missusing his air miles or something.