In Groot-Brittannië is er fiks wat ellende over het dragen van een witte 'poppy' in plaats van de 'gebruikelijke rode variant. De witte poppy is ter herdenking van alle oorlogsslachtoffers, terwijl de rode poppy er alleen is ter herdenking van militairen en geallieerde militairen, dus zelfs niet voor de Britse oorlogsslachtoffers.........
In 1933 werd de witte poppy geïntroduceerd om zoals gezegd alle oorlogsslachtoffers te herdenken en er op te wijzen dat er in een oorlog zonder onderscheid mensen worden vermoord. De witte poppy staat voorts voor het pleidooi een eind te maken aan oorlogen en te focussen op vrede....
Zoals dit blijkbaar overal hetzelfde moet gaan, zijn de rode poppydragers woedend over het steeds groeiende aantal mensen die i.p.v. een rode poppy een witte dragen, dit gaat zelfs gepaard met bedreigingen en daadwerkelijk geweld tegen de laatsten, terwijl deze mensen de rode poppy-dragers geen strobreed in de weg leggen....... Geen wonder dat het aantal witte poppy dragers in GB is gegroeid, gezien de deelname van GB aan de illegale oorlogen tegen Afghanistan, Irak en Libië (plus in feite Syrië)..........
Afgelopen zondag was het Remembrance Sunday (ook de zaterdag daarvoor is gereserveerd voor herdenking van gesneuvelde militairen en andere slachtoffers), waarop hare kwaadaardigheid May, de Britse premier, een krans heeft gelegd, 'uiteraard' alleen voor de militaire slachtoffers.... Tegelijkertijd werd (en wordt) er in Jemen door Saoedi-Arabië een genocide uitgevoerd met Britse pantservoertuigen, vliegend militair tuig, wapens en munitie, waaronder verboden clusterbommen........
Niet vreemd dus dat men niet zich niet wil herinneren hoeveel burgerslachtoffers er zijn gevallen in oorlogen waaraan GB deelnam......... Dit is overigens ook ingegeven door de enorme oorlogsmisdaden tijdens WOII, waar o.a. de Britten Duitse steden plat bombardeerden, met onder meer brandbommen, zelfs steden die geen militaire belang hadden.........
Het volgende artikel van Fréa Lockley werd afgelopen zondag gepubliceerd op The Canary:
It’s
Remembrance Sunday. But as ‘Theresa May lays a wreath, children in
Yemen could be killed with British made weapons’.
In
the lead up to Remembrance Sunday, red poppies are seen
everywhere. Indeed celebrities are criticised for
not wearing them. But since 1933, the white poppy has also been a
powerful symbol of remembrance. To remember all those who died in
wars, and as a poignant reminder that war kills without
discrimination. And that the way to end war is to focus on peace.
But
although growing numbers of people now choose white poppies, this has
led to a rise in hate crime and online attacks. Symon Hill,
coordinator of the Peace
Pledge Union (PPU)
spoke to The
Canary to
address some inaccuracies spread recently by mainstream media about
white poppies. And he also raised powerful questions about a
government that actively engages in funding conflict.
All
victims
The
Women’s Co-operative Guild first gave out white poppies in 1933.
Hill explained that the white poppy has three main messages:
"Firstly,
to remember all victims of all wars: civilians, the armed forces and
civilians of all nationalities. Secondly, to reject militarism and
any attempt to glorify or to celebrate war. And thirdly, to commit to
campaigning for peace" .
Increasingly,
says Hill, the British Legion:
"Insist
that red poppies only represent British and Allied armed forces and
personnel. So this doesn’t include British civilians let alone
other nationalities. And they also support the British armed forces
as an institution: increasingly they use lot of militaristic and
nationalistic rhetoric."
Hill,
and the growing
numbers who
wear white poppies, are not critical of anyone who wears a red poppy.
But there is a rise in abuse towards those who choose this symbol of
peace.
Abuse
Hill
told The
Canary,
“We’ve seen a sharp rise in abuse towards white poppy wearers
this year.” And he went on to say, “We’ve seen a rise in sexist
and homophobic content saying only ‘real men’ wear red
poppies.” Hill explained:
"I’ve
been involved in lots of campaigns and peace issues. And I’ve never
experienced the level of abuse that you get if you criticise red
poppies… it’s as if some of the armed forces most
enthusiastic supporters can’t cope with hearing any other points of
view."
"I
think that it’s very dangerous to suggest that we should only
remember the British dead and and imply that non British lives are
less valuable, especially in a context where hate crime and racism
and xenophobia are on the rise".
And
it seems that some of this has emerged from inaccuracies and bias
spread by the mainstream media. Hill said:
"We’ve
also seen The
Daily Mail (and
others) spread inaccurate information about white poppies. Bel Mooney
said that children will be given a white poppy instead of the red
poppy. This isn’t true. In some schools white poppies are sold
alongside red ones. And those schools run lessons and assemblies
where they help young people to explore and think about arguments for
and against red and white poppies. And they’re right because this
is what education should be about. It’s the very opposite of
‘indoctrinating children’ as Richard Kemp [in The
Sunday Telegraph] accused us
of."
Peace
in our time?
Speaking
about white poppies in 2017, Hill is openly critical of Conservative
government policies:
"We
have a government who will be talking about Remembrance this weekend
while running one of the largest military budgets in the world.
They’re putting billions of pounds into the renewal of trident
nuclear weapons. We’ve just seen the resignation of Priti
Patel over
breaking the ministerial code. But what she was allegedly doing was
talking to Israeli ministers about diverting aid money to fund
military operations".
And
as The
Canary has
reported, this government’s sale of arms to Saudi
Arabia has
devastating consequences. Hill said:
"And
perhaps worst of all we’ve got a British government selling weapons
to Saudi Arabia. Those weapons are targeting – not just
accidentally killing – but targeting civilians in Yemen. Children
in Yemen could
be killed with British made weapons at literally the same time that
Theresa May lays a wreath at the Cenotaph on Sunday. A wreath that
supposedly commemorates victims of war."
Not
in my name
But
one of the reasons many people choose white poppies, is a growing
mistrust in military operations conducted by the British government.
As Hill explained:
"After
the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003, a large number
of the British population didn’t support actions British troops
were engaged in. But since then the establishment has talked
increasingly about ‘support for the armed forces’. So we’ve had
Armed Forces Day in 2009 and the doubling of cadet forces in schools
since 2016".
But
as Hill points out, this stands in direct contradiction to the way
those returning from military conflict are treated:
"Actually
those who make these arguments show very little respect for the
veterans who are dumped on the street and live in poverty after war.
But they encourage uncritical applause for the armed forces. And
we’ve seen that become a much bigger thing in the last decade and
the growth in the British Legion’s militaristic rhetoric is part of
that wider picture".
An
alternative?
Hill
acknowledges that the British Legion, “do some good charitable work
for British veterans”. And he is clear that, “we certainly
wouldn’t discourage anyone from donating to charities that help
those affected by war”. But he highlights some of the bigger issues
veterans face in Britain:
"Militarism
recruits people with lies to the armed forces, sends them to fight
and then dumps them into poverty when they when they get back. But
that’s how militarism has always worked around the world and
throughout history. We have 7000 ex armed forces personnel living
homeless in Britain" .
I’d
have more respect for certain military charities if they were to
speak out against cuts to the welfare state, disability services and
the lack of investment in affordable housing. Why should British
veterans rely on people rattling tins in the streets?
So
for many of us, Remembrance Sunday is an opportunity to reflect on
the true cost of wars: past, present and future. And as more people
wear white poppies, the message is clear: end wars now.
Get
Involved
– But
wearing a white poppy, wherever you are, is a powerful commitment to
peace.
Featured
image via Peace Pledge Union.Become
a Canary member to support fearless independent journalism
Spread
the word:
=============================
PS: behoorlijk gestoord trouwens die herdenking, als je ziet dat de poppy van alles met het gedicht 'In Flanders Fields' (van dichter en legerarts John McCray), dus de Eerste Wereldoorlog te maken heeft... WOI was in feite een smerige handelsoorlog, waarin jongens werden gedwongen de loopgraven uit te gaan, om een paar meter grond te veroveren, waarbij deze jongens vrijwel zeker wisten te worden vermoord...... Om ze toch 'te overtuigen' liepen er doodseskaders achter deze jongens, om ze bij 'lafheid' ter plekke dood te schieten (in feite in opdracht van de Britse regering......)........ En dan godverdomme nog kransen durven te leggen, terwijl geen Britse regering ook maar één woord van excuus heeft uitgesproken voor deze vreselijke barbaarse oorlog, waarin men willens en wetens miljoenen de dood instuurde.......
