September 11, 2007 by Rudolph Ryser.

Independent of American military forces, tribes in Iraq have organized to defeat foreign invaders in their lands. Tribal leaders in Iraq’s Anbar Province agreed in September 2006 to raise a tribal force of 30,000 fighters to take on foreign fighters that had moved to take over their territories with an eye to establishing an independent caliphate. What 130,000 American military forces and another 100,000 mercenary forces could not achieve in Iraq in four years, Fourth World nations are themselves achieving in just a few months.

The September 11, 2007 New York Times editorial notes: The main success General Petraeus cited was in the previously all-but-lost Anbar Province where local sheiks, having decided that they hate Al Qaeda more than they hate the United States, have joined forces with American troops to combat insurgents. That development — which may be ephemeral — was not a goal of the surge and surprised American officials. To claim it as a success of the troop buildup is, to be generous, disingenuous. American military and diplomatic leaders appearing before United States Congressional committees on 10 and 11 September in Washington, D.C. claimed for themselves the success achieved by these Fourth World nations. Indeed, instead of succeeding in Iraq, the American military forces are themselves a foreign irritant that has failed to defeat an estimated 20,000 Iraqi insurgents and what appears to be no more than 2,000 forces organized by the non-governmental organization al-Qaeda. It appears that Fourth World nations are the key to the future stabilization of Iraq.

As this column argued in an earlier discussion of the American invasion of Afghanistan the Fourth World nations themselves are a better defense against foreign invaders and groups of al Qaeda fighters than foreign American troops that will be regarded as invaders and occupiers themselves. When the Americans begin to understand that Fourth World nations are strong defenders of their own soil and people against foreign invasion, the sooner will Americans pull back from military adventures. Americans and other states’ governments concerned about “their interests inside other countries” should fully understand the Fourth World nations inside those countries before they consider invasion. They may become the targets of Fourth World nation defensive engagements just as other foreigners.

Negotiate with Fourth World nations is the appropriate approach if foreign states’ governments seek to protect their interests inside another country. America’s interest in Iraq is clearly oil. Notice that the Kurds have already stabilized the necessary administrative structures for the production of oil while the American created “federal government.” has not. Tribes in Anbar have already begun to force out foreign invaders in their territories when the Americans could not. There is a message in the success of Fourth World nations.

(c) 2007 Center for World Indigenous Studies

Technorati Tags: Anbar Province, Kurds, tribal forces, al Qaeda

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September 11, 2007 by Mirjam Hirch.

There has been intense public health debate in many parts of the world. The focus is to determine the most appropriate official policy towards traditional medicines. Some countries have policies that discourage traditional medicines, while others have supportive policies. The majority of countries do not have official policies and have simply left traditional medicines to individuals to decide (as of the year 2000, 25 countries reported having a national traditional medicine policy).
The important role being played by traditional medicine in the provision of primary healthcare is recognised around the world. There is now a growing consensus that the best policy is to protect and help develop the potential of traditional medicine as a source of health care. Safety, efficacy, quality and, above all, access to and cultural education of traditional medicine practices have to be guaranteed. Traditional Health Care Policies provide a sound basis for defining the role that traditional medicine plays in national health care delivery systems. Therefore increased government support and recognition of traditional medicine through official policies are urgently needed world-wide. The priority to be accorded to implementing traditional medicine policies differs between countries. It depends on the burden of ill health in the country and the relative importance and integration of traditional practitioners in the health care delivery system. There is no doubt, however, that national policies help all countries to develop strategies to protect their indigenous traditional medicine knowledge through increased recording and preservation and the re-training of traditional medicine practitioners on e.g. basic principles of reproductive health care. This is important for all of humankind.
For indigenous peoples the existence of traditional medicine policies is crucial. To be able to use and control their own, culturally defined, traditional health system is the most fundamental right of self-determination of Fourth World peoples.

Technorati Tags: Traditional Medicine, Indigenous Peoples, Policy, Health

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