Amnesty and HRW on Georgia war: A few limp and carefully phrased press statements
Excerpt: ….. the much heralded use of “soft power” as a modern globalized substitute for military and economic force was shown again to be irrelevant, particularly where democracy and liberal norms are absent. The two international human rights superpowers said to embody the soft power of international norms - Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch - issued a few limp and carefully phrased press statements which “called on all sides to respect the absolute ban against targeting civilians or carrying out attacks that indiscriminately harm civilians.”
Although four days of fighting in Georgia have reportedly resulted in more casualties than the six-week Lebanon War in 2006, these self-proclaimed moral watchdogs were far more active in the latter, mostly in repeating false reports from Hizbullah operatives and condemning Israel for “disproportionate response” and “war crimes.” For the officials that control the agendas of Amnesty and HRW, Israel- and America-bashing are far more lucrative in money and in promoting their own power and influence than taking on Putin’s Russia.
From : Power, gravity and the state of nature
Aug. 12, 2008
Gerald Steinberg , THE JERUSALEM POST
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1218446184672&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
