Very enlightening article. Currently am reading about the 200 year rule of India by the Brits, and listening to Dr Shashi Tharoor. (He’s on YT). In Britain he explains how they used the divide & rule tactic to great effect with the Hindus & Moslems. Prior to that ‘intervention’ if you like they fought together side by side. EWR
From dissidentvoice.org
By James Petras
Introduction: The Historical Context
Throughout modern imperial history, ‘Divide and Conquer’ has been the essential ingredient in allowing relatively small and resource-poor European countries to conquer nations vastly larger in size and populations and richer in natural resources. It is said that for every British officer in India, there were fifty Sikhs, Gurkhas, Muslims and Hindus in the British Colonial Army. The European conquest of Africa and Asia was directed by white officers, fought by black, brown and yellow soldiers so that white capital could exploit colored workers and peasants. Regional, ethnic, religious, clan, tribal, community, village and other differences were politicized and exploited allowing imperial armies to conquer warring peoples. In recent decades, the US empire builders have become the grand masters of ‘divide and conquer’ strategies throughout the world. By the 1970’s, the CIA made a turn from promoting the dubious virtues of capitalism and democracy, to linking up with, financing and directing, religious, ethnic and regional elites against national regimes, independent or hostile to US world empire building.
The key to US military empire building follows two principles: direct military invasions and fomenting separatist movements, which can lead to military confrontation.
Twenty-first century empire building has seen the extended practice of both principles in Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, Lebanon, China (Tibet), Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Somalia, Sudan, Burma and Palestine — any country in which the US cannot secure a stable client regime, it resorts to financing and promoting separatist organizations and leaders using ethnic, religious and regional pretexts.
READ MORE
https://dissidentvoice.org/2008/06/separatism-and-empire-building-in-the-21st-century/
Photo: Image by Felix Mittermeier from Pixabay
