Ndi Arnold Oliver
Kodi ndi motani mmene tsiku la Armistice linalili Tsiku la Ankhondo? Yakhazikitsidwa ndi Congress ku 1926 kuti "kupititsa patsogolo mtendere ndi chidziwitso pakati pa mayiko, (kenako) tsiku lomwe linaperekedwa chifukwa cha mtendere wamtendere," Armistice Day inadziwika kwa pafupifupi zaka makumi atatu. Momwemo, mipingo yambiri inaletsa mabelu awo pa ola la 11th la mwezi wa 11th mwezi wa 11th - ola la 1918 kuti mfuti inakhala chete pa Western Front pomwe nthawi yomwe 16 miliyoni yafa mu mantha a nkhondo yoyamba ya padziko lonse .
Pofuna kunena momveka bwino, tsiku la 1954 Armistice linagwidwa ndi bungwe la milandu la ku United States ndipo linatchedwanso Veterans Day. Lero America ochepa amamvetsa cholinga choyambirira cha Tsiku la Armistice, kapena ngakhale kukumbukira. Uthenga wa kufunafuna mtendere wakhala utatha. Choipitsitsa kwambiri, Tsiku la Veterans lakhala lachidziwitso chochuluka-chokondwerera chipembedzo cha nkhondo ndi ankhondo olimba mtima omwe amapereka ndalamazo. Sitikukhala ndi tsiku lachidziŵitso chozindikira kapena kusonyeza mtendere wamayiko.
Ndipo kudziwidwa kwa ankhondo monga nkhanza ndi kokongola kwambiri. Ngati ndinu wachikulire, ndipo moona mtima, mumavomereza kuti zambiri zomwe zikuchitika panthawi ya nkhondo ndizosavomerezeka, ndipo enieni enieni mu nkhondo ali ochepa komanso ochepa kwambiri.
Ndikuyenera kukuuzani kuti pamene ndinali ku Vietnam, sindinali wolimba mtima, ndipo sindinaonepo chinthu chimodzi chokha chokhalira wokonda kugonjetsa panthawi yomwe ndinakhala kumeneko, choyamba ngati US Army payekha komanso ngati sergeant. Inde, kunali kulimba mtima mu nkhondo ya Vietnam. Kumbali zonse ziwiri za nkhondoyi kunali ntchito zodabwitsa za kudzimana ndi kulimba mtima. Magulu a magulu anga anandifunsa momwe asilikali a kumpoto kwa Vietnam ankatha kupirira kwa zaka zambiri akuyang'anizana ndi kuopseza mphamvu kwa US. Amuna a zachipatala a ku America anachita zozizwitsa zolimba kuti apulumutse ovulazidwa pamoto.
Koma ndinaonanso khalidwe loipa, zina mwa zanga. Panali zochitika zambiri za kunyalanyazidwa ndi kuzunzidwa kwa anthu a ku Vietnam, ndi chiwerengero chachikulu cha ziwawa zoopsa kwambiri. Kuwonjezera apo, mayunitsi onse anali nawo, ndipo akadali nawo, gawo lawo la achigawenga, ojambula zithunzi ndi zigoba. Zopweteka kwambiri mwa onse anali asilikali a ku United States ndi atsogoleri aumphawi amene anakonza, kukonza, ndi kupindula kwambiri kuchokera ku nkhondo yowonongeka. Ndiyenera kuti ndithane ndi nkhondoyo mwamsanga kuchokera kwa asilikali, monga ena ambiri.
Chowonadi chozizira ndi chakuti nkhondo ya ku United States ndi kugwira ntchito ku Vietnam sizikugwirizana ndi kuteteza mtendere ndi ufulu wa Amereka. M'malo mwake, nkhondo ya Vietnam inayesedwa kuti iwononge ufulu wa ku Vietnamese, osati kuteteza; ndipo iwo anagawaniza kwambiri Amerika.
Mwamwayi, Vietnam sizinali chitsanzo chokha chokhazikitsana. Nkhondo zambiri za ku America - kuphatikizapo nkhondo ya 1846 Mexican-American, nkhondo ya Spain ndi America ku 1898, ndi nkhondo ya Iraq (mndandandawu sungathe kukwanira) - adagonjetsedwa ndi mayiko omwe sanaopseze dziko la United States. Ziri zovuta kuwona momwe, ngati nkhondo ilibe chilungamo, ikhoza kukhala yamphamvu kuti iigwire.
Koma ngati nkhondo zambiri sizilimbana ndi zifukwa zomveka, ndipo asilikari ochepa ali amphamvu, kodi pakhala pali asilikali enieni kunja uko kuteteza mtendere ndi ufulu? Ndipo ngati ziri choncho, ndi ndani? Eya, pali ambiri, kuchokera Yesu mpaka pano. Ndinaika Gandhi, Tolstoy, ndi Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. pa mndandanda pamodzi ndi a Quaker ambiri ndi a Mennonite. Ndipo musaiwale General Smedley Butler, yemwe analemba kuti "Nkhondo ndi Racket".
Ku Vietnam, Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson anasiya kuphedwa kwa My Lai chifukwa choipa kwambiri.
Wosankhidwa wina ndi mtsogoleri wakale wa US Army Josh Stieber yemwe anatumiza uthenga kwa anthu a ku Iraqi: "Mtima wathu wolemera ulibe chiyembekezo kuti tikhoza kubwezeretsa mkati mwa dziko lathu kuvomereza umunthu wanu, kuti tidaphunzitsidwa kukana." Tinalemekezedwa kuti tigwire Josh mnyumba mwathu pamene adayendayenda ku US pa ntchito yamtendere pomwe akupereka ndalama zomwe adazipeza mu usilikali monga kutetezera kwachinthu chake pa nkhondo yake yosalungama.
Nanga bwanji za Chelsea Manning amene adakhala zaka zisanu ndi ziwiri kumbuyo kwa zowonongeka kuti awonetsere zambiri zokhudza nkhondo ya Iraq? Ogonjera enieni ndi omwe amakana nkhondo ndi nkhondo, nthawi zambiri pamtengo wapatali. Ndipo tsopano anthu a Harvard akuphatikizapo olemba mapulogalamu ovomerezeka ndi okonza zozunza, koma osati kuwomba mluzu kwa mtendere. Pitani ku Chithunzi.
Chifukwa chakuti nkhondo zakhala zikuchitika kwa nthawi yaitali, kuyambira Gilgamesh itabwera ndi chitetezo chake mu Sumeria akupita zaka 5,000 zapitazo, anthu amanena kuti zidzakhala nthawi zonse ndi ife.
Koma ambiri amaganizanso kuti ukapolo ndikugonjetsedwa kwa akazi kumatha kwamuyaya, ndipo akuwonetsedwa kuti ndi olakwika. Tikumvetsetsa kuti ngakhale nkhondo sidzatha msanga, iyenera kutha ngati tikufuna kupewa kuwonongeka kwachuma komanso kwamakhalidwe - osanenapo za kutha kwa mitundu yathu.
Monga Nkhondo Yachikhalidwe Chachikulu WT Sherman adati ku West Point, "Ndikuvomereza popanda manyazi kuti ndatopa komanso ndikudwala nkhondo." Tili ndi iwe, bro.
Chaka chino November 11th, Veteran For Peace adzabwezeretsanso miyambo yamasiku oyambirira a Armistice. Bwerezani nawo ndipo mulole mabelu awo atuluke.
Arnold "Pita" Oliver akulembera PeaceVoice ndipo ndi Pulofesa Emeritus wa Political Science ku University of Heidelberg ku Tiffin, Ohio. Wachikulire wa Vietnam, ndi wa Veterans For Peace, ndipo akhoza kufikepo soliver@heidelberg.edu.
