Slobodan Markovic on Thu, 17 Jun 1999 15:32:04 +0200


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Syndicate: Spanish Pilot Speaks


    I wonder what would you say if I wrote something like this
    during the war...  ;-)

    "They are destroying the country, bombing it with novel weapons,
    toxic nerve gases, surface mines dropped with parachute, bombs
    containing uranium, black napalm, sterilization chemicals,
    sprayings to poison the crops and weapons of which even we still
    do not know anything."

    BUT! The quoted text is from the Spanish weekly "Articulo 20"
    (Article 20, the constitutional provision on the freedom of
    speech?), No. 30, of June 14, 1999, about the NATO bombing
    raids against Yugoslavia and the role of Americans in making
    all decisions.

    Greetings,

            Slobodan Markovic   | http://solair.eunet.yu/~twiddle
            Internodium Project | http://www.internodium.org.yu

=======================================================================

THE SPANISH PILOTS OF FIGHTER PLANES ADMIT
THAT NATO ATTACKS CIVILIAN TARGETS

The pilots of Spanish planes who participated in bombing raids against
Yugoslavia do not feel like "supermen" nor as masters of air space.
Quite on the contrary, they say that our forces play to the tune of
music played by the North Americans, and accuse NATO of having honored
with medals the bombing of civilian targets, what they otherwise name
"collateral damages".  Jose Luis Morales


Captain Adolfo Luis Martin de la Hoz, who returned to Spain end of May
after having participated in the bombings since the beginning, an
"authentic expert for the dreadful F-18", the war plane most often used
in the war strategy of "scorched land" in the Balkans, is very
categorical:

"First of all, I want to make it clear that the majority, I say the
majority, of my colleagues, even if not all, are against the war in
general and against this war of barbarity in particular." Martin de la
Hoz says that he and his colleagues "are burnt out". "Since a few days
ago there appeared in the papers certain statements of the commander
Maches Michavilla, who is now in the air base at Aviano with the pilots
who replaced us, in which he said that our worst enemy in the air was
our mental and physical health.

But I tell you that our worst enemies are our own authorities, the
Defense Minister and his whole team, the members of the Government, who
know nothing about war and go along with it without informing themselves
about anything and, what is gravest, are guilty of lying to the Spanish
people through the papers, radio and television, foreign correspondents
and press agencies."

The suspicions that NATO's repeated bombings of civilian victims and
non-military targets are not the result of war "errors", are confirmed
by Captain Martin de la Hoz: "Several times our Colonel protested to
NATO commanders why they select targets which are not military targets.
They threw him out with curses saying that we should know that the North
Americans will lodge a complaint by the Spanish Army, once through
Brussels and again by the Defence Minister. But there is more, and I
want to tell it to the whole world: once there was a coded order of the
North American military that we should drop anti-personnel bombs over
the localities of Prishtina and Nish. The colonel refused it altogether
and, a couple of days later, the transfer order came. But what I say now
is nothing compared to what I shall have to say when the time comes."

The Spanish military denounces that "the Spanish Government not only
does not try to inform themselves but they also accept the false
reports that are edited for them in Aviano, where there is a sort of
military press cabinet in the hands of North American generals and
function aries. Ever since we arrived in Italy - the Captain goes on -
there is no end to humiliations and insults. The order givers are only
the North American generals, and no one else. We are zeroes, just as our
replacements are going to be. But there is still more to that. Here they
say that several operations were directed by Spanish commanders and
pilots. Lies over lies. All the missions that we flew, all and each one,
were planned by US high military authorities. Even more, they were all
planned in detail, including attacking planes, targets and type of
ammunition that we have to throw. We never directed anything, and our
missions were limited to flying over the borders of Macedonia, Albania,
Bosnia and Slovakia."

GOVERNMENT'S LIES

None of the pilots presently stationed at Aviano, who replaced those
who went to the Italian base a little before the start of war, last
March 23, were there with clean conscience, says the Spanish military.
"It is being written to saturation that the disciplined and patriotic
Spanish pilots according to Minister Eduardo Serra - are concentrating
on the complexity of their war missions". But we read so many
discrepancies, so many lies that we agreed to not read a single newspaper
until we return. Our anger is enormous.

The President of the Government, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the
Defense Minister are lying brazenly each time they talk about the war.
Some of us are of another opinion and believe they do not inform
themselves, because the North Americans - the White House, the Pentagon,
the CIA, the Embassy or military information service, whoever, do not
inform them about anything. How should they inform themselves if our own
Javier Solana has not informed himself since the war broke out? Solana
is a puppet who has been put there by the Yankees to do what they tell
him he has to do. And so he does, standing straight before General Clark
when he talks to him, or better said, when he issues him the orders that
he has to implement without delay."

On the subject of manipulation of information about the war, Captain de
la Hoz says that "no one has said anything about the incidents that
took place in Aviano, about the disastrous maintenance of Spanish
machinery, and above all about the constant humiliations to which we
were subjected from the beginning. Not that we were cannon food. No.
We were nothing. About the fatal accidents, the losses suffered without
connection to combat, the contempt and sanctions, not a word. From no
one!"

For the wrong selection of targets and humiliations the Spanish
militaries are ever more certain that there is no alibi. "We know
perfectly well that we are intervening in a conflict - says Martin de
la Hoz - which is rejected by the majority of the Spanish people and
this is most important for us. But what they do not say in any
information, commentary or speech, is that the Spanish, Dutch,
Portuguese... that we are there to cover up the North American generals
who are dealing and wheeling in the war. There is no journalist who has
the slightest idea what is happening in Yugoslavia.

They are destroying the country, bombing it with novel weapons, toxic
nerve gases, surface mines dropped with parachute, bombs containing
uranium, black napalm, sterilization chemicals, sprayings to poison the
crops and weapons of which even we still do not know anything. The
North Americans are committing one of the biggest barbarities that can
be committed against humanity. A lot of very bad things will be told
in the future about what was happening there, because, by the way,
judging by what we talked about with the British and German officers,
it was designed in order to divide the Europeans and keep us subjected
for many decades.

Therefore, Captain Martin de la Hoz is enraged when there are talks
about the costs of the war. There should be no doubt, he confirms that
the militaries detached in Aviano are receiving bonuses which are "five
times our salary", without counting daily expenses and other
prerequisites.

We could say that we should be satisfied with what this war means
economically for each one of us, but it is not true, what they give us
is the chocolate for the parrots. This war is going to cost the
Spaniards more than all money allocated for culture in the last five
years. And how, even if now no one says anything because of the elections,
it will be evident in a few months and will be felt in our pockets.
Because this brutal solely Yankees' war, no one's but Yankees', is going
to be paid by all of us. Be sure that what I say is not to exculpate
myself and to intone 'mea culpa' for having participated in it, because
I will never be able to forget that what was being committed there was
one the biggest savageries of history."


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