Is Australia Heading Toward a Soviet Style Use of Psychiatry against “Dissidents”?

Christof Lehmann (nsnbc) : Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull asked counter-terrorism coordinator Greg Moriarty for advise on reviewing the threat of alleged lone wolf terrorist attacks. The initiative follows recent attacks in Orlando, USA, and Nice, incidents where authorities failed to provide evidence that links the violence to Islamic State, as alleged. Disturbingly, the initiative also includes psychiatric elements, reminiscent of the political abuse of psychiatry in the Soviet Union.

Counter Terrorism Coordinator Greg Moriarty. Courtesy Mick Tsikas, AAP

Counter Terrorism Coordinator Greg Moriarty. Courtesy Mick Tsikas, AAP

Turnbull asked Moriarty for advise on the threat from local, suddenly and rapidly radicalized lone wolves as part of a report that aims at assessing the recent, allegedly Islamic State related incidents in Nice, France and Germany.

Moriarty has been tasked with cooperating with agencies to examine all persons of interest being watched in relation to terrorism investigations.

The “examination” shall determine if there is “a significant connection with mental health concerns”, or if there are other significant patterns of criminal behavior.

It has been claimed that the recent attacks on the Pulse night club in Orlando, Florida, USA, the truck attack in Nice, France, and the axe attack in a train in Germany show the evolution of a new terrorist.

In all three cases, authorities alleged links to the self-proclaimed Islamic State, a.k.a. ISIL, ISIS and Daesh, even though no evidence that would substantiate these allegations was made accessible to the public or independent media.

Police in Orlando, for example, claimed that the Pulse night club shooter Omar Mir Seddique Mateen had made 911 calls, pledging allegiance to the Islamic State. nsnbc contacted both the Orlando Police Department and the FBI. Neither of them would release the audio from the alleged 911 calls.

French police did not present any evidence that would  be admissible in a court of law that would substantiate that Nice road rage killer Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel had links to Islamic State, as alleged. Bouhlel had a record of petty crimes.

The axe attack in Germany was carried out by an Afghan refugee. No Islamic State links were positively proven and the “terrorist” may as well have been “inspired” by the treatment of asylum seekers, or the destruction of Afghanistan in an illegal war.

One common denominator in most alleged lone wolf attacks and many of the other recent “terrorism-related incidents” is that the allegedly rapidly radicalized perpetrators are being killed.

No trial will be held, no conclusive evidence will ever be tested before a court of law, no eventual motive will be established beyond a reasonable doubt.

No other than a post-mortem “psychiatric evaluation” will be possible. An evaluation that will be biased by the “alleged” sudden, terrorism-linked radicalization of the deceased.

Turnbull tasked Moriarty to report on:

  • The vulnerability of and means of protecting open areas where crowds congregate
  • How Australian agencies are responding to the challenges of the lone wolf actor who is rapidly radicalized, including through community outreach
  • The implications of terrorists using fast-evolving technology including encryption
  • Measures to prevent vulnerable Australians falling through the cracks of the justice and mental health systems and heading towards violent radicalization without being identified by security authorities.

The “report” may, or may not facilitate the identification of actual potential terrorists before an attack and may, possibly, prevent acts of actual terrorism. What the report most probably also will achieve is to justify:

  • Increased public surveillance,  surveillance of public places and further infringements on privacy
  • Increased infiltration of selected, targeted communities by “terrorism experts”, agents and eventually with agent provocateurs
  • Increased infringement of privacy and communication, measures  against encryption, and increased mass data surveillance
  • Increased attempts to explain alleged acts of terrorism with psychopathology and the increased risk that psychiatry will be abused against dissidents, Soviet Style

Moriarty noted that the terrorist threat was deep, global and multi-dimensional and that Turnbull had discussed with him “the need to position the country to be both secure and united, not just for tomorrow or next year, but for decades and possibly generations”.

Allegedly recognizing that the terrorism-threat is multi-faceted and complex, neither Turnbull nor Moriarty would include the evaluation of Australian foreign and “defense” policy in their assessment. That is:

  • Australia’s support of the US dominated policy that introduced “mujahedeen” and Al-Qaeda to Afghanistan
  • Australia’s participation in the illegal wars that destabilized Iraq and created the conditions that were necessary for the rise of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, now Islamic State
  • Australia’s support of the illegal proxy-war and war against Libya
  • Australia’s support for the illegal proxy-war and war against Syria

Instead, Moriarty stresses the need for “robust intelligence and security measures” in Australia that need to be constantly honed to bolster “national resilience and cohesion”. Moriarty also noted that:

“For some the attraction is ideological and absolute. They believe in a narrow and extreme interpretation of Islam. … But we also now face another challenge from those who are not necessarily deeply committed to and engaged with the Islamist ideology but are nonetheless, due to a range of reasons, including mental health issues, susceptible to being motivated and lured rapidly down a dangerous path by the terrorist narrative.”

Arguably, for some, the use of Islamist terrorist organizations is justified and based on the absolutely misguided ideology that the means justify the end when the urge to illegally overthrow foreign governments has become irresistible. Some “extremists” believe in the delusional and narrow interpretation of the right to continue an imperialist policy while violating international law and the charter of the UN; And some of those who fit this description have correctly been diagnosed with psychopathic and sociopathic traits in the peer-reviewed scientific literature. The problem is, arguably, that the patients are running the madhouse.

CH/L – nsnbc 22.07.2016

Source Article from http://nsnbc.me/2016/07/22/is-australia-heading-toward-a-soviet-style-use-of-psychiatry-against-dissidents/

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Leave a Reply

Powered by WordPress | Designed by: Premium WordPress Themes | Thanks to Themes Gallery, Bromoney and Wordpress Themes