U.N. Peace Towns in Lawless Lands

Setting up semi-urbanized military outposts under a UN mandate in the failed states may achieve the following:

1. Quick, less expensive and more effective response to terrorist threats.

2. Elimination of piracy in the oceans.

3. Securing natural resources.

4. Ensuring the continuation of a conducive environment for global trade.

5. Providing a base to launch relief operations for situations like the present famine in Somalia.

6. Offering a glimpse to the locals in the surrounding areas to compare and realize what life can be in a society governed by the rule of law.

7. Offering the locals of the surrounding areas a pocket to adopt the Western lifestyle without having to migrate to distant lands.

Acquiring a 50 mile by 50 mile or so parcel of land in the very beginning would provide space for future growth and expansion of the urban part of such a military outpost.

Under contract to obey the laws of the outpost, such a garrison can offer residence on exclusively tenancy basis to the local civilians in the surrounding areas.

The clause of eviction from the outpost for violation of the contract would help the civilian tenants to become diligently law-abiding.

Prosecution and sentencing by the outpost under the laws of the mother country for felonies like murder, rape, kidnapping, arson and extortion would help keep criminals out.

The history of Bombay, Madras and Calcutta offers clues to founding of such semi-urbanized military outposts and to the mistakes which led to the loss of these three cities.

The rules in the urban parts of these outposts should be focused entirely on peace and business prohibiting any noise from loudspeakers, drum-beating and chest beating and, banning all religious, cultural, or political demonstrations/processions interfering with the flow of traffic.

A strictly religion-free curriculum in the schools at the outposts would further contribute toward peace and business.

One, two or, three 50-mile by 100-mile outposts along the 1,800-mile coastline of Somalia may eventually bring peace and civilization to that country.

Similar outposts on the Arabian Sea in Baluchistan and Sindh would mitigate the issues involving the region and would provide an option to the Pakistanis desperate to get out of the war-torn, lawless country.

Saudi Arabia depends on the U.S. for its security; it can’t say no to a few such semi-urbanized military outposts along the Red Sea and along the Persian Gulf offering the filthy rich Saudis a life like in London without the rain. The Saudi women would be able to drive cars.

Moammar Qaddafee would have gladly allowed a few such outposts to avoid what he is going through now.

Yemen, Burma, Congo, the land-locked Afghanistan—all these countries and many more can accommodate such outposts which can maintain a skeleton staff all the time at low cost and ramp it up when need be.

With their own seaports and airports, these outposts would have a fairly dependable supply line. Drones would help.

As the anti-civilization countries plant their suicide-bombers in the civilized world, the civilized countries would have to make a physical presence to counter the threat right where it originates.

Educating the local population around these outposts with a peek at the beauty of the civilization from close quarters would come as a bonus.

With their own underground urban railroad network, elaborate sewage system, waste disposal and sewage treatment plants, desalination plants to procure clean water and windmill farms to generate electricity, these new peace towns may offer mankind a platform to begin the march toward a better future globally.

(Cover Photo: Associated Press)