Why didn't Bajor like the Federation?

[darkshadow0001]

I realize different people can have different beliefs and cultures, but being that the Federation are mainly explorers and peace offerers, why would Bajor despise a Federation presence on DS9? I understand that maybe they wanted to liberate on their own, but the condition they were in during the first season of DS9 you would think they would be glad for help. Not only Kira did not want the Federation presence at first, but I remember Kai Win not liking it either. I'm sure there have been other Bajorans who did not want them there.

If Earth was devestated after a hostile takeover from an alien race, do you think we would want some help from someone who is trustworthy or would you think us Earthlings would rather do it ourselves?

 

[Huntingdon]

I'm quite certain that there would be a very vocal group that would prefer to do it on their own - quite possibly a majority.

After you've been opressed for years you are not going to trust anyone - however good their reputation.

 

[Sci]

I realize different people can have different beliefs and cultures, but being that the Federation are mainly explorers and peace offerers, why would Bajor despise a Federation presence on DS9? I understand that maybe they wanted to liberate on their own, but the condition they were in during the first season of DS9 you would think they would be glad for help. Not only Kira did not want the Federation presence at first, but I remember Kai Win not liking it either. I'm sure there have been other Bajorans who did not want them there.

If Earth was devestated after a hostile takeover from an alien race, do you think we would want some help from someone who is trustworthy or would you think us Earthlings would rather do it ourselves?

Well, the thing to remember about the Cardassians is that when they first arrived on Bajor, they claimed to be merely benevolent allies who would help them out, too. In fact, if I'm recalling the earlier DS9 eps correctly, the Cardassian Union never legally occupied Bajor, because the Cardassians were there with the permission of the traitorous Bajoran government, which was composed of corrupt politicians who profited from the state of de facto occupation.

Given that, it makes perfect sense to imagine that a significant fraction of Bajorans would be terrified of the Federation turning out to be just like the Cardassians upon their initial invitation.

 

[startrekwatcher]

TNG established that some Bajorans were resentful that the mighty Federation did nothing to help the Bajorans against the Cardassians.

 

[PointedEars04]

Bajorans had a do-it-yourself mentality at first, and there was also a large amount of distrust towards the Federation. It was exactly because they felt the Federation would take over the planet, using either soft or hard power (seemingly benevolent means or via military occupation).

More mistrust came from factions that were either more nationalistic or religious. That spread the discontent towards the Federation (see The Circle and Kai Winn in general). One wonders what would have the Bajoran-Federation relationship been like without Sisko being the Emissary.

 

[Phily B]

They didn't help the Bajorans during the occupation, not once. Then as soon as the Cardassians split, the Federation move in. Would you not be slightly pissed and cautious?

 

[Timo]

Worse than that, it would appear that the Federation did almost help Bajor, but held back at the last moment.

Just think of it: Bajor is next door neighbors to Cardassia, and used to be part of the Cardassian Union which encompassed at least dozens of star systems. But at the time of "Emissary", Bajor is also the outermost part of the Union, beyond which there is only neutral space.

But Bajor is a crown jewel for Cardassia, an important conquest and (up till just before "Emissary" at least) a vital source of raw materials. The odds of it being the outermost guardpost during the Occupation are close to zero. What must have happened is that the Federation, during the Cardassian War, was able to conquer all those systems in the Union that lay outward of Bajor, implying that Starfleet was basically invincible and the Cardassians could offer no credible resistance even at their very doorstep. And then the Federation stopped right there.

It is to the Federation credit that the worlds they conquered were subsequently all liberated to be neutral again. Or indeed sympathetic to Cardassia, as we repeatedly learn - the Kressari, the Klaestron, the Xepolites... But the failure to conquer and then liberate Bajor the same way must count badly against the Feds.

It's easy to think up reasons why the Feds had to stop where they did. Cardassian resistance must have stiffened as Starfleet neared their home system; by the time the forces reached Bajor, projected casualties from the intensifying resistance might have been deemed unacceptable. Also, whatever pissed the Feds off in the first place, it wasn't the original conquest of Bajor way back in the early 24th century. The actual war only started after 2347 (since as per "The Wounded", there was none going on during the first Setlik III nastiness), and the Feds might not have been interested in exacting any retribution beyond what the Cardassians had done after the start of the war.

Still, the Bajoran point of view could be very similar to the one of the Warsaw rebels who would see Stalin's forces stop just short of the city so that the Nazis could crush the rebellion before being crushed themselves.

Timo Saloniemi