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by redjade Fri Apr 16, 2004 19:07

Siege of Fallujah polarizing Iraqis
http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0415/p01s02-woiq.html

"Fallujah has created a major polarization of Iraqi public opinion. There is no middle ground any more,'' says an adviser to the CPA. "Two weeks ago Iraqis wanted to see us make promises and deliver on them - rebuild, improve - but then they saw pictures of US bombs falling on a mosque in Fallujah. Now they want us out."

[....]

The Marines and coalition officials say they doubt many civilians have been killed in Fallujah and promise that their rules of engagement limit civilian casualties. "My solution is change the channel," Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt said earlier this week, after being asked about TV images of dead Iraqi civilians.

"The stations that are showing Americans intentionally killing women and children are not legitimate news sources, that is propaganda, and that is lies."

--------

Baghdad Burning Blog: Media and Falloojeh...

Wednesday, April 14, 2004
http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/2004_04_01_riverbendblog_archive.html#108195900197736397

I know it bothers the CPA terribly to have the corpses of dead Iraqis shown on television. They would love for Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabia to follow Al-Hurra's example and show endless interviews with pro-occupation Iraqis living abroad and speaking in stilted Arabic. These interviews, of course, are interspersed with translated documentaries on the many marvels of... Hollywood. And while I, personally, am very interested in the custom leather interiors of the latest Audi, I couldn't seem to draw myself away from Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabia while 700+ Iraqis were being killed.

To lessen the feelings of anti-Americanism, might I make a few suggestions? Stop the collective punishment. When Mark Kimmett stutters through a press conference babbling about "precision weapons" and "military targets" in Falloojeh, who is he kidding? Falloojeh is a small city made up of low, simple houses, little shops and mosques. Is he implying that the 600 civilians who died during the bombing and the thousands injured and maimed were all "insurgents"? Are houses, shops and mosques now military targets?

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Get Out Now, Before We Are Thrown Out
by John Pilger April 16, 2004
http://www.infoshop.org/inews/stories.php?story=04/04/16/7734491

The real tragedy of soldiers policing a colonial occupation is also suppressed. More than 58,000 American soldiers were killed in Vietnam. The same number, according to a veterans’ study, killed themselves on their return home. Dr. Doug Rokke, director of the US army depleted uranium project following the 1991 Gulf invasion, estimates that more than 10,000 American troops have since died as a result, many from contamination illness. When I asked him how many Iraqis had died, he raised his eyes and shook his head. "Solid uranium was used on shells," he said. "Tens of thousands of Iraqis – men, women and children – were contaminated. Right through the 1990s, at international symposiums, I watched Iraqi officials approach their counterparts from the Pentagon and the Ministry of Defense and ask, plead, for help with decontamination. The Iraqis didn’t use uranium; it was not their weapon. I watched them put their case, describing the deaths and horrific deformities, and I watched them rebuffed. It was pathetic." During last year’s invasion, both American and British forces again used uranium-tipped shells, leaving whole areas so "hot" with radiation that only military survey teams in full protective clothing can approach them. No warning or medical help is given to Iraqi civilians; thousands of children play in these zones. The "coalition" has refused to allow the International Atomic Energy Agency to send experts to assess what Rokke describes as "a catastrophe."

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Retired general assails U.S. policy on Iraq
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/military/20040416-9999-7m16zinni.html

Retired Marine Gen. Anthony Zinni wondered aloud yesterday how Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld could be caught off guard by the chaos in Iraq that has killed nearly 100 Americans in recent weeks and led to his announcement that 20,000 U.S. troops would be staying there instead of returning home as planned.

[....]

"I've been called a traitor and a turncoat for mentioning these things," said Zinni

by X Fri Apr 16, 2004 13:33

The War in Iraq and International Humanitarian Law
Frequently Asked Questions on Occupation (FAQ)

(Last updated on May 16, 2003)

The following FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) analyzes international humanitarian law with respect to belligerent occupation. It does not attempt to cover the issue of occupation comprehensively, but focuses on those issues that might arise during the occupation of Iraq by the United States and its allies.

The FAQ is based primarily on the 1907 Hague Convention (IV) Respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land, the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, and customary international humanitarian law.

by ec Fri Apr 16, 2004 13:31

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

TNI-News is a bi-weekly e-mail service from the Transnational
Institute. If you wish to view a complete version of this bulletin with
direct links, please visit http://www.tni.org

Feel free to forward this message!

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

15 April 2004

In this issue:

1. Upheaval in the Middle East
- Phyllis Bennis on US support for Sharon
- Various articles on resistance to Iraqi occupation
2. Conference on the New Latin American Left
3. World Social Forum futures debate
4. After Cancún: Prospects for the G20
5. New from our Fellows:
- Praful Bidwai on the forthcoming Indian elections
- Achin Vanaik on the legacy of neo-liberalism in India
6. Pinochet Watch No. 54

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

UPHEAVAL IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Last night, the US unilaterally endorsed Sharon's plan. This
effectively rendered Palestinians irrelevant in determining their own
destiny, reversed the long internationally recognised principle of the
right to return for displaced Palestinians and endorsed the
annexing by Israel of certain occupied territories in return for a
partial withdrawal from Gaza. Palestinians and the greater Arab
world are in shock. At the same time, the US ratchets up its
offensive against what is now clearly a popular uprising against the
occupation in Iraq. Tensions among the coalition forces are rising
as deaths mount and the new kidnap strategy to pressure for troop
withdrawal unfolds.

Rogue States Embrace: The Bush - Sharon Conference
By Phyllis Bennis
As a quid quo pro for Israel pulling out of most of Gaza, Bush has
embraced Sharon's unilateral plan to annex six major West Bank
settlement blocs and reject  the internationally recognized
Palestinian right of return. This, argues Bennis, represents a major
defeat for Palestinian human rights and international law.
Furthermore, Israeli-US negotiations have become the substitute
for Israeli-Palestinian talks, with the US free to concede Palestinian
land and rights as the British did in the colonial era.
http://www.tni.org/archives/bennis/bushsharon.htm

Iraq - President Bush on the Defensive & UN Plans for Creating
Interim Authority
By Phyllis Bennis
The continuation of US military occupation, whatever nominal shift
takes place ceremonially on 30 June, renders the entire interim
arrangement illegitimate, writes Bennis.
http://www.tni.org/archives/bennis/defensive.htm

The Vulnerabilities of the Bush Iraq Policies
By Phyllis Bennis
The US drive towards empire faces new and serious challenges,
writes Bennis, the most important being the widening military
confrontation now facing US troops in cities across Iraq. But there
is a further challenge internationally. The "second super-power" is
on the rise, and it now has broadened to include a new assortment
of governments prepared to defy US pressures, inter-governmental
organizations and groups, and new developments may point to a
potential to reclaim the United Nations itself as part of the global
resistance to US war.
http://www.tni.org/archives/bennis/vunerabilities.htm

How Iraq has Worsened Washington's Strategic Dilemma
By Walden Bello
After more than a year since the invasion of Iraq, the US is not the
same cocksure superpower of yesterday, says Bello. The Iraq
quagmire is just one manifestation of that fatal disease of empires:
over-extension.
http://www.tni.org/archives/bello/dilemma.htm

The Empire in Denial and the Denial of Empire
By Saul Landau
The US was where revolution received its first justification, but
became the bastion of counter-revolution and expanding empire.
Landau talks here about, amongst other matters, the blunders of
Iraq and how Bush's "war on terrorism" has produced more
terrorism.
http://www.tni.org/archives/landau/denial.htm

International Call for an Independent assembly of the Iraqi People
Activists for peace, religious leaders, intellectuals and academics,
writers and journalists, parliamentarians, trade unionists and
citizens -- insist on the right of the Iraqis to be free of occupation
and free to decide the course of their own history. TNI has
endorsed the call.
http://www.tni.org/iraq-docs/iraqcall.htm

TNI's Iraq page
http://www.tni.org/iraq/index.htm

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

THE NEW LATIN AMERICAN LEFT

The New Latin American Left: Origins and Future Trajectory

TNI and the Havens Centre at the University of Wisconsin are co-
hosting a major conference in Madison, USA from 29 April to 2
May. Leaders of labour, peasant, indigenous and other social
movements, politicians and political analysts  from ten Latin
American countries will be addressing the left trend in Latin
America and the implications for shifts in global power.

http://www.havenscenter.org/latinamericanleft.htm

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

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM DEBATE

An excellent compilation of the debates taking place about the
future of the World Social Forum has been co-produced by TNI and
Transform! - a European Network for Alternative Thinking and
Political Dialogue. This is the first issue of a new newsletter to be
published on a regular basis by Transform!.

http://www.transform.it/newsletter/news_transform01.html

TNI's New Politics Project
http://www.tni.org/newpol/index.htm
TNI's Social Forum Process page
http://www.tni.org/socforum/index.htm

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

AFTER CANCÚN

'After Cancún: Southern Prospects for Trade and Development'
Walden Bello's lecture at the Institute of Social Studies, The Hague
as part of TNI's Policy Dialogue series

Report by Glynis Cooper, TNI's communications coordinator

How monolithic is the group of twenty developing countries that
emerged as a regional force during the World Trade Organisation's
5th Ministerial meeting at Cancún? Will the so-called G20 expand
its agenda beyond the question of agricultural subsidies? Will it
prove a force to shift the global balance of power? Walden Bello,
Right Livelihood Award winner and TNI board member and fellow,
addressed these crucial questions at a Policy Dialogue organised
by TNI and the Institute of Social Studies on the 5th April, as part
of an ongoing series of policy dialogues aimed at inspiring critical
thinking about the current neo-liberal development paradigm.
http://www.tni.org/acts/aftercancun.htm

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

NEW FROM OUR FELLOWS

Towards a hung Lok Sabha?
By Praful Bidwai
Commenting on the forthcoming Indian elections and the prospect
of a hung parliament, Bidwai sees the only possibility for the
Congress party to gain the required support if it advocates revival
and universalisation of the Public Distribution System, which
effectively subsidises the basic goods required by the poor,
guarantees free primary healthcare and decent quality elementary
education.
http://www.tni.org/archives/bidwai/sabha.htm

The Politics of Neo-liberalism in India
Conversation with Achin Vanaik
In this interview by Ganesh Lal, Vanaik talks about the legacy of 15
years of neo-liberalism in India, the weakness of the Indian Left,
and the importance of the World Social Forum in Mumbai last
January.
http://www.tni.org/interviews/neolibindia.htm

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

PINOCHET WATCH No. 54
14 April 2004

In this issue:
Advances and Seatbacks in Human rights in Chile:
- Horman case indictment
- Chilean court cites international law to uphold sentencing of
Manuel Contreras and other military officers
- New sentencing law, changes in Santiago Appeals Court could
affect human rights cases

Update on Pinochet Cases and Public Apperances:
- Testimony, document links Pinochet to Operation Albania murders
- Pinochet interview prompts new trial efforts

Other developments:
- Argentina takes further steps towards justice
- Paraguay creates Truth and Justice Commission
- Spanish Supreme Court upholds jurisdiction in case against
Pinochet's Defence Minister

Papers and transcripts Available:
- Feb 2004 Roundtable: "Confronting Challenges to the Pinochet
Precedent..."
- Nov 2003 Conference: "El Caso Pinochet: Lecciones de 30 años
de una lucha transnacional contra la impunidad"

http://www.tni.org/pinochet/watch/watch54.htm

by redjade Wed Apr 14, 2004 12:05

The insurrection in Shia areas of Iraq was not a sudden explosion, nor was it primarily inspired by the events in Falluja. It was, instead, the result of a long series of actions and reactions between the Coalition's armed forces and increasingly organized and anti-American Shia militias. The most important single event was the immensely important, but barely reported, announcement by Coalition Provisional Authority head L. Paul Bremer, that the United States had "found a legal basis for American troops to continue their military control over the security situation in Iraq" even if the Iraqis ask the U.S. to leave after June 30.

by redjade Wed Apr 14, 2004 11:47

Airstrip One [Britain] is part of the vast political entity
Oceania, which is eternally at war with one of two other vast
entities, Eurasia and Eastasia. At any moment, depending upon
current alignments, all existing records show either that Oceania
has always been at war with Eurasia and allied with Eastasia, or
that it has always been at war with Eastasia and allied with
Eurasia. Winston Smith knows this, because his work at the
Ministry of Truth involves the constant "correction" of such
records. "'Who controls the past,' ran the Party slogan,
'controls the future: who controls the present controls the
past.'"

George Orwell's 1984

by redjade Wed Apr 14, 2004 11:38

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Vice President Dick Cheney received $178,437 in deferred pay last year from Halliburton, the Texas oil-field services company he once headed that has received billion-dollar government contracts in Iraq (news - web sites).

The White House on Tuesday released the 2003 income tax returns for both Cheney and his wife, Lynne, and President Bush and his wife, Laura.

Cheney's office said the income from Halliburton -- which was close to his salary as vice president -- was in no way linked to the financial health of the company. A Halliburton subsidiary is under investigation for possibly overcharging the U.S military for fuel supplies in Iraq.

The Bushes' taxable income was virtually unchanged from 2002. It was reported at $727,083, after deductions of $95,043. Their income included his salary earned as president -- $397,264 -- and investment income from the trusts in which their assets are held.

by SevenOaksMag.com Wed Apr 14, 2004 09:06

What do George W. Bush, John Kerry, and Paul Martin have in common? The answer: campaign blogs. But just how effective are they? Journalists and politicians who blog sound off: http://www.sevenoaksmag.com/
These days, everybody has one. Your friends have them, profs have them, journalists have them. Even Noam Chomsky has one. Moby does too. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that many politicians are also jumping on the latest Internet trend. In the United States, the campaigns of both President George W. Bush and Democratic Party nominee John Kerry feature blogs, also known as weblogs, on their official websites. During their candidacies for the leadership of the Canadian Liberal and Conservative parties, respectively, Prime Minister Paul Martin and Belinda Stronach also kept blogs.

Read the full story: http://www.sevenoaksmag.com/features/08_blogging.html

by redjade Tue Apr 13, 2004 19:38

When the 9/11 commission resumes its hearings Tuesday, it will be fascinating to see whether it addresses what may be the most serious security failure related to the attacks: the evacuation of about 140 Saudis almost immediately after 9/11.

Think about it: U.S. intelligence knew that 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi. Analysts also knew that Saudi money was a major force behind Al Qaeda. And, of course, Osama bin Laden, the perpetrator of the worst crime on American soil, was Saudi.

[....]

Both the Federal Aviation Administration and the White House claim the Sept. 13 flight did not take place.

But it did — as did the subsequent flights. How do I know? For my book, I interviewed two men, Dan Grossi and Manuel Perez, who were on the plane that took off from Tampa as security guards. I spoke with FBI agents who identified Saudi passengers boarding the flights but said they did not have lengthy interviews with them. I talked to sources who helped orchestrate the operation. And I obtained passenger lists for four of the flights. (The documents can be seen at http://www.houseofbush.com .)

read the rest at....

by Indymedia Ireland Editorial Group - Indymedia Ireland Tue Apr 13, 2004 18:35

Please note that the only comments that will be retained on this page are media updates (links, summaries, announcements of new issues of journals, etc), as explained in the opening paragraph.

Please don't create unnecessary work for Indymedia editors by ignoring these clear instructions. Be Indymedia - but don't abuse Indymedia.

by redjade Tue Apr 13, 2004 18:19

April 13, 2004

The Iraq Occupation

Typically, military occupations are quite successful, even by the most horrendous conquerors. Take, say, Hitler's occupation of Western Europe and Russia's postwar occupation of Eastern Europe. In both cases, the countries were run by collaborators, security forces and civilian, with the troops of the conqueror in the background. There was courageous partisan resistance under Hitler, but without extensive foreign support, it would have been wiped out. In Eastern Europe, the US tried to support resistance (inside Russia as well) until the early 1950s, and of course Russia was in confrontation with the world dominant superpower. There are many other examples.

Consider, in contrast, the invasion of Iraq. It eliminated two monstrous regimes, one of which we are allowed to talk about, the other not. The first was the rule of the tyrant. The second was the US-UK imposed sanctions regime, which killed 100s of thousands of people, devastated the society, strengthened the tyrant, and compelled the population to rely on him survival -- probably saving him from the fate of other gangsters supported by the current incumbents in Washington, all overthrown from within; that was a plausible surmise before the war, and is even more so in the light of postwar discoveries about the fragility of Saddam's rule. The ending of both regimes was certainly welcome to the population. The US had enormous resources to reconstruct the ruins. Resistance had virtually no outside support, and in fact developed within largely in response to violence and brutality of the invaders.

It took real talent to fail.

Posted by Noam Chomsky at April 13, 2004 11:09 AM

by redjade Tue Apr 13, 2004 18:12

.

Down the Memory Hole

by redjade Tue Apr 13, 2004 17:49

The hostage situations are a mess. I watch television and it feels like I'm watching another country. All I can think is, "We've become one of *those* countries..." You know- the ones where hostages are taken on a daily basis and governments warn their civilians of visiting or entering the country. It's especially sad because even during those long years during the blockade and in between wars and bombings, there were never any attacks on foreigners. Iraqis are hospitable, friendly people who always used to treat foreigners with care... now, everyone is treated like a potential enemy.

[....]

They say around 600 Iraqis were killed in Falloojeh- 120 children and 200 women... it's an atrocity and horribly sad. They have let one or two convoys in and the rest were sent back. The refugees from the area are flowing into Baghdad and it's horrible to see them. Women and children with tear-stained faces, mostly in black, carrying bundles of clothes and bottles of water. The mosques are gathering food and clothes for them... one of the storage areas for the refugee stuff was hit by an American tank today in A'adhamiya and the scene is chaotic... scattered food, medication, bandages, blankets, etc.

by pc Tue Apr 13, 2004 17:39

all is forgiving :)

by indie reader - none Tue Apr 13, 2004 14:35

Statement on SP website
Joe Higgins, Socialist Party TD for Dublin West, who spent a month in jail last Autumn for fighting the bin tax, will be the Socialist Party's candidate in the European election for the Dublin constituency on 11 June.

by Ugggghhhh Tue Apr 13, 2004 00:39

That's bad. That's really rubbing it in. Those soldiers have already suffered enough because of the arrogance and stupidity of Bush, but making them meet his daughters is unforgivable.

by pc Mon Apr 12, 2004 21:42

but the privatization of information about how to produce and spread violence

by redjade Mon Apr 12, 2004 19:38

The fighting two nights ago was loud and widespread throughout the northern and northwestern parts of Baghdad ... areas such as Yarmouk, Sadr City had almost continuous gunfights and rocket attacks. When we heard US forces using the main gun on M-1 tanks at 1 AM we knew it was serious insurgency at hand. The night is no longer the refuge and domain of the Americans. I have to tell you although the wide open areas of Iraq give a false sense of security. Even though much of this is unseen to most people the situation has gone from bad to really bad to unbelievably bad! Westerners are getting hit everywhere. Security companies escorting CPA, themselves and other Westerners are now on the menu for all the armed resistance groups. There was a report of a massive ambush by one security firm that tried to drive in from Amman. Reports have 25-40 gunmen opening up on them. They lost all of their vehicles and had to be given a mercy lift by a passing Iraqi minivan. Several other firms lost western security personnel killed this week in drive-by ambushes and even a seige by the Sadr Militia. Several NGOs, security firms and military bases were literally under siege for days in Kut, Nasiriyah and Baghdad. The boldness and sophistication of the attacks is staggering and it is clear that every one of the resistance fighters and Islamic militiamen have taken heart at the ease of inflicting damage on the Westerners. The abductions of the Japanese hostages is a sign that we have entered a new phase of bad as abduction requires a permissive environment for the hostage taker.

I refer to this entire mess as the second Intifada of Iraq.

by redjade Mon Apr 12, 2004 16:43

When U.S. Aided Insurgents, Did It Breed Future Terrorists?
NY Times Book Review

But in the eyes of Mahmood Mamdani, a Uganda-born political scientist and cultural anthropologist at Columbia University, both those assumptions are wrong. Not only does he argue that terrorism does not necessarily have anything to do with Islamic culture; he also insists that the spread of terror as a tactic is largely an outgrowth of American cold war foreign policy. After Vietnam, he argues, the American government shifted from a strategy of direct intervention in the fight against global Communism to one of supporting new forms of low-level insurgency by private armed groups.

"In practice," Mr. Mamdani has written, "it translated into a United States decision to harness, or even to cultivate, terrorism in the struggle against regimes it considered pro-Soviet." The real culprit of 9/11, in other words, is not Islam but rather non-state violence in general, during the final stages of the stand-off with the Soviet Union. Using third and fourth parties, the C.I.A. supported terrorist and proto-terrorist movements in Indochina, Latin America, Africa and, of course, Afghanistan, he argues in his new book, "Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War and the Roots of Terror" (Pantheon).

"The real damage the C.I.A. did was not the providing of arms and money," he writes, " but the privatization of information about how to produce and spread violence — the formation of private militias — capable of creating terror."

The best-known C.I.A.-trained terrorist, he notes dryly, is Osama bin Laden.

by redjade Mon Apr 12, 2004 15:02

Barbara (L) and Jenna Bush, the daughters of U.S. President George W Bush, walk together from the Darnall Army Community Hospital in Fort Hood, Texas, April 11, 2004 after President Bush (news - web sites) and members of his family visited with soldiers wounded in Iraq (news - web sites). Bush awarded 10 purple hearts to troops recovering in the hospital, after attending an Easter Sunday Church service at a chapel within the army base in central Texas.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/040411/ids_photos_ts/r3596483463.jpg

- - - - -

President Bush's Easter Message

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/04/20040409.html

The Lord is risen indeed… Luke 24:34

I send greetings to Christians around the world as they gather to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus' life and teachings continue to speak to every generation, and Christians believe his miraculous Resurrection provides hope for the future and offers us the promise of new life.

Through His ministry and sacrifice, Jesus demonstrated God's unconditional love for us. He taught us the importance of helping others and loving our neighbors. His selfless devotion and mercy provide a remarkable example for all of us.

As families and friends gather to enjoy this Easter season, we celebrate God's gift of freedom and His love that conquers death. For those who observe Easter, our faith brings confidence that good will overcome evil and that joy is everlasting. Today, we give thanks for God's many blessings and pray for His peace in the affairs of men.

Laura joins me in sending our best wishes for a happy Easter.

GEORGE W. BUSH

by redjade Mon Apr 12, 2004 14:51

Dead Soldier's Kin Want Sibling GIs Home
http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-sister-soldiers,0,7183150,print.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

By JAMES A. CARLSON
Associated Press - April 12, 2004, 7:55 AM EDT

NEW BERLIN, Wis. -- With three daughters serving in Iraq, John and Lori Witmer had a family Web site with photos from Baghdad, notes to home and messages of encouragement.

"Keep praying! They're almost home!" a recent entry says. But the top notice, dated Sunday, carried grim news: "We regret to inform you that Michelle Witmer was killed in action April 9th ...."

The 20-year-old private died when her Humvee was ambushed in Baghdad, making her the first woman in the Wisconsin National Guard to die in combat.

Her family is asking the military to stop her sisters from being sent back to Iraq after this week's funeral.

"I can't live another year like I've lived this one," John Witmer told The Associated Press. "The sacrifice that this family's made can never be understood by someone who hasn't gone through it... It's a burden I can't bear. My family can't bear it."

- - - - -

Dear Mom and Dad,

How are you? Life here has been interesting. I am still working the night shift at the Iraqi Police department and we never know what the next shift will bring. In our station we joke that we should be a medical unit instead because almost every night we end up treating some person the IP's bring in bleeding. So far I've dealt with massive trauma to the head(a street gang beat this guys head in with a crowbar) a bunch of people with bullet wounds in various places(arms, legs, chest) stab wounds also in various places, and broken bones. I always think about Aunt Teresa because she works in the ER and we do so much emergency medical care. Right now the justice system is very primative. Last night these two young Iraqis pulled an old man out of his car and beat him almost to the point of death and stole his car. They were high on some type of drugs. The Iraqi police came on the scene and beat the two criminals and then brought them back to the station. They showed up with t he two young guys bleeding from the head very badly. When we questioned the IP's about how they were hurt they explained thats the way they treat criminals. They both needed to go to a hospital but the medical system in Baghdad is terrible. We sent one prisoner to the hospital to be treated for a bullet would and they brought him back a half hour later with a little bit of gauze over the wound. Street justice prevails here, and thats not likely to change quickly or easily. It's a constant battle for respect being a woman over here, I"ve learned to keep the same expression on my face and not smile too much.

Michelle's Letter Home:
http://home.wi.rr.com/jwitmer/Michelle%208%203.htm

Witmer Family Website
http://home.wi.rr.com/jwitmer/index.htm

by portland IMC Mon Apr 12, 2004 14:36

A Dictatorship of the Doers

by poland IMC Mon Apr 12, 2004 14:32

The alternative globalisation movement in Poland is preparing itself [video] [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], for protests against the European Economic Forum, which will take place 28-30 April 2004 in Warsaw, and is organising its own, open summits (at least two) [1], [2]. The official media started talking about this theme about a month ago, trying to create a nightmare scenario for the event, but it failed to talk about the alternative summit. The protests, prepared by a variety of movements and groups, are also creating a panic in the Warsaw City council, with the Mayor calling for the city itself to be closed down during the Forum. (see: response of Mayor Kaczyński)

What will happen in Warsaw? Known events include:

• a.. Alternative Social-Economic Forum 27-28 April (contact the organisers);
• b.. Alternative Economic Forum, which will take place during 28-30.04.04; (contact the organisers of the freedom movement conference (Anarchist Federation and anti-authoritarian groups));
• c.. a festival of independent theatre 28.04;
• d.. demonstrations by various groups against neoliberalism, and especially against the European Economic Summit, which will happen on the 29th of April contact with free coalition; press contact; tel: +48 (022) 697 248 526);
• e.. a street party on the 1st May - the Million Marihuana March.

The first reports about the European Economic Forum in Warsaw circulated in November 2003. More about the WEF can be read on Indymedia in Polish and in English .

What are the authorities and the corporate media so afraid of? Of course, demonstrations against the European Economic Summit. While most of the alterglobalists openly declare that they don't plan any violence, nor street fights, but instead the presentation of critical analysis and an alternative summit is their main aim, as illustrations to most of the articles concerned with the summit, all we see is walls of fire. Nobody mentions the fact that simultaneously with the official Forum there will be an independent theatre festival an economic conference for alternatives to neoliberalism [1], [2], (program), as well as other cultural events. This sensationalism camouflages the arguments of opponents to the Forum.

Protests against the European Economic Summit have previously occurred when it took place in Salzburg (Austria). These are similar to actions by alterglobalists in protest against the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the World Economic Forum. The purpose is to alert public opinion about the non-democratic nature of international meetings by heads of state and chief executives of the biggest corporations, who without any participation by society make fundamental economic and political decisions for the world. The alternative globalisation movement was born the moment when it became obvious that there was an area of political power which completely escapes any influence from ordinary people. A supernational body like the European Economic Forum decides on fundamental affairs of all regions of the world, such as managing debt, market strategy and finance as well as the natural environment.

The Polish alterglobalist movement, analysed on the Polish indymedia from leftist and freedom perspectives, is still relatively weak, and in any case much less developed and influential than the similar movements in other European countries. Nevertheless, here too, groups with not quite the same beliefs have united in order to protest and present alternatives to global capitalism. Organisations and networks like ATTAC Poland; the Coalition of Freedom Groups (Anarchist Federation and anti-authoritarian groups); Workers' Democracy (Pracownicza Demokracja) the Stop War Initiative; the Poznań Antiwar Coalition and many others, including some small trade unions, most likely will converge to a common demonstration on the 29th of April, together, but without creating a committee. The arrival of many foreign activists is also expected.

To close this article, it's worth pointing out that Poland lacks a public domain openly supporting alterglobalists (exceptions are Jacek Kuroń and Zygmunt Bauman, whose articles you can read in Polish on the newswire); there are no official, commercial media where these points of views can be expressed. In France, at the time of the European Social Forum, most journalists paid attention to the people from various countries and presented, or even discussed their opinions. The Polish media, by contrast, at this moment have carried out a head-on attack against the organisers of the upcoming demonstrations, while all we expect is that the Polish media show maturity by respecting democracy, independence and freedom of speech. On this line of thought, it's worth mentioning Polish independent, free, leftist and socially committed media news services, like http://www.prawda.pl, http://www.poprostu.pl http://www.lewica.pl, and http://www.recykling.uni.wroc.pl, where you can find more information on alterglobalist actions. The volunteers of the Polish Indymedia will try to report the events happening related to the European Economic Forum and the alternative social actions, but don't forget that Indymedia has no boundary between providers and users of information, so you too can join in, so as to have a better picture of what happens during the WEF, by publishing your own reports: Editorial policy (pl) Other information related to the WEF and the EEF has been published on the newswire: photos of preparations of posters for the protests; photos +video; criticisms of the alternative conference; information on new laws about gathering in a public place; info on protestors' rights as well as a mini economic summit in Warsaw in January this year.

(pl) (en) (fr) If you need help or have questions, you can contact the groups below - kontakt - contact http://www.wa29.org:

informacja - information - info@wa29.org - tel: +48 (022) 697 248 526
prasa - press - prasa@wa29.org
Transport (bus, shared car): transport@wa29.org
grupa artystyczna - artists - artistique - art@wa29.org
grupa żywieniowa - food - de la bouffe - fnb@wa29.org
grupa medyczna - medical - santé - medic@wa29.org
grupa tłumaczy - translations - traductions - translation@wa29.org
grupa antyrepresyjna - antirepression - represje@wa29.org
grupa noclegowa - accommodation - hébergement - acomodation@wa29.org
zbiórka tekstów - text - textes - propaganda@wa29.org
dystrybucja wydrukowanych materiałÃ³w - matka-arka@o2.pl (plakaty, ulotki) - distribution of printed material (posters, leaflets) - distribution de matériaux imprimés (affiches, tracts)
webmasterzy - webmasters - webmasters@wa29.org

by redjade Mon Apr 12, 2004 14:28

"It was a tough week last week," Bush said, speaking at an Army base that lost at least nine soldiers in recent days. Some 50 U.S. soldiers were killed in action in Iraq last week in addition to nearly 900 Iraqis.

[....]

"My prayers and thoughts are with those who paid the ultimate price for our security," he said.



Bush spoke to reporters after attending services at a chapel on Fort Hood. Dozens of wounded soldiers have returned for treatment at the Darnall Army Community Hospital; Bush visited 11 of them, awarding 10 Purple Heart medals.

Asked whether he expected the violence to abate soon, Bush said: "It's hard to tell. I know this, that we're plenty tough, and we'll remain tough."

"Obviously, every day I pray there is less casualty, but I know what we are doing in Iraq is right" Bush said. "It's right for long-term peace. It's right for the security of our country. And it's hard work."

The president said he will send more troops to Iraq if necessary.

Gen. John Abizaid, the overall commander of the Iraq war, "knows full well when he speaks to me, if he needs additional manpower, he can ask for it," Bush said.

by redjade Mon Apr 12, 2004 14:25

Iraqi Battalion Refuses to 'Fight Iraqis'

BAGHDAD, April 10 -- A battalion of the new Iraqi army refused to go to Fallujah earlier this week to support U.S. Marines battling for control of the city, senior U.S. Army officers here said, disclosing an incident that is casting new doubt on U.S. plans to transfer security matters to Iraqi forces.

It was the first time U.S. commanders had sought to involve the postwar Iraqi army in major combat operations, and the battalion's refusal came as large parts of Iraqi security forces have stopped carrying out their duties.

The 620-man 2nd Battalion of the Iraqi Armed Forces refused to fight Monday after members of the unit were shot at in a Shiite Muslim neighborhood in Baghdad while en route to Fallujah, a Sunni Muslim stronghold, said U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton, who is overseeing the development of Iraqi security forces. The convoy then turned around and returned to the battalion's post on a former Republican Guard base in Taji, a town north of the capital.

Eaton said members of the battalion insisted during the ensuing discussions: "We did not sign up to fight Iraqis."

He declined to characterize the incident as a mutiny, but rather called it "a command failure."

by kokomero Mon Apr 12, 2004 12:43

when 20% of the Colombian Chief prosecutors office employees have failed an FBI administered lie-detector test?
Read more at:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3619175.stm

by - Mon Apr 12, 2004 02:05

Socialist Party involved in anti-fascism action

by Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP) - Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP) Sun Apr 11, 2004 18:06

IRSP: The Plough #34 (IRSM Easter Statements)
IRSP: The Plough #34 (IRSM Easter Statements)

The Plough #34
11 April 2004

E-Mail Newsletter of the Irish Republican Socialist Party

by Al - Organise! Sun Apr 11, 2004 12:55

Online library
Organise! have added a library section to its website at:

http://www.organiseireland.org

Over the next few months, members will be adding articles of interest on a range of different topics. Folk are welcome to browse and leave comments.

For more information, contact us at:

organiseireland@yahoo.ie