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Archive
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Creating a Peaceful Response to Terrorism
CPUSA Calls to Action for Peace and Economic Justice
Action Alert for Peace and Economic Justice #2 -------------------- **LEGISLATIVE FOCUS* ACTION ALERT Congressional Action Alert: Contact Congress Now! Congress is a battleground for legislation that will have a far-reaching impact on democracy, civil liberties and workers’ rights. Contact your Congressperson and Senators on the following pieces of legislation (Congressional switchboard is 202-224-3121: 1.Say no to the Anti-terrorism bills (H.R. 2975 and S. 1510). 2. Congress and the president have bailed out the airlines industry, but the workers have not received a dime of the 15 billion. The AFL-CIO is urging passage of “relief to laid-off aviation workers.” (S 1454, HB 2946&2955) 3. Corporate America is moving fast on “Fast Track” legislation (HR 3005). A coalition of labor, environmentalists, farmers, faith-based and other groups involved in globalization issues are urging Congress to say NO to Fast Track. HR 3005 would allow the President to sign trade agreements like the Free Trade of the Americas Act (FTAA) without Congressional approval. FTAA has been characterized as NAFTA on steroids with the effect of weakening labor and environmental rights, loss of jobs and lowering the standard of living for workers in all countries. CALL THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES on Fast Track -------------------- LEGISLATIVE UPDATES It's never too late to sign up for Legislative Updates, a service we provide that culls information from the Congressional Web site about important bills. E-mails are sent the day after each day Congress is in session (or soon thereafter). If you would like to be added to this list, just respond to this e-mail with the request. As you can see from up above, Congress is pushing through legislation that WE care about! Each district should consider having someone receive these updates and be responsible for following up on them as needed. ------------------ STOP THE CONFIRMATION OF OTTO REICH The Bush Administration and right wing are callously using the tragic events
of Sept. 11 to ram through their right wing agenda, and Democrats are caving
in before them. The all but dead nomination of Otto Reich has been resurrected
today and without massive phone calls to Senators Joseph Biden, John Kerry,
and Christopher Dodd, he may be confirmed as early as next week. The Capitol
Switchboard number is 202-224-3121. Following is information sent out several
months ago. Here are the details: Otto Juan Reich, who was the first director of the State Department’s Office of Public Diplomacy (OPD) for Latin America and the Caribbean from 1983 to 1986, has been nominated for the post of Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs. Reich was accused by Congress in 1987 of engaging in “prohibited, covert propaganda activities” in his efforts to promote the Reagan administration’s policies toward Nicaragua. The National Security Archive has placed on its web site numerous documents that reveal Reich’s role in the Reagan Administration’s Central America policy. Visit the site at www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/ to learn more about Mr. Reich’s career. For more information, contact the Nicaragua Network at (202) 544-9355 or by e-mail at nicanet@afgj.org. Our web site is: www.infoshop.org/nicanet The Latin American Solidarity Conference website can be found at www.americas.org/LASC *********************************************************************************** -------------------- OCTOBER 13 PEACE ACTIONS On October 13 an International Day of Protest to Stop the Militarization of
Space will be held worldwide. Currently, protest events are planned in 19 nations
and at 109 locations. Many of the actions will also call for peaceful and legal
solutions to recent terrorist attacks instead of more ACTION SITES (edited for space to only include sites in the U.S.) Meanwhile, testing of the Missile Defense system is scheduled to resume this
month It is worthy to note that the number one industrial export of the U.S. today
is weapons. October 13 protest sites are still being added each day. To see
the current list of actions, and worldwide sponsoring groups, check the Global
Network's web site at: Note to Editors & Assignment Desks: Media seeking the actual Pentagon plans for "control and domination" of space can obtain them by clicking on Space Command's web site at: http://www.spacecom.af.mil/usspace/index.htm -------------------- "SAYING NO TO WAR IS NOT ENOUGH" AND A SAMPLE LETTER TO THE EDITOR Although stating "No to War!" is a clear message, it is not enough. We need to offer more than a slogan; we need to offer alternatives. What exactly do we mean when we say that we use international means to fight terrorism? Discussions about just this question are frequent now, and here are some ideas on how to argue the case! New attempts to block the US ratification of the International Criminal Court by Senator Helms and Rep Delay are coming soon. Bush has distanced himself from Helms efforts in recent weeks, but is uncommitted to the ICC. Senator Dodd, and Rep Delahunt (MA) are key sponsors of legislation opposed to Helms and Delay, and toward moving the process forward. The ratification of ICC is an important step in establishing the kind of permanent protections against the kinds of Crimes Against Humanity that occurred on Sept 11. Some talking points for a public signature and educational campaign to consider: ***Classifying the events that occurred on September 11 as “acts of war”, while just based on their scale and degreee, may have unintentionally given the terrorists’ actions a ‘legitimate’ legal status that they do not deserve, and which a functioning International Criminal Court would deny them. Wars typically occur between countries. In the moral conscience of the international community, these terrorist acts should be regarded, and have been described, as “crimes against humanity.” ***Under the Rome Statute for the International Criminal Court, crimes against humanity include murder and “other inhumane acts of a similar nature intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or mental or physical health...committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack.” (Article 7[1], [a], [k].); and such attacks must be committed pursuant to a policy of a state or organization. (Article 7[2][a].); and to meet the threshold for ICC jurisdiction, the attacks must be “the most serious crimes of international concern.” (Article 1.). **** According to the above definition and the independent analysis of international lawyers, the terrorist acts of September 11 are unquestionably a crime against humanity squarely within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. **** The United States remains the only western democracy opposed to the International Criminal Court. Under the principle of complementarity in the Rome Statute and according to the federalist principle of subsidiarity, countries with jurisdiction over international crimes have the first right and duty to try individuals accused of those crimes in their own legal systems. **** The International Criminal Court is not yet in existence, and, as currently drafted and signed, will have jurisdiction only over future crimes; therefore it may not be able to try those accused of the September 11 attacks. ****Yet some form of trial for these heinous crimes serves not only justice but also a healing process that will help prevent further cycles of violence. It is important that any trials be perceived as legitimate and fair so as to prevent future backlash and further terrorism. ****The United States is currently supporting the creation of “hybrid” tribunals in Cambodia and Sierra Leone which combine international and domestic prosecution for the terrible crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in these countries. We could pursue a similar strategy for prosecuting these terrorists. ****Nationals of at least sixty-one other countries were killed in the attacks, and their countries may share jurisdiction over the crimes with the United States. **** Those countries or individuals that are sheltering those individuals accused of the September 11 attacks may not be willing to extradite them to the United States, but may only agree to extradite to some form of international tribunal, as in the case of the individuals accused of the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing, who were extradited from Libya only after a Scottish court was established in the Hague. ****Pursuing the current declared US strategy of targeted military/political/economic/diplomatic attacks against the perpetrators of the attacks, will have the greatest chance of permanent success, and the least chance of aggravating terrorism, if international sanctions against, and prosecution of, terrorists and terrorist networks takes place under UN and World Court auspices. ****Many countries have already made Security Council approval of military action a condition for cooperation with the United States’ global effort to fight terrorism. More resources: A sample letter: Dear Editor, President Bush has surprised many of his former critics with his handling of the current crisis. Of particular note are his stated emphasis on patience and building international support. Especially encouraging are the diplomatic successes of Secretary of State Colin Powell. Gone is the former contempt for international cooperation. Hopefully, the Administration now recognizes the inter-related complexity of the post-Cold War World and will remain more willing to approach global problems through international negotiation and cooperation. There is the danger that cooperation on hunting down terrorists will be seen as an isolated reason to work with the world community, and not one issue among many that require a fresh approach. Many problems, however, are global in scope and can only be effectively handled by voluntary, international collaboration. In the past, the Administration and some forces in Congress have often rejected international agreements outright, denouncing them as flawed while failing to use their considerable influence to craft something better, often against If anything good can come of the terrible tragedy that has befallen our nation, it may be that the United States more internationalist voices such as Secretary Powell’s over the unilateral voices. The Secretary of State recognizes the imperative of working together to counter new threats, not simply bullying others into reluctant compliance in areas of narrowly defined interest. America will be safe again, and prosperous, when international cooperation and law take their proper place in the priorities of our nation Please support the signature and ratification of the United States International Criminal Court -------------------- NEWS FROM THE CLUBS "We have a great new YCL'er on the campus and we've doubled our bundle for the upcoming issue, in which will be an insert urging the joining of our local club, etc. "As you may know I work on the campus of a small Catholic college. The Chaplin of said college and the nuns have been vehmently opposed to any military action from the get-go. I'll keep you up to date on the mood on campus but professors are already advising students to "keep a B average." "And, I put the PWW in the professors' mailboxes at the college. I stopped by on of the political science professor's office one evening and he had a great big box full of junk mail next to his desk. One of the few items remaining on his desk? A well thumbed and folded copy of the PWW." Send us news from YOUR club/district to emora@cpusa.org. Let's spread the good ideas around and watch the movement GROW! ------------------ VICTORY FOR WOMEN! The Seventh Circuit has ruled unanimously in our favor in NOW v. Scheidler, our 16-year case against anti-abortion zealots who use force and intimidation to carry out their mission. The opinion was in our favor on every point, from their specious First Amendment claims right down to the “hodgepodge of other claims” as the court put it. For more details, I will cut and paste our statement. If you’d like to look at the decision in full, you can go to the court’s website at http://www.ca7.uscourts.gov/op3.fwx and input the case number, which is 99-3076A Kim Gandy --------------------- CHECK OUT OUR NEW WEB SITE!! A day after devastating military force was unleashed by the Bush Administration on Afghanistan, the Communist Party USA, (CPUSA) rolled out a new web site at www.cpusa.org. Its October 8th article welcoming users to the new home page noted that "organizing for peaceful solutions to the threat of terrorism now unfolds amidst the bombings and war..." Read the full article on the front page and let us know what you think! --------------------- END blog comments powered by Disqus |
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Related websites: People's Weekly World Political Affairs Young Communist League |
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