JusticeAware means seeking both Peace and Justice. JusticeAware stands up to human rights violations at home and around the world. This page covers War Crimes, Target the War Profiteers, Impeach the President for War Crimes, Ban Enriched (depleted) Uranium Weaponry, and elect Peace candidates in 2004.Stop Fascism in America.
PeaceAware | AhimsaAware | DemocracyAware | EducationAware | FactAware | FaithAware | GlobalAware | JusticeAware | MediaAware | © 'PeaceAware.com'
There is no long lasting peace without justice and human rights.Unilateral invasion is a War Crime.Where are the Weapons of Mass Destruction. The rhetoric is "support the troops." We all support the troops. But we do not support War Crimes against civilians. Without proof and without UN backing, the invasion is a war crime, an act of Empire and Colonization.
What is the Iraqi Civilian body count? Iraqi Civilian Body Count is included because U.S. media refuses to report on 23 million people who live in Iraq (5.5 million in the metropolitan city of Baghdad). Did you know half are children? Did you know 99.5% of war casualties are civilians? Please be advised, that the above Civilian Body Count is an underestimate; The Red Cross reports (see MotherJones for more) that the civilian death toll is 'too high to count.' War began without exhausting all means such as UN inspection to prevent war; it is an unjust war (says Pope John Paul II) and it is an immoral war (says Desmond Tutu and Martin Luther King Jr. III). March 19th is an unprovoked, illegal and immoral attack on civilians. To see U.S./UK casualties, # bombs dropped, etc.see IRAQ-O-METER. To see AP list of Coalition Forces dead See MSNBC. Notice there is no list of the names of Iraqi dead civilians or military.More than 1 million Iraqis are displaced, according to U.N. estimates. CONTRIBUTE TO IRAQI RELIEF KITS $5 or Donate Soap, etc.
Sept 25, 2003 - "The first definitive total of violent civilian
deaths in Baghdad since mid April has been published by Iraq Body Count (IBC)...
IBC's latest study is the first comprehensive count to adjust for the comparable
'background level' of deaths in Baghdad in recent pre-war times. It is therefore
an estimate of additional deaths in the city directly attributable to the breakdown
of law and order following the US occupation of Baghdad. The study confirms
the widespread anecdotal evidence that violence on the streets of Baghdad has
skyrocketed, with the average daily death rate almost tripling since mid April
from around 10 per day to over 28 per day during August. Another worrying development
is that during the pre-war period deaths from gunshot wounds accounted for approximately
10% of bodies brought to the morgue, but now account for over 60% of those killed.
The small number of reports available for other cities indicate that these trends
are being mirrored elsewhere in the country." More
...
U.S. is beginning
to Awaken from a Deep Sleep. Since
President Bush declared an end to the Iraq war, over 200 U.S. soldiers have
died and another 1,000 Iraqi civ ilians have died. Occupation is a bloody sport.
People across America are beginning to notice that their civil liberties, rights
guaranteed by the Constitution are disolving. And now there are New Mexico officials
who are beginning to wake up. On Monday, July 14, 2003 Jeff Bingaman issued
a press release - Bingaman
Speaks Out on Bush Administration's Post-9/11 Detention Policie. Bingaman
says, "Today we are witnessing the abandonment by this current administration
of our historic commitment to this most basic legal protection. A core element
of ``due process of law" is the requirement that if individuals are taken
into custody by the government, then within some reasonable time, they will
be advised of the crimes they are accused of, charged with those crimes, and
prosecuted." Another area that you may now know, is Bush is attempting
to gut overtime laws; do
you really want to work without overtime pay? Maybe there is hope for America,
that Justice will be awakened. Once awakened, perhaps Bush and his NeoCons will
have to answer for fabricated reasons for going to war, and may well face war
crimes trials...
Body of UK arms advisor found
18/07/2003 14:58 - (SA) - Story by
Michael McDonough
http://www.news24.com/News24/World/Iraq/0,,2-10-1460_1389511,00.html
"London - A body found in central England matches the description of a missing Ministry of Defence adviser who had become embroiled in a controversy over the government's intelligence dossiers on Iraqi arms, police said on Friday.
"The body found matches the description of David Kelly, but the body has not yet been formally identified," a spokesperson for Thames Valley Police said."
Second Report - Body Found in Woods Matches UK Weapons Inspector
Fri July 18, 2003 10:46 AM ET
By Gideon Long --- LONGWORTH, England (Reuters) - British police found a body
Friday matching that of a mild-mannered scientist who disappeared after unwittingly
becoming embroiled in a furious political dispute about the Iraq war.The softly
spoken 59-year-old had been thrust into the limelight by a row over whether
the British government hyped the threat from Iraq in order to justify joining
the U.S.-led war.
GRASSROOTS INTERVIEW WITH REPRESENTATIVE HENRY WAXMAN
U.S. Congressman Henry Waxman (Democrat-California) has been leading the fight
to discover how the claim about Iraq seeking uranium from Niger got into President
Bush's State of the Union address - See
the Move On Reports.
Can You Spot The War Crime? by Gregory Elich Swans , 12 May 2003. Take the War Crim quiz
HINT: Hans Blix Suspects There Are No Weapons of Mass Destruction; Therefore 'War Not Justified' "The chief UN weapons inspector, Hans Blix, said [last week] that he suspected that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction. He added that 'in this respect' the war might not have been justified. 'I am obviously very interested in the question of whether or not there were weapons of mass destruction - and I am beginning to suspect there possibly were none,' he said in an interview... He referred to Saddam Hussein's chief scientific adviser, Lieutenant General Amer al-Saadi, who surrendered last month and said in an interview: 'Nothing else will come out after the end of the war.' 'The fact that al-Saadi surrendered and said there were no weapons of mass destruction has led to me to ask myself whether there actually were any,' Dr Blix said... Iraq's evasive behaviour could have been due to Saddam's desire to dictate the conditions under which people could enter the country. 'For that reason he said 'no' in many situations and gave the impression he was hiding something.'" Read Story.
War Crimes in Afghanistan - Film Alleges Media Cover-up of US Complicity in Massacre of 3,000 Taliban Prisoners "'Afghan Massacre: The Convoy of Death' ... provides eyewitness testimony that U.S. troops were complicit in the massacre of thousands of Taliban prisoners... The film tells the story of thousands of prisoners who surrendered to the US military's Afghan allies after the siege of Kunduz. According to eyewitnesses, some three thousand of the prisoners were forced into sealed containers and loaded onto trucks for transport to Sheberghan prison. Eyewitnesses say when the prisoners began shouting for air, U.S.-allied Afghan soldiers fired directly into the truck, killing many of them. The rest suffered through an appalling road trip lasting up to four days, so thirsty they clawed at the skin of their fellow prisoners... Witnesses say that when the trucks arrived and soldiers opened the containers, most of the people inside were dead. They also say US Special Forces re-directed the containers carrying the living and dead into the desert and stood by as survivors were shot and buried." Read Story.
WEAPONSGATE
Weponsgate? - Where are the Iraqi WMD? Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-Calif.) have introduced legislation (H.R. 2625 and H. Res. 307 resp.) that addresses some of these concerns that demands the President answer the question, What about those WMD?
CALL - The Capitol Switchboard is (202) 224-3121.
WRITE A LETTER TO THE EDITOR OR OP-ED. Keep this issue in the public spotlight
by writing a letter to the editor or opinion piece for your local newspaper.
Letters to the editor should be less than 200 words, opinion pieces about 600
words. Most newspapers post specific guidelines on their websites, which also
have information about where to send your piece. An excellent resource on lies
about the war can be found at http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=424008
Bush and Rusfeld have said that, Oh it odes not matter. WMD was a way to focus the bureaucracy. WMD are no longer important.
It’s important to keep the Bush administration’s deception over
weapons of mass destruction in the public eye and also to connect that to the
larger deception in the drive to war and to deception over its aims for Iraq.
FOR MORE BACKGROUND INFO, SEE THESE SOURCES (From UNITED FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE
http://www.unitedforpeace.org with
additions from PeaceAware.com)
-- “What I didn’t find in Africa,” New York Times, July 6,
2003. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/06/opinion/06WILS.html
or www.commondreams.org/views03/0706-02.htm
-- “Bush overstated Iraq links to al-Qaeda, former intelligence officials
say,” USA Today, July 13, 2003. http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2003-07-13-bush-alqaeda_x.htm
-- “Bush Aides Now Say Claim on Uranium Was Accurate,” New York
Times, July 13, 2003. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/14/international/worldspecial/14INTE.html
-- William Rivers Pitt, “The Dubious Suicide of George Tenet, Truthout,
July 13, 2003. http://truthout.org/docs_03/071403A.shtml
-- “20 Lies About the War,” The Independent, July 13, 2003. http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=424008
-- “Overseer in Iraq Plans to Sell off Government-Owned Companies, New
York Times, June 23. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F30D1EF93F5F0C708EDDAF0894DB404482
-- “Pentagon Expects Long-Term Access to Four Key Bases in Iraq,”
New York Times, April 20. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0811F9395E0C738EDDAD0894DB404482
-- “Israeli Ambassador to U.S. calls for ‘Regime Change’ in
Iran, Syria,” Reuters, April 28.
-- “War’s Cost Brings Democratic Anger,” New York Times, July
11, 2003. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/11/international/worldspecial/11COST.html
-- “Rumsfeld Says Iraq May Need a Larger Force,” New York Times,
July 14, 2003. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/14/international/worldspecial/14TROO.html
Intelligence Unglued - By Tom Engelhardt, July 14 2003 http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=16398
“Fascism Anyone?,” by Lawrence Britt, Free Inquiry, Spring 2003, page 20. Dr. Britt is a political scientist, whose article about fascism appeared in Free Inquiry magazine—a journal of humanist thought. Dr. Britt studied the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia), and Pinochet (Chile). He found the regimes all had 14 things in common, and he calls these the identifying characteristics of fascism. The parallels with the U.S. government speaks to our concern for JusticeAware.
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism, since it is the merger
of state and corporate power." Benito Mussolini
The 14 characteristics of Fascism are:
1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of “need.” The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national policy.
6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
8. Religion and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government’s policies or actions.
9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
10. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed .
11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.
12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.
14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.
Being JusticeAware means becoming knowledgable about Fascism in America, then working to educate others about it.
Spiritually fascism is nasty, authoritarian, mean-spirited, "might makes right," etc. This aspect really took off in the early to mid 90s with Rush Limbaugh on the media front and Newt Gingrich on the political front. Since Bush's selection, this process has increased rapidly. And since the war started, we have reached yet another quantum level. The brownshirts are feeling empowered.' - From Gordon Solberg
The Federation of American Scientists has catalogued nearly 200 military incursions since 1945 in which the United States has been the aggressor. - Gore Vidal (2002). Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace: How We Got to Be So Hated. NY: Nation Books.
Kick
Their Ass and Take Their Gas: Democracy Comes to Iraq by
Jacob Levich -- Published on Tuesday, May 13, 2003 by CommonDreams.org
"One month after the fall of Baghdad, the US has successfully liberated
the people of Iraq from meaningful involvement in decisions about their own
future. A designer regime, concocted behind closed doors by Pentagon and State
Department planners, is now being imposed on Iraq with great speed and without
any kind of popular consent. Iraq's nascent "democratic transition government"
is window-dressing for a military dictatorship charged with insuring that US
policy goals -- especially the disposition of Iraq's vast petroleum reserves
-- are protected from any troublesome outbreaks of democracy. " Read
entire article.
Did you know that under the new U.S.A. justice system, there will be death camps? US Plans Death Camp? According to the The Courier-Mail, Monday 26 May 2003 -The US has floated plans to turn Guantanamo Bay into a death camp, with its own death row and execution chamber. Prisoners would be tried, convicted and executed without leaving its boundaries, without a jury and without right of appeal, The Mail on Sunday newspaper reported yesterday. The plans were revealed by Major-General Geoffrey Miller, who is in charge of 680 suspects from 43 countries, including two Australians. Read story.
WAR CRIMES
Photo is from Truth or Consequences Peace Event in New Mexico
Is U.S./U.K. invastion of Iraq a War Crime? Prior to the invastion of Iraq, the U.S. did not obtain U.N. approval. According to UN Charter Article 51about unilateral invastion, the U.S. war on Iraq is a "war crime." It is also a War Crime on the basis of the 1949 Geneva conventions (about civilian casualties,, bombing water treatment) and the Nuremberg protocols on the laws of war.
We endorse the Amnesty International call for respect of all prisoners of war. Amnesty International also warned (3/26/03) that the attack may have been a "war crime" and emphasized that bombing a television station "simply because it is being used for the purposes of propaganda" is illegal (Share comment?) under international humanitarian law. (Read PeaceAware Factsheet on Geneva Convention Violantions) . Care to Comment?
We at PeaceAware call for a War Crimes trial
Former Congressman Takes Bush To Court For 'War Crimes' Federal Judges Have 60 Days To Respond. April 11, 2003 LINCOLN, Neb. -- Former Nebraska Congressman Clair Callan wants a judge to determine if President George W. Bush is guilty of war crimes in Iraq.
PeaceAware Slide Show of the Children of War
The War Crimes are continuing. According to PINA news service, Israeli Commandoes In Iraq To Assassinate 500 Scientists - April 18, 2003, "The French general said the scientists hunted by Israel are the same ones who were listed by U.N. weapons inspectors for interviews during their mandate in Iraq .." (Read More).
Instant-Mix Imperial Democracy By Arundhati Roy Tuesday 13 May 2003. Roy has written an amazing analysis of who U.S. officials should be tried for war crimes: "Never mind that forty years ago, the CIA, under President John F. Kennedy, orchestrated a regime change in Baghdad. In 1963, after a successful coup, the Ba'ath party came to power in Iraq. Using lists provided by the CIA, the new Ba'ath regime systematically eliminated hundreds of doctors, teachers, lawyers, and political figures known to be leftists. An entire intellectual community was slaughtered. (The same technique was used to massacre hundreds of thousands of people in Indonesia and East Timor.) The young Saddam Hussein was said to have had a hand in supervising the bloodbath. In 1979, after factional infighting within the Ba'ath Party, Saddam Hussein became the President of Iraq. In April 1980, while he was massacring Shias, the U.S. National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinksi declared, "We see no fundamental incompatibility of interests between the United States and Iraq." Washington and London overtly and covertly supported Saddam Hussein. They financed him, equipped him, armed him, and provided him with dual-use materials to manufacture weapons of mass destruction. They supported his worst excesses financially, materially, and morally. They supported the eight-year war against Iran and the 1988 gassing of Kurdish people in Halabja, crimes which 14 years later were re-heated and served up as reasons to justify invading Iraq. After the first Gulf War, the "Allies" fomented an uprising of Shias in Basra and then looked away while Saddam Hussein crushed the revolt and slaughtered thousands in an act of vengeful reprisal.
The point is, if Saddam Hussein was evil enough to merit the most elaborate, openly declared assassination attempt in history (the opening move of Operation Shock and Awe), then surely those who supported him ought at least to be tried for war crimes? Why aren't the faces of U.S. and U.K. government officials on the infamous pack of cards of wanted men and women?
Because when it comes to Empire, facts don't matter."
See reset of text - Instant-Mix Imperial Democracy By Arundhati Roy Tuesday 13 May 2003
Attempts to initiate War Crimes trials are being resisted by the Pentagon.
America Threatens To Move Nato After Franks Is Charged By David Wastell, Diplomatic Correspondent Sunday 18 May 2003 - America's top military officer has warned that Nato may have to move from its Brussels headquarters after an attempt to bring war crimes charges against General Tommy Franks, the commander of coalition forces in Iraq, in the Belgian courts. Full Story.
In addition, we at PeaceAware want President G. W. Bush Jr. to go to the International Court, La Hague for War Crimes trial
ICC - International Criminal Court
Maanweg, 174
2516 AB The Hague
The Netherlands
Telephone: + 31 70 515 8515
Fax: +31 70 5158555
Public Information Office
Email: pio@icc-cpi.int
Telephone: +31 (0)70 515 8514 / 8377 / 8110
Copy the following letter and send to pio@icc-cpi.int
To the International Criminal Court:
We, citizens of the United States of America, respectfully request that President George W. Bush be indicted and tried as a war criminal. President Bush initiated an unprovoked war without UN approval against a small nation that has experience 12 years of economic sanctions. It is time to hold a trial and to impose sanctions for the loss of thousands of civilian lives in the recent war, plus the 1.2 million lives lost during the sanctions. The situation is further aggrevated by the fact that no wepons of mass destruction have been found. We also regret the hundreds of lives of U.S. and UK servicemen and women lost in this war, as well as the 1,650 Iraqi solders. 13,300 bombs were dropped in the war, including enriched (depeleted) uranium and cluster bombs.
Sincerely,
David M. Boje
Timothy Phipps Reed
____________ Click to Add your name here
Should there be an investigation into the root cause issues of the 2003 Iraq war?
"The intelligence that our officials was given regarding W.M.D. was either defective or manipulated," Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico noted.
Bloomberg reports: "The U.S. and U.K. went to war against Iraq because of the Middle East country's oil reserves, an adviser to British Prime Minister Tony Blair said. Sir Jonathan Porritt, head of the Sustainable Development Commission, which advises Blair's government on ecological issues, said the prospect of winning access to Iraqi oil was 'a very large factor' in the allies' decision to attack Iraq in March. 'I don't think the war would have happened if Iraq didn't have the second-largest oil reserves in the world,' Porritt said in a Sky News television interview."
Waxman Questions if Halliburton Should Receive Government Contracts, Given Prior Business in Iraq, Iran and Libya
David R. Baker writes for the SF Chronicle: "Oil giant Halliburton's work in countries considered sponsors of terrorism came under fire Wednesday from California Rep. Henry Waxman, who questioned whether the company should receive lucrative government contracts. In a letter to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Waxman said Halliburton Co. subsidiaries and joint ventures had done business in Iran, Iraq and Libya, in spite of U.S. sanctions against those countries [this also happened while Cheney was Halliburton's CEO]. 'It appears that a company that has performed -- and apparently is continuing to perform -- work for state sponsors of terrorism is being given a prominent role in the administration's war on terrorism,' Waxman wrote... The company now will compete with other firms, possibly including San Francisco's Bechtel Corp., to repair Iraq's dilapidated oil facilities." SF Gate story.
It is about the oil. See Boje Essays on Oil War.
Should there be an investigation into the root causes of 9-11?
The Silence about September 11 By William Rivers Pitt t r u t h o u t | Perspective Monday 21 April 2003 "The nomination of Kissinger to the 9/11 committee certainly suggests a desire on the administration's part to never, ever, ever have the facts of that attack come fully to light." We know the following facts:
There is a book by Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed (2002) called The War ON Freedom: How and Why America was Attacked September 11, 2001 (Joshua Tree, CA: Tree of Life Publications). Ahmed documents that the "ehead of u.S. Central Command directing the operation in Afghanistan revealed that finding Osama bin laden was not actually a mission objective" (p. 77). It was about the oil. Th Taliban was supported by the U.S. administration, until it was dermined that the Taliban could not protect the pipeline. U"Unocal hired... Henry Kissinger.." and "The president of Unocal even speculated that the cost of the construciton would be reduced by half with the sucess of the Taliban movement" (p. 50). Ahmed concludes that Bush kenw 9-11 would happen, wanted it to be a pretext for war on Afghanistan, in order to topple the Taliban.
Should Impeachment
proceedings begin? Article 1(8) of the U.S. Constition says
that only Congress, and not the President, has the authority to declare war.
All of the above is reason to call for impeachement. Former Attorney General
Ramsey Clark, who also calls for Bush Impeachment - Click
here to read the Articles of Impeachment. and Then
VOTE HERE to IMPEACH G. W. BUSH for
war crimes.
Photo of Child experiencing the March/April 2003 liberation of Iraq: This is a war crime.
Photo: "Is She our Enemy? and "If you support war, you support this!!!" -- both refer to the victims of illegal war, the civilian, who are mostly children. Click on the next link to see children of war (Note: these are graphic photos of the horror of war shown in Mexico, but never shown on U.S. corporate-owned TV).
SEE PeaceAware Slide Show of the Children of War Or Click for Just one photo of Liberated Iraqi Children
What is a war crime? PRINT OUR FACT SHEET CASUALTIES OF WAR
Click here for Graphic Picutre of the Horror of a War Crime "Our Child" Photo 1, "Stop the Killing of Children" Photo 2, Photo 3 -"How Soon will this happen in the U.S.?"
Should the PeaceAware community be Silent during times of war? Our PeaceVigils began six months before the war, and as part of worldwide movement, PeaceAware helped to put U.S. rush to war on the UN agenda, called attention to toxic human and environmental effects of Enriched (depleted) Uranium, and began an Interfaith serach for peace. Now that war has started, the media demands that peace people be silent while U.S. troops are in Iraq. This is not a time for silence. U.S. men and women, as well as Iraqi civilians and soldiers are dying because the U.S. government refused to work with the UN inspection program, and sought unilateral aggression instead of abiding by International laws such as the Geneva Convention. Unprovoked war is a war crime. As a Vietnam Veteran, Isuport our troops, but ask that they be brought home Now. The Pope, the Catholic Bishops to the National Council of Churches all oppose this war. The fact that war has begun and our U.S. troops are at danger does not change a war crime into a justification for war. I grieve for the senseless loss of lives of our U.S. troops and I grieve for loss of Iraaqi lives wrought by U.S. invasion of their homeland. I call for a boycott of U.S. corporations profiteering from war, a ban on depeleted uranium weaponry, endorsement of international treaties against preemptive war, and call upon the U.S. to endorse the International Criminal Court and the Kyoto Protocol. I call for cease fire, withdrawal of all U.S. & U.K. troops, and the commission of war crimes trials and impeachment proceedings. As the world peace movment unites in its call for interantional laws about war crimes be enforced and as regmie change happens in UK and U.S. then there will be a foundation for world peace. It is not time to be silent. It is time to pray and meditate for the lives lost needlessly due to the U.S. new NeoCon foreign policy. We can end this war -Dennis Kucinich recently offered an amendment to bring the troops home immediately. The Kucinich amendment would cut $19.3 billion from Operation Iraqi Freedom Fund. The amendment would leave $30.3 billion to fund the war to date, plus $10 billion to get the troops out of Iraq. .- Sincerely David Boje, Ph.D. PeaceAware co-organizer.
War Crimes
- Witness: US Troops Opened Fire on Iraqi Civilians- Chris Hughes writes
for the London Daily Mirror: "It started when a young boy hurled a sandal
at a US jeep - it ended with two Iraqis dead and 16 seriously injured. I watched
in horror as American troops opened fire on a crowd of 1,000 unarmed people
here yesterday. Many, including children, were cut down by a 20-second burst
of automatic gunfire during a demonstration against the killing of 13 protesters
at the Al-Kaahd school on Monday."
Please Support Our Troops - Bring Them Home Now!
Who in U.S. Government - Served in the Military?
New piece by PeaceAware'sTom Wark is featured on DISCUSSION. See We the Undersigned - Love our Country and call for International law modeled on the Constitution.
It begins a new dialog format for PeaceAware (and does not use email)
You can add a comment and post your signature that way. Or suggest changes and additions. The final result will be part of our 4 page insert to the Bulletin. Or course we willneed to raise $1,500 to get it in. But, I figure if we rerun the Not in Our Name ad (we paid $2,500 for that) -- that people will contribute and we will raise the money quickly. We can put in fact sheets about U.S.A. PATRIOT act, Civilian Casualties of war, maybe a few reality photos.
PeaceAware is collecting money to put ads in local papers. Please send $45 will pay for an ad in a local New Mexico paper. Donate Money now to Next PeaceAware fund raising campaign by CLICKING HERE
Mary Burton Riseley is a Quaker from New Mexico. Mary left for Iraq on Feb 3rd as a member of Iraq Peace Team and Voices of the Wilderness. She went to Iraq to protect the inspection process and deter USA use of Weapons of Mass Destruction. Mary is sending us Dispatches of her journey to Post on PeaceAware Discussion Board - See Riseley Page on PeaceAware for her Dispatches from Iraq
As U.S. empire expands from Afghanistan to Iraq wars, which country will be next? It could be Syria. "On Sunday, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz said, 'There’s got to be a change in Syria, which has been accused by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld of allowing war materials and Arab fighters to cross its border to help the government of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. The Syrians need to know...they’ll be held accountable,' he said on NBC’s Meet the Press.’’ (Read article). Care to Comment?
Secrecy: The Bush Byword Editorial Desk | March 28, 2003, Friday (NYT), Section A , Page 16 , Column 1 ABSTRACT - Editorial says executive order signed by Pres Bush that makes it easier for federal government to keep documents classified and out of public view is reminder that this is administration obsessed with secrecy; says Bush has taken action that can only hurt ability of historians, researchers and all Americans to arrrive at informed judgments about actions of presidents and their administrations ... This week President Bush signed an executive order that makes it easier for government agencies, including the White House, to keep documents classified and out of public view. The order does a number of things at once. It delays by three years the release of declassified government documents dating from 1978 or earlier. It treats all material sent to American officials from foreign governments -- no matter how routine -- as subject to classification. It expands the ability of the Central Intelligence Agency to shield documents from declassification. And for the first time, it gives the vice president the power to classify information. Offering that power to Vice President Dick Cheney, who has shown indifference to the public's right to know what is going on inside the executive branch, seems a particularly worrying development. Read rest of story.
CHECK OUT THE DEPLETED URANIUM PAGE
Thursday Feb 20 Damacio Lopez spoke and showed the film: Depleted Uranium, the Gulf War & Socorro, NM PeaceAware formed an I-DUST chapter called, NM-DUST (New Mexico-Depleted Uranium Study Team).
Read Damacio Lopez speech requesting New Mexico ban depleted uranium testing (Apr 1, 2003).
Feb 23 Sun David Boje spoke on NM-DUST DEPLETED URANIUM on Pacifica Radio show 2-4PM
Please Thank the Round Up for their excellent PRESS COVERAGE of the Peace Movement
March 5 Boje's Talk on "Enriched" Uranium and the Sanctions: U.S. violations of Geneva Convention.
Is Enriched (depleted) Uranium being used in the Current Gulf War? "On March 28, a tank unit fired two 120mm DU rounds down the main road of urban Kifl, creating a vacuum effect that literally sucked guerrillas out from their hideaways into the street, where they were shot down by small arms fire or run over by the tanks." (Read Aritcle by Simon Helweg-Larsen April 07, 2003).
IN THE NEWS - t r u t h o u t | April Articles - Turn Off Mainstream Media, Turn On to Alternative Media.
Thank you - Every volunteer minute you spend, helps the World Wide Peace Movement
