In this issue:
1. Khader Adnan near death
2. O’Hara and Devine families open letter to Adams
3. Petrol bombs thrown at British police
4. RUC misconduct figures published
5. Independent councillor condemns internment and mistreatment of Republican prisoners
6. Brian Shivers jailed for 25 years
7. Provos to support British Queen’s Jubilee
8. West Belfast alert 'elaborate hoax'
9. Independent inquiry into death squad killings demanded
10. Calls for Burton to clarify pension rule changes
11. Shooting enthusiasts win court battle over gun licences
12. Unlock NAMA occupy 66-67 Great Strand Street, Dublin
13. Senior health official to get €430,000 severance payment
14. Palestinian protesters target UN chief Ban Ki-moon
15. Cuban ex-President Fidel Castro launches memoirs
16. The Assange case means we are all suspects now
17. Welcome to Police State America 1. Khader Adnan near death A PALESTINIAN prisoner on his 62nd day of hunger strike while shackled to a bed in an Israeli hospital is in immediate danger of death, according to a medical report submitted to the Israeli Supreme Court in an effort to secure his release. Khader Adnan, 33, a baker from a village near Jenin, is being held without charge by the Israeli authorities under a four-month term of "administrative detention". He began his hunger strike on December 18, the day after being arrested. Adnan's lawyers have submitted a petition for his release to Israel's Supreme Court, but no date has been set for a hearing. The situation was urgent, lawyer Mahmoud Kassandra told the Guardian. "This is the last chance. The medical report says he could die at any minute. We hope this will succeed but I am not optimistic." Adnan's hunger strike is in protest at his detention without charge or being told of any evidence against him, and over his claims of abuse and degrading treatment during arrest and interrogation. This is his ninth period of detention, according to reports. In the past he has acted as a spokesman for the militant group Islamic Jihad.
Many protesters say Adnan has become a symbol of Israel's occupation and its treatment of prisoners. More than 300 Palestinians are held under "administrative detention" orders in Israeli prisons. On February 15, 2012, Geraldine McNamara, National PRO, Republican Sinn Féin again condemned the Israeli administration for refusing to act in the case of Khadar Adnan, the Palestinian political prisoner on hunger strike in Ofer jail for 62 days. She continued: “Today Khader Adnan has slipped into a coma and has only a short time to live. “Khadar is on hunger strike as a result of his detention without trial at the hands of the Israeli’s. He has asked to be charged or released. In his own words Khadar said ‘My dignity is more precious than food’. “He's willing to die courageously defending it. “West Bank, Gaza, and other protesters joined Adnan's strike supportively. “Khadar has been kept in deplorable conditions and has been tortured. Throughout his detention, he has been subjected to degrading and inhuman treatment, including physical abuse, prolonged periods of interrogation, isolation and unsanitary conditions of detention. “His condition's now extremely grave. Yet prison authorities shamelessly called his health ‘acceptable’. They found no grounds for shortening his detention or releasing him. “Sadly soon it looks like Khadar will be released from his prison hell in the same way Bobby Sands and his comrades were in 1981 in British-Occupied Ireland. “Too many stood idly by then and we should be ashamed that no international body has succeeded in calling on the Israeli’s to end this tragic situation. “We are told that a person is innocent until proven guilty but in Israel a person can be interned (detained) without trial as has happened in this case. “Unfortunately imperialist governments worldwide never learn from their mistakes, Khadar will become a martyr and many more will follow in his footsteps. “He is fading fast now but his strength of character will live forever. “Our prayers are with Khadar and his family at this time.” 2. O’Hara and Devine families open letter to Adams THE following letter from the O'Hara and Devine families appeared in the Derry Journal on February 10. “Open Letter to Gerry Adams , Danny Morrison Jim Gibney, Martin McGuinness,
Tom Hartley, and Bik McFarlane. We welcome the fact that Danny Morrison has broken his silence and has given some insight into the events of the first week of July 1981 concerning the hunger strike in Long Kesh. In that light we would like to ask a few questions in the hope of getting answers that may finally put to rest the events surrounding the tragic deaths of our loved ones.
Danny has stated that he relayed the contents of an offer to the PIRA prison OC, Bik McFarlane, on July 5 1981. Richard O'Rawe, the prison PRO, has said that Bik sent him down a comm detailing what was on offer, and that he said to Bik "Tá go leor ann.'' (There is enough there). This has been verified to some of our families by two ex-Blanketmen who had been there on the wing and heard the words. Also, Bik himself, in a press interview in 2009, finally admitted he had had a conversation with Richard, and that he thought the Brit offer was "amazing." In light of this, we must assume that Bik made his and Richard's views known to their outside leadership. What we would like to know is: Q1 Why was this not accepted? Q2 Who, on the outside overrode Bik's authority? Q3 Why was the Hunger Strike allowed to continue, on direction from the outside (not the POWs)? Q4 Mrs McDonnell asked Gerry Adams to save her son's life to end to the Hunger Strike by ordering the POWs off it. Mr Adams' reply was that he did not have the authority to do this. Who had the authority (Brendan McLaughlin was ordered off it due to his medical condition)? Q6 Why was the IRSP (who were joint participants in the Hunger Strike) not informed about the offer through Mountain Climber? Q7 The British sent you their offer (to be released upon the ending of the Hunger Strike) in the form of dictated statements on the 6th and 20th of July. Why were these statements never shown to the POWs? Q8 Who took the decision to withhold the statements from the hunger strikers and the prison leadership? Q9 On the 29th of July, Gerry Adams told the mother and father of Kieran Doherty, and the hunger strikers, that ''there was no deal on the table, no movement of any sort'' despite him being at the centre of on-going communications/negotiations with the Brits from July 4th to July 20th. Why did Adams deliberately mislead the hunger strikers? Did he think that they might call off their fast if they found out what was really happening? We should not forget that four of those men who listened and joked with Adams, went on to die horrible deaths in total ignorance of what the British were offering. In Danny Morrison's recent letter he spoke of the 'families’ pain'. Danny can't even hope to imagine the pain felt by some of our families. We, the undersigned, believe that the Hunger Strike was prolonged when an honourable settlement was available, a settlement that would have saved the lives of six brave men. We called for an independent inquiry three years ago, asking all those involved in this matter to attend. Only Richard O'Rawe and the late Dr Garrett FitzGerald said they would attend. We once again call for on Gerry Adams, Danny Morrison, Jim Gibney, Martin McGuinness, Tom Hartley, and BikMcFarlane to attend. The least we deserve is a reason why they won't attend, and failing that, they could provide answers to. Is sinne
Peggy and Tony O Hara. Michael and Louise Devine. 3. Petrol bombs thrown at British police TWO petrol bombs were thrown at RUC/PSNI and fire crews in Derry on February 14. Stones were also thrown during the incident at Rossville Street. One vehicle received minor scorch damage as a result of the attack. There were no reports of any injuries 4. RUC misconduct figures published IT was reported on February 13 that in the last three years 83 RUC/PSNI members were convicted of offences at internal hearings, but only 18 were dismissed or required to resign from the police service. The rest were allowed to stay in the British colonial police, but faced sanctions such as a reduction in rank, a fine or a reprimand. Another 22 members chose to resign rather than face proceedings. In general there was a wide range of offences or alleged offences, including theft, drugs, assault, and attempting to pervert the course of justice, as well as drink-driving, sex offences, dishonesty and assault. These cover a similarly wide range of misconduct among the population at large, for which members of the public face the due process of law. Currently there are 25 RUC/PSNI members suspended from duty, and they have been paid a total of nearly £700,000 while they await the outcome of their disciplinary investigations. In one particularly disturbing case, an RUC man suspended for more than seven years may have received some £275,000 in pay while off duty. 5. Independent councillor condemns internment and mistreatment of Republican Prisoners ON February 7 Independent Republican Councillor for Newry & Mourne, Davy Hyland, spoke out against the what he believes to be the “internment and brutalisation of republican prisoners” currently being held in Maghaberry. Davy Hyland, referring in particular to Marian Price, Martin Corey and Gerry McGeough, currently being held in Maghaberry, said that republicans were “being unjustly held captive” and added that “some Republican prisoners are not receiving the adequate medical treatment they require.” He continued, “Marian Price is apparently being held because her license was revoked by the British secretary of state, yet she was never released on license. “Marian was granted a pardon due to ill-health following a lengthy hunger strike and subsequent force feeding during the 1970s. Today she now finds herself being held in solitary confinement in an all-male prison. “Another Republican prisoner, Martin Corey, is currently interned after his licence was also revoked by the British secretary of state. Martin Corey was released from Long Kesh in 1992 after spending 19 years in prison. In 2010 he was arrested, imprisoned and charged without trial. The Independent Councillor also branded the reasons for Gerry McGeough’s incarceration as “ridiculous” as they relate to charges dating back to the eighties and said it is clear that Gerry McGeough is not receiving adequate medical treatment, a matter which he said “must be of grave concern for Gerry and his family.” Davy continued “It’s clear that Republican ex-prisoners have a sword hanging over their heads and if they speak out against British occupation or if they don’t toe the line they will find themselves being returned to prison. He cited Colin Duffy’s case as a “perfect example” of this practice, claiming that Mr Duffy “found himself arrested, charged and imprisoned” in Maghaberry for almost three years on remand chiefly because of his “strong Republican beliefs” and his vocal condemnation of the current establishment. Davy Hyland believes this to be a “clear case of internment.” He went on to highlight the on-going protest in the prison against “controlled movement and forced strip searches” and said that the recent images of republican prisoners sporting long beards and long hair had brought “the reality and seriousness of the situation home to many people. It’s an image we thought we would never see again. Ten men gave their lives in 1981 so that today’s republican prisoners would not have to suffer the same treatment they endured.” Councillor Hyland condemned what he sees as a lack of action by politicians: “Some Stormont politicians claim to be concerned about such cases, yet they don’t seem to be doing anything about it, except issuing the odd vague statement. Despite the fact that some of them were once held captive by the British state, they clearly have short memories. They are the ones who gave David Ford the job of Justice Minister, they put him in the position, so they have a lot to answer for. “The Stormont politicians regularly harp on about leaving “the bad old days” behind us. Yet it’s clear that for republicans the bad old days have never went away. “The fact that a British secretary of state, Owen Paterson, can revoke licenses as he pleases is proof who really holds power. Cllr Hyland concluded by saying “As an elected representative, I personally call for an end to the torture and brutality of republican prisoners and for the full implementation of the August 2010 agreement which would bring this crisis to an end. The BOSS chair is already in Maghaberry so why aren’t they using it if the technology is there? “If those in Stormont are really opposed to these injustices then they should walk out of the puppet assembly and join the numerous picket lines and rallies against these injustices that are constantly taking place.” 6. Brian Shivers jailed for 25 years ON February 10 Brian Shivers (46), who was convicted of killing two soldiers at Massareene British army base in 2009, was sentenced to life imprisonment and was told he must serve a minimum of 25 years in prison. The length of the sentence means Brian Shivers, who is terminally ill, is likely to die in jail. During the trial, Brian Shivers's lawyer said his client suffered from cystic fibrosis and had only a few years left to live. He is to appeal his conviction. 7. Provos to support British Queen’s Jubilee IT was reported on February 17 that Councillor Conor Maskey, a Provisional member of
Belfast City Council said his support of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee should be seen in the context of forthcoming centenary celebrations such as the 1916 Easter Rising. He and his party colleague Jim McVeigh have backed a report detailing the council’s plans to celebrate the Queen’s 1952 accession to the British throne at the beginning of June. 8. West Belfast alert 'elaborate hoax' A ‘SECURITY’ alert in west Belfast was sparked by an elaborate hoax. British army bomb experts were called to the scene at Ross Road on February 10 to examine a suspicious object. A number of homes were evacuated and the area was sealed off for a time, but the alert has since ended and the diversions have been lifted. 9. Independent inquiry into death squad killings demanded A REPORT, published on February 5 into an infamous massacre of five nationalists twenty years ago is calling for an independent inquiry into the Ulster Freedom Fighters slaughter which also left seven others wounded. The 70-page Relatives for Justice report was presented to families of those killed on the anniversary of the Seén Graham’s bookmakers murders, and called on British Prime Minister David Cameron to commission an independent inquiry into the Belfast slaughter on February 5, 1992. The report details British Crown Force collusion in the murders of the five nationalist victims – Jack Duffin (66); Willie McManus (54); Christy Doherty (52); Peter Magee (18) and James Kennedy (15). Mark Sykes from RFJ, who was shot in the attack which claimed the life of his 18-year-old brother-in-law, Peter Magee, said the new report not only highlighted the extent of collusion but it also seeks justice for the dead. “It is asking David Cameron to make a full apology to those bereaved and injured,” he said. “We also want information from him around the weapons coming into the country because British military intelligence knew about them through Brian Nelson.” Nelson was a British agent working in the UFF. Mark Sykes said the collusion has always been suspected, with eye-witnesses claiming an Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) jeep stationed opposite the bookmakers moved only minutes before the murders took place. It was widely believed leading loyalists Joe Bratty and Raymond Elder, who lived not far from the Lower Ormeau where the attack took place, and who were shot dead by the IRA on the Ormeau Road in 1994, were behind the attack. A new memorial stone on the 20th anniversary of the killings. Relatives of all five victims as well as friends and supporters attended a memorial Mass at St Malachy’s church before children of some of the murdered unveiled a new memorial to them at the scene of the shootings on the lower Ormeau Road. The report claims a gun used in the attack was handed back to a UFF agent, that a key 10. Calls for Burton to clarify pension rule changes THE 26-County Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton and her department ‘should launch a public information campaign on the implications of changes in the rules for State contributory pensions’, according to the lobby group Older and Bolder on January 23, 2012. The organisation’s director, Patricia Conboy, called on Joan Burton to provide those affected by the changes with “clarity, transparency, and adequate time to prepare and plan”. She said the Minister was now “flagging the possibility” of changing the way in which entitlement to the State contributory pension was calculated, moving from a mix of total number of years and yearly averages of contributions to total number of years solely. “The possibility of introducing this change in September 2012 is being mooted,” Ms Conboy said. “What is not clear is what any of the above means for parents who take time out of the labour force to care for children; people who become ill for example with cancer and take leave to undergo chemotherapy; carers of sick/older relatives; people who work/travel abroad for a period of time.” The State pension (contributory) is paid to people from the age of 66 who have enough social insurance contributions. It is not means-tested and the maximum rate at present is €230.30 per week. The minimum, for people with an average of 10 contributions per year over a minimum five-year working life, is currently €115.20. Under changes already announced in the budget and due to come into force in September, those with the minimum 10 contributions per year will see their pension drop to €92 a week. The five-year working life requirement is being doubled to 10 under separate measures announced as far back as 1997. The new “total contributions” plan under review by the Minister would see this minimum payment for those with 10 years of contributions fall to €76 a week. Éamon Timmins from the charity Age Action warned that changes to the qualification criteria will mean significantly smaller pensions for some. “The changes will result in an unexpected reduction of €1,500 in a person’s annual income for the rest of their lives,” Éamon Timmins said. Age Action also called for clarity about the 26-County government’s long-term plans for the State pension, following comments by the Minister that she was examining the possibility of bringing forward changes which had been originally planned for 2020. The 2010 National Pensions Framework stated that the Government would adopt a “total contributions approach” from 2020 when calculating a person’s PRSI contribution. This would replace the “average contributions” system currently used. 11. Shooting enthusiasts win court battle over gun licences MORE than 160 shooting enthusiasts in the 26 Counties won a legal battle to have their applications for restricted firearms considered again. They had claimed their applications were being refused on a blanket basis by Gardaí without adequate reasons. On January 31 they won a legal challenge to Garda refusals to grant them firearms licences. The hearing was brought to a temporary halt in mid-January after Justice Hedigan expressed concern that a senior Garda had altered a “substantial number” of application forms. Another senior Garda responsible for issuing gun licences admitted, in a series of test cases brought by three sports enthusiasts, that he failed to complete mandatory sections on application forms.
The test cases, which will cost the taxpayer more than €500,000 in legal costs, were dramatically adjourned to allow the authorities to decide whether they could stand over the current firearms licensing system. The National Association of Regional Game Councils (NARGC), which supported the test cases, said it was “outraged, but not surprised” at the behaviour of some senior Gardaí responsible for issuing restricted firearms licences. “In light of the evidence placed before the High Court and the findings of Mr Justice [John] Hedigan in relation to same, NARGC now calls for fundamental changes to the licensing system to ensure transparency, fairness and the maintenance of public confidence in the safety and security provisions of the system,” it said in a statement released after the terms of settlement were reached. As part of the terms of settlement, the 26-County State has agreed to quash the decisions refusing restricted firearm certificates. The applications will now be re-submitted for a fresh consideration. 12. Unlock NAMA occupy 66-67 Great Strand Street, Dublin A NEW campaign group Unlock NAMA was launched in Dublin on Saturday January 28, 2012 Unlock NAMA is a campaign to access NAMA properties for social and community use and to hold NAMA to account. Whereas NAMA is all about giving public money to private banks, the aim of Unlock NAMA is to make public buildings available to the public. Rather than socialising commercial losses, we say socialise resources. The problem is that NAMA is designed to make this as difficult as possible. The lack of transparency or of any mechanism for engagement with the public makes it hard to know where NAMA’s properties are, and even harder to gain access to them. NAMA’s bank bailout has been a complete failure: the banks have needed more hand outs and even nationalisation, yet they still are not lending. Meanwhile NAMA is squandering the property it has acquired and providing massive debt forgiveness to developers. The demands of Unlock NAMA are: 1) Make NAMA properties available for social and community use; 2) Publish full addresses and details on all properties under NAMA and 3) Publish full details on all sales of NAMA assets. 13. Senior health official to get €430,000 severance payment THE Secretary-General of the 26-County Department of Health, Michael Scanlan, is to receive lump sum and severance payments of more than €430,000 when he steps down in April according to a report in the Irish Times on January 25, 2012. He will also be eligible for a pension of €107,795 at the end of his seven-year term in office. Michael Scanlan will be 56 in the early summer. According to Free State Minister for Health James Reilly, Michael Scanlan would be retiring on April 8, 2012 on the expiry of his term in office. He is also to step down from his position as chairman of the board of the Health Service Executive, to which he was appointed just before Christmas. The department said that on his retirement Michael Scanlan would have served for nearly 38½ years in the Civil Service. “In accordance with the terms of his contract he will qualify for a pension and lump sum based on his actual service plus just over 1.5 added years (ie a total of 40 years reckonable service) and a special severance gratuity of one half of his annual salary.” The department said that as Michael Scanlan was retiring after February 29th, his pension, lump sum and severance would be based on his salary as reduced under financial emergency legislation introduced by the previous government (sic). Last year there was widespread controversy when it emerged that former secretary general to the Government Dermot McCarthy was to receive an annual pension of €142,670, a once-off lump sum of €428,011 and a special severance payment of €142,670. 14. Palestinian protesters target UN chief Ban Ki-moon DOZENS of Palestinians staged a hostile protest as the convoy of visiting UN chief Ban Ki-Moon crossed into Gaza from Israel on February 2, 2012. Many were relatives of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails - who are currently said to number about 4,000 - and said they were angry at Ban Ki-Moon’s refusal to meet them to discuss the prisoners' situation. Some threw shoes and some held signs reading “enough bias for Israel”. Ban Ki-Moon is visiting the region to try to kick-start stalled peace negotiations.
A month of “exploratory talks” ended last week without any breakthroughs. Negotiations on a two-state solution stalled in late 2010 after a “dispute” over Jewish settlement construction. The protesters formed a human chain in an attempt to hold up his convoy, reported AP news agency, but Hamas security forces moved them away. His convoy continued on to Khan Younis, where he was scheduled to visit a school and a Japanese-funded housing project. He urged Israeli leaders to offer “goodwill gestures” to Palestinians to provide fresh momentum for peace negotiations which stalled over the issue of Jewish settlement construction. With Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas by his side, Ban Ki-Moon affirmed that “all Israeli settlements are contrary to international law and prejudice the outcome of a final peace deal”. The Quartet of Middle East peace mediators - the US, UN, EU and Russia - said last year that they expected both sides to use the exploratory talks to submit detailed proposals on borders and security arrangements, in the hope that the dialogue would encourage direct peace talks. But the Palestinians say while they have made proposals, the Israelis have not.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected demands for a settlement freeze as a precondition for talks. 15. Cuban ex-President Fidel Castro launches memoirs FORMER Cuban President Fidel Castro made a rare public appearance to launch his memoirs in early February. The book, Guerrilla of Time, is almost 1,000 pages long and relates his childhood and rise to power in the Cuban Revolution. Fidel Castro, 85, said it was every Cuban's duty to fight until the last moment, for Cuba, the planet, and humanity. He had not been seen in public since April last year. Communist Party newspaper Granma said the launch at the Havana Convention Centre lasted more than six hours. The two-volume memoir is based on conversations between Fidel Castro and journalist Katiuska Blanco. It starts with former President Castro's earliest childhood memories and takes the reader up to December 1958, the eve of the overthrow of Fulgencio Batista by Castro and his followers. Culture Minister Abel Prieto and Director of the Cuban Writers' Union Miguel Barnet were among those speaking at the launch. Mr Barnet said the memoirs were “as vivid as a 3D film”. At the event, Fidel Castro spoke about current affairs, praising Latin American students for “standing up for their right to free education”. He also paid tribute to his friend, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who “had done more than anyone else for the Venezuelan people". It was the first time Fidel Castro had appeared in public since the closing session of the Communist Party Congress in April 2011. Fidel Castro handed over the presidency to his brother Raul in 2006, and has kept a low profile since. 16. The Assange case means we are all suspects now THIS week’s Supreme Court hearing [first week in February] in the Julian Assange case has profound meaning for the preservation of basic freedoms in western democracies. This is Assange’s final appeal against his extradition to Sweden to face allegations of sexual misconduct that were originally dismissed by the chief prosecutor in Stockholm and constitute no crime in Britain. The consequences, if he loses, lie not in Sweden but in the shadows cast by America’s descent into totalitarianism. In Sweden, he is at risk of being “temporarily surrendered” to the US where his life has been threatened and he is accused of “aiding the enemy” with Bradley Manning, the young soldier accused of leaking evidence of US war crimes to WikiLeaks. The connections between Manning and Assange have been concocted by a secret grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, which allowed no defence counsel or witnesses, and by a system of plea-bargaining that ensures a 90 per cent conviction. It is reminiscent of a Soviet show trial. The determination of the Obama administration to crush Assange and the unfettered journalism represented by WikiLeaks is revealed in secret Australian government documents released under freedom of information which describe the US pursuit of WikiLeaks as “an unprecedented investigation”. It is unprecedented because it subverts the First Amendment of the US constitution that explicitly protects truth-tellers. In 2008 Barack Obama said, “Government whistleblowers are part of a healthy democracy and must be protected from reprisal.” Obama has since prosecuted twice as many whistleblowers as all previous US presidents. With American courts demanding to see the worldwide accounts of Twitter, Google and Yahoo, the threat to Assange, an Australian, extends to any internet-user anywhere. Washington’s enemy is not “terrorism” but the principle of free speech and voices of conscience within its militarist state and those journalists brave enough to tell their stories. “How do you prosecute Julian Assange and not the New York Times?” a former administration official told Reuters. The threat is well understood by the New York Times, which in 2010 published a selection of the WikiLeaks cables. The editor at the time, Bill Keller, boasted that he had sent the cables to the State Department for vetting. His obeisance extended to his denial that WikiLeaks was a “partner” – which it was – and to personal attacks on Assange. The message to all journalists was clear: do your job as it should be done and you are traitors; do your job as we say you should and you are journalists. Much of the media’s depiction of Bradley Manning illuminates this. The world’s pre-eminent prisoner of conscience, Manning remained true to the Nuremberg principle that every soldier has the right to a “moral choice”. But according to the New York Times, he is weird or mad, a “geek”. In an “exclusive investigation”, the Guardian reported him as an “unstable” gay man, who got “out of control” and “wet himself” when he was “picked on”. Psycho-hearsay such as this serves to suppress the truth of the outrage Manning felt at the wanton killing in Iraq, his moral heroism and the criminal complicity of his military superiors. “I prefer a painful truth over any blissful fantasy,” he reportedly said.
The treatment handed out to Assange is well-documented, though not the duplicitous and cowardly behaviour of his own government. Australia remains a colony in all but name. Australian intelligence agencies are, in effect, branches of the main office in Washington. The Australian military has played a regular role as US mercenary. When prime minister Gough Whitlam tried to change this in 1975 and secure Australia’s partial independence, he was dismissed by a governor-general using archaic “reserve powers” who was revealed to have intelligence connections. WikiLeaks has given Australians a rare glimpse of how their country is run. In 2010, leaked US cables disclosed that key government figures in the Labor Party coup that brought Julia Gillard to power were “protected” sources of the US embassy: what the CIA calls “assets”. Kevin Rudd, the prime minister she ousted, had displeased Washington by being disobedient, even suggesting that Australian troops withdraw from Afghanistan. In the wake of her portentous rise ascent to power, Gillard attacked WikiLeaks as “illegal” and her attorney-general threatened to withdraw Assange’s passport. Yet the Australian Federal Police reported that Assange and WikiLeaks had broken no law. Freedom of information files have since revealed that Australian diplomats have colluded with the US in its pursuit of Assange. This is not unusual. The government of John Howard ignored the rule of law and conspired with the US to keep David Hicks, an Australian citizen, in Guantanamo Bay, where he was tortured. Australia’s principal intelligence organisation, ASIO, is allowed to imprison refugees indefinitely without explanation, prosecution or appeal. Every Australian citizen in grave difficulty overseas is said to have the right to diplomatic support. The denial of this to Assange, bar the perfunctory, is an unreported scandal. Last September, Assange’s London lawyer, Gareth Peirce, wrote to the Australian government, warning that Assange’s “personal safety and security has become at risk in circumstances that have become highly politically charged”. Only when the Melbourne Age reported that she had received no response did a dissembling official letter turn up. Last November, Peirce and I briefed the Australian Consul-General in London, Ken Pascoe. One of Britain’s most experienced human rights lawyers, Peirce told him she feared a unique miscarriage of justice if Assange was extradited and his own government remained silent. The silence remains.
-- John Pilger, February 5, 2012
http://www.sovereignindependent.com 17. Welcome to Police State America YOU know you live in a police state when the president allows the military to continuously harass a prisoner against whom no crime has been proven by interrupting him every five minutes of the day to ask him, “Are you okay?” and forces him to stand to attention naked at roll call. What it can do to one man it can do to every man. You know you live in a police state when said prisoner is barred from exercising in his cell and told where he may and may not put his hands when he goes to sleep at night. Only a police state would dictate how an individual can sleep. You know you live in a police state when the government punishes, rather than honours, whistle-blowers who reveal its crimes such as the US massacre of civilians in Baghdad that PFC Bradley Manning exposed. You know you live in a police state when wardens force pregnant women prisoners to deliver their babies while in chains. (Not exactly “the new birth of freedom” of which Abraham Lincoln spoke.) You know you live in a police state when the president orders the assassination (ie, murder) of American citizens without bothering to arrest them and bring them to trial. You know you live in a police state when police forces across the country attack unarmed and non-violent citizen protesters with pepper spray and clubs. You know you live in a police state when hundreds of thousands of citizens are rotting in prisons for victimless “crimes” such as smoking pot and your country leads the world in incarcerations with 2.3 million behind bars and when hundreds of thousands of these prisoners are sexually assaulted. You know you live in a police state when working people who say overwhelmingly that they want to join a union cannot do so for fear of being fired, and in which the money earned by the poor is taken by the state and given to the rich. If the government can rob one person, it can rob every person. You know you live in a police state when your government makes terrible, punishing wars on small countries after falsely accusing them of having a “weapon of mass destruction” while it possesses tens of thousands of them. You know you live in a police state when the president signs into law an Act allowing him to arrest innocent citizens on his say-so and have the military imprison them indefinitely without charge, legal counsel, or trial before a jury of their peers. You know you live in a police state when you can be barred from flying in an airliner on suspicion of “terrorism” that has not been proven and which is impossible for you to challenge. You know you live in a police state when you are under surveillance by Federal agencies such as the FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and the Central Intelligence Agency, among others, for your political views rather than the commission of any crime against the state, and when said agencies can access your medical records, bank statements, and “private” papers, tap your telephone, question your neighbours and employer and follow you around. You know you live in a police state when the military gets the biggest percentage of your tax dollars so that it can spend as much for war as the next 20 nations combined while claiming it is attacking other countries in the name of peace and order. You know you live in a police state when the Pentagon has more than a trillion dollars in research projects underway to make sophisticated killing machines that will give it control of the entire planet from 2,000 military bases and outer space and to terrify the world with its arsenals of nuclear weapons and germ warfare. You know you live in a police state when people write to you to commend you for your “courage” for writing critically against the government when, in fact, you should have every good reason to live in fear of so doing. [email protected], February 5, 2012
1. Khader Adnan near death
2. O’Hara and Devine families open letter to Adams
3. Petrol bombs thrown at British police
4. RUC misconduct figures published
5. Independent councillor condemns internment and mistreatment of Republican prisoners
6. Brian Shivers jailed for 25 years
7. Provos to support British Queen’s Jubilee
8. West Belfast alert 'elaborate hoax'
9. Independent inquiry into death squad killings demanded
10. Calls for Burton to clarify pension rule changes
11. Shooting enthusiasts win court battle over gun licences
12. Unlock NAMA occupy 66-67 Great Strand Street, Dublin
13. Senior health official to get €430,000 severance payment
14. Palestinian protesters target UN chief Ban Ki-moon
15. Cuban ex-President Fidel Castro launches memoirs
16. The Assange case means we are all suspects now
17. Welcome to Police State America 1. Khader Adnan near death A PALESTINIAN prisoner on his 62nd day of hunger strike while shackled to a bed in an Israeli hospital is in immediate danger of death, according to a medical report submitted to the Israeli Supreme Court in an effort to secure his release. Khader Adnan, 33, a baker from a village near Jenin, is being held without charge by the Israeli authorities under a four-month term of "administrative detention". He began his hunger strike on December 18, the day after being arrested. Adnan's lawyers have submitted a petition for his release to Israel's Supreme Court, but no date has been set for a hearing. The situation was urgent, lawyer Mahmoud Kassandra told the Guardian. "This is the last chance. The medical report says he could die at any minute. We hope this will succeed but I am not optimistic." Adnan's hunger strike is in protest at his detention without charge or being told of any evidence against him, and over his claims of abuse and degrading treatment during arrest and interrogation. This is his ninth period of detention, according to reports. In the past he has acted as a spokesman for the militant group Islamic Jihad.
Many protesters say Adnan has become a symbol of Israel's occupation and its treatment of prisoners. More than 300 Palestinians are held under "administrative detention" orders in Israeli prisons. On February 15, 2012, Geraldine McNamara, National PRO, Republican Sinn Féin again condemned the Israeli administration for refusing to act in the case of Khadar Adnan, the Palestinian political prisoner on hunger strike in Ofer jail for 62 days. She continued: “Today Khader Adnan has slipped into a coma and has only a short time to live. “Khadar is on hunger strike as a result of his detention without trial at the hands of the Israeli’s. He has asked to be charged or released. In his own words Khadar said ‘My dignity is more precious than food’. “He's willing to die courageously defending it. “West Bank, Gaza, and other protesters joined Adnan's strike supportively. “Khadar has been kept in deplorable conditions and has been tortured. Throughout his detention, he has been subjected to degrading and inhuman treatment, including physical abuse, prolonged periods of interrogation, isolation and unsanitary conditions of detention. “His condition's now extremely grave. Yet prison authorities shamelessly called his health ‘acceptable’. They found no grounds for shortening his detention or releasing him. “Sadly soon it looks like Khadar will be released from his prison hell in the same way Bobby Sands and his comrades were in 1981 in British-Occupied Ireland. “Too many stood idly by then and we should be ashamed that no international body has succeeded in calling on the Israeli’s to end this tragic situation. “We are told that a person is innocent until proven guilty but in Israel a person can be interned (detained) without trial as has happened in this case. “Unfortunately imperialist governments worldwide never learn from their mistakes, Khadar will become a martyr and many more will follow in his footsteps. “He is fading fast now but his strength of character will live forever. “Our prayers are with Khadar and his family at this time.” 2. O’Hara and Devine families open letter to Adams THE following letter from the O'Hara and Devine families appeared in the Derry Journal on February 10. “Open Letter to Gerry Adams , Danny Morrison Jim Gibney, Martin McGuinness,
Tom Hartley, and Bik McFarlane. We welcome the fact that Danny Morrison has broken his silence and has given some insight into the events of the first week of July 1981 concerning the hunger strike in Long Kesh. In that light we would like to ask a few questions in the hope of getting answers that may finally put to rest the events surrounding the tragic deaths of our loved ones.
Danny has stated that he relayed the contents of an offer to the PIRA prison OC, Bik McFarlane, on July 5 1981. Richard O'Rawe, the prison PRO, has said that Bik sent him down a comm detailing what was on offer, and that he said to Bik "Tá go leor ann.'' (There is enough there). This has been verified to some of our families by two ex-Blanketmen who had been there on the wing and heard the words. Also, Bik himself, in a press interview in 2009, finally admitted he had had a conversation with Richard, and that he thought the Brit offer was "amazing." In light of this, we must assume that Bik made his and Richard's views known to their outside leadership. What we would like to know is: Q1 Why was this not accepted? Q2 Who, on the outside overrode Bik's authority? Q3 Why was the Hunger Strike allowed to continue, on direction from the outside (not the POWs)? Q4 Mrs McDonnell asked Gerry Adams to save her son's life to end to the Hunger Strike by ordering the POWs off it. Mr Adams' reply was that he did not have the authority to do this. Who had the authority (Brendan McLaughlin was ordered off it due to his medical condition)? Q6 Why was the IRSP (who were joint participants in the Hunger Strike) not informed about the offer through Mountain Climber? Q7 The British sent you their offer (to be released upon the ending of the Hunger Strike) in the form of dictated statements on the 6th and 20th of July. Why were these statements never shown to the POWs? Q8 Who took the decision to withhold the statements from the hunger strikers and the prison leadership? Q9 On the 29th of July, Gerry Adams told the mother and father of Kieran Doherty, and the hunger strikers, that ''there was no deal on the table, no movement of any sort'' despite him being at the centre of on-going communications/negotiations with the Brits from July 4th to July 20th. Why did Adams deliberately mislead the hunger strikers? Did he think that they might call off their fast if they found out what was really happening? We should not forget that four of those men who listened and joked with Adams, went on to die horrible deaths in total ignorance of what the British were offering. In Danny Morrison's recent letter he spoke of the 'families’ pain'. Danny can't even hope to imagine the pain felt by some of our families. We, the undersigned, believe that the Hunger Strike was prolonged when an honourable settlement was available, a settlement that would have saved the lives of six brave men. We called for an independent inquiry three years ago, asking all those involved in this matter to attend. Only Richard O'Rawe and the late Dr Garrett FitzGerald said they would attend. We once again call for on Gerry Adams, Danny Morrison, Jim Gibney, Martin McGuinness, Tom Hartley, and BikMcFarlane to attend. The least we deserve is a reason why they won't attend, and failing that, they could provide answers to. Is sinne
Peggy and Tony O Hara. Michael and Louise Devine. 3. Petrol bombs thrown at British police TWO petrol bombs were thrown at RUC/PSNI and fire crews in Derry on February 14. Stones were also thrown during the incident at Rossville Street. One vehicle received minor scorch damage as a result of the attack. There were no reports of any injuries 4. RUC misconduct figures published IT was reported on February 13 that in the last three years 83 RUC/PSNI members were convicted of offences at internal hearings, but only 18 were dismissed or required to resign from the police service. The rest were allowed to stay in the British colonial police, but faced sanctions such as a reduction in rank, a fine or a reprimand. Another 22 members chose to resign rather than face proceedings. In general there was a wide range of offences or alleged offences, including theft, drugs, assault, and attempting to pervert the course of justice, as well as drink-driving, sex offences, dishonesty and assault. These cover a similarly wide range of misconduct among the population at large, for which members of the public face the due process of law. Currently there are 25 RUC/PSNI members suspended from duty, and they have been paid a total of nearly £700,000 while they await the outcome of their disciplinary investigations. In one particularly disturbing case, an RUC man suspended for more than seven years may have received some £275,000 in pay while off duty. 5. Independent councillor condemns internment and mistreatment of Republican Prisoners ON February 7 Independent Republican Councillor for Newry & Mourne, Davy Hyland, spoke out against the what he believes to be the “internment and brutalisation of republican prisoners” currently being held in Maghaberry. Davy Hyland, referring in particular to Marian Price, Martin Corey and Gerry McGeough, currently being held in Maghaberry, said that republicans were “being unjustly held captive” and added that “some Republican prisoners are not receiving the adequate medical treatment they require.” He continued, “Marian Price is apparently being held because her license was revoked by the British secretary of state, yet she was never released on license. “Marian was granted a pardon due to ill-health following a lengthy hunger strike and subsequent force feeding during the 1970s. Today she now finds herself being held in solitary confinement in an all-male prison. “Another Republican prisoner, Martin Corey, is currently interned after his licence was also revoked by the British secretary of state. Martin Corey was released from Long Kesh in 1992 after spending 19 years in prison. In 2010 he was arrested, imprisoned and charged without trial. The Independent Councillor also branded the reasons for Gerry McGeough’s incarceration as “ridiculous” as they relate to charges dating back to the eighties and said it is clear that Gerry McGeough is not receiving adequate medical treatment, a matter which he said “must be of grave concern for Gerry and his family.” Davy continued “It’s clear that Republican ex-prisoners have a sword hanging over their heads and if they speak out against British occupation or if they don’t toe the line they will find themselves being returned to prison. He cited Colin Duffy’s case as a “perfect example” of this practice, claiming that Mr Duffy “found himself arrested, charged and imprisoned” in Maghaberry for almost three years on remand chiefly because of his “strong Republican beliefs” and his vocal condemnation of the current establishment. Davy Hyland believes this to be a “clear case of internment.” He went on to highlight the on-going protest in the prison against “controlled movement and forced strip searches” and said that the recent images of republican prisoners sporting long beards and long hair had brought “the reality and seriousness of the situation home to many people. It’s an image we thought we would never see again. Ten men gave their lives in 1981 so that today’s republican prisoners would not have to suffer the same treatment they endured.” Councillor Hyland condemned what he sees as a lack of action by politicians: “Some Stormont politicians claim to be concerned about such cases, yet they don’t seem to be doing anything about it, except issuing the odd vague statement. Despite the fact that some of them were once held captive by the British state, they clearly have short memories. They are the ones who gave David Ford the job of Justice Minister, they put him in the position, so they have a lot to answer for. “The Stormont politicians regularly harp on about leaving “the bad old days” behind us. Yet it’s clear that for republicans the bad old days have never went away. “The fact that a British secretary of state, Owen Paterson, can revoke licenses as he pleases is proof who really holds power. Cllr Hyland concluded by saying “As an elected representative, I personally call for an end to the torture and brutality of republican prisoners and for the full implementation of the August 2010 agreement which would bring this crisis to an end. The BOSS chair is already in Maghaberry so why aren’t they using it if the technology is there? “If those in Stormont are really opposed to these injustices then they should walk out of the puppet assembly and join the numerous picket lines and rallies against these injustices that are constantly taking place.” 6. Brian Shivers jailed for 25 years ON February 10 Brian Shivers (46), who was convicted of killing two soldiers at Massareene British army base in 2009, was sentenced to life imprisonment and was told he must serve a minimum of 25 years in prison. The length of the sentence means Brian Shivers, who is terminally ill, is likely to die in jail. During the trial, Brian Shivers's lawyer said his client suffered from cystic fibrosis and had only a few years left to live. He is to appeal his conviction. 7. Provos to support British Queen’s Jubilee IT was reported on February 17 that Councillor Conor Maskey, a Provisional member of
Belfast City Council said his support of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee should be seen in the context of forthcoming centenary celebrations such as the 1916 Easter Rising. He and his party colleague Jim McVeigh have backed a report detailing the council’s plans to celebrate the Queen’s 1952 accession to the British throne at the beginning of June. 8. West Belfast alert 'elaborate hoax' A ‘SECURITY’ alert in west Belfast was sparked by an elaborate hoax. British army bomb experts were called to the scene at Ross Road on February 10 to examine a suspicious object. A number of homes were evacuated and the area was sealed off for a time, but the alert has since ended and the diversions have been lifted. 9. Independent inquiry into death squad killings demanded A REPORT, published on February 5 into an infamous massacre of five nationalists twenty years ago is calling for an independent inquiry into the Ulster Freedom Fighters slaughter which also left seven others wounded. The 70-page Relatives for Justice report was presented to families of those killed on the anniversary of the Seén Graham’s bookmakers murders, and called on British Prime Minister David Cameron to commission an independent inquiry into the Belfast slaughter on February 5, 1992. The report details British Crown Force collusion in the murders of the five nationalist victims – Jack Duffin (66); Willie McManus (54); Christy Doherty (52); Peter Magee (18) and James Kennedy (15). Mark Sykes from RFJ, who was shot in the attack which claimed the life of his 18-year-old brother-in-law, Peter Magee, said the new report not only highlighted the extent of collusion but it also seeks justice for the dead. “It is asking David Cameron to make a full apology to those bereaved and injured,” he said. “We also want information from him around the weapons coming into the country because British military intelligence knew about them through Brian Nelson.” Nelson was a British agent working in the UFF. Mark Sykes said the collusion has always been suspected, with eye-witnesses claiming an Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) jeep stationed opposite the bookmakers moved only minutes before the murders took place. It was widely believed leading loyalists Joe Bratty and Raymond Elder, who lived not far from the Lower Ormeau where the attack took place, and who were shot dead by the IRA on the Ormeau Road in 1994, were behind the attack. A new memorial stone on the 20th anniversary of the killings. Relatives of all five victims as well as friends and supporters attended a memorial Mass at St Malachy’s church before children of some of the murdered unveiled a new memorial to them at the scene of the shootings on the lower Ormeau Road. The report claims a gun used in the attack was handed back to a UFF agent, that a key 10. Calls for Burton to clarify pension rule changes THE 26-County Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton and her department ‘should launch a public information campaign on the implications of changes in the rules for State contributory pensions’, according to the lobby group Older and Bolder on January 23, 2012. The organisation’s director, Patricia Conboy, called on Joan Burton to provide those affected by the changes with “clarity, transparency, and adequate time to prepare and plan”. She said the Minister was now “flagging the possibility” of changing the way in which entitlement to the State contributory pension was calculated, moving from a mix of total number of years and yearly averages of contributions to total number of years solely. “The possibility of introducing this change in September 2012 is being mooted,” Ms Conboy said. “What is not clear is what any of the above means for parents who take time out of the labour force to care for children; people who become ill for example with cancer and take leave to undergo chemotherapy; carers of sick/older relatives; people who work/travel abroad for a period of time.” The State pension (contributory) is paid to people from the age of 66 who have enough social insurance contributions. It is not means-tested and the maximum rate at present is €230.30 per week. The minimum, for people with an average of 10 contributions per year over a minimum five-year working life, is currently €115.20. Under changes already announced in the budget and due to come into force in September, those with the minimum 10 contributions per year will see their pension drop to €92 a week. The five-year working life requirement is being doubled to 10 under separate measures announced as far back as 1997. The new “total contributions” plan under review by the Minister would see this minimum payment for those with 10 years of contributions fall to €76 a week. Éamon Timmins from the charity Age Action warned that changes to the qualification criteria will mean significantly smaller pensions for some. “The changes will result in an unexpected reduction of €1,500 in a person’s annual income for the rest of their lives,” Éamon Timmins said. Age Action also called for clarity about the 26-County government’s long-term plans for the State pension, following comments by the Minister that she was examining the possibility of bringing forward changes which had been originally planned for 2020. The 2010 National Pensions Framework stated that the Government would adopt a “total contributions approach” from 2020 when calculating a person’s PRSI contribution. This would replace the “average contributions” system currently used. 11. Shooting enthusiasts win court battle over gun licences MORE than 160 shooting enthusiasts in the 26 Counties won a legal battle to have their applications for restricted firearms considered again. They had claimed their applications were being refused on a blanket basis by Gardaí without adequate reasons. On January 31 they won a legal challenge to Garda refusals to grant them firearms licences. The hearing was brought to a temporary halt in mid-January after Justice Hedigan expressed concern that a senior Garda had altered a “substantial number” of application forms. Another senior Garda responsible for issuing gun licences admitted, in a series of test cases brought by three sports enthusiasts, that he failed to complete mandatory sections on application forms.
The test cases, which will cost the taxpayer more than €500,000 in legal costs, were dramatically adjourned to allow the authorities to decide whether they could stand over the current firearms licensing system. The National Association of Regional Game Councils (NARGC), which supported the test cases, said it was “outraged, but not surprised” at the behaviour of some senior Gardaí responsible for issuing restricted firearms licences. “In light of the evidence placed before the High Court and the findings of Mr Justice [John] Hedigan in relation to same, NARGC now calls for fundamental changes to the licensing system to ensure transparency, fairness and the maintenance of public confidence in the safety and security provisions of the system,” it said in a statement released after the terms of settlement were reached. As part of the terms of settlement, the 26-County State has agreed to quash the decisions refusing restricted firearm certificates. The applications will now be re-submitted for a fresh consideration. 12. Unlock NAMA occupy 66-67 Great Strand Street, Dublin A NEW campaign group Unlock NAMA was launched in Dublin on Saturday January 28, 2012 Unlock NAMA is a campaign to access NAMA properties for social and community use and to hold NAMA to account. Whereas NAMA is all about giving public money to private banks, the aim of Unlock NAMA is to make public buildings available to the public. Rather than socialising commercial losses, we say socialise resources. The problem is that NAMA is designed to make this as difficult as possible. The lack of transparency or of any mechanism for engagement with the public makes it hard to know where NAMA’s properties are, and even harder to gain access to them. NAMA’s bank bailout has been a complete failure: the banks have needed more hand outs and even nationalisation, yet they still are not lending. Meanwhile NAMA is squandering the property it has acquired and providing massive debt forgiveness to developers. The demands of Unlock NAMA are: 1) Make NAMA properties available for social and community use; 2) Publish full addresses and details on all properties under NAMA and 3) Publish full details on all sales of NAMA assets. 13. Senior health official to get €430,000 severance payment THE Secretary-General of the 26-County Department of Health, Michael Scanlan, is to receive lump sum and severance payments of more than €430,000 when he steps down in April according to a report in the Irish Times on January 25, 2012. He will also be eligible for a pension of €107,795 at the end of his seven-year term in office. Michael Scanlan will be 56 in the early summer. According to Free State Minister for Health James Reilly, Michael Scanlan would be retiring on April 8, 2012 on the expiry of his term in office. He is also to step down from his position as chairman of the board of the Health Service Executive, to which he was appointed just before Christmas. The department said that on his retirement Michael Scanlan would have served for nearly 38½ years in the Civil Service. “In accordance with the terms of his contract he will qualify for a pension and lump sum based on his actual service plus just over 1.5 added years (ie a total of 40 years reckonable service) and a special severance gratuity of one half of his annual salary.” The department said that as Michael Scanlan was retiring after February 29th, his pension, lump sum and severance would be based on his salary as reduced under financial emergency legislation introduced by the previous government (sic). Last year there was widespread controversy when it emerged that former secretary general to the Government Dermot McCarthy was to receive an annual pension of €142,670, a once-off lump sum of €428,011 and a special severance payment of €142,670. 14. Palestinian protesters target UN chief Ban Ki-moon DOZENS of Palestinians staged a hostile protest as the convoy of visiting UN chief Ban Ki-Moon crossed into Gaza from Israel on February 2, 2012. Many were relatives of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails - who are currently said to number about 4,000 - and said they were angry at Ban Ki-Moon’s refusal to meet them to discuss the prisoners' situation. Some threw shoes and some held signs reading “enough bias for Israel”. Ban Ki-Moon is visiting the region to try to kick-start stalled peace negotiations.
A month of “exploratory talks” ended last week without any breakthroughs. Negotiations on a two-state solution stalled in late 2010 after a “dispute” over Jewish settlement construction. The protesters formed a human chain in an attempt to hold up his convoy, reported AP news agency, but Hamas security forces moved them away. His convoy continued on to Khan Younis, where he was scheduled to visit a school and a Japanese-funded housing project. He urged Israeli leaders to offer “goodwill gestures” to Palestinians to provide fresh momentum for peace negotiations which stalled over the issue of Jewish settlement construction. With Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas by his side, Ban Ki-Moon affirmed that “all Israeli settlements are contrary to international law and prejudice the outcome of a final peace deal”. The Quartet of Middle East peace mediators - the US, UN, EU and Russia - said last year that they expected both sides to use the exploratory talks to submit detailed proposals on borders and security arrangements, in the hope that the dialogue would encourage direct peace talks. But the Palestinians say while they have made proposals, the Israelis have not.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected demands for a settlement freeze as a precondition for talks. 15. Cuban ex-President Fidel Castro launches memoirs FORMER Cuban President Fidel Castro made a rare public appearance to launch his memoirs in early February. The book, Guerrilla of Time, is almost 1,000 pages long and relates his childhood and rise to power in the Cuban Revolution. Fidel Castro, 85, said it was every Cuban's duty to fight until the last moment, for Cuba, the planet, and humanity. He had not been seen in public since April last year. Communist Party newspaper Granma said the launch at the Havana Convention Centre lasted more than six hours. The two-volume memoir is based on conversations between Fidel Castro and journalist Katiuska Blanco. It starts with former President Castro's earliest childhood memories and takes the reader up to December 1958, the eve of the overthrow of Fulgencio Batista by Castro and his followers. Culture Minister Abel Prieto and Director of the Cuban Writers' Union Miguel Barnet were among those speaking at the launch. Mr Barnet said the memoirs were “as vivid as a 3D film”. At the event, Fidel Castro spoke about current affairs, praising Latin American students for “standing up for their right to free education”. He also paid tribute to his friend, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who “had done more than anyone else for the Venezuelan people". It was the first time Fidel Castro had appeared in public since the closing session of the Communist Party Congress in April 2011. Fidel Castro handed over the presidency to his brother Raul in 2006, and has kept a low profile since. 16. The Assange case means we are all suspects now THIS week’s Supreme Court hearing [first week in February] in the Julian Assange case has profound meaning for the preservation of basic freedoms in western democracies. This is Assange’s final appeal against his extradition to Sweden to face allegations of sexual misconduct that were originally dismissed by the chief prosecutor in Stockholm and constitute no crime in Britain. The consequences, if he loses, lie not in Sweden but in the shadows cast by America’s descent into totalitarianism. In Sweden, he is at risk of being “temporarily surrendered” to the US where his life has been threatened and he is accused of “aiding the enemy” with Bradley Manning, the young soldier accused of leaking evidence of US war crimes to WikiLeaks. The connections between Manning and Assange have been concocted by a secret grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, which allowed no defence counsel or witnesses, and by a system of plea-bargaining that ensures a 90 per cent conviction. It is reminiscent of a Soviet show trial. The determination of the Obama administration to crush Assange and the unfettered journalism represented by WikiLeaks is revealed in secret Australian government documents released under freedom of information which describe the US pursuit of WikiLeaks as “an unprecedented investigation”. It is unprecedented because it subverts the First Amendment of the US constitution that explicitly protects truth-tellers. In 2008 Barack Obama said, “Government whistleblowers are part of a healthy democracy and must be protected from reprisal.” Obama has since prosecuted twice as many whistleblowers as all previous US presidents. With American courts demanding to see the worldwide accounts of Twitter, Google and Yahoo, the threat to Assange, an Australian, extends to any internet-user anywhere. Washington’s enemy is not “terrorism” but the principle of free speech and voices of conscience within its militarist state and those journalists brave enough to tell their stories. “How do you prosecute Julian Assange and not the New York Times?” a former administration official told Reuters. The threat is well understood by the New York Times, which in 2010 published a selection of the WikiLeaks cables. The editor at the time, Bill Keller, boasted that he had sent the cables to the State Department for vetting. His obeisance extended to his denial that WikiLeaks was a “partner” – which it was – and to personal attacks on Assange. The message to all journalists was clear: do your job as it should be done and you are traitors; do your job as we say you should and you are journalists. Much of the media’s depiction of Bradley Manning illuminates this. The world’s pre-eminent prisoner of conscience, Manning remained true to the Nuremberg principle that every soldier has the right to a “moral choice”. But according to the New York Times, he is weird or mad, a “geek”. In an “exclusive investigation”, the Guardian reported him as an “unstable” gay man, who got “out of control” and “wet himself” when he was “picked on”. Psycho-hearsay such as this serves to suppress the truth of the outrage Manning felt at the wanton killing in Iraq, his moral heroism and the criminal complicity of his military superiors. “I prefer a painful truth over any blissful fantasy,” he reportedly said.
The treatment handed out to Assange is well-documented, though not the duplicitous and cowardly behaviour of his own government. Australia remains a colony in all but name. Australian intelligence agencies are, in effect, branches of the main office in Washington. The Australian military has played a regular role as US mercenary. When prime minister Gough Whitlam tried to change this in 1975 and secure Australia’s partial independence, he was dismissed by a governor-general using archaic “reserve powers” who was revealed to have intelligence connections. WikiLeaks has given Australians a rare glimpse of how their country is run. In 2010, leaked US cables disclosed that key government figures in the Labor Party coup that brought Julia Gillard to power were “protected” sources of the US embassy: what the CIA calls “assets”. Kevin Rudd, the prime minister she ousted, had displeased Washington by being disobedient, even suggesting that Australian troops withdraw from Afghanistan. In the wake of her portentous rise ascent to power, Gillard attacked WikiLeaks as “illegal” and her attorney-general threatened to withdraw Assange’s passport. Yet the Australian Federal Police reported that Assange and WikiLeaks had broken no law. Freedom of information files have since revealed that Australian diplomats have colluded with the US in its pursuit of Assange. This is not unusual. The government of John Howard ignored the rule of law and conspired with the US to keep David Hicks, an Australian citizen, in Guantanamo Bay, where he was tortured. Australia’s principal intelligence organisation, ASIO, is allowed to imprison refugees indefinitely without explanation, prosecution or appeal. Every Australian citizen in grave difficulty overseas is said to have the right to diplomatic support. The denial of this to Assange, bar the perfunctory, is an unreported scandal. Last September, Assange’s London lawyer, Gareth Peirce, wrote to the Australian government, warning that Assange’s “personal safety and security has become at risk in circumstances that have become highly politically charged”. Only when the Melbourne Age reported that she had received no response did a dissembling official letter turn up. Last November, Peirce and I briefed the Australian Consul-General in London, Ken Pascoe. One of Britain’s most experienced human rights lawyers, Peirce told him she feared a unique miscarriage of justice if Assange was extradited and his own government remained silent. The silence remains.
-- John Pilger, February 5, 2012
http://www.sovereignindependent.com 17. Welcome to Police State America YOU know you live in a police state when the president allows the military to continuously harass a prisoner against whom no crime has been proven by interrupting him every five minutes of the day to ask him, “Are you okay?” and forces him to stand to attention naked at roll call. What it can do to one man it can do to every man. You know you live in a police state when said prisoner is barred from exercising in his cell and told where he may and may not put his hands when he goes to sleep at night. Only a police state would dictate how an individual can sleep. You know you live in a police state when the government punishes, rather than honours, whistle-blowers who reveal its crimes such as the US massacre of civilians in Baghdad that PFC Bradley Manning exposed. You know you live in a police state when wardens force pregnant women prisoners to deliver their babies while in chains. (Not exactly “the new birth of freedom” of which Abraham Lincoln spoke.) You know you live in a police state when the president orders the assassination (ie, murder) of American citizens without bothering to arrest them and bring them to trial. You know you live in a police state when police forces across the country attack unarmed and non-violent citizen protesters with pepper spray and clubs. You know you live in a police state when hundreds of thousands of citizens are rotting in prisons for victimless “crimes” such as smoking pot and your country leads the world in incarcerations with 2.3 million behind bars and when hundreds of thousands of these prisoners are sexually assaulted. You know you live in a police state when working people who say overwhelmingly that they want to join a union cannot do so for fear of being fired, and in which the money earned by the poor is taken by the state and given to the rich. If the government can rob one person, it can rob every person. You know you live in a police state when your government makes terrible, punishing wars on small countries after falsely accusing them of having a “weapon of mass destruction” while it possesses tens of thousands of them. You know you live in a police state when the president signs into law an Act allowing him to arrest innocent citizens on his say-so and have the military imprison them indefinitely without charge, legal counsel, or trial before a jury of their peers. You know you live in a police state when you can be barred from flying in an airliner on suspicion of “terrorism” that has not been proven and which is impossible for you to challenge. You know you live in a police state when you are under surveillance by Federal agencies such as the FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and the Central Intelligence Agency, among others, for your political views rather than the commission of any crime against the state, and when said agencies can access your medical records, bank statements, and “private” papers, tap your telephone, question your neighbours and employer and follow you around. You know you live in a police state when the military gets the biggest percentage of your tax dollars so that it can spend as much for war as the next 20 nations combined while claiming it is attacking other countries in the name of peace and order. You know you live in a police state when the Pentagon has more than a trillion dollars in research projects underway to make sophisticated killing machines that will give it control of the entire planet from 2,000 military bases and outer space and to terrify the world with its arsenals of nuclear weapons and germ warfare. You know you live in a police state when people write to you to commend you for your “courage” for writing critically against the government when, in fact, you should have every good reason to live in fear of so doing. [email protected], February 5, 2012