Global Peace And Justice Auckland
NEWSLETTER #279, April ,2009
Website: http://www.gpja.org.nz/

WHAT'S ON IN AUCKLAND

Monday, April 6, 7.30pm, Trades Hall, 147 Great North Road, Grey Lynn.
APRIL GPJA FORUM: HAITI TODAY: FIVE YEARS OF UN-SPONSORED MILITARY OCCUPATION BRINGS DISASTER. In February, 2004, the elected president and government of Haiti were overthrown by a right-wing paramilitary rebellion backed by troops from the United States, France and Canada. A foreign-appointed, regime of human rights violations ruled Haiti for the two years that followed. An electedgovernment has ruled Haiti since early 2006. But the real power is held by a 10,000-member, UN-sponsored military occupation regime. Poverty, human rights violations and environmental degradation are worsening dramatically in a country that was already the poorest in the Americas. Hear: Roger Annis, a coordinator of the Canada Haiti Action Netowrk and participant in a human rights factfindingmission to Haiti in August 2007.

Tuesday, April 7, 6pm, Unite Centre, 6a Western Springs Rd, Morningside
THE FINANCIAL CRISIS HITS HOME IN CANADA. During the October, 2008 federal election in Canada, all the parties represented in the federal Parliament peddled a myth that Canada would escape the worst of the U.S.-sparked financial collapse. This in a country where the U.S. market consumes 76% of all Canadian exports. The economic situation in Canada is deteriorating rapidly, presenting newdifficulties and challenges for the country's trade unions and social movements. As well, renewed demands for political sovereignty are emerging among the French-speaking Quebecois nation that numbers 7 million and the one million Indigenous peoples. Speaking on the political situation in Canada today: Roger Annis, aerospace worker in Vancouver, long time socialist and trade union activists,editor of Socialist Voice.

Tuesday, April 7, 7.30pm, Trades Hall, 147 Great North Rd, Grey Lynn
MIGRANT WORKERS, THE ECONOMIC CRISIS AND THE UNIONS - Public Meeting: Recently there have been decisions by companies to make NZ workers redundant while continuing to employ migrant workers on temporary visas. There have been calls by both the Labour Party, National and some unionists for these migrant workers to be laid off first. The immigration service has revoked the work visas of someworkers who kept their jobs. Migrant advocates have raised concerns that racist sentiments are being fostered and ask the question why migrant workers shouldn’t have their rights protected. New Zealand-born or permanent residents ask why they should be sacked when temporary visa holders keep their jobs. This raises questions on how unions should be approaching migrant workers when there maybe conflicting claims for support from different groups of workers who are their members. Addressing these questions will be speakers involved in the union movement and in advocating for migrant workers. These include: -Laila Harre, National Secretary of the National Distribution Union; -Dennis Maga, Migrante Aotearoa; -John Minto, Organiser, Unite Union; -Mike Treen, Global Peace and JusticeAuckland (Chair). Organised by Migrante Aotearoa, GPJA, Auckland Philippines Solidarity. For more information contact Dennis Maga,

Wednesday, April 8, 7pm, Room 215, Arts 1 Building , with the red tiled roof, just back from the SymondsSt/Alfred St intersection, at 14A Symonds St, Spanish department, Auckland University
"CUBA TODAY - A VIEW FROM THE INSIDE" - Lecture by Rigoberto Zarza Ross, official from Asia and Pacific Division at Cuban Instutute for Friendship among the Peoples. ICAP. Rigoberto will will talk about life in Cuba today as well as the latest developments in the case of the "Cuban Five". Fifty years after the overthrow of the Batista dictatorship, the Cuban government and peoplecontinue to defend their revolution. For five decades they have forged a socialist course toward social equality and international solidarity.Cuba has made these gains in the face of hostility from the U.S. government and its allies. Washington imposed an economic embargo, organised an invasion in 1961, and has tried many times to assassinate Cuban leaders.The trial and imprisonment of the CubanFive is just the latest in a string of hostile acts. These five revolutionaries were convicted in a U.S. court in 2001 on frame-up conspiracy charges and jailed for many years. Their campaign for release has won broad support.An appeal by the Five will soon come before the U.S. Supreme Court. Rigoberto graduated as Teacher of English from the Higher Pedagogical Institute Enrique José Varona atHavana in 2003. He worked as a teacher in a junior high school for two years. Then he moved to International School of Physical Education and Sports, a cooperation project where students from Asia, Africa, Caribbean and Latin America study freely to become teachers and sport trainers. He worked there in the International Relationship Department, receiving visitors who came to school. From June2007 he began to work at ICAP as an official in charge of solidarity work with Japan, New Zealand, Australia and Pacific Islands. He has been director of Southern Cross brigade for last two years.s on a speaking tour of Australia and New Zealand. He will speak on Cuba Today at this public meeting. Sponsored by the Auckland Cuba Friendship Society

Wednesday, April 8, 7.30 - 9.30 pm, Auckland Trades Hall Auditorium, 147 Great North Road, Grey Lynn
PUBLIC MEETING TO STOP THE SUPERCITY! We call upon the citizens of Auckland to organise and oppose the Royal Commission Proposal for the 'Supercity' on the basis this new structure will not benefit the majority of Auckland residents and ratepayers. A Public Meeting has been called to organise direct action by all those who want to stop the Royal Commission's 'Supercity'.

Wednesday, April 8, 7pm, Auckland University Theatre OGGB5, Owen G Glenn Building, 12 Grafton Rd Auckland
The Global Financial Meltdown: Its Causes, and Opportunities for Localized Restructuring - International Guest Speaker Thomas H Greco, Jnr. The global financial crisis is no accident. It is the natural outcome of a flawed system that has long been building to a climax. Thomas Greco explains how and why conventional money and banking malfunction, describes the comprehensive metamorphic change thatcivilization is presently experiencing, and outlines voluntary alternative approaches to exchange and finance that empower communities and reward people fairly. Tom Greco is a community and monetary economist, writer, networker, and consultant, who for three decades has been working at the leading edge of transformational restructuring. He is regarded as a leading expert in monetary theory andhistory, credit clearing systems, community economic development and complementary currencies. He is currently Director of the Community Information Resource Center, a US non-profit networking hub, which provides information access and administrative support for efforts in community improvement, social justice and sustainability. Tom Greco is in New Zealand as the keynote speaker for theCommunity Currencies Conference being held in Whanganui April 17 - 19. His new book, The End of Money and the Future of Civilization, is to be released this month (Chelsea Books). His previous book, Money: Understanding and Creating Alternatives to Legal Tender, is available from the Living Economies Educational Trust. Out of all the conversations about relocalization and community resilience,the conversations about local currencies and alternative, people-centred economics may well be the most important of all and have the biggest bearing on how communities survive or not as the world financial system implodes. NB: This lecture comes at short notice. Please forward this information to all friends and colleagues who may be interested.
Thursday, April 16, 6pm, Engineering Main Lecture Theatre 401-439, 20 Symonds Street, University of Auckland
The New Zealand Centre for Environmental Law is holding a free public lecture as part of its 2009 Conference. Speaker: Judge C G Weeramantry. Topic: Rights and Responsibilities: A Global Cultural Perspective.

Thursday, April 23, 8pm, Tom Forde's Bar, 122 Anzac Avenue, Auckland
COME TO REGGAE FOR BLAIR PEACH - organised by Socialist Aotearoa. from the British Socialist Worker paper- "As the police rushed past him, one of them hit him on the head with the stick. I was in my garden and saw this quite clearly. He was left sitting against the wall. He tried to get up, but he was shivering and looked very strange. He couldn't stand. Then the police came back and told him,'Move! Come on, move!' They were very rough with him and I was shocked because it was clear he was seriously hurt." This was the shocking testimony of Southall resident Parminder Atwal, one of the witnesses to the murder of Blair Peach at the hands of the Metropolitan Police on 23 April 1979.

QUOTES OF THE WEEK

"The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy: that is the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness." : John Kenneth Galbraith

"Of all forms of tyranny the least attractive and the most vulgar is the tyranny of mere wealth, the tyranny of plutocracy" : John Pierpont Morgan

"I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have: three meals a day for their bodies, - education and culture for their minds - and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits" Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

"There is a sufficiency in the world for man's need -- but not for man's greed." - M. Ghandi

ANNOUNCEMENTS

PETITION ON THE UN DECLARATION ON THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES
The petition calling on the government to support the UN Declaration has now gone to the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Select Committee, and the Committee has requested a written submission in support of the petition. The deadline for the written submission is mid April, and the final batch of signatures will be attached to it. Therefore the final deadline for return of signatures isThursday, 16 April - so if you have any signed petition forms, please make sure they are posted to Peace Movement Aotearoa, PO Box 9314, Wellington 6141 on Tuesday, 14 April at the latest. If you have any opportunity to collect additional signatures between now and then, that would be great - the form is available on the UN Declaration web page at http://www.converge.org.nz/pma/decrips.htm

PEOPLES MOVEMENT ON CLIMATE CHANGE - PARIHAKA APRIL 24-27
A call out to individuals from communities all across Aotearoa to join in organising an ongoing project which aims to start a Peoples Movement actively addressing the Root Causes of Climate Change. Join us at Parihaka April 24th through the 27th for a weekend of tasting and devouring, information, discussions and workshops on climate chaos and climate justice. The bases of the gathering is toshare skills, up skill and take action. Some of the workshops are on topics such as permaculture, collective organising and direct action strategies. For more information please contact: climatecampnz@riseup.net http://www.climatecamp.org.nz/HOME.html To Register go to: http://www.climatecamp.org.nz/THE%20GATHERING.html

What is a Climate Camp?

Climate Camps have been successfully held in several countries. Each camp has generally covered the following themes: direct action, education, direct democracy, sustainable living and building a movement to effectively tackle climate change by both resisting climate damaging activities and developing sustainable solutions. The camps are a place for anyone to take action on climate change; foranyone who’s fed up with empty government rhetoric and corporate spin; for anyone who’s worried that the small steps we’ve been encouraged to make in our personal lives aren’t enough to match the scale of the problem; and for anyone who’s worried about our future and wants to do something about it.

How is this organised?

Previous camps have been organised in a community based and collaborative way. Before and during camp regional groups [Auckland group / Whangarei group / nelson group / Christchurch group / new groups] work and organise by making decisions together and sending prooposals to one another. This is different from coming as a representative of an organisation, and is far more democratic,sustainable and conducive to building a peoples movement. There are already many regional and issue based working groups up and running that you can join, maybe there’s one in your area, if not feel free to get in touch and start one up yourself.

Hope to see you at Parihaka!

APPEAL FOR VISITATION RIGHTS FOR WIVES OF CUBAN FIVE
Friends, Amnesty International has just launched a new letter writing campaign targeting the US Secretary of State (Hillary Rodham Clinton), and Department of Homeland Security (Janet Napolitano). It calls for the US to grant entry visas to Adriana Perez and Olga Salanueva to visit their husbands, Gerardo Hernandez and Rene Gonzalez, in US jails. Gerardo and Rene are two of the Miami 5, fiveCubans unjustly imprisoned in US jails for fighting terrorist attacks against their country. Your support in this renewed campaign is essential. You’ll find information on the addressees and key points to make etc on our webpage. Further Information:

•National Committee to Free the Cuban Five http://www.freethefive.org/updates/Wives/WivesAmnesty32609.htm

•Cuba Solidarity Campaign UK http://www.cuba-solidarity.org.uk/news.asp?ItemID=1593

•Cuba Solidarity Blog - Christchurch http://cubasolidarity.blogspot.com/

CALL OUT FOR ART WORKS - OCTOBER 15 SOLIDARITY
The October 15th Solidarity group is seeking art works for an upcoming auction and exhibition. The five day event, to be held in Wellington, will be timed to coincide with the second anniversary of the raids (October 15th 2009). Funds raised will go towards legal fees and travel costs for those still facing charges as as a result of the state terror raids in 2007. The group believes in the powerof art as a voice of dissent, and calls for submissions that draw from any of the following: -the October 15th raids; -commentary on the 'war on terrorism'; -surveillance/police/prisons; -colonisation; -kaupapa Maori; -resistance. All artists will be asked to set a reserve price for their work. Please indicate your interest via email or post asap. More info: www.october15thsolidarity.info

BEST ON THE WEB

NEW ZEALAND

Gordon Campbell: The G20 rescue package and McCully’s Washington trip http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2009/04/03/campbell-g20-package-mccully%E2%80%99s-washington-trip/

Gordon Campbell: The Goverment’s rash of PR debacles, & Bob Marley http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2009/03/23/campbell-govt%E2%80%99s-rash-of-pr-debacles-bob-marley/

John Minto: Migrant Workers - A Unionist's Position http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00304.htm

Air NZ Zeal workers need your support! http://www.epmu.org.nz/zeal/

Not the time to be signing away NZ’s sovereignty by Professor Jane Kelsey http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0904/S00020.htm

John Minto: West Papua, A Neighbour Needs Our Help http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0904/S00035.htm

Rankin: Tax Cuts 2009-2011 http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0904/S00005.htm

The rush to impose the ‘Super City’ proposal on Auckland http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2009/03/31/campbell-the-rush-to-impose-the-%E2%80%98super-city%E2%80%99/

ECONOMIC CRISIS

This Crisis Is Way Bigger Than Dead Banks and Wall Street Bailouts By James Galbraith http://www.alternet.org/workplace/132849/this_crisis_is_way_bigger_than_dead_banks_and_wall_street_bailouts/

Krugman: The Market Wizards Were Exposed as Frauds -- Too Bad Obama's Team Still Believes in Their Magic http://www.alternet.org/workplace/133775/krugman%3A_the_market_wizards_were_exposed_as_frauds_--_too_bad_obama%27s_team_still_believes_in_their_magic/

Foreclosure Crisis Hits Warp Speed: 6 Million Families Face Losing Their Homes in the Next Three Years http://www.alternet.org/workplace/134003/foreclosure_crisis_hits_warp_speed%3A_6_million_families_face_losing_their_homes_in_the_next_three_years/

The G-20 Faces the Global Econopocalypse, But It's Nothing But a Big Show by Walden bello - http://www.alternet.org/audits/134330/the_g-20_faces_the_global_econopocalypse%2C_but_it%27s_nothing_but_a_big_show/

Merrill Lynch Bonuses Were 22 Times the Size Of AIG's http://www.alternet.org/workplace/134235/merrill_lynch_bonuses_were_22_times_the_size_of_aig%27s/

"South Park" Takes on the Econopocalypse ... Explains the Bailouts http://www.alternet.org/blogs/workplace/133767/%22south_park%22_takes_on_the_econopocalypse_..._explains_the_bailouts/

Atilio Borón: From infinite war to infinite crisis http://links.org.au/node/983

Rapid Declines in Manufacturing Spread Global Anxiety: That manufacturing is in decline is hardly surprising, but the depth and speed of the plunge are striking and, most worrisome for economists, a self-reinforcing trend not unlike the cascading bust that led to the Great Depression http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/20/business/worldbusiness/20shrink.html?ref=WRH

The New Depression By Martin Jacques - The business and political elite are flying blind. This is the mother of all economic crises. It has barely started and remains completely out of control. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22015.htm

ENVIRONMENT

Arctic Sea Ice Melting Faster Than Expected By Randolph E. Schmid http://www.countercurrents.org/schmid030409.htm

Earth's Atmosphere Tracking Toward A Mid Pliocene Like State By Andrew Glikson http://www.countercurrents.org/glikson030409.htm

Climate "Skeptics" Renew War Against Science While Rome Burns By Andrew Glikson http://www.countercurrents.org/glikson240309.htm

REVIEWS

The Black Jacobins,Teachers of Revolution; Graciela Chailloux http://www.normangirvan.info/the-black-jacobinsteachers-of-revolution-graciela-chailloux/

Journalists Made Fun of Tom Hurndall: In the End, He Was More Principled Than Any of Them Could Dream to Be by Robert Fisk, Independent UK http://www.alternet.org/rights/134422/journalists_made_fun_of_tom_hurndall%3A_in_the_end%2C_he_was_more_principled_than_any_of_them_could_dream_to_be/

Hearts and Minds; FTA - Great news. Two of the outstanding documentaries of the Vietnam War era are now available, one in the theaters and the other on DVD. “Hearts and Minds” opens at the Cinema Village today and is not only the finest documentary of the period, but arguably the finest political documentary ever made. http://louisproyect.wordpress.com/2009/03/20/hearts-and-minds-fta/

Islam's evolutionary legacy - As we celebrate Darwin, let's not forget the unsung champions of evolution from the Muslim world http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2009/feb/27/islam-religion-evolution-science/print

JOHN PILGER: Hollywood's New Censors - These are extraordinary times. Vicious colonial wars and political, economic and environmental corruption cry out for a place on the big screen. Yet, try to name one recent film that has dealt with these, honestly and powerfully, let alone satirically.. Censorship by omission is virulent. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22024.htm

AUSTRALIA

The Global Financial Crisis – What can we do about it? http://leftfocus.blogspot.com/2009/04/global-financial-crisis-what-can-we-do.html

Drug laws allow gangs to flourish http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/drug-laws-allow-gangs-to-flourish-20090403-9rej.html

Australian academics call for boycott of Israel - Statement, various undersigned, 26 March 2009 http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10427.shtml

Obama's Economic Saviour Savaged as Keating Lets Rip http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22217.htm

Hunger in Australia: 15% of Australian children live in jobless households and this figure has increased by 30% in the last 20 years - In Australia over a million children don't get enough to eat. http://www.foodbank.com.au/default.asp?id=1,134,,115

BOLIVIA

Hidden cells reveal Bolivia's dark past: Those hallways led to cells where around 2,000 political prisoners were held and tortured during the 1971-1978 military rule under General Hugo Banzer. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7925694.stm

CANADA

The Indian Nation by Ray Bobb a member of the Seabird Island Indian Band, based on the lower Fraser River. http://www.socialistvoice.ca/?p=376

Banned Speech - British MP George Galloway Speaks - Video - A defiant George Galloway took direct aim at Canada's immigration minister in a speech Monday night for being branded a terrorism supporter and being denied entry to the country. Galloway was beamed into, via the Internet, a nearly full 588-seat MiST theatre at the University of Toronto Mississauga. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22332.htm

CUBA

A Historical Roadmap for Liberating the Cuban Five - Gesture For Gesture http://www.counterpunch.org/pertierra03272009.html

Cuban Five case heads to Supreme Court http://www.freethefive.org/

Can the West cultivate ideas from Cuba's 'Special Period'? http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/03/29/eco.cubaagriculture/

EL SALVADOR

Hopeful Change In El Salvador? By Stephen Lendman http://www.countercurrents.org/lendman190309.htm

Crisis, Poverty Huge Challenges For El Salvador’s Leftist President By Raúl Gutiérrez http://www.countercurrents.org/gutierrez180309.htm

FRANCE

Caterpillar bosses held hostage http://www.smh.com.au/world/caterpillar-bosses-held-hostage-20090401-9js0.html

Protest In France - Three million protest French government's response to global economic crisis in second national general strike of 2009 http://www.countercurrents.org/galvin210309.htm

French Universities Occupied Against Neo-Liberal Reforms By Michael Galvin http://www.countercurrents.org/galvin120309.htm

INDIA

India : A Starving Democracy: In India a shocking 42.5 percent of children under 5 are malnourished. A World Food Program report last month noted that India remained home to more than a fourth of the world's hungry, 230 million people in all. http://www.commentarymagazine.com/blogs/index.php/greenwald/58451

IRAQ

Iraqi Holocaust: 2.3 Million Iraqi Excess Deaths By Gideon Polya http://www.countercurrents.org/polya210309.htm

PACIFIC

Quiet Papuan ‘father’ takes on military with his pen http://pacificmediacentre.blogspot.com/2009/03/quiet-papuan-father-takes-on-military.html

Fiji: ‘It was stones, now it's molotov cocktails' http://globalvoicesonline.org/2009/03/23/fiji-it-was-stones-now-its-molotov-cocktails/

Solomon Islands welcomes Cuban doctors http://cubasolidarity.blogspot.com/2009/03/solomon-islands-welcomes-cuban-doctors.html

PALESTINE / ISRAEL

Ramzy Baroud: Intifada - A Third Chapter? Though the dust has settled in Gaza, the rubble from the untold number of demolished buildings, homes and mosques is far from being cleared away. Graves continue to receive victims, young and old alike, from Israel's most recent offensive. http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00262.htm

Worried about apartheid? Too late, Mr Olmert, it’s already here http://www.thenational.ae/article/20090322/OPINION/714980252/1001

If American Knew: The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is one of the world’s major sources of instability. Americans are directly connected to this conflict, and increasingly imperiled by its devastation. It is the goal of If Americans Knew to provide full and accurate information on this critical issue, and on our power – and duty – to bring a resolution. http://www.ifamericansknew.org/

Off the Charts - A Video with Alison Weir, Founder of If Americans Knew: Like most Americans, Alison Weir, the editor of a small-town newspaper in California, knew very little about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, other than what she had gleaned from the evening news or newspaper headlines. As a journalist, her attention was on issues much closer to home. Neither a Muslim nor a Jew, shenevertheless became more curious about the topic of the Palestinian uprising. And as she researched it, she became increasingly suspicious that the American media were not telling us the whole story. Months later, she travelled to the occupied territories as an independent journalist to find out for herself what the U.S. media seemed to be omitting. Three months after returning from Palestine,Alison Weir quit her job and founded If Americans Knew, an organization dedicated to quantifying the ways in which the American media was misinforming the public about the conflict. Ms. Weir explains her group's methodology, analyzes the data, and reports on the key findings. Producers: Paul Chek and John Odam (2006). VIDEO LINK TO “OFF THE CHARTS”: http://tinyurl.com/c2x9e9

'At War With the Palestinian People' by Uri Avnery http://www.antiwar.com/avnery/?articleid=14443

Israel: An interview with Hadash MP and communist Dov Khenin http://links.org.au/node/968

Worried about apartheid? Too late, Mr Olmert, it’s already here http://www.thenational.ae/article/20090322/OPINION/714980252/1001

Israeli exporters forced to slash prices due to boycott http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&Do=&ID=36788

Israel’s dirty laundry http://www.greenleft.org.au/2009/789/40599

PHILIPPINES

Philippine Extra-Judicial Killings Continue, Obama's Response In Question By Brian McAfee http://www.countercurrents.org/mcafee300309.htm

SRI LANKA

Arundhati Roy: Killings and Concentration Camps: A Colossal Humanitarian Tragedy is Underway in Sri Lanka and No One is Saying a Word http://www.alternet.org/rights/134528/killings_and_concentration_camps%3A_a_colossal_humanitarian_tragedy_is_underway_in_sri_lanka_and_no_one_is_saying_a_word/

Sri-Lanka Commits Genocide And India Treats Injured In The Act- Providing A Façade For Democracy By Dr C P Thiagarajah http://www.countercurrents.org/thiagarajah300309.htm

UK

G20 protests: Riot police, or rioting police? At the G20 protests in London only one group appears to be looking for violent confrontation – and it's not the protesters: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/georgemonbiot/2009/apr/01/g20-policing-climate-protest-riot

The 'revolution' starts here as 35,000 pack the G20 march http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/29/g20-protests-london

G20 Meltdown in the City - The system isn't in crisis, the system is crisis! http://www.monthlyreview.org/mrzine/meltdown270309.html

G20: The strong arm of the law - As witnesses to the way they mishandled today's protests in the City of London, we hold the police responsible for the violence http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/apr/01/g20-protest-violence-police

Car plant workers occupy factory http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7976783.stm

JOHN PILGER: Fake Faith and Epic Crimes - These are extraordinary times. With the United States and Britain on the verge of bankruptcy and committing to an endless colonial war, pressure is building for their crimes to be prosecuted at a tribunal similar to that which tried the Nazis at Nuremberg. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22336.htm

Revealed: Full Horror of Gitmo Inmate's Beatings By Mark Townsend: Binyam Mohamed will return to Britain suffering from a huge range of injuries after being beaten by US guards right up to the point of his departure from Guantánamo Bay, according to the first detailed accounts of his treatment inside the camp. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22069.htm

We Are All Extremists Now By Seumas Milne - The government is criminalising legitimate dissent under the guise of fighting 'extremism', a word for which it has no definition. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22063.htm

USA

Closing Guantanamo? What About the Hellholes on American Soil? From Florida to California, America’s dehumanizing prisons confront President Obama and our governors with a challenge every bit as daunting as Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00263.htm

Does America Face the Risk of a Fascist Backlash? http://www.alternet.org/workplace/132155/does_america_face_the_risk_of_a_fascist_backlash_/?page=entire

Seymour Hersh: Secret U.S. Forces Carried Out Assassinations in 'a Lot of' Countries, Including in Latin America - The investigative journalist for The New Yorker explains his recent bombshell revelation about Dick Cheney's "executive assassination" squads. http://www.alternet.org/rights/134347/seymour_hersh%3A_secret_u.s._forces_carried_out_assassinations_in_%27a_lot_of%27_countries%2C_including_in_latin_america/

Empire of bases - Before reading this article, try to answer this question: How many military bases does the United States have in other countries: a) 100; b) 300; c) 700; or d) 1,000. http://www.thebulletin.org/web-edition/columnists/hugh-gusterson/empire-of-bases

"if you're willing to risk the entirety of a potentially great presidency on making sure that a handful of already wealthy sociopaths who got rich destroying the global economy are not denied massive taxpayer-funded bonuses to keep them in jobs they've already completely mishandled, despite the fact that many of them took the money and left the job anyhow - if that's you, and you're the new president of the United States with a load of challenges and lots of public good will solidly behind you - well, then, you're dumber than a bag of hammers." http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22262.htm

The American Criminal Injustice System By Paul Craig Roberts - The US has the highest incarceration rate and the biggest prison population of any country in the world. With 5 percent of the world's population, the US has 25 percent of the world's prison inmates. http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22189.htm

VENEZUELA

PSUV document: Crack in the accumulation of world capitalism (march towards the global depression) http://links.org.au/node/969

Venezuelan Mayor Replaces Coca-Cola Plant with Socialist Commune http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news/4310

Venezuelan leader: 'Capitalism needs to go down' http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090403/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_chavez_g20_summit

ENDS

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