International
Libya
Canadian Forces' Depraved
Government-Sanctioned Actions
On June 27, Canada's new Minister of Foreign
Affairs John Baird visited Benghazi, Libya on a so-called fact-finding
mission. While there, it is reported that he signed a Canadian bomb
with the message: "Free
Libya. Democracy." Writing in the Globe
and
Mail, John Ibbitson adds: "someone else had already written
another message on the bomb: 'This postal service don't
strike.'"
TML Weekly
vehemently denounces this uncouth behaviour on the part of Canada's
Foreign Minister which takes up where the talk about "killing scumbags"
left off. The reports of Baird's depraved actions in signing the bomb
and his desire to link the destruction of Libyan infrastructure with
the Conservatives' "victory" in forcing the postal workers back to work
show that the Workers' Opposition cannot afford to leave Canada's
foreign affairs up to these nation-wreckers.
Television reports show these precision guided missiles
destroying trucks, planes, and all kinds of infrastructure, not to
mention
Libyans themselves, whose deaths at the hands of NATO attacks are
usually
not shown. Reports recently indicate that NATO is targetting
Libyan oil refineries under the pretext of "protecting civilians."
The destruction being inflicted by the Canadian Forces
against Libya shows the urgent necessity for the workers to establish
an
anti-war government. It is the social product produced by the Canadian
working class and people which is being used to finance the
destruction of the lives and productive capacity of the Libyan people.
Talk about "human rights," "a humanitarian mission" or
"preventing genocide" cannot cover up the reality that Canada is
involved in a brutal bombing campaign against Libya, just as it is
allegedly winding down the war in Afghanistan.
Get
Canada Out of Libya! Get Canada Out of NATO!
All Out to Establish an Anti-War Government!
Mass Rallies in Tripoli Oppose NATO Aggression
- Jamilé Ghaddar -
On July 1, a massive rally in the symbolic Green
Square of Tripoli, Libya denounced the NATO aggression
against the
country, with estimates of a million and more people participating.
With a population of about 6.5 million,
even modest estimates by pro-war media outlets of tens of thousands
constitute a substantial percentage of the Libyan population and
specifically Tripoli's population of approximately 1.7 million people.
Since then, demonstration after demonstration has taken place in the
Green Square and other areas, including Sabha on July 8. Many of these
anti-NATO gatherings have run late into the night, and featured lively
crowds affirming the right of the Libyan people to decide their own
affairs. Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gadhafi and government
representatives have
addressed these
rallies despite foreign propaganda that the so-called rebels are poised
to take the city.
Vivid pictures of a sea of people waving the green Libyan flag or
wrapped in that colour have appeared around the world and belie all
efforts of NATO and its propaganda machine to paint its aggression
in the garb of legitimacy.
Libyans Rally in
Tripoli's Historic Green
Square, July 1, 2011.
Recently, the monopoly-owned media and various pundits
have begun to liken the situation in Libya to that of Iraq and
Afghanistan,
indicating that as in those countries, imperialist aggression has
failed to establish the rule of a foreign dictate. While the
NATO propaganda machine daily claims success in
Libya, the facts on the ground are far less favourable. What was
supposed to be a brief military mission that, according to Obama, would
topple the Libyan government within days and see so-called
rebel action supported by an uprising of the Libyan people has failed
to realize any of these results. The government, far from being
toppled, is becoming a rallying point for Libyans opposed to the
foreign interference in the country and is harnessing the
nationalist, anti-imperialist sentiment of a people who did not
hesitate to sacrifice their lives against the Italian colonialists in
the early 1900s and through World War II.
The Green Square is the symbol of the
heroic resistance
of the Libyan people to the Italian colonialists. Omar Al-Mokhtar, a
hero of the Libyan nationalist struggle for nearly twenty years, was
executed there in 1931 by the Italian fascists who hoped to quash the
aspiration of the Libyan people to affirm their right to
self-determination. Rather than accomplishing this aim, however, the
Libyan people succeeded in their resistance and the Square to this
day is a powerful symbol of Libyan independence. It is uncanny that,
like NATO today, the Italian colonialists also claimed
humanitarian reasons for their interference in the country; they
supposedly wanted to "liberate" its people from Ottoman rule.
Anti-colonial,
anti-fascist Libyan hero Omar Al-Mukhtar. Pictured right in custody of Mussolini's
Italian
fascist army. He was executed in Tripoli's Green Square in 1931.
NATO, which began its aerial bombing of the country on
March 19, had to extend its 90-day mission for another 90 days. For all
the
talk of its defeat in days, not weeks, the Libyan government has
withstood almost four
months of attack by the most powerful military bloc in the
world. Meanwhile, despite the United Nations arms embargo against
Libya,
member states of NATO, such as France, were sending arms to the
anti-government forces in a desperate bid to prop up their allies
against the formidable military action of the government while NATO
was providing aerial support for the "rebels" to advance on Tripoli.
According to the imperialist dictate, so long as Gadhafi
remained, there would be no negotiations. The Harper government and the
U.S. continuously rejected negotiations, choosing violence, civilian
deaths and large-scale
wrecking of Libya's basic infrastructure. Yet their bravado and claims
of success
were belied after the Libya Contact Group meeting in Turkey yesterday
where, among
others, the U.S. agreed to begin negotiating a ceasefire with the
Libyan
government. That meeting of the Libya Contact Group, which Russia and
China
declined to attend, also recognized the so-called rebels as the “sole
legitimate authority” in Libya and promised to funnel Libyan government
assets frozen
in Euro-American banks to them.
Only time will show exactly what is taking place in
Libya, given the often contradictory reports. What is clear, however,
is that the
Libyan people are not interested in playing ball with the likes of
NATO. They will not for one second conciliate on the national
question, nor will they permit that foreign powers decide their future.
Whether Gadhafi stays or the Libyan government changes must be
decided by the Libyan people themselves, without any foreign
interference in the form of NATO military action or support for the
so-called rebels.
Recent Events
On March 17, the United Nations Security Council passed
Resolution 1973 by a vote of 10 in favour to none against, with 5
abstentions (Brazil, China, Germany, India and the Russian Federation).
This resolution authorized member states "to take all necessary
measures to protect civilians under threat of attack in the country,
including Benghazi, while excluding a foreign occupation force of
any form on any part of Libyan territory -- requesting them to
immediately inform the Secretary-General of such measures." The
resolution supposedly
legalized the imposition by member states of a no-fly zone over Libya
and an arms embargo against the country.
Almost immediately, the U.S. began the military
aggression and soon after handed over the mission to NATO with Canada
in command.
Indeed,
even before the resolution had been passed, Canadian warships and other
NATO military forces had made their way to Libya. Since the
resolution was self-servingly passed by a Security Council composed of
the very countries wanting to militarily intervene in Libya,
the situation in the country has quickly unfolded as a
foreign-engineered civil war with one side, the so-called rebels or
opposition,
backed by the major imperialist powers against the Libyan government.
Under the guise of protecting civilians from government
repression, the imperialist NATO alliance has caused untold damage and
killed hundreds of civilians in its efforts to dominate Libya
with its rich oil resources and geopolitical significance. Since air
strikes began in March, NATO has flown more than 14,931 missions,
some 5,623 of which involved airstrikes. Canadian CF-18s were involved
in about 523 missions and dropped about 399 laser-guided bombs,
sources reveal.
NATO Crimes
On July 8, news outlets reported that NATO had bombed
Libyan oil facilities for the first time since the aggression began in
March. As the fighting intensified between the Libyan government and
the foreign-backed opposition, the airstrikes hit the
highly-lucrative, government-controlled complex at Brega, one of the
countries' biggest petrochemical complexes and port for export.
Control of Brega and the adjoining city of Ras Lanuf has changed hands
several times since the fighting began, while Tripoli remains
un-breached. As of July 15, it has been reported that the rebels are
trying to recapture Brega, again with NATO aerial support. The use of
military power to support the rebels is also outside the mandate
established by the relevant Security Council resolution.
According to NATO, this targeting of infrastructure and
the economic assets of the Libyan people was designed to prevent
government troops from mounting a defence against the "rebels." NATO
had
explained the targeting of hospitals with similar hollow
arguments. In the Libyan capital, Deputy Foreign Minister, Khaled Kaim
pointed out that NATO's increased bombings represented the
"final phase" of the air campaign which aims not at protecting
civilians
but rather to clear a path for the opposition's military action
on the ground to succeed against the government. Indeed, as of July 7,
while the foreign-backed "rebels" advanced on Tripoli, NATO intensified
its aerial bombing of the area clearly in an effort to
provide aerial support for their ground advance.
Meanwhile, on July 7, news outlets carried announcements
by France that it had delivered arms and ammunition to the rebels in
the
Nafusa Mountains in early June. This was another clear instance of
foreign interference in a civil war to back one party against
another. It is also directly in violation of Security Council
Resolution 1973 which established an arms embargo against all parties
in Libya. The African Union, Russia, China and others condemned this
move.
International Organizations
Concerned by
Growing Humanitarian Crisis
In related news, the International Committee of the Red
Cross (ICRC) expressed its alarm at
the humanitarian situation in Libya. On Tuesday, July 5, the
ICRC informed that health care and food
supplies are deteriorating in Libya. According to the ICRC,
medicine and equipment for treating patients with chronic diseases like
diabetes or cancer are increasingly in short supply and many
facilities require spare parts. Similarly, the World Health
Organization (WHO)
warned Libya's system for procuring life-saving medicines and
vaccines has broken down, and supplies are dwindling on both sides.
Both the ICRC and WHO expressed concern at the humanitarian
consequences of NATO-backed opposition forces extending the fighting
into Tripoli as that would only worsen the situation for all
Libyans. "We haven't identified a food crisis in government-controlled
areas. [...] Every family receives food subsidies [from the
Libyan government], which are of great value, for a month," WHO
spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic told reporters, adding that, "Government
wages are still paid, including to those who are displaced, through the
banking system. This still works." He also explained that,
"There has been a huge psychological impact on the whole population
which never thought they would see their country at war." Clearly,
the collapse of the Libyan government is of huge concern for the ICRC,
WHO and other international aid organizations due to the food,
health care and financial crisis that would hit Libyans dependent on
the
food rations and wages still guaranteed by the government.
Meanwhile, reports are emerging of the human rights
abuses being committed by the so-called rebels. Human Rights Watch
(HRW) said
that in four towns captured by rebels in the Nafusa Mountains over the
past month they had damaged property, burned homes, looted
hospitals, homes and shops, and beaten people suspected of supporting
the government. The latest reports appear to confirm concerns
expressed by an Amnesty researcher who visited rebel-held areas in May.
Donatella Rovera reported that rebels had formed death squads
in Benghazi to dispatch alleged employees of Libya's Internal Security
Agency and that at least three men had been killed in "chilling
summary-execution style attacks." Ms. Rovera said that "many" migrant
workers from sub-Saharan Africa had suffered the same fate.
Political Efforts to
Resolve the Crisis
The African Union's calls for negotiations and a
ceasefire not aggression to resolve the situation in Libya had been
oft
reiterated and oft rejected by NATO countries. Russia
and China have added their voice in support of negotiations and
for a ceasefire, with officials from both countries in discussions with
their Libyan government counterparts. In the past week, some
negotiations have in fact started. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has
been in discussions with Libyan government officials, including
with Prime Minister Al Baghdadi Ali Al-Mahmoud to alleviate the dire
humanitarian situation and for a transition towards peace in
Libya. Ban urged support for UN Special Envoy for Libya Abdul Ilah
Al-Khatib, who is in consultations with the
government in Tripoli. Reports had also trickled in
that last week negotiations had been taking place between France and
the Libyan
government.
In
this context, the Libya Contact Group met on Friday, July 15 in
Istanbul. This
group was established in London on March 29 to coordinate the efforts
of
various players on the situation in Libya. It includes NATO member
countries,
the United Nations, the Arab League, the Libyan rebels and the European
Union. Canadian
Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird attended this meeting.
Following this meeting, this self-appointed group held a
press conference where it issued a statement recognizing the
opposition’s National Transitional Council (NTC) as the sole and
legitimate authority in Libya. The UN Special Envoy to Libya, Abdelilah
Al-Khatib, has been authorized as the sole representative to
communicate with the Libyan government. The group also called for the
formation of an interim government once a ceasefire is realized.
Al-Khatib is apparently mandated by the group to negotiate with the
Libyan government the terms of such a ceasefire. This highlights the
difficulties NATO and its allies are facing in defeating the Libyan
government, since the previously established condition of Gaddafi
leaving government before any negotiations take place has now
apparently been waived even by hard-liners such as U.S. Secretary of
State Clinton.
Franco Frattini, Italian Foreign Minister, said, "Only
one group will negotiate and the group is led by Mr. Al-Khatib. Member
states decided -- all the member states -- that we pass the same
message to Tripoli, in case there are further attempts to have
confidential mediations, or negotiation." In this manner, efforts of
the Libyan government to reach out to various NATO and European
countries by sending messages and officials to communicate directly
with each government are to be blocked through this so-called member
consensus. The basis for membership in this group is of course
arbitrary, and does not include the many sectors of the international
community opposed to the imperialist agenda for Libya.
The statement issued after the meeting also encouraged
the theft of Libyan government assets, held in the banks of various
Contact Group member countries, in order to funnel the money to the
National Transitional Council. In this way, the rebels are now to be
directly funded by the imperialist powers with the Libyan people’s
money as collateral for new debts that will be issued or as a direct
source of the funds. Now, Washington can help fund the NTC with some of
the more than $30 billion in assets from the Libyan government
currently frozen in U.S. banks. In this manner, the imperialist powers
are to further interfere in the sovereign affairs of Libya by
redirecting the people’s money to one party in the civil war.
In response to the Contact Group statements, another
mass rally took place against foreign interference in Zlitan. Gaddafi,
still head of the Libyan state, denounced the Contact Group's
unilateral declaration of the NTC as the sole legitimate authority in
the country. He told the crowd that they can trample such declarations
beneath their feet.
African Union Opposes
International Criminal Court Mandate
The African Union (AU) strongly
rejected the request by chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo of the
International
Criminal Court (ICC) that arrest warrants for war crimes be issued
against Muammar Gadhafi, his son Saif al-Islam and the Head of
Libya's Intelligence Service, Abdullah al-Senussi. The AU pointed out
that this serves only to confirm the role of the ICC as a useful
instrument of imperial aggression, domination and propaganda. The
53-member alliance, representing all the countries of Africa, called
into question the legitimacy of the ICC and its arrest warrant. AU
official Jean Ping called the ICC "discriminatory" for targeting
only Africans while ignoring the crimes committed by the Euro-American
states in places like Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The AU has
also condemned France for its blatant violation of the already
illegitimate Security Council Resolution 1973 by dropping weapons to
the
so-called Libyan rebels. The African Congress Youth League, among other
African institutions, also added its voice to the
condemnation.
CARICOM Denounces
NATO War Crimes
In recent news, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM)
condemned the NATO aggression after its 32nd Regular Meeting of the
Conference of Caribbean Heads of Government in St. Kitts, held from
July
1 to 4. They called for a cease-fire and pointed out that the
NATO war crimes have even violated Security Council Resolution 1973 in
targeting civilians, their infrastructure and residential areas.
The communiqué issued at the end of the conference stated that
CARICOM heads of government "deplored the increasing loss of innocent
life as the conflict in Libya becomes drawn out [and] called for a
ceasefire as well as the early convening of negotiations. In this
regard, they expressed support for the African Union in their search
for a peaceful resolution of the dispute."
Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister of Dominica, added
that the people of Dominica stand with the Libyan people facing this
assault. CARICOM Chair and Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis Dr.
Denzil Llewellyn Douglas also condemned the attacks, pointing
out the racist nature of the propaganda against this strategic African
country. He linked the attack to wanting to block the pivotal
work of the Libyan government to strengthen the African Union, as well
as to controlling the country's oil.
Cuba
22nd Pastors for Peace Friendshipment
Caravan Underway
Caravan participants and
supporters at the BC-Washington border, July 3, 2011.
On June 25 the first Canadian route of the 22nd Pastors
for Peace Caravan began in Victoria, British Columbia. Another section
of
the caravan made its way across Ontario, while another traversed the
prairies. This year the caravan, made up of more than 100
volunteers from Canada and the U.S. will again defy the U.S.
government's criminal embargo of Cuba, travelling via 15 different
routes
to visit 130 cities in six provinces and 46 states. The routes will
converge on McAllen, Texas on July 17 for the crossing into Mexico on
July 20 to begin the final leg of its journey to Cuba with 100 tons
of humanitarian aid in the form of construction tools and materials,
educational and medical supplies and medicines.
Participating in the caravan and defiance of the U.S.
embargo has particular significance for Canadians because of the
extraterritorial nature of the blockade. In place since 1962, the
blockade is such that the U.S. gives itself the right to dictate to
other countries what their relations with Cuba should be. Thus, it is
not only part of interfering in Cuba's internal affairs but
impinges on the sovereignty and foreign policy of Canada and all other
countries which have normal relations with Cuba.
This year's caravan will celebrate and honour the
achievements of young people in Cuba. While in Cuba, the caravanistas
as the
participants are known, will learn about the daily lives of Cuban youth
and Cuban society, through visits to organic gardens,
neighbourhood projects, health centres and schools.
"The caravan will travel to Cuba via Mexico, without
asking for or accepting a U.S. government license, as a peaceful,
disciplined
act of civil disobedience against the blockade and travel ban, and as
ambassadors for a 'people-to-people' foreign policy based on
mutual respect," says a news release from Pastors for Peace.
According to President of the Interreligious Foundation
for Community Organization Rev. Thomas E. Smith,
"The current licensing system is both immoral and illegal, because it
requires people of faith
to submit their acts of conscience and friendship to government
licensing,
and violates our right to freedom of religious expression, political
thought, association and travel."
"The Obama administration has made some small changes in
U.S.-Cuba policy, but they are not nearly enough." says Ellen
Bernstein,
IFCO's acting co-director. "The U.S. economic blockade has caused the
Cuban economy to lose over 750 billion dollars at current values.
Millions of U.S. taxpayer dollars continue to fund programs to create
instability in Cuba and overthrow the Cuban government. It's time
to stop punishing our neighbours!"
The late Rev.
Lucius Walker in a recent photo with leader of the Cuban Revolution
Fidel Castro.
|
This year's caravan also commemorates the life of Rev.
Lucius Walker, Jr.. Rev. Walker was the founding director of
IFCO/Pastors for
Peace, leading its work for the last 20 years. He passed away in
September 2010.
Speaking to Prensa Latina, Rodolfo Benitez Verson,
Cuba's charge d'affaires at the UN, pointed out Rev. Walker's
legacy as "a man of
steely determination, a spirit of struggle and absolute faith in
victory." He referred to Walker as a leading advocate for the
normalization of relations between the U.S. and Cuba,
including ending the travel ban imposed on U.S. citizens who want to
visit Cuba and for the release of the Cuban Five, unjustly imprisoned
in U.S. jails.
Benitez said that "the most valuable cargo that Lucius
and the Pastors for Peace have brought to Cuba for over 20 years has
undoubtedly been their solidarity and friendship."
TML salutes the
defiant spirit of the
Friendshipment Caravan and the outstanding contributions of Rev. Walker
and all those
who oppose the U.S. attempts to interfere in Cuba and are fighting for
international relations based on mutual respect and benefit.
The routes and stops for
the 2011 Friendshipment Caravan.
British Columbia
On Sunday July 3, over 70 peace and social
justice-minded people from across the province of British Columbia and
the state
of Washington united at the Peace Arch Border Crossing in White
Rock/Blaine to give a send off to a contingent of this year's caravan.
The border crossing was organized by Vancouver Communities in
Solidarity with Cuba (VCSC), the newly formed BC Aid Network for Cuba
(BCANC), as well as other Cuba solidarity organizations and individuals
from Vancouver, the Lower Mainland, Victoria, Nanaimo, Salt
Spring Island, Courtney/Comox, Penticton, Bellingham, Tacoma, Seattle
and Olympia. Before heading to the border on July 3, the Caravan
visited Victoria, Salt Spring Island, Nanaimo, Courtenay/Comox,
Penticton and Vancouver.
After an energetic picnic and program, everyone picked
up banners, signs and Cuban flags to march to the border crossing.
Chanting
"Lift the Blockade on Cuba!" and "Cuba Si! Bloqueo No!" caravan
supporters followed a van full of humanitarian aid collected by the
BCANC to the crossing. The protest continued with chanting and singing,
while the van was pulled over and searched by U.S. border
guards. Meanwhile six caravanistas crossed from Canada into the
U.S.: four from Vancouver, one from Victoria and one from
Germany.
News was soon received that the van carrying the
humanitarian aid for Cuba was denied entry at the border crossing.
Border guards
claimed the aid was actually goods for commercial use and therefore
needed to be brought into the U.S. through the commercial truck
crossing.
The humanitarian aid was again refused entry at the
commercial truck crossing and the caravanistas were told
they
would have to pay a bond for the aid before crossing into the United
States.
Caravan supporters arrived quickly on the scene and
began
chanting, "Let the aid through!" and "The U.S. Blocked Our Aid to Cuba!
Shame!
Shame! Shame!" Caravan supporters and caravanistas were adamant that no
bond money would be given to the U.S. Customs -- on the second
year of the Caravan, a bond of $800 was paid to the United States
government and not returned when the aid left the U.S.
Ultimately, seven caravanistas successfully crossed the
border into Washington with all the aid bound for Cuba without paying
any
bond.
Manitoba, Saskatchewan and
Alberta
In Winnipeg, members of the Manitoba-Cuba solidarity
community and the members of the Charleswood Mennonite Church held a
fundraising event on July 2. They provided generous
donations of goods for Cuba, including a number of
reconditioned wheel chairs and also the means for the caravan to make
its way further along its journey.
In Regina, the local Regina Peace Council and the strong
Chilean community gathered for a potluck supper in support of
the
caravan on July 3.
The next day the caravan reached Edmonton, where an
event was organized by "Not Just Tourists" with lots of support from
the local
Salvadoran and Chilean communities. Entertainment was provided by the
Nortre Dames de Bananes Choir and the Raging Grannies who sang an
original song about the Pastors for Peace. The caravan received
donations of medical supplies to take to Cuba.
In Calgary, the caravanistas were again enthusiastically
welcomed. Their stay included an evening gathering and BBQ
with
Cuban cusine. The event proceeded well into the night and wrapped up
with labour songs in Spanish and English. Much support from the
Calgary Chilean community added great spirit to the evening.
From Calgary, the caravanistas made their way across
the border with Montana. The participants were pleased to report that,
"Amazingly, when we stopped at the border, we were asked no questions
and we were on our way in less than 30 seconds with a 'Have a
nice day!' from the border inspector."
Ontario
Arriving in Ottawa on July 3, the caravan was hosted
with a fundraising dinner with El Salvadoran food and Latin American
music,
where many came out to meet and talk with the caravanistas.
In Kingston on July 4, at the annual fundraising dinner
for the
caravan, community members once again made generous donations
of
medical supplies which were loaded up at the event.
In Toronto, a fundraising event featuring speakers,
food,
a raffle and the Cuban Consul General in Toronto
Jorge
Soberón Luis was hosted by the Don Heights Unitarian
Congregation on July 5.
Toronto, July 5, 2011.
Hamilton, July 6, 2011. Left to right: Brian Gordon Sinclair, Rev.
Thomas Smith (Pastors for Peace) and Cuban Consul General in Toronto
Jorge
Soberón Luis.
|
In Hamilton, the Hamilton Friendship Association with
Cuba (HFAC) held a program on July 6 welcoming the IFCO Peace Caravan
to
Steeltown. The successful fundraiser, held at the popular Artword
Artbar, brought together people from all walks of life for an evening
of culture, information and discussion. Every year, the HFAC hosts the
caravan and assists its work by organizing donations from the
community. This year, the HFAC was pleased to include in the program a
performance by Brian Gordon Sinclair of his renowned one-man
show, "In Deadly Ernest," about author Ernest Hemingway. Sinclair
generously donated his time and talent to the fundraising initiative.
The gathering was also honoured by the presence of the Cuban Consul
General in Toronto, Jorge Soberón Luis who brought greetings to
all
assembled and expressed his joy at the successful program.
In Windsor on July 7, a fundraising dinner was held in
support of the caravan. A representative of the Canadian Cuban
Friendship
Association of Windsor Executive highlighted the fact the U.S. blockade
of Cuba and its extraterritorial nature is a violation of
Canadian sovereignty. Based on this, the support of Canadians for the
caravan is a demand that the Canadian government not permit U.S.
hostile policy toward Cuba to have a base in Canada. Further, given the
new government in Canada, it is important that all those who
support friendly relations with Cuba play a pro-active role so that the
federal government will not see any openings to align itself
with U.S. foreign policy towards Cuba. Following this introduction,
Lisa
Valenti of Pastors for Peace addressed the dinner. She noted the
importance of this year's Caravan, given the loss of Rev. Lucius
Walker,
and how the firm conviction not to give in to any attempts to
regulate or prevent travel to Cuba will continue to guide the
organization as it faces a new phase without the leadership
of Rev. Walker. She also informed the audience about the
various ways in which the U.S. blockade infringes Canadian sovereignty
and the importance of the united stand of the people of both countries
against it.
Quebec
On July 2, activists from
the Caravane d'amitié
Québec-Cuba successfully brought a load of goods for Cuba from
Quebeckers
across the border with Vermont. Caravan participants reported that, "We
were greeted by a crew of [U.S.] border personnel who explained
to us that they would first verify all of our IDs and then take all the
aid to the back of the building and open all the boxes. The
customs people allowed us to observe them as they examined the boxes
and they carefully tried to not damage our labels and re-taped the
boxes. At no point was there a question of the aid not being allowed to
go through. The blockade was not applied which is a small
victory for us in a much larger battle to have it lifted nationally."
United States and Mexico
The various sections of the caravan are now making their
way through the U.S. towards the Mexican border. For regular
updates, visit the blog: http://www.ifconews.org/Blog-22ndCaravan
For upcoming stops of the caravan in the U.S., visit:
http://www.ifconews.org/CubaEvents
On July 20, the caravan will cross from the U.S. into
Mexico. Organizers point out that "In the past this has been the most
challenging border crossing and it is important that people across the
United States, Canada and around the world are ready to respond
if the U.S. government attempts to stop the Caravan from its mission to
break the U.S. blockade on Cuba!"
Venezuela
National Celebrations Mark
Bicentenary of Independence
Caracas, July 5, 2011
On July 5, Venezuelans celebrated 200 years of
independence with formal ceremonies and cultural events around the
country, as well
as a giant civic-military parade in Caracas, as July 5 also marks Armed
Forces Day.
On July 5, 1811 the congress of Venezuelan provinces
adopted and signed the Venezuelan Declaration of Independence. It
marked a
decisive break from the Spanish Crown and the establishment of their
own nation based on equality, abolition of censorship, and freedom
of expression that were radically opposed to the practices applied
during the preceding three centuries of colonialism, Venzuela
Analysis points out.
A total of 12,000 people from the National Bolivarian
Armed Forces (FANB), social missions, communal councils, and 400 people
from a
range of Venezuelan indigenous groups participated in the parade, while
over 30,000 seated observers looked on.
At the main festivities in
Caracas, President Hugo
Chávez, in a televised speech from Miraflores Palace prior to
the
civic-military parade,
addressed the nation and expressed his admiration for the
heroic Venezuelan people. He boldly affirmed that Venezuela would
never again be colonized.
"This is a wonderful day of jubilation for this great
homeland, for independence, for the bicentenary," said the head of
state.
"There is no better way to celebrate this greatly
awaited day than by being independent. We are no longer, nor will we
ever be, any
type of colony thanks to our people, our soldiers," said Chávez.
The president also invited all the participants to take
part in the march to celebrate another bicentenary on June 24, 2021,
the
200th anniversary of the Battle of Carabobo. Chávez said that
this day will mark the full bicentenary of independence of the
socialist
homeland.
A report from Granma
International conveys the spirit of
the day's events and the conviction of the Venezuelan people that they
will
continue to chart an independent path that serves their interests:
"From the Presidential Palace, accompanied by the
principal military chiefs of the Venezuelan Armed Forces (FANB),
Comandante Hugo
Chávez gave permission to initiate the parade in a brief message
that the country saw and heard via national television and radio
networks.
"With much emotion, the Venezuelan President celebrated
the arrival of the 'Day of the Patria Grande, of the Independent
Homeland,
of the Bicentenary.' He thus greeted 'the heroic Venezuelan people who
are totally filling Los Próceres Avenue and all the public
spaces of the Venezuelan homeland.' He expressed thanks for the
presence of Presidents José Mujica of Uruguay, Evo Morales of
Bolivia,
and Fernando Lugo of Paraguay; Latin American and Caribbean foreign
ministers; and especially, soldiers from 21 countries, including a
squad of Cuban cadets who took part in the parade.
"His words transmitted the happiness of someone who
arrives in time to fulfill his duty: 'We had no better way to
celebrate,
comrades in arms, soldiers and the people, this so much awaited, so
long awaited day, than being independent as we are once again. We
are no longer the colony of any empire nor will we ever be.' [President
Chávez
recently returned from a visit to Cuba, during which
he fell ill and received treatment for a pelvic abscess, at which
time a cancerous tumour was also discovered and excised -- TML
Ed. Note.]
"And in order not to leave the slightest doubt as to his
announced decision to fight, he reiterated to his people, 'We will live
and
overcome. This is the beginning of the return, not only of
Chávez, but of the full homeland, of full independence, of the
perpetual
homeland, of the people of Bolívar. The construction of the
greatest of the dreams to have been born under this soil and on this
land...
We have begun another long march.'
"In the context of that march, he also had some
tactical orders to explain: 'Bolívar would say: the national
body must be one,
the national spirit must be one, by overcoming division, defeating
conspiracies, defeating in a thousand battles those who attempt from
within or without to weaken, to bring down the homeland and its
independence. We must defeat them in peace, with joy, with beauty, in a
sublime way, with splendour. [...]'
"[In] farewell, he quoted part of a speech
Bolívar made in 1830, in which he defined independence as the
gateway to reconquering all
other riches for the homeland and the people: 'Today, I say to you, in
the name of Bolívar, that our recovered independence is the
gateway which we must keep open in order to recover [...] all the other
riches for the people: liberty, equality, happiness, living
fully, a good life, a humane homeland and complete homeland.'"
"And after his words the grandeur of the parade was
unleashed, a parade that glorified the people" and the people's decree
of
"Mission Reposo" (Mission Rest) for Chávez.
Around the country big and small plazas were
renovated for the occasion where civic-military celebrations were also
held. Hundreds
of free cultural events were held during the week around the country,
including orchestra performances, music, theatre, literary
events, dance, local handicraft, sport, food exhibitions, and
photographic and artistic displays, Venezuela
Analysis
reports.
Celebrations of the bicentenary are
ongoing. On
July 14, the country celebrated the 200th anniversary of the adoption
of its national flag, proposed by hero of the struggle for
independence Francisco de Miranda, first raised in Caracas on July 14,
1811.
Commemoration of the bicentenary began last year. On
April 20, 2010 the country marked the formation of
the
First Republic of Venezuela, which lasted until July 25, 1812. The
event was similarly marked with a large civic-military parade.
United States
Tyranny Made "Legal"
A main feature of the current situation inside the U.S.
are arrangements of brutal tyranny, which concentrate much greater
power in
the hands of the executive while eliminating the role of the public in
governance. Various mechanisms are being used to fully establish
and institutionalize these arrangements, making "legal" wide ranging
attacks on the rights of the workers and people as a whole.
Protest against
Emergency Financial Managers, Lansing, Michigan, March 20, 2011. (swskeptic)
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One notable example is the "Emergency Financial Manager"
law recently passed in Michigan. The law concentrates power in the
hands of
the governor, who can appoint an "emergency manager" for any town,
city, county or school district he determines faces a "financial
emergency." This appointed manager has powers to dismiss elected
government, unilaterally change or eliminate any contract, hire and
fire public workers, fully control all public funds and borrowing and
sell
public assets like water, parks, schools and libraries. The law
specifically includes content requiring the "manager" to pay debts,
saying that while "prudent fiscal management" sanctions all of the
above attacks on the rights of the workers and elected governance, it
"does not allow any termination or diminishment of obligations to
pay debt service."
Modern democracy requires that the people themselves
govern and decide. The Michigan laws are designed to block such a role
for the
people by putting in place arrangements where a Governor and his
appointed "manager" -- with sweeping powers and no public
accountability -- decide. The tyranny is such that already, one of
these
managers has decreed that elected officials be removed and
city workers cannot attend public meetings of city government without
his permission. There is to be no role for the public, not even
the minimum that exists now of electing representatives and speaking
out at public meetings.
Further the rule of law, where a contract is a contract
and government has social responsibility to the public is being
eliminated
while the tyranny of the governor and his "manager" is made "legal."
This can be seen in a clause in the law granting broad impunity to
conduct any action. Following a lengthy listing of specific powers, the
law states the "manager" has the authority to "Take any other
action or exercise any power or authority of any officer, employee,
department, board, commission or other similar entity of the local
government, whether elected or appointed, relating to the operation of
the local government. The power of the emergency manager shall
be superior to and supersede the power of any of the foregoing officers
or entities." "Any power" of "any officer" includes police
powers to take action against the people.
While the Michigan law is currently being implemented at
the state level, President Obama recently made clear that these
appointed
"managers" are to be considered "models" for the nation. At a press
conference organized by Michigan's Governor Rick Snyder concerning
implementation of the law for Detroit public schools, Obama's Secretary
of Education Arne Duncan said, "Detroit has the potential to be
a model not just for the state, but for the entire country."
The Michigan model is an anti-worker, anti-social model
that is being widely opposed, including efforts to repeal the law.
Resistance is also taking place against anti-worker laws in Wisconsin,
Ohio, Indiana and elsewhere. In Ohio, for example, 250,000
signatures were required to put repeal of the state law on the ballot
and 1.3 million were collected, showing the broad stand of the
public in defence of public right. There is rejection of this effort to
impose a conception of governance where government openly and
solely serves monopoly right and its drive to secure more and more of
the public treasury while rule of law, including elected
governance, public meetings and accountability to the public good is
eliminated.
A second mechanism for increased executive control at
the federal level impacting all workers can be seen in current plans to
implement a federally issued biometric ID card. A pilot program is
planned for the coming year, beginning with immigrant workers.
Obama's Department of Homeland Security can go forward with such a plan
whether or not legislation on immigration is passed. Obama's
recently released "blueprint" for immigration calls for "piloting the
development of a biometric identifier that could be potentially
used for employment verification in the future" for all workers.
To secure the ID it will be necessary to prove
citizenship on the basis of a government issued birth certificate,
provide
fingerprints and/or an eye scan, pass an FBI "background" check and a
Homeland Security "national security threat" check. As the
blueprint puts it, everyone is to "submit to a rigorous security check,
including submitting fingerprints for criminal and national
security background checks." So arbitrariness on the part of the
government officials conducting the checks is built into the system.
Already, experience shows what this can mean. For example, in Chicago,
a young man who "looked Mexican" was detained by police and
turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), who prepared
to deport him. He was Puerto Rican and
thus a U.S. citizen. ICE did not believe him. When his mother
came with his documentation, ICE said they were not valid. Only
intervention by a Chicago Congressman prevented his deportation to
Mexico.
In addition, many citizens will be unable to prove
citizenship as they do not have or cannot secure the documentation
required.
Further, the criteria for passing the "background" and "security"
checks are unknown. But it can be imagined that those organizing
resistance, demonstrating, building pro-people organizations, may not
pass. Those without the ID will not be permitted to work. In such
a situation, one can also anticipate the possibility of labour and
detention camps, so as to provide the monopolies with a mobile pool
of slave labour.
Obama, in speaking about his plans for changes to
immigration has
indicated what will be needed to pass these government background
checks. He has
said that being American is not a matter of birth. He elaborated that
to be an American, one must "Embrace America's ideals and
America's precepts... What matters is that you believe in the ideals on
which we were founded; that you believe all of us are created
equal, endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights. All of
us deserve our freedoms and our pursuit of happiness. In
embracing America, you can become American." And what of those who do
not embrace monopoly right trampling over public right and all
the anti-worker, anti-immigrant and anti-social laws that go with this
pursuit?
The U.S. and its constitution came into being opposing
the tyranny of Kings with the impunity to "take any action or exercise
any
power." Yet today it is the tyranny of executive power that is being
institutionalized. It is the tyranny of the office of the
president demanding that all submit to the monopolies' "pursuit of
happiness" to rule the world. What is needed is not tyranny of the
executive but rather modern democracy that empowers the people to
govern and decide.
75th Anniversary of Outbreak of Spanish
Civil War
Celebrate Anti-Fascist Resistance
of the Spanish
Civil War
- Dougal MacDonald -
Guernica, by Pablo
Picasso. Painted in 1937, it was
a response to the bombing of Guernica, Basque Country,
by German warplanes at the behest of the Spanish fascist forces April
26, 1937, during the Spanish Civil War.
July 18, 2011, marks the 75th anniversary of the
outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, fought between the people's forces
or Republicans who had been elected to govern, and the fascist
"Nationalist" forces, led militarily by General Francisco Franco. The
people's forces, aided by anti-fascist volunteers from all
over the world, including Canadians of the Mackenzie-Papineau
Battalion of the XVth International Brigade of the Spanish Republican
Army, fought heroically against great odds. The civil war, which caused
an estimated 500,000 casualties, officially ended in the spring of 1939
with Franco coming to power, but
the Spanish people's struggle against Franco's fascist dictatorship
continued unabated until his unlamented death in 1975.
The Spanish fascists were backed by the big landowners
such as the Duke of Alba and the Church, the big capitalists such as
Juan March, and the foreign monopolies such as Rio Tinto, who wanted to
retain their profits and privileges. The fascists were greatly
strengthened by open financial and military support
from Nazi Germany and fascist Italy. On April 26, 1937, the German
Luftwaffe's Condor Legion infamously bombed Guernica, one of the first
air raids on a defenceless civilian population. The Spanish fascists
also benefited hugely from the sham non-interventionist policy of the
ruling circles of the United Kingdom,
France, and the United States, who had financial interests in Spain and
who hoped to egg on the Nazis and fascists to attack the Soviet Union.
Only the Soviet Union provided material assistance to the Republican
forces.
Detail of the
monument along the Rideau River in Ottawa, commemorating the sacrifice
of members of the
Mackenzie-Papineau Brigade in the
Spanish Civil War.
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While the Canadian people supported the people's forces
in Spain, the Canadian ruling circles declared "neutrality," which
meant giving the fascists free rein to attack the Spanish people. In
April 1937 the Canadian government passed the Foreign Enlistment Act,
outlawing participation by Canadians in foreign
wars, and also blocked passports to anyone thought to be going to fight
in Spain. Even so, Canadian communists and other progressives organized
anti-fascist volunteers and by the summer of 1937 some 1,200 Canadians
were fighting overseas, almost all of them workers. Except for Cuba and
France,
no country gave a greater
proportion of its population. Canada's volunteers included Dr. Norman
Bethune, who set up mobile blood transfusion units on the battlefield,
saving thousands of lives. Canadians who died in the Spanish Civil War
are still not included in the Books of Remembrance in the Peace Tower
or commemorated on federal
war memorials or in Remembrance Day services. Survivors do not receive
veterans' benefits. The Spanish Civil War was the first great battle of
the Second World War. It was preceded and followed by aggressions in
Manchuria, the Rhineland, Abyssinia (Ethiopia), Czechoslovakia, and
Albania, but it was in Spain
that the battle against fascism was first fought with the greatest
intensity and where there still existed a chance to stop Nazi Germany,
fascist Italy, and their collaborators in their tracks. Instead, the
defeat of Republican Spain, facilitated by the deliberate non-action of
the United Kingdom, France, and the U.S., encouraged
the Nazis and fascists to escalate their aggression and to initiate a
world war that resulted in millions of casualties. The tragic defeat of
the heroic anti-fascist forces in Spain was also the beginning of the
Second World War in Europe.
July 16, 2011 Bulletin • Return to Index • Write to: editor@cpcml.ca
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