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> Wed., June. 4, 2003
Pacifica's PeaceWatch
Today's Stories:
British Parliament Holds Hearings
on Iraq’s Weapons of Mass Destruction
Entifad Qanbar of the Iraqi National Congress is Critical
of New, US-led Iraqi Government
Baghdad Iraqis protest US presence, treatment of women by
US soldiers
Dr. Rania Masri on the next steps for the peace movement
Christmas Coup Comedy Players musical montage: “The
War Is Over!”
Veteran foreign correspondent Reese Erlich says claims of
Iran’s threat are unfounded
Former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark gives an historical
perspective of Iran
Rabbi Michael Lerner of Tikkun Visits Congress to Discuss
Israel/Palestine
Reading of General Smedley Butler’s “War is a
Racket” speech
Note: if the audio link is incorrect, please check the Peacewatch
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British Parliament Holds Hearings on Iraq’s
Weapons of Mass Destruction
No credible evidence of weapons of mass destruction has
been found in Iraq, leaving U.S and British citizens fearing
that inaccurate intelligence reports were used to garner their
support for a U.S.-led invasion of that country.
Fueling global outrage over this controversy are recent
reports that U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, and British
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw voiced concerns about the existence
of Iraq's weapons program in a private meeting last February,
before Powell's crucial speech to the UN Security Council.
Jack Straw, speaking earlier today at the House of Parliament
in Westminster, refuted charges that President Bush and Prime
Minister Blair distorted intelligence assessments of Saddam
Hussein's alleged weapons of mass destruction.
Tape: British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw
[top]
Entifad Qanbar of the Iraqi National Congress is
Critical of New, US-led Iraqi Government
The US has dismissed plans to hold a broad conference of
Iraqi politicians, from which 25-30 leaders would be elected
to form the interim Iraqi government. Instead, the US-led
administration will appoint a council to provide advice on
policy issues, as well as debate, ratify and put to referendum
a new Iraqi constitution with elections in one or two years.
A senior US official is quoted as saying: the interim administration
would not be a sovereign government and the "ultimate
authority" would remain with the US-led administration.
This decision has come under criticism from supporters of
the invasion of Iraq as well as its opponents.
The Iraqi National Congress strongly supported the US invasion
of Iraq, but its spokesperson in Baghdad, Entifad Qanbar,
has expressed concern that the US has reneged on its promise
to allow the Iraqi people to govern themselves. Qanbar was
quoted as saying: "The US cannot cancel a conference
that is led by Iraqis. We believe it is very important for
Iraqis to go on with this.
Tape: Entifad Qanbar, spokesperson for the Iraqi National
Congress in Baghdad
[top]
Baghdad Iraqis protest US presence, treatment of
women by US soldiers
Unfortunately, not all Iraqis are as optimistic as Entifad
Qanbar about the future of their country. Thousands of Muslims
marched through Baghdad yesterday, from a large mosque to
the headquarters of the US authorities running the city. Chanting,
"down, down America; down, down Saddam" and holding
a banner reading, "Saddam and America are two faces of
the same coin," they threatened violence unless US forces
withdraw from the country, and they expressed anger over the
military's policy of body-searching women at checkpoints throughout
the city. And, as Free Speech Radio News correspondent Fariba
Nawa reports from Baghdad, paranoia is mounting over rumors
of the kidnapping of young school girls.
Tape: Free Speech Radio News correspondent Fariba Nawa reports
from Baghdad
[top]
Dr. Rania Masri on the next steps for the peace movement
Closer to home, as US military and political influence spreads
throughout the Middle East, the peace movement is strategizing
its next steps. Today on Peacewatch, we bring you part two
of a speech given by Rania Al Masri, the Director of the Southern
Peace Research and Education Center and the founder and coordinator
of the Iraq Action Coalition. Dr. Masri spoke at a high profile
teach-in here in the nation’s capitol last weekend on
the topic of “Iraq, Preemptive War and Democracy.”
Tape: Dr. Rania Al Masri. Special thanks to Ryme Katkhouda
and members of the DC Radio Coop for production assistance.
[top]
Christmas Coup Comedy Players musical montage: “The
War Is Over!”
Tape: montage from the Christmas Coup Comedy Players at
Pacifica stations KPFT in Houston and WBAI in New York
[top]
Veteran foreign correspondent Reese Erlich says claims
of Iran’s threat are unfounded
Since the end of the military phase of the war on Iraq,
debate over the US’s self-appointed right and responsibility
to preempt perceived global security threats has shifted it
focus away from Baghdad. Now, many of the same figures in
Congress, the Pentagon and the White House who most strongly
advocated for the war on Iraq are pressing hard for preemptive
strikes on Iran. In addition to what they call a dangerous
and deeply anti-American Islamic ruling class, the advocates
of preemptive action cite supposed evidence of a budding nuclear
weapons program and close political ties with Al Qaeda. Speaking
today in Tehran, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamanei
dismissed these threats, and warned the U.S. that an attack
on his country would be suicidal. Reese Erlich, veteran foreign
correspondent and producer of the public radio special, “The
Struggle for Iran,” feels that many of these allegations
are unfounded and are part of a design to promote a far less
noble agenda in the Middle East at large.
Tape: Reese Erlich, veteran foreign correspondent and producer
of the public radio special, “The Struggle for Iran”
[top]
Former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark gives an
historical perspective of Iran
As Iraq attempts to make the arduous transition from an
oppressive dictatorship to a democratic and representative
government, the US military occupation and interim leadership
look as though they will continue indefinitely. But we’re
reminded that this is by no means the first time the United
States has tried its hand at "nation-building" in
the Middle East with the stated goal of promoting stability
in the region. 2003 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the
installation of the Shah of Iran by US forces.
Former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark delivered an address
in which he described his unforgettable meeting with the exiled
Iranian fundamentalist leader Ayatollah Khomeini. The words
of these two men give an historical - and personal - perspective
on the US' Machiavellian relationship with Iran and Iraq over
the past five decades.
Tape: Ramsey Clark, US Attorney General in the Lyndon Johnson
administration. He spoke at the "Generation Action"
gathering hosted by the Brudehof religious community in upstate
New York.
[top]
Rabbi Michael Lerner of Tikkun Visits Congress to
Discuss Israel/Palestine
Today was the final day of a major teach-in at Congress
by Tikkun, a progressive Jewish organization, to make recommendations
for a peaceful settlement of issues between the states of
Israel and of Palestine.
Peacewatch spoke with Rabbi Michael Lerner on Friday of
last week regarding the war in Iraq and the consequences affecting
other states in the Middle East. Today in part two of that
conversation we asked Lerner how influential he felt Israel
was in shaping US foreign policy.
Tape: Rabbi Michael Lerner, peace activist, editor of the
Tikkun Magazine and author of "Healing Israel/Palestine
A Path to Peace and Reconciliation"
[top]
Reading of General Smedley Butler’s “War
is a Racket” speech
As the occupation of Iraq enters its second month and the
Pentagon sets its sights on Iran and other so-called ‘rogue
nations,’ we’re going to take a step back in time
on Peacewatch today to listen to the words of US Marine Officer
Smedley Butler. Butler served in the Marine Corps in the early
1900s, earning two Congressional Medals of Honor. He’s
become something of a Marine Corps legend, not only for his
personal courage, but for the energy he put into avoiding
bloodshed when it was possible to achieve his aims in other
ways.
Tape: New York activist-poet Chris Brandt doing a reading
of Butler’s infamous speech entitled, “War is
a Racket”
[top]
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