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> Tues., June. 17, 2003
Pacifica's PeaceWatch
Today's Stories:
Iran Under Pressure From the International
Atomic Energy Agency
Simin Royanian on the Bush Administration’s Motives
in Threatening Iran
Iraqis Coming Home: Missing Baghdad
Author Jonathan Schell on Seeking Alternatives to Violence
Violence In Fallujah, Iraq
Tariq Ali on The US as Empire
Hart Seely on Rumsfeld the Poet
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Iran Under Pressure From the International Atomic
Energy Agency
The International Atomic Energy Agency is charging that
Iran has failed to report all of its nuclear activity, and
pressure is mounting on Tehran to grant UN inspectors access
to all nuclear facilities. The White House says that Iran
is using its civilian nuclear program as a cover for secretly
developing nuclear weapons. But according to Ross Pourzal,
Washington-based political analyst and member of the Alliance
of Progressive Iranians, many questions about Iran's military
capabilities remain shrouded in secrecy, and the US may be
using weapons of mass destruction as a convenient excuse for
launching attacks, despite a lack of evidence to back up its
claims.
Tape: Ross Pourzal is a Washington-based political analyst
and member of the Alliance of Progressive Iranians.
[top]
Simin Royanian on the Bush Administration’s
Motives in Threatening Iran
US credibility was dealt a serious blow by the failure of
troops to uncover weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Now,
as the US presses for tougher weapons inspections in Iran,
many international observers are questioning just how valid
US claims are, or whether it really has ulterior motives.
Simin Royanian, a Kurdish-Iranian economist and the co-founder
of Women for Peace And Justice in Iran spoke of the US motives
at the End The War Network's Fourth National Grassroots Organizing
Conference on Iraq, held several weeks ago in College Park,
Maryland.
Tape: Simin Royanian is a Kurdish-Iranian economist and
the co-founder of Women for Peace And Justice in Iran. Thanks
to Matt Bradley, Avishay Artsy and Ryme Katkhouda from Pacifica
station WPFW in Washington DC for preparing that segment.
[top]
Iraqis Coming Home: Missing Baghdad
With the war officially over in Iraq and the Ba’ath
party out of power, many expatriates are now returning to
their native land. Among them are London-based Iraqis Samir
and Susan, who are brother and sister. Each of them has good
memories of life in Iraq, and they say they want to go back
to commemorate their dead and help to rebuild Iraq's infrastructure.
Iraq is where they feel they belong.
Tape: London-based Iraqis Samir and Susan. Special thanks
to Interworld Radio for producing that piece.
[top]
Author Jonathan Schell on Seeking Alternatives to
Violence
While President Bush is riding high in U.S. public opinion
polls after his invasion of Iraq, the success of his administration's
war against terrorism is anything but certain. Recent bombings
in Saudi Arabia and Morocco serve as a warning that terrorist
groups such as al Qaeda continue to operate beyond the reach
of cruise missiles and laser-guided bombs. And most of the
world -- overwhelmingly opposed to America's war on Iraq --
was not surprised to find that the weapons of mass destruction
that the White House used to justify its war on Baghdad cannot
yet be found.
Still, many citizens strongly believe that the only effective
means to fight the terrorists who viciously attacked America
on September 11th, as well as perceived threats from rogue
states, is through war and violence. But longtime Nation magazine
columnist Jonathan Schell, author of the new book, The Unconquerable
World: Power, Nonviolence and the Will of the People, argues
that history has shown us that there are viable alternatives
to endless cycles of violence. Schell concludes that war is
far from the only answer.
Tape: Jonathan Schell is author of The Unconquerable World:
Power, Nonviolence and the Will of the People, published by
Metropolitan Books. He spoke with Scott Harris of the syndicated
radio program Between the Lines.
[top]
Violence In Fallujah, Iraq
On April 28th, a protest in Fallujah, Iraq turned violent
when the U.S. military fired on Iraqi protestors, leaving
17 dead, and at least 70 wounded. The U.S. military's version
of what took place that day differs widely from that of groups
such as Human Rights Watch, which investigated the incident.
Under International Humanitarian Law, as an occupying force,
the U.S. is required to ensure public order and safety in
Iraq.
Marc Garlasco, a Senior Military Analyst for the group spoke
with PeaceWatch earlier today about some of the ballistic
evidence found at the school where the shootings occurred.
Tape: Marc Garlasco, Senior Military Analyst for Human Rights
Watch.
[top]
Tariq Ali on The US as Empire
The ascendancy of the United States to the position of the
only super power has been one of the longest projects of the
past 100 years. The invasion of Iraq is the latest of a long
line of military actions that Tariq Ali, Pakistani exile,
political commentator, and author, called the exercise of
empire. Ali recently spoke at the University of California
about the rise of the US as an empire.
Yesterday on Peacewatch Ali asserted that in order to understand
how the US has evolved to its present status, we must look
to history to provide a backdrop for current events. In Part
two of his speech today, Ali begins with World War I and how
the US came to be involved.
Tape: Tariq Ali, Pakistani exile, political commentator,
and author recently at the University of California. Special
thanks to Maira Gilardin of TUC Radio for production assistance.
[top]
Hart Seely on Rumsfeld the Poet
At various times of his life, Secretary of Defense Donald
Rumsfeld has been a pilot, a businessman, a congressman and
an ambassador. Hart Seely, writer and columnist with the Syracuse
Post-Standard just recently published a book about Rumsfeld.
Peacewatch spoke with Seely today and asked what he had
learned about Rumsfeld from research for his book.
Tape: Hart Seely, journalist for the Syracuse Post-Standard
and author of Pieces of Intelligence: The Existential Poetry
of Donald H. Rumsfeld.
Credits
[top]
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