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> Wed., July. 30, 2003
Pacifica's PeaceWatch
Today's Stories:
Economist Doug Henwood on Pentagon
Futures Trading Market
President Bush holds Press Conference at White House
Ray McGovern of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity
The Christmas Coup Comedy Players
Former UN Iraq Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter on Bush’s
Misrepresentations Regarding Iraq’s Weapons Programs
Korea Celebrates Its Fiftieth Anniversary of Armistice Agreement
Korean Activists in Washington, DC Mark Anniversary of Armistice
An Update on Conditions in Afghanistan Today
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The CIA has determined the latest audio message purportedly
from Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, in which he marks the
deaths of his sons, is most likely authentic, a CIA official
said Wednesday.
The CIA's technical analysis of the message matched very
closely with other recordings of Saddam's voice, the official
said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. The voice on
the message said it was made in July 2003, but the exact date
was not clear. CIA officials aren't certain of the exact date
the recording was made, but the references to the July 22
deaths of Saddam's sons Uday and Qusay mean it was almost
certainly made during the last week.
For all the uncertainty during the war, American officials
now hold little doubt that Saddam is alive and in Iraq, perhaps
moving every few days. The audio messages making references
to recent events are evidence of his survival.
In the latest, nine-minute, audiotape, Saddam said he was
glad his sons were killed because such a death "is the
hope of every fighter." "Even if Saddam Hussein
has 100 sons other than Uday and Qusay, Saddam Hussein would
offer them the same path," said the voice identified
as Saddam. "That is the hope of every fighter for God's
sake, as another group of noble souls of the martyrs has ascended
to their creator."
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Economist Doug Henwood on Pentagon Futures Trading
Market
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA--
the Pentagon office that proposed spying electronically on
Americans to prevent potential acts of terrorism-came up with
a new scheme earlier this week to predict where terrorists
would likely strike next. They announced plans to launch a
futures trading market where investors could wage bets on
the probability of political events and actions, such as North
Korea launching a missile strike or al Qaeda attacking the
US again. Members of Congress, including Republican Ted Stevens
of the Senate Appropriations Committee, were quick to criticize
the measure.
Tape: Republican Ted Stevens of the Senate Appropriations
Committee
Also critical of the plans was Democratic Senator Tom Daschle,
the Senate Minority leader.
Tape: Senator Tom Daschle, Senate Minority Leader of South
Dakota
Republican Pat Roberts of Kansas, Chair of the Senate Intelligence
Committee, says that his committee received no prior notice
of the plan.
Tape: Powerful chair the Senate Intelligence committee Pat
Roberts of Kansas
DARPA's plan to launch a futures trading market has since
been withdrawn as a result of the firestorm of controversy.
Peacewatch spoke earlier today with economist Doug Henwood,
Editor of the Left Business Review to find out how the plan
would have worked.
Tape: Economist Doug Henwood
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President Bush holds Press Conference at White House
In one of only a very few press conferences during his presidency,
George W. Bush spoke with reporters today in the Rose Garden
at the White House. The questions ranged from the budget deficit
to the Supreme Court ruling overthrowing laws that interfere
with the rights of privacy. There were many questions also
about the war in Iraq, specifically, Bush was asked why he
led the country to war based on intelligence that has been
discredited.
Tape: George W. Bush in a press conference in the Rose Garden
at the White House.
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Ray McGovern of Veteran Intelligence Professionals
for Sanity
The group Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity
is calling for Vice President Dick Cheney's resignation over
questionable intelligence data used to justify the invasion
of Iraq. VIPS is made up of retired CIA agents who are critical
of the Bush administration’s justification for a so-called
pre-emptive strike. Earlier this week, Ray McGovern, a spokesman
for the group, which is based here in the nations’ capital,
dropped by Peacewatch’s studios to discuss the memo
they’ve issued demanding Dick Cheney step down as Vice
President. Today we continue our conversation with him, where
talks further about the Bush administration’s use of
faulty intelligence to justify launching a preemptive war
against Iraq.
Tape: Ray McGovern, a spokesman for the group Veteran Intelligence
Professionals for Sanity
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The Christmas Coup Comedy Players
The Christmas Coup Comedy Players of Pacifica stations KPFT
of Houston and WBAI of New York specialize in political satire
and offer this compilation of words of wisdom from the wise
and the not so wise.
Tape: The Christmas Coup Comedy Players of Pacifica stations
KPFT of Houston and WBAI of New York.
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Former UN Iraq Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter on
Bush’s Misrepresentations Regarding Iraq’s Weapons
Programs
Former UN Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter is the latest figure
to weigh in on the continuing scandal over the Bush administration’s
use of faulty intelligence to justify its preemptive war against
Iraq. He shared these thoughts in a recent press conference,
hosted by Sunny Miller, Executive Director of the Traprock
Peace Center in Deerfield, Massachusetts.
Tape: Former UN Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter, speaking
at a recent press conference with Sunny Miller, Executive
Director of the Traprock Peace Center in Western Massachusetts.
[top]
Korea Celebrates Its Fiftieth Anniversary of Armistice
Agreement
Last Sunday, Koreans celebrated the 50th anniversary of
their armistice, which brought the Korean War to an end. To
commemorate this anniversary, Peacewatch is running a 5-part
series this week on the current political climate in Korea,
from our reporters Aaron Glantz and Ngoc Nguyen, who are currently
in Seoul, South Korea.
Today, we hear from Kim Geun Tae, a member of The National
Assembly of the Republic of Korea. A senior-ranking official
within the country’s Millennium Democratic Party, he
is a leading politician on the Left and was the party’s
Presidential hopeful in the last election. Kim Geun Tae was
formerly a pro-democracy leader and has been imprisoned for
that work. He received the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
Award in 1987, along with his wife. Geun Tae recently sat
down with Peacewatch correspondent Ngoc Nguyen to discuss
the current nuclear crisis and the possibilities for peace
on the Korean Peninsula, growing opposition to US militarism
in South Korea and the legacy of American involvement in Korea.
Tape: Korean politician Kim Geun Tae, speaking with Peacewatch
correspondent Ngoc Nguyen.
[top]
Korean Activists in Washington, DC Mark Anniversary
of Armistice
Hundreds of people converged here in the nation’s
capital last weekend for an historic, 4-day series of events
commemorating the anniversary of the Korean armistice and
calling for peace and reunification of North and South Korea.
In panel discussions, cultural performances and political
rallies, Koreans and their supporters spoke of the region’s
history of war, and the people’s desire for a peaceful
future.
Hyun Lee and Hae Young Yoon, both from CAAAV, the Committee
Against Anti-Asian Violence and the Chinatown Justice Project
in New York, described their personal experiences with war,
popular resistance and immigration at Saturday’s rally,
which attracted some 500 people to the Ellipse in Washington,
DC.
Tape: Korean activists Hyun Lee and Hae Young Yoon, speaking
at a rally last weekend, here in the nation’s capital.
Thanks to Ryme Katkhouda of Pacifica station WPFW for production
assistance with that piece.
[top]
An Update on Conditions in Afghanistan Today
Beatings, imprisonment, torture, rape. According to a new
report by Human Rights Watch (HRW), these are the punishments
favored by Afghanistan's warlords and factional leaders for
anyone who dares to challenge their power.
Even more notable, HRW says, is the fact that much of the
support for these local leaders comes from the U.S. government,
as well as Pakistani and Iranian government agencies. Those
countries, it says, "have done much to entrench the warlords
responsible for the worst abuses."
Human Rights Watch says Washington's emphasis on pursuing
its war on terror has been directly responsible for strengthening
warlords and under mining the building of democratic institutions
in Afghanistan. "We feel that the emphasis on the war
on terror and choosing to fight with the warlords as their
allies means that democracy in Afghanistan has been forgotten
and put in real danger because they [the United States] are
now strengthening people, i.e. the warlords, who are committing
atrocious abuses all over Afghanistan," Human Rights
Watch spokeswoman Vanessa Saenen said.
Dr. Zaher Wahab has just returned from Afghanistan, where
he spent nearly a year advising the Minister of Education,
as Afghanistan attempts to rebuild its infrastructure following
the US led invasion of 2001.
Andrew Stelzer from KBOO community radio spoke to Dr. Wahab
about his work, and what the people of Afghanistan are going
through as the United States continues to occupy their country.
Tape: Zaher Wahab is a professor at Lewis and Clark College
in Portland, Oregon. He was born in Afghanistan, and his family
still lives in Kabul.
Credits
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