A very good (and scary) analysis of why the war is wrong by Slavoj Zizek - THE IRAQ WAR: WHERE IS THE TRUE DANGER?. .....
21 March 2003
A once-off wealth tax should be imposed to help compensate victims of apartheid, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) recommended on Friday. For more see the reparations and compensation weblog. .....
Spinning out of control sent by Helen McLaughlin
My immediate concern about this war is about how it will affect civilians in Iraq. But I have a deep concern about the long term consequences of the US and UK going against the will of the UN. It has been bad enough to watch Tony Blair act as the palatable, smiling "reasonable" face of the monkey in the White House. It has been bad enough to watch them falling over themselves to start a war. But the thing that concerns me most of all is the way in which the US and UK have turned the blame for all of this on the UN itself for a failure of process. The UN has a process for agreeing military action, and all members of the Security Council agree that it is important for a veto option to be in place for permanent members, precisely to temper action in controversial situations. Indeed, the US has used the veto itself on at least 34 occasions (largely to block resolutions against Israel). I did not hear the US or UK declare this to be a failure of the UN process, but I am quite sure that on the contrary, the US welcomed the opportunity to block actions it could not support. Other members of the Security Council may well have been frustrated by the US veto on many occasions, but the process was upheld as one that they had all agreed to. Now, when France exercises its democratic right to veto, it is spun by the UK and US as a failure of the UN process. The spin says that because France threatened a veto, this forced them to take military action - surely the opposite is in fact the case - that a veto from a respected permanent member of the security council required them rather to back away from military action, and to seek alternative solutions. While France has its own case to answer for supplying weapons to Iraq along with US and UK in the past, this spin against France is entirely cynical. I have been dismayed and disgusted by the way this has been spun - the better Tony Blair & co get at spinning words around to suit their own ends the more certain I become that they are not to be trusted. It must equally dismay the Security Council to be told that Resolution 1441 constituted an approval for war, when the US ambassador, in order to cajole members into supporting the resolution, described it as having no "automaticity" or "trigger" for military action. Words are spoken, then the spin is applied with hindsight to render them lies at worst, meaningless at best. It is difficult to trust what you hear these days. The war on Iraq is wrong. .....
Anti-war links, protests and websites about the invasion of Iraq click here .....
British company Cape plc, has today agreed to a compensation settlement of £7.5 million for the 7,500 South Africans whose lives have been devastated by Cape's asbestos operations. For the past six years since 1997, Cape has used every legal and political tactic to deny justice for the claimants. Hopes were raised when an out-of-court settlement of £21 million was agreed in December 2001, but Cape failed to abide by it. Today's settlement, which will be paid in one instalment, has been made in conjunction with another settlement by Gencor Ltd, a South African company which took over many of Cape's operations when it left the country in 1979. As part of the larger settlement, Gencor will pay an additional £3.21million to the Cape claimants who were also exposed to Gencor's operations. For more detail click here. .....
The Guardians weblog on the Iraq crisis, click here. .....
Andie, thought I would post the first few lines of the article you just recommended as it may get some people to read it, as it is by far one of the strangest I have ever read. Could it be true? An attempt to slander a sect of people? A happy coincidence, or miracle? Or simply a talking carp? Then again, if asked if I would put my faith in George Bush or a talking fish...I think the answer is pretty obvious really....
"An obscure Jewish sect in New York has been gripped in awe by what it believes to be a mystical visitation by a 20lb carp that was heard shouting in Hebrew, in what many Jews worldwide are hailing as a modern miracle. Many of the 7,000-member Skver sect of Hasidim in New Square, 30 miles north of Manhattan, believe God has revealed himself in fish form." For more click here. .....
I've seen God, and he's... a fish. .....
Where's the crappest town in the British Isles? .....
Apparently, the South Africa TRC Report will be handed over to the President on the 21st March 2003, at St Albans Cathedral Church in Pretoria, at 10.00 am. .....
South African Parliament
27 February 2003 13:16
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission's final report is expected to be handed to President Thabo Mbeki next month and will be immediately tabled in Parliament, National Assembly Speaker Dr Frene Ginwala said on Thursday.
The report was due to have been handed over last year, but was delayed after court action by the Inkatha Freedom Party. An out of court settlement was reached earlier this year, which will see the IFP disputing some of the TRC's
findings and stating its case in a separate annexure.
Ginwala told the National Assembly's programme committee that Mbeki had indicated he would be available on April 15 and 16 for parliamentary business and that a debate on the TRC report should be provisionally scheduled for then.
Last week, Justice Minister Penuell Maduna said the issue of those who had failed to apply for amnesty from the TRC would have to be confronted soon and that parties should deal it during the debate on the report.
The government has also said it is unable to move on reparations for victims of gross human rights abuses until the report is tabled and debated. The Institute
for Justice and Reconciliation on Wednesday criticised Finance Minister Trevor Manuel for failing to make provision for reparations in his 2003 Budget.
"It is deeply disappointing that there is no relief in sight to ease painful memories. We expected this budget to bring closure to this matter," the Institute said in a statement.
"Instead it reinforces a sense of inadequate acknowledgement of those that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) declared to be victims of gross human rights violations." Late last year, the government reported it had made reparation payments of R50-million to 18 000 people for harm they suffered
under apartheid, as an interim measure in line with recommendations by the TRC. - Sapa
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