Gyroscope

A newsletter for those unmoved by spin.
No. 36, April 12, 2004

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"In 2001, America forced the closure of Somalia's biggest remittance bank, on the ground that it was used to launder terrorist funds ... This may have made life harder for al-Qaeda, but it also made it harder for expatriate Somalis to send money to their relatives back home, and led, among other things, to the recent closure of Somalia's biggest orphanage. Since America is offering Somalis nothing by way of compensation, they are furious." The Economist, April 3, p. 50.

"Nearly a year ago, Ali Kadem Hashem watched his wife burn to death and his three children die after an American missile hit his house. Last week, he got $5,000 from the United States government and an 'I'm sorry' from a young captain. ... Military officials say they do not have precise figures or even estimates of the number of noncombatant Iraqis killed and wounded by American-led forces in Iraq. 'We don't keep a list,' said a Pentagon spokeswoman, Lt. Cmdr. Jane Campbel. 'It's just not policy.'" The New York Times, March 17, p. 1

"United States Marines have defended their decision to attack a mosque compound in the Iraqi town of Fallujah, killing about 25 people. They say it lost its status as a protected structure when insurgents began firing from inside its area. The Marines say they fired rockets and dropped two heavy bombs near the mosque complex but there was no damage to the actual mosque." ABC News Online, April 8th.

"The attack on a mosque during afternoon prayers will, without doubt, swell the ranks of what has become a nationwide uprising against the U.S.-led occupation. By launching a crackdown against the Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr--and, in an eloquent display of what it means by freedom in occupied Iraq, closing his newspaper--the U.S. has finally triggered the long-predicted revolt across the Shia south and ended the isolation of the resistance in the so-called Sunni triangle.... This revolt shows every sign of turning into Iraq's own intifada.... Across Iraq, US soldiers and their European allies are now killing Iraqis in their hundreds on the streets of their own cities in an explosive revival of the Middle East's imperial legacy." Seumas Milne, in the Guardian (UK), April 8th.

"The United States has permitted American companies to ship electric-shock weapons and mechanical restraints to 39 countries accused of torturing dissidents and detainees, according to a U.S. News review of export documents and State Department reports. ... 'How could the United States possibly grant an export for electroshock equipment transfers to Turkey,' wonders Maureen Greenwood of Amnesty International, 'when the State Department, Amnesty International, and Turkish parliamentarians have all reported a pattern of torture including electric shock?'" U. S. News, November 24, p. 30

Could Rwanda's holocaust been prevented? "Romeo Dallaire, the UN's soldier on the spot said it would have taken only 5,000 troops. Others thing more would have been needed, but most agree that a determined military intervention would have save many lives. And it could have been done. Instead, the UN withdrew its tiny presence. … The West's reluctance to get involved was largely a consequence of America's shambolic intervention in Somalia the previous year." The Economist, March 27, p. 11

"The US is insisting, however, that Iraqi forces remain under the control of US commanders even after sovereignty is formally transferred back to Iraq." Financial Times, April 10, p. 1

The primary responsibility for the deaths of US soldiers lies with those who fire the guns that kill them. The primary responsibility for terrorism lies with the terrorists. But our actions do have consequences and - over and over again - we can see that our lack of respect for the lives of people around the world have the most adverse consequences to our nation.

Gyroscope will be on vacation next week due to travel. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome.

Global Witness was a leader in the "Kimberley Process" that led to an unusual agreement between governments, industry and non-governmental organizations to restrict the sale of 'conflict diamonds'. These diamonds were being sold to the world and the profits used to fund the war in Angola. Diamond industry companies were turning a blind eye to the situation. Global Witness led the effort that led to an agreement for self-policing of the industry. Unfortunately, this agreement has not been totally effective and Global Witness is calling attention to this situation again.

Global Witness focuses on "the link between the exploitation of natural resources and humans rights abuses, particularly where the resources such as timber, diamonds and oil are used to fund and perpetuate conflict and corruption," to quote their web site.

One of their first efforts was to call attention to how the Khmer Rouge abused forest resources in Cambodia to raise $10-20 million a month to fund their oppressive regime.