[Onthebarricades] Pro-democracy, rights and corruption protests, Arab World, Latin America and Caribbean, Apr-Aug 2008
Andy
ldxar1 at tesco.net
Fri Aug 29 17:13:40 PDT 2008
ON THE BARRICADES: Global Resistance Roundup, April-August 2008
https://lists.resist.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/onthebarricades
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/globalresistance/
LEBANON
* Ongoing protests over detention of Islamists, minister bottled
* Anti-government strikes, protests paralyse air, roads; clashes with
government supporters
* Journalists protest Hizbollah attack on media
SYRIA
* Opposition groups call for Paris protests against Assad visit
* Parents of detainees continue protests despite repression
* Syrians protest beheading in Saudi Arabia
EGYPT
* Sinai women protest against detentions
* Nascent protest group arrested
TURKEY
* Rally against coup attempts
YEMEN
* Civil servants protest against forced celebrations
JORDAN
* Hundreds protest over detainees from Israel
CUBA
* Relatives' protest broken up
TRINIDAD
* Media workers protest new broadcast code
CHIAPAS/MEXICO
* Zapatista protest at Scottish airport
CHILE
* Media protest arbitrary restrictions on trial coverage
* Pole dancer dances in public against "timidity"
HAITI
* Protesters want Aristide return
* Police teargas Aristide protesters
* New York Haitians protest postponement of death squad trial
VENEZUELA
* Protest in US over award to rightist
JAMAICA
* Residents protest against murder by police
* "Gang leader" arrest sparks protest
* Protest over ban on cricketer
http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/NewsDesk.nsf/getstory?openform&60E84BF9F8E215B1C225749F004EE5E9
Alloush Attacked by Angry Protesters in Tripoli
A member of parliament and his bodyguard were pelted with stones and bottles
on Friday in northern Lebanon during a protest demanding the release from
jail of alleged Islamists.
Sunni majority MP Mustafa Alloush had been invited by organizers of the
protest in Tripoli to make a speech, but as he began to speak demonstrators
hurled bottles and stones at him, an AFP correspondent said.
Alloush, a member of Future Movement that leads the parliamentary majority,
was hit by a stone and was slightly wounded, the correspondent said.
The MP took cover in a nearby building where the Lebanese Red Cross tended
his injury before evacuating him by ambulance under tight security, he
added.
Another man, believed to be his bodyguard, was also hurt.
Alloush confirmed the attack had taken place but denied being injured.
"A group of troublemakers attacked me as soon as I started to speak and I
couldn't continue my speech," he told AFP. "I was hit on the shoulder but
wasn't hurt."
The protest was organized by relatives of alleged members of Fatah al-Islam,
an al-Qaida-inspired group that fought a 15-week battle in 2007 with the
army in and around the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared north of
Tripoli.
About 300 people have since been detained by the Lebanese authorities for
their alleged links with Fatah al-Islam. Their trials are expected to begin
in the coming months.
Since Tuesday several hundred detainees have been on hunger strike, a
security official said.
The army took control of the camp last September after the fierce fighting
killed more than 400 people, including 168 Lebanese soldiers.(AFP)
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/08/08/africa/ME-Lebanon-Protest.php
Islamists protest in north Lebanon
The Associated Press
Published: August 8, 2008
TRIPOLI, Lebanon: Hundreds of supporters of Islamist groups have staged a
protest in a northern Lebanese port city to demand the release of scores of
prisoners suspected of plotting or carrying out militant attacks in Lebanon.
About 2,000 people marched through the streets of Tripoli during Friday's
protest. Police officials say some protesters attacked lawmaker Mustafa
Alloush from the U.S.-backed parliament majority. The lawmaker was taken to
hospital with light injuries.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with police policy.
There are about 300 suspects held in Roumieh prison east of Beirut on
terrorism-related charges, including members of al-Qaida-inspired Fatah
Islam group which fought the Lebanese army for three months last year.
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=235936&version=1&template_id=37&parent_id=17
Free Islamists, say protesters
Published: Saturday, 16 August, 2008, 01:39 AM Doha Time
Relatives of detained Islamists take part in a protest in front of the
Rumieh prison in east Beirut yesterday
BEIRUT: Relatives of suspected members of an Islamist group that battled the
Lebanese army last year staged protests yesterday demanding their release
from jail.
Hundreds gathered inside Al Omari mosque in central Beirut after weekly
prayers in support of some 300 people arrested after more than three months
of deadly clashes between the army and the Al Qaeda-inspired Fatah Al Islam.
The protesters, who answered a call from the Islamist Hizb Al Tahrir group,
held up banners saying: "Free these innocents immediately."
Dozens more protesters gathered outside Rumieh prison in eastern Beirut
where the prisoners are held, also calling for their release.
"If the prisoners are not freed by the start of Ramadan (early September),
more measures will be taken," they warned in a statement.
More than 400 people were killed, including 168 soldiers, in the 15-week
battle in and around Nahr Al Bared Palestinian refugee camp on the outskirts
of the northern city of Tripoli from May to September last year.
Over the past month supporters of the prisoners have held almost weekly
protests and the prisoners began a hunger strike on August 4.
The prisoners - including Syrians, Saudis, Palestinians and Lebanese - are
being held on terrorism-related charges and many face the death penalty if
convicted. No date has been set for their trials.
Last week a protest in Tripoli turned violent when demonstrators pelted a
member of parliament with stones and bottles. - AFP
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/080801/world/lebanon_unrest_islamists_palestinians
Relatives of Islamist suspects stage Lebanon protest
Module body
Fri Aug 1, 1:32 PM
SIDON, Lebanon (AFP) - Relatives of alleged members of an Islamist group
which fought a 15-week battle with the Lebanese army last year staged a
protest on Friday demanding their release from jail.
"My husband was arrested over a year ago and has yet to stand trial," said
Omm Mohammed, whose husband Bashir Bitar is an alleged member of Fatah
al-Islam.
She was among dozens of women, children and clerics who staged the sit-in
amid tight security at a mosque in the southern port city of Sidon after the
weekly Friday prayers.
Many protesters held signs reading "Enough injustice" and "We demand the
immediate release of our sons who are being held unjustly."
More than 200 people have been held on suspicion of membership of Fatah
al-Islam since May 2007 when fighting erupted between the group and the army
at Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in north Lebanon.
Upwards of 400 people were killed, including 168 soldiers, in more than
three months of fighting which ended in September.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=94981
Families of Islamist militants protest in front of military court
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
BEIRUT: Some 200 people from the families of jailed Islamist militants
staged a sit-in in front of the military court in Beirut on Monday in
protest against the arrest of their family members for nearly two years
without trial. The militants were arrested last year following the almost
four-month battle between Fatah al-Islam and the Lebanese Armed Forces at
the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in North Lebanon.
"We want full amnesty to over 300 Islamist detainees before the beginning of
the holy month of Ramadan [first of September]," said a statement issued by
the protesters.
It also said that their sons had been arrested "illegally" after they were
taken from their homes to the Roumieh prison, which they said, "is the
prison of injustice and darkness."
"Many people have done wrong to the country and its sons and were not
arrested or called to account," it said. "Where is justice oh justice
minister?"
After the end of the sit-in, a group of protesters met with Judge Jean Fahd,
the government's commissioner before the military court, to inquire about
the detainees.
Fahd vowed to study the legal situation of those detainees and settle their
issue according to the law.
Fahd also dismissed charges that the judiciary was "delaying the examination
of cases."
"We are no procrastinators," a judicial report quoted the investigative
magistrate as saying.
A number of detainees have been arrested for their affiliation with
Al-Qaeda, for carrying out bombings in restaurants and commercial outlets
and for the possession of weapons.
"Despite the yearly judicial break the military court is holding two to
three sessions per week in order to expedite trials," Fahd told the families
of the detainees.
Hundreds of supporters of Islamist groups have staged protests on Friday in
the coastal cities of Tripoli and Sidon to demand the release of scores of
prisoners suspected of plotting or carrying out militant attacks in Lebanon.
About 2,000 people marched through the streets of Tripoli during Friday's
protest.
Some protesters attacked Future MP Mustafa Alloush, who had been invited by
organizers to speak at the protest. The lawmaker was taken to hospital with
light injuries.
Meanwhile, Investigating Magistrate Ghassan Oweidat on Monday released two
people who had been arrested following the Nahr al-Bared fighting. - The
Daily Star
http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/NewsDesk.nsf/getstory?openform&45843651E4790F96C22574A6005152C2
Protesters Demand Freedom to Jailed Fatah al-Islam Suspects
Relatives of suspected members of Fatah al-Islam terrorist group that
battled the Lebanese army last year staged protests on Friday demanding
their release from jail.
Hundreds gathered inside Al-Omari mosque in central Beirut after weekly
prayers in support of some 300 people arrested after more than three months
of deadly clashes between the army and the Al-Qaida-inspired group.
The protesters, among them bearded men and women wearing the niqab Islamic
veil who answered a call from the radical Islamist Hizb al-Tahrir group,
held up banners saying: "Free these innocents immediately."
Dozens more protesters gathered outside Roumieh prison in eastern Beirut
where the prisoners are held, also calling for their release.
"If the prisoners are not freed by the start of Ramadan (early September),
more measures will be taken," they warned in a statement, a copy of which
was obtained by AFP.
More than 400 people were killed, including 168 soldiers, in the 15-week
battle in and around Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp on the outskirts
of the northern city of Tripoli from May to September last year.
Over the past month supporters of the prisoners have held almost weekly
protests and the prisoners began a hunger strike on August 4.
The prisoners -- including Syrians, Saudis, Palestinians and Lebanese -- are
being held on terrorism-related charges and many face the death penalty if
convicted. No date has been set for their trials.
Last week a protest in Tripoli turned violent when demonstrators pelted
al-Mustaqbal MP Mustapha Alloush with stones and bottles.(AFP)
Beirut, 15 Aug 08, 17:54
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view_article.php?article_id=135366
Lebanon air links paralyzed by anti-government protests
Agence France-Presse
First Posted 02:04pm (Mla time) 05/08/2008
BEIRUT -- Lebanon's international airport was closed on Thursday because of
Hezbollah-led anti-government protests, with all flights cancelled until at
least noon (0900 GMT), an airport official told Agence France-Presse.
"All flights between midnight and noon were cancelled, and then we will see
what happens," the official said.
On Wednesday demonstrators blocked the road leading to Rafiq Hariri
International Airport with burning tires and mounds of earth, leaving
arriving passengers stranded and forcing others to miss their flights.
The protests caused massive disruption to traffic on Wednesday, and many
passengers had no choice but to walk along the main airport road and
negotiate the obstacles as they sought to make their way home.
Among those stranded for several hours were the musical and dance troupe of
Lebanese singing diva Fairuz, who were returning from a performance in the
United Arab Emirates.
The strike was originally called by the country's main labor union to push
the government to raise the monthly minimum wage which has been unchanged
since 1996.
But it quickly degenerated into violence between supporters of the
Western-backed ruling coalition and the opposition, backed by Syria and
Iran.
The violence was a serious escalation of the country's prolonged political
crisis, which has left Lebanon without a president since November.
http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/NewsDesk.nsf/getstory?openform&F37D79BC55229CF0C22574420044380A
Beirut Airport Besieged, Hizbullah Heads to Declaring Civil Disobedience
Tension went high between Hizbullah and Premier Fouad Saniora's government
on Wednesday as the party besieged Beirut airport and headed to declaring
civil disobedience after eight people were wounded in mushrooming rioting.
Scores of Hizbullah trucks and bulldozers erected barricades along the
airport road, besieging at least 300 passengers who had arrived aboard four
jetliners.
Hizbullah officials informed mediators that the airport would remain closed
and the ongoing riots would be escalated into civil disobedience until the
Saniora Government withdraws decisions it had adopted against the Party's
communications network and head of the airport security department Wafiq
Shqeir.
Meanwhile, the Voice of Lebanon radio said Hizbullah members were dressed up
in police uniforms and penetrating districts of Beirut controlled by their
rivals of the Mustaqbal movement.
A government source also said Hizbullah was massing gunmen in downtown
Beirut, sparking fears of a possible attack against Saniora's office.
The development followed day long riots across Beirut as the labor union
suspended a demonstration it had called for.
Three members of the Mustaqbal movement were wounded when assailants from
the Hizbullah-led opposition demolished their office with 30
Rocket-Propelled Grenades in Beirut's densely populated Nweiri district.
Two Lebanese Army soldiers were injured by rocks while trying to disperse a
clash between opposition supporters and residents of the Tariq Jedideh
district.
Two news photographers and a passer by were beaten up by rioters in Korniche
Mazraa thoroughfare and suffered minor fractures, hospital sources said.
Meanwhile tension escalated as staccato bursts of automatic rifle fire
echoed across several Beirut districts amidst efforts by army and police
patrols to contain the violence.
Trucks run by Hizbullah's Jihad al-Binaa institute loaded dirt along the
Beirut Airport road, blocking traffic to the facility, which has been closed
to civil aviation.
Ghassan Ghosn, chairman of the General Federation of Labor Unions (GFLU)
said a demonstration that had been scheduled to start at 10 a.m. was
"suspended" due to the blocking of roads that prevented potential
participants from reaching Beirut's Barbir Square where it was supposed to
start.
Ghosn, however, said the general strike was persisting and blamed the
government for not providing protection for the demonstrators.
The strike was observed only in Hizbullah-controlled regions of Lebanon,
where supporters of the party set fire to rubber tires, blocking traffic.
However, the strike call was totally ignored in areas loyal to the March 14
majority.
Life was normal in north and Mount Lebanon as well as in areas of east
Lebanon and Beirut not loyal to Hizbullah.
About 150 Hizbullah operatives infiltrated from their makeshift Tent City
and blocked the Beirut port road with rubber tires and obstacles for nearly
30 minutes, but were challenged by motorists who drove across the barricades
before an army patrol intervened and reopened the road to traffic.
The strike observed by Beirut Airport workers was scheduled to end at 3
p.m., but Hizbullah refused to reopen the road to the facility.
Nevertheless, three jetliners landed at the facility shortly after the
deadline.
Meanwhile, Mustaqbal Movement MP Mohammed Qabbani said the majority was
considering activating the Rene Mouawad airport in north Lebanon if the
dispute with Hizbullah persisted.
Beirut, 07 May 08, 14:30
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/05/07/beirut.strike/index.html?eref=rss_world
Wed May 7, 2008
BEIRUT, Lebanon (CNN) -- Labor union members and anti-government Hezbollah
supporters blocked roads with mounds of sand and burning tires Wednesday to
demand higher salaries for public workers, protests that paralyzed the
airport and much of the capital.
Lebanese soldiers watch as protesters burn tires in Beirut.
Gunshots could be heard, but the origins were unclear. Lebanese soldiers set
up checkpoints and patrolled the streets, as did civilian members of the
Shiite militant group Hezbollah, who blocked the route to the airport and
staged a sit-in downtown.
The General Labor Confederation called off the strike after a few hours for
security reasons and said it would be rescheduled.
Hezbollah was harshly criticized by Lebanon's top Muslim spiritual leader,
who said it was using the demonstrations as a political opportunity. Members
of Lebanon's other major Shiite party, Amal, also participated.
Travel was virtually impossible in the city, and most residents stayed home
from work, school and businesses. The road to the airport was blocked. Watch
as the protests bring Beirut to a standstill »
The Lebanese Cabinet recently raised the minimum wage for employees like
school bus drivers and trash collectors from $200 a month to $330 a month,
and workers say that's insufficient, given rising prices for food and other
commodities.
In a rare display of anger toward Hezbollah, the highest Sunni spiritual
authority in Lebanon criticized the group of taking advantage of the strike
by turning it into a political opportunity and accused members of fomenting
violence in Beirut.
"This strike is turning into a [civil] disobedience and an invasion to the
streets of Beirut, carried out by militant gangs," charged the grand mufti,
Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Qabbani. His speech was carried by the LBC network
and Qatar-based Al-Jazeera.
"We used to think that Hezbollah is concerned with fighting the Israeli
occupation, and all of a sudden it is turning to be a militant force to
occupy Beirut, and this is why we call upon the Arab and Islamic nations to
help us and stop these harmful aggressions in Lebanon," Qabbani said.
Israel and Hezbollah fought a 34-day war in 2006, and Israel occupied
southern Lebanon during the fighting. Hezbollah, a Shiite militant group
based in Lebanon, is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. State
Department.
"From my religious and national standpoint, I call upon the leaders of
Hezbollah to pull out their fighters from the streets in Beirut and to cease
the sit-down in Beirut and to fear God," Qabbani said.
"Because the Sunni Muslims are fed up with what is happening, these
violations and aggressions, the Lebanese are no longer capable of enduring
more hardship."
Lebanese journalist Oqab Sakr told Al-Arabiya, "the conflict today was
clearly a Sunni-Shiite conflict. All the clashes happened in Sunni and
Shiite areas. ... Today's slogans were purely sectarian, mainly Sunni and
Shiite."
The strike didn't affect Christian eastern Beirut.
The protest began about 9 a.m. Wednesday. Police said five people were
injured at the seaport district of Corniche Al-Mazraa when someone threw a
stun grenade.
Beirut has been tense since Lebanese President Emil Lahoud stepped down in
November, leaving no clear successor. Currently, the country is being run by
U.S.-backed Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. He faces opposition from
Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and Syria.
http://yalibnan.com/site/archives/2008/05/hezbollahled_pr.php
Hezbollah-led protest leads to clashes, violence in Lebanon
Published: Wednesday, 7 May, 2008 @ 2:32 PM in Beirut
Beirut- Protesters from the Hezbollah-led opposition clashed with supporters
of Lebanon's U.S.-backed government Wednesday as a strike by the Shiite
militant group paralyzed large parts of the capital Beirut.
The violence deepened tensions in a country already mired in a 17-month-old
political crisis pitting the Iranian- and Syrian-backed Hezbollah against
the government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. The troubles have left the
country without a president since November.
The strike was called by labor unions after they rejected a last-minute pay
raise offer by the government as insufficient. But instead it turned into a
showdown between Hezbollah and the government.
The clashes began when government and opposition supporters in a Muslim
sector of Beirut exchanged insults and began throwing stones at each other.
Witnesses said security forces intervened and gunshots were heard,
apparently troops firing in the air to disperse the crowds.
A cameraman for Hezbollah's Al-Manar television station was hit by a stone
in the forehead, the state-run National News Agency reported. A soldier also
was hit in the mouth by a stone.
Earlier in the same area, a stun grenade thrown into a crowd lightly injured
three protesters and two soldiers, the agency said. It was not immediately
clear who threw the stun grenade.
Around the city, protesters blocked roads with burning tires, dirt, old cars
and garbage cans to protest against government economic policies and demand
pay raises.
The protests and labor strike paralyzed Beirut international airport.
Airport employees stopped working for six hours while opposition protesters
blocked roads to the country's only air facility leading to the cancellation
or delay of 19 incoming and 13 outgoing flights.
The unrest and roadblocks forced labor unions to cancel the main public
demonstration planned to coincide with the strike.
Lebanon's political crisis took a turn for the worse this week when the
government decided to confront the powerful Hezbollah. The Cabinet on
Tuesday said it would remove Beirut airport's security chief over alleged
ties to Hezbollah.
The government also declared that a telecommunications network used by
Hezbollah for military purposes was illegal and a danger to state security.
Hezbollah and Shiite leaders rejected the government's decisions, raising
tensions ahead of the planned labor strike.
Hezbollah is listed as a terrorist group by the United States. It has fought
Israel for more than two decades, most recently in the 2006 summer war, and
enjoys wide support among Lebanon's 1.2 million Shiites who are believed to
be the country's largest sect.
The political crisis has exacerbated the country's economic problems. Rising
oil prices and a weakening U.S. dollar, the favored currency here, have
driven up the cost of living.
Just as the country is divided politically into opposition and
pro-government camps, the unions were split as well on whether to support
the strike. In Shiite sectors of the city where Hezbollah support is high,
the strike was widely observed, with most businesses closed and streets
empty.
In areas where government support is strong, some businesses were open but
many people stayed off the streets and traffic was lighter than usual amid a
heavy army presence.
Many schools throughout the city were closed because there was no busing for
fear of unrest on the roads.
Roads to the Beirut seaport also were blocked.
The U.S. Embassy advised Americans to avoid areas where protests were going,
to take "reasonable" security precautions and maintain a low profile in
public.
Lebanese soldiers stand guard, foreground, as opposition activists burn
tires during a protest in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, May 7, 2008.
Hezbollah-led opposition protesters blocked streets in central Beirut and on
the road to the international airport Wednesday to enforce an
anti-government labor strike that has turned into a showdown between the
militant Shiite group and the democratically elected government of Prime
Minister Fouad Siniora
Lebanese soldiers stand by burning tires during a protest in Beirut,
Lebanon, Wednesday, May 7, 2008.
Opposition activists burn a car during a protest called by labor unions in
Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, May 7, 2008. Supporters of Lebanon's
Hezbollah-led opposition blocked roads with burning tires and paralyzed the
airport in the capital Beirut Wednesday to enforce a strike against the
democratically elected government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora
A car burns as opposition activists try to block roads during a protest in
Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, May 7, 2008
An opposition protester holds a gasoline bottle as he stands near a burning
car during a protest called by labor unions in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday,
May 7, 2008.
http://www.eagleworldnews.com/2008/05/07/hezbollah-protesters-block-roads-in-beirut-lebanon/
Hezbollah Protesters Block Roads in Beirut Lebanon
BEIRUT - Protesters supporting the Hezbollah-led opposition in Lebanon have
blocked streets in Beirut with burning tires to enforce an anti-government
labor strike.A major route leading to Beirut's international airport was
among the roads blocked Wednesday.
Security forces have been deployed to prevent clashes between supporters of
the opposition and Lebanon's Western-backed government. The strike was
called to demand pay raises.
Lebanon is currently experiencing a political crisis. Disputes between the
Western-backed majority party and the pro-Syrian opposition over the
composition of a new government have led to a political stalemate.
On Tuesday, Lebanon's government accused Hezbollah of violating the state's
sovereignty and spying on its top leaders.
Lebanon's Information Minister Ghazi Aridi said the government has demanded
Hezbollah dismantle its communications network, which the Shi'ite militant
group says is needed to protect the group and counter Israeli surveillance.
Aridi also said the government is firing the pro-Hezbollah army general
responsible for security at Beirut Airport, regarding alleged Hezbollah spy
cameras monitoring a runway used by government leaders.
Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, a key member of the governing coalition,
accused Hezbollah of using the information to plan kidnappings or
assassinations. Hezbollah deputy leader Sheikh Naim Kassem denounced the
charges, saying the camera is perfectly legitimate.
Lebanon's parliament is scheduled to vote May 13 for the country's new
president.
It will be the 19th time the parliament will try to vote for a successor to
former pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud, whose term expired in November.
Source: VOA News
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/middleeast/news/article_1404575.php/Lebanese_journalists_protest_attack_on_media__Extra_
Lebanese journalists protest attack on media (Extra)
May 10, 2008, 9:41 GMT
Beirut - Dozens of Lebanese and foreign journalist gathered in Beirut
Saturday to protest the attack by the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah on
news media owned by a family opposed to it.
The terrestrial and satellite TV station Future TV, satellite TV news
channel Future News, the daily Al-Mustakbal and Radio Orient - were forced
to stop operating on Friday by Hezbollah. All are owned by the head of the
ruling majority, Saad Hariri.
His father Rafik Hariri, a former Lebanese prime minister who was
assassinated in a car bomb blast in 2005, set up Future Television in 1992.
'This is an attack on the freedom of press,' said Sahar al Khateeb, an
anchor at Furture Television. 'We are not their enemies for God's sake,' she
shouted.
Other journalists chanted: 'They will not silence our voices. Lebanon is for
everybody, and not for them (Hezbollah).' The protest was due to end near
the headquarters of Future television.
Action against the Hariri media included a rocket attack on one of Future
television's offices which was empty, and threats by gunmen against the news
studio building, saying they would open fire if the channel did not stop
broadcasting.
At least 20 people have been reported killed since the fighting between
anti-Syrian forces and Hezbollah began Wednesday.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/05/10/africa/ME-GEN-Lebanon-Media-Protest.php
Lebanese journalists demonstrate against closure of Sunni leader's
television station
The Associated Press
Published: May 10, 2008
BEIRUT, Lebanon: Dozens of journalists demonstrated Saturday in Beirut to
protest Hezbollah's closure of a top Sunni leader's television station.
Future TV went off the air Friday after the Shiite Muslim guerrilla group
and its allies routed their pro-government Sunni opponents from most of west
Beirut. The station is owned by Saad Hariri, son of assassinated former
premier Rafik Hariri.
Journalists accompanied by nearly 300 supporters marched Saturday to the
station's offices in Beirut's upscale Kantari neighborhood.
"I want to reassure the betrayers who have nothing to do other than to
oppress us: We are here to stay and we will not be silent no matter what
they do," said May Chidiac, an anchorwoman for the leading anti-Syrian TV
station LBC.
Chidiac lost an arm and leg in a Sept. 2005 attack when a bomb was placed
under her car, and attended Saturday's protest in a wheelchair. "This is a
crime against the media," she said.
Future TV chief Nadim Mounla said the station was shut after threats from
Hezbollah that the offices would be destroyed. Some Hezbollah members
entered the TV building Friday and cut transmission cables, he said.
Offices of another Hariri operation, Al-Mustaqbal newspaper, were attacked
Friday and parts of the building were set on fire. Pro-Syrian gunmen also
set fire to a building where Future TV has its archives. Smoke still
billowed from the building Saturday as firefighters sprayed water over it.
"My job is to defend this television forever," Future TV anchorwoman Lina
Doughan Nasser told the crowd.
The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists and the Paris-based
Reporters Without Borders both denounced Hezbollah's actions against
Hariri's media groups.
Iranian-backed Hezbollah and its allies seized large swaths of Muslim west
Beirut on Friday, demonstrating their military might in a power struggle
with the U.S.-backed government. It was the worst sectarian violence since
Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war.
The clashes broke out after the government challenged Hezbollah by declaring
its private telephone network illegal and saying it would remove the chief
of airport security for suspected ties to Shiite militant group.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=93799
Syrian opposition groups call for protests in Paris to mark Assad's visit
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Saturday, July 05, 2008
PARIS: Syrian opposition parties called on Friday for a protest rally to
mark President Bashar al-Assad's visit to Paris next week, to demand a halt
to rights abuses in the country.
President Nicolas Sarkozy invited Assad along with some 40 foreign leaders
for the launch of a new Union for the Mediterranean, aimed at boosting
cooperation between European Union and Mediterranean rim states.
The Syrian leader will meet Sarkozy on the eve of the summit, and stay on
for France's Bastille Day ceremonies on July 14, sealing the renewal of
high-level contacts between Paris and Damascus.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem was in Paris to prepare Assad's visit,
the first by a Syrian leader in seven years.
In a statement issued Friday, Syrian opposition groups called for a rally in
Paris on July 13 to demand an end to the "arbitrary arrest of intellectuals
and political opponents," to torture in Syrian jails, for respect of human
rights and the lifting of a 45-year-old emergency law.
The text was issued by the French committee of the "Damascus Declaration,"
another text signed by Syrian opposition figures calling for "democratic
change" in the country. Several of its signatories have been arrested in
Syria.
French officials said Sarkozy would raise the issue of human rights with
Assad.
Then-President Jacques Chirac cut off official contacts with Damascus over
charges of Syrian involvement in the February 2005 murder of former Lebanese
Premier Rafik Hariri, who was a friend of Chirac's. Damascus denies the
claims.
"Relations between our countries were cold, but with the summer they are
getting warm," Moallem told a conference at the Institute of International
Relations in Paris.
Moallem again quashed speculation that Assad could hold a historic meeting
with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on the sidelines of the Paris
summit.
"That is not on the agenda," said Moallem, who later met his French
counterpart, Bernard Kouchner, and Sarkozy's top aide, Claude Gueant.
Assad last week dismissed any direct talks with Olmert on the sidelines of
the Paris summit in line with his previous statements that such a meeting
would not take place before next year. The Syrian minister said that
indirect talks between Israel and Syria, which resumed under Turkish
mediation in March after an eight-year freeze in relations, were "only just
beginning."
The two countries have been officially at war since 1948, although armistice
and cease-fire agreements have been signed in the interim.
"The essence of the indirect talks is to prepare the ground for direct
talks," Moallem said, saying the process would require "important
involvement from the United States, the European Union and Russia." - AFP
http://arabnews.com/?page=4§ion=0&article=111844&d=15&m=7&y=2008&pix=world.jpg&category=World
Bashar presence stirs protest at Bastille Day
Agencies
PARIS: Syrian President Bashar Assad was a guest of honor at France's annual
Bastille Day military parade yesterday, sparking a small protest and adding
to tensions at the march over job cuts in the armed forces.
Bashar, marking a rehabilitation with the West, joined a host of leaders in
central Paris for the annual military review, which followed the launch of
President Nicolas Sarkozy's Mediterranean Union project on Sunday.
But his presence angered some army veterans, who suspect Syria played a role
in a 1983 massacre of French troops in Lebanon, and was also denounced by
human rights groups.
Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said eight of its activists
were arrested near the parade when they protested against Bashar, who was in
the front row of the reviewing stand.
At the start of the ceremony, an actor read the preamble to the UN Universal
Declaration of Human Rights to the assembled leaders - a move that Sarkozy
later said was a "excellent response" to the controversy surrounding Bashar.
"One shouldn't read this text among ourselves. We should read it to those
who need to learn it. It was a beautiful image without provocation or
weakness," he told reporters.
There had been speculation that marching soldiers too could protest because
of Bashar, and also an overhaul of defense strategy in which around a
quarter of military personnel are due to be cut, but the parade went off as
planned. "The armed forces put on a remarkable display," Sarkozy told France
2 television shortly after the parade, which began with jets roaring
overhead and ended with a group parachute jump.
The president paid tribute to the French Army. "I am very proud of this
parade, very proud of the French Army. The army put on a remarkable
display," he told the television. After watching a fly-past of Alphajets
that left a trail of red, white and blue, Sarkozy, first lady Carla Bruni
and guests watched the parade of some 4,000 marching soldiers and police, 65
aircraft and 241 mounted horsemen.
Sarkozy's office said 35 foreign national leaders attended yesterday's
parade, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Egyptian President Hosni
Mubarak, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and UN Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon.
The defense community is also reeling from the resignation of the army's
chief of staff two weeks ago after an incident in which live bullets were
fired instead of blanks during a combat display, injuring 17 people in the
southern town of Carcassonne.
Sarkozy expressed his support for the nation's armed forces in a traditional
message ahead of the Bastille Day parade. "Like you, and like all French
people, I was profoundly hurt and shocked by the Carcassonne tragedy. Such
an event does not affect the confidence I have in our armed forces," Sarkozy
said.
Several media reported that armed forces chief of staff Gen. Bruno Cuche
quit because of a verbal attack in which Sarkozy called him "incompetent,"
but Cuche said in a statement his decision was due solely to the Carcassonne
incident.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=94363
Army breaks up protest against detainees in Syria
Demonstrators demand release of Lebanese prisoners held since civil war
By Jessica Naimeh
Special to The Daily Star
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
BEIRUT: Parents of Lebanese held in Syrian prisons went once again to the
streets on Monday morning protesting against the detention in Syria of their
relatives. The demonstration took an unfortunate turn of events as the
Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) violently forced the protesters to move away as
they were trying to intercept Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem's convoy
to the presidential palace in Baabda.
The protest was organized with the help of the civil society
representatives, human-rights associations and local and international NGOs.
The groups have held similar demonstrations in the past, but this time, the
protest was called to coincide with Moallem's visit to Lebanon.
"We, as civil society organizations, want to confirm the existence of
Lebanese detainees in Syrian prisons," said Ghazi Aad, founder of Support of
Lebanese in Detention and Exile (SOLIDE), an NGO which has longed worked to
uncover the fate of Lebanese detainees in Syrian prisons.
Parents and relatives of Lebanese citizens who disappeared between 1975 and
2005 gathered around 10:30 a.m. next to the presidential palace in Baabda,
where Moallem was expected to arrive.
Many protestors held pictures of their detained or lost relatives as well as
banners with slogans written in Arabic such as "no [diplomatic] relations
before the return [of the Lebanese held in Syrian prisons]" or "not only are
there [prisoners] in Israel, but in Syria as well."
As Moallem's convoy was about to reach the presidential palace,
demonstrators tried to block the road and were aggressively pushed and
beaten up by LAF forces. Some demonstrators suffered wounds as a result.
In a news conference after his parliamentary bloc's meeting on Monday, Free
Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun said clashes between demonstrators
and the LAF "were truly unfortunate," adding that the new government would
"double efforts" to uncover the fate of detainees in Syrian prisons issue as
"the fate of these missing people could not be ignored."
According to a researcher with Human Rights Watch, Nadim Houri, who took
part in Monday's protest, the demonstrators were "violently pushed by the
LAF who used the bottoms of their rifles" to move the crowd away. He said
that none of the protesters was armed, so there was "no need to resort to
such kind of violence."
Houri told The Daily Star that mothers of detainees were violently pushed in
the process, saying that the "LAF ought to adopt strict guidelines that ban
the use of violence to disperse demonstrators."
Before the incidents occurred, head of Union for Lebanon Massoud al-Ashkar
told reporters "the detainees issue was more important than the
normalization of the Lebanese-Syrian diplomatic relations or the border
demarcation between the two neighboring countries."
Ashkar added that Lebanon "managed to bring back home Lebanese held in
Israeli prisons and that the same should be done for those who were detained
in Syrian prisons." On Wednesday, five prisoners and 200 bodies were handed
to Hizbullah by the Israel as part of a prisoner swap deal.
Despite the brawl with the LAF, demonstrators were able to send a
seven-point letter to Sleiman who, in his inaugural speech, expressed his
will to deal with the issue of the detainees. The letter called for
including the prisoners' issue in the upcoming ministerial statement.
It also called on forming a national commission to look into the issue of
the detainees in Syria, as well as creating a DNA database through the
missing people's relatives.
It also said an international investigative commission should be created,
"as a last resort," to find out the missing people's whereabouts and their
fate. According to the letter, the international commission should also try
those who committed these "crimes against humanity."
Echoing remarks made by Moallem during a news conference on Monday about the
existence of Syrian detainees in Lebanese prisons, Houri told The Daily Star
that there were actually names of Syrians who disappeared in Lebanon during
the 1975-90 Civil War. "It is surprising that Syria never bothered dealing
with this issue [when it was controlling the country]," he said, adding that
information about Syrian detainees in Lebanese prisons can "be easily made
available" as they (Lebanese prisons) were accessible to the Red Cross and
other humanitarian organizations.
Houri said that Syria had to give a "serious and transparent list of
Lebanese and non-Lebanese detainees abducted on Lebanese soil." While the
Syrian authorities have always avoided giving out information about the
Lebanese prisoners, some detainees' parents said they had proof about their
children's imprisonment in Syria as they were able to contact and sometimes
visit them.
According to Houri, most of the detainees have never even been sentenced and
if they had been, it was in an unfair trial.
Houri also said that although "some progress" is possible, the "detainees'
relatives needed to see concrete actions because they have in the past
received too many unrealized promises."
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/04/26/africa/ME-GEN-Syria-Saudi.php
Syrians protest beheading of one of their countrymen in Saudi Arabia
The Associated Press
Published: April 26, 2008
DAMASCUS, Syria: Scores of angry Syrians are protesting in Damascus against
Saudi Arabia's beheading of a countryman convicted of drug smuggling.
Syrian Ibrahim al-Jarekh was beheaded Friday in Saudi Arabia two weeks after
two other Syrians were beheaded there on the same charge.
Nearly 100 protesters held a sit-in to demand that Saudi hand over other
Syrian prisoners.
One of the protesters, 38-year-old Abdul-Karim Mohammad, said his brother
has been in Saudi jails for four months and is waiting execution on drug
charges.
"These are politically motivated verdicts," Mohammed said.
Syrian-Saudi relations have been strained over what Saudi officials see as
Syria's role in promoting Iranian interests in the Arab world as well as
Syria's interference in Lebanese politics.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=94626
Sinai women protest against detention of relatives
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
AL-ARISH, Egypt: Dozens of women staged a protest in Egypt's north Sinai on
Tuesday to protest the months-long detention without trial of their
relatives over a string of bombings in the peninsula. The women gathered
outside the governor's office in Al-Arish, holding pictures of sons, fathers
and husbands who were rounded up after deadly attacks that targeted the Red
Sea resorts of Taba, Sharm El-Sheikh and Dahab between 2004 and 2006. The
men have been held without trial and their detention repeatedly renewed for
45 days at a time, some for as long as three years. "We want them to either
be tried or released," one protester told AFP. A security official said 62
people are known to be detained in connection with the bombings. The latest
major attack to hit the Sinai peninsula was in April 2006, when several
bombers struck the popular resort of Dahab, killing 20 people. After a
seven-year lull, attacks returned to Egypt in 2004, when three bombs
exploded in and around the Red Sea resort of Taba, killing at least 34
people. Around 70 were killed in July 2005 when multiple blasts struck
Sinai's most popular resort of Sharm El-Sheikh. - AFP
http://news.morningstar.com/newsnet/ViewNews.aspx?article=/DJ/200807290734DOWJONESDJONLINE000314_univ.xml
Women Protest Detention Of Relatives Over Egypt Bombings7-29-08 7:34 AM EDT
| E-mail Article | Print Article
EL-ARISH, Egypt (AFP)--Dozens of women staged a protest in Egypt's north
Sinai Tuesday to protest the months-long detention without trial of their
relatives over a string of bombings in the peninsula.
The women gathered outside the governor's office in El-Arish, holding
pictures of sons, fathers and husbands who were rounded up after deadly
attacks that targeted the Red Sea resorts of Taba, Sharm el-Sheikh and Dahab
between 2004 and 2006.
The men have been held without trial and their detention repeatedly renewed
for 45 days at a time, some for as long as three years.
"We want them to either be tried or released," one protester told AFP.
A security official said 62 people are known to be detained in connection
with the bombings.
The latest major attack to hit the Sinai peninsula was in April 2006 when
several bombers struck the popular resort of Dahab, killing 20 people.
After a seven-year lull, attacks returned to Egypt in 2004 when three bombs
exploded in and around the Red Sea resort of Taba, killing at least 34
people.
Around 70 were killed in July 2005 when multiple blasts struck Sinai's most
popular resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
http://www.dawn.com/2008/07/27/rss.htm#35
Egypt arrests 16 from anti-govt protest group CAIRO, July 27 (Reuters):
Egyptian security forces arrested 16 members of a nascent anti-government
protest group, and two of the activists are being held in an unknown
location and may be at risk of torture, Amnesty International said. Security
sources said the activists were arrested since Wednesday after several dozen
members of the opposition Sixth of April Youth group held an anti-government
protest in the port city of Alexandria. Amnesty said the activists, mainly
students from Cairo, chanted slogans urging political and economic reforms
before police broke up the protest, arresting 15. Another activist was
arrested the following day. (Posted @ 22:05 PST)
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=148658
Thousands gather in Ankara in protest of coups
Thousands gathered on Saturday in the capital to show their opposition to
coup attempts and anti-democratic practices in a demonstration spearheaded
by a group of nongovernmental organizations.
The demonstration, the second of silent rallies known as "70 million Steps
against Coups," the first of which was held last month in Istanbul, brought
together thousands of democracy defenders who wanted to express their stance
against coup attempts by several institutions that have resorted to
anti-democratic practices.
The rally was held in cooperation with such NGOs as the Young Civilians, a
Turkish nongovernmental group noted for its use of sarcasm in protests, the
Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed Peoples
(MAZLUM-DER), the Confederation of Turkish Real Trade Unions (Hak-Is) and
the Women's Rights Association Against Discrimination (AK-DER). Participants
in the rally wore white gloves and carried banners that read "Raise your
voice against coups," "Say no to coups" and "We can stop coup perpetrators."
Representatives from participating NGOs emphasized in their speeches that
the Turkish nation doesn't want to witness any more military coups. "Coups d'état,
memorandA, unresolved shootings, party closures, death penalties and torture
have always been discussed and planned in Ankara. Ankara has forgotten that
70 million people reside in this country. Now, it is time to speak out
against the Ergenekon crime gang, party closures and coup attempts," they
said.
http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/193362.php
July 19, 2008
Yemeni Workers Protest Forced Celebrations
Saleh is celebrating 30 years in power and civil service workers are
normally forced to attend pro-regime celebrations, but they are starting to
get tired of it.
Sahwa Net -Demonstrations held on Thursday in Dhala and Lahj provinces
demanded to cancel celebrations in which the authorities force citizens to
attend to, according to their descriptions...On the other hand, the Joint
Meeting Parties in Mahweet condemned forcing employees to attend the
celebration of the president's 30th anniversary of assuming power. Yemen's
president Saleh took power in north on 17 July 1978.
http://www.jordantimes.com/?news=9602
Hundreds protest over Jordanian detainees
By Mohammad Ben Hussein
AMMAN - Nearly 300 activists on Saturday staged a sit-in in front of the
Prime Ministry demanding the release of four Jordanians transferred from an
Israeli prison to the Kingdom last year.
The group handed officials a letter calling the men's release "overdue",
particularly in light of a recent prisoner swap between Israel and
Hizbollah.
"We reminded the prime minister of the government's commitment to the four
men when they were released last year, whereby it was agreed to have them
freed whenever an exchange of prisoners takes place with Israel involving
inmates with similar charges," said Saleh Ajlouni, activist and brother of
one of the detainees.
The letter also called on the government to exert maximum effort to secure
the release of tens of other Jordanians incarcerated in Israel and the fate
of many others who went missing.
Demonstrators held banners calling for the release of the "heroes," and
pictures of the four prisoners were displayed during the one-hour gathering.
The event ended peacefully and without incident.
The gathering was organised by the National Committee for the Jordanian
Prisoners and Missing Persons in Israel, which says the government has
"skirted the moral responsibility to release the prisoners after the recent
exchange of prisoners between Israel and Hizbollah".
Sultan Ajlouni, the longest serving Jordanian in an Israeli prison, and
three other Jordanian prisoners serving life sentences in Israel - Khaled
Abu Ghalyoun, Salem Abu Ghalyoun and Ameen Saneh - were transferred to the
Kingdom last July to spend 18 months in a local prison under a deal with Tel
Aviv.
Family members have been lobbying for their release ever since Israel
brokered an agreement for the prisoner exchange with Hizbollah.
Meanwhile, the Muslim Brotherhood issued a statement on Saturday calling for
the release of the four prisoners.
"The government should release Ajlouni, the Abu Ghalyoun brothers and Saneh
since Israel has released those with more severe charges, such as Samir
Qantar," said the statement, made available to The Jordan Times yesterday.
The group also called for the release of Ahmad Dakamseh, who shot an Israeli
girl in the early 90s and has been since serving a life sentence in a local
prison.
"We want to remind you that Israel does not punish its soldiers when they
shed the blood of Palestinians. they are returned as heroes," added the
statement.
Sultan Ajlouni was rushed to the hospital earlier in the week due to a
stress-related stomach ailment.
He remains in the hospital under medical care, while the three other
prisoners are serving out their sentences at Qafqafa prison in the north.
Family members said Saturday that further tests are being carried out on
Ajlouni, who is due to be released in early 2009.
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/536641/1731314
Cuba breaks up protest sit-in
Apr 22, 2008 6:55 AM
A group of Cuban women peacefully demonstrating for the release of their
jailed husbands were roughed up by a mob and arrested, then released, near
the offices of President Raul Castro.
The 10 women, members of an organization known as the "Women in White,"
gathered at a park at the edge of Cuba's Revolution Square, near government
and Communist Party headquarters.
They wore white T-shirts emblazoned with the faces and names of their loved
ones, but carried no signs.
"We are here to demand the release of our husbands and won't leave until
they are free or they arrest us. We have waited long enough, we want to talk
to the new president," group leader Laura Pollan said.
Moments later, a bus pulled up and about 20 female corrections officers
tried to arrest the women, who sat on the sidewalk, clasped arms and refused
to move.
"They are dying, they are dying," one women yelled with tears in her eyes.
A mob of about 100 government supporters, mainly women from nearby
government buildings, quickly entered the fray, yelling insults while
pushing the women, picking them up and shoving them into the waiting bus.
"After forcing them into the bus they dropped the Havana residents at their
homes and sent the others back to their homes in the provinces," Marta
Bonachea, a spokesperson for the women, said in a telephone interview.
The women's husbands and other relatives were arrested in a massive
government crackdown in 2003, which landed 75 dissidents in prison for long
terms on charges of working with the United States to subvert the
government.
Fifty-five of the dissidents remain behind bars.
Raul Castro became Cuba's first new president in nearly 50 years in
February, when he took over for his ailing brother Fidel Castro.
Various governments and international organizations have expressed the hope
he would loosen political restrictions in the one-party socialist state.
Protests are rare in Cuba. In the past, similar actions have been broken up
by government supporters and the protesters held for a few hours before
being released.
The Cuban government contends all its opponents are paid and organized by
its enemy, the United States.
The illegal but tolerated Cuban Commission for Human Rights estimates there
are 230 people in prison in Cuba for expressing their political views,
serving sentences of up to 28 years.
Amnesty International has deemed 58 of them prisoners of conscience who are
imprisoned solely for the peaceful expression of beliefs.
http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/article.php?news_id=9662
Trinidad media workers protest over new broadcast code
Published on Friday, August 8, 2008Email To Friend Print Version
By Stephen Cummings
Caribbean Net News Trinidad and Tobago Correspondent
Email: stephen at caribbeannetnews.com
PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad: Tension is again on the rise in Trinidad and Tobago
over a new broadcast code to be adopted for broadcasters.
The Media Association of Trinidad and Tobago (MATT) is calling on the
country's Telecommunications Authority to define the standards used to
determine what is appropriate or inappropriate for broadcast.
It is also concerned with what it says are the heftiness of a fine of
TT$250,000 and a maximum five year prison term for broadcasters found guilty
of any breach of the code. Trinidad and Tobago is today seeking to create
its own media broadcast code and so the Media Association is now questioning
whether the penalties are justified.
Balance on the airwaves, free speech and responsibility was the theme of a
two-day conference held on April 2 - 3 2008 hosted by the Telecommunications
Authority of Trinidad and Tobago. The conference featured interactive
sessions, panel discussions involving local persons and eight
internationally respected experts on media and telecommunications concerns.
Focus was on media practices and policies for broadcasting. Currently under
the Trinidad and Tobago Constitution freedom of speech is guaranteed.
However, the Telecommunications Authority is saying together with this there
must be responsibility.
In 2007 the authority said it received a total of 60 complaints, 50 of which
were for radio station programming and ten for television programmes. For
2008 there were so far eight complaints from radio stations.
A draft document entitled "Development of the National Broadcast Code for
the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago was prepared by the authority in 2005
where it said it got numerous responses for changes to be made to the draft.
The Media Association for one voiced concerns that the document contained
dangerous elements which hinged on and act against the right to freedom of
speech.
The document was re-drafted, producing a new code, but in 2008 there are
still concerns among media workers as to the intent of the document and
implications for workers in the local media.
"There is a recent trend from people from government or state where they
would try to belittle reporters at press conferences," said Joan Briggs,
President of the Media Association of Trinidad and Tobago when interviewed
earlier on the subject of press freedom.
Briggs also advised reporters to be a little more assertive in their quest
for information and not to accept bullying by government or state officials.
Public consultation of the new broadcast code is again being taken for
public comment. It is said that soon there will be a final document which
will form the first set of broadcast regulations for the country.
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/08/407423.html
Zapatista solidarity protests at Edinburgh, Bournemouth and European
Airports
Edinburgh Chiapas Solidarity Group | 24.08.2008 10:25 | Globalisation |
Repression | Zapatista | London | South Coast
Passengers hurrying into the main check-in at Edinburgh international
airport on 22 August were greeted by an unusual sight. A massive banner
proclaimed: " MEXICO ...Sun.Fun.bloomin' nice beaches.", alongside a
painting of a palm tree. A somewhat eccentric Mexican tourist board
initiative perhaps?
Not exactly. "Torture..Death Squads.Human Rights Breaches." continued the
lower half of the banner, with a carefully painted AK47 illustrating the
point.
Demonstrators from Edinburgh Chiapas Solidarity Group were denouncing
Mexican government repression, particularly in the southern state of
Chiapas, where the zapatista indigenous movement has created over a thousand
autonomous "communities in resistance." Displaying a placard SOLIDARITY WITH
THE ZAPATISTA COMMUNITIES AGAINST EVICTIONS the protestors distributed
hundreds of leaflets to travellers at the busy airport.
At first sight the leaflets appeared to be a tourist brochure. Closer
examination revealed photos of armed soldiers and victims of torture
alongside the golden beaches and verdant rainforest. After explaining the
reality of Oaxaca and Chiapas, and highlighting the attempts to evict the
zapatistas of Bolon Ajaw to build a tourist development at the Agua Azul
waterfalls, the leaflet concluded : "Practise solidarity with the indigenous
people, who are asserting their dignity by resisting."
WAR AGAINST THE PEOPLE
Esther McDonald of the Solidarity Group said : "The Mexican government are
stepping up the long-running "war of low intensity" against the zapatistas.
The army have invaded zapatista villages, zapatistas have been arrested and
tortured, political prisoners in Chiapas have been on hunger strike, and
paramilitary groups are active, with the active support of the army "Special
Forces".
The protest, held right outside the main check-in section of the airport,
soon attracted the attention of Security Staff. Despite its unauthorised
nature, the demo was able to continue for over half an hour until threats of
police action prompted the demonstrators to relocate to the centre of
Edinburgh. (The whole of the airport is designated "private property", thus
removing the legal right to protest there.)
The protest then continued for around two hours more in Edinburgh's
principal street, Princes Street, attracting sympathetic responses from some
passers-by, including a woman who used to live in Oaxaca.
The demo coincided with leafleting actions at airports in Madrid, Hamburg,
Frankfurt, and in Bournemouth, where a demonstrator reported: "There was
more interest than anticipated and some confusion, before being escorted out
of the premises."
The protestors at Barajas-Madrid airport reported that the day's activities
were going very well, and that with the increasing number of flights to
Mexico "the airport and the departure lounges are now full of people who now
know a bit more about their destination."
COMMUNITIES IN RESISTANCE
A spokesperson for Edinburgh Chiapas Solidarity Group said: "'The
zapatistas' autonomous communities in resistance are an inspiring example of
how people can control their own lives and share resources in an egalitarian
way. They show people the world over that we don't need the bad governments
and the profit-hungry corporations."
"It is vital that we organise internationally to give solidarity to the
zapatistas against the Mexican Government's attempts to evict them from
their lands. These attacks are linked with plans for multinationals and
international governments to intensify capitalist exploitation of the whole
of central America, through the Plan Puebla Panama."
The Zapatistas hit world headlines on 1st January 1994 when they staged an
armed insurrection and captured seven towns in Chiapas. Recently they have
declared that they will create autonomous communities "without the
permission of the bad government" and have encouraged all oppressed groups
to join together, both nationally and internationally through "The Other
Campaign".
Edinburgh Chiapas Solidarity Group is twinned with zapatista autonomous
municipality "16th February"in the Highlands of Chiapas, and raises funds
and awareness for their autonomous health clinic and primary schools.
Members of the group have visited the indigenous villages in the area, and
made a short film about the construction of the clinic, built with the aid
of over £15,000 from Scotland.
www.edinchiapas.org.uk edinchiapas at yahoo.co.uk
http://ukzapatistas.wordpress.com (UK zapatista solidarity network)
http://www.europazapatista.org/ (Europe-wide Zapatista solidarity, mainly
in Spanish.)
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/94210
Journalists protest judge's restriction on coverage of fraud case as
"illegal and arbitrary"
Español: Periodistas protestan como "ilegal y arbitrario" restricción por
jueza de cobertura de caso
Country/Topic: Chile
Date: 03 June 2008
Source: Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS)
(IPYS/IFEX) - On 25 May 2008, a judge of Santiago's Seventh Tribunal,
Cecilia Pastene, forbade journalists from revealing the identity or
broadcasting photographs of a lawyer accused of defrauding a client of 1.08
billion pesos pesos (approx. US$ 2,230,000). Her ruling also called for the
removal of journalists from the courtroom where the charges against the
lawyer were read.
The judge, in taking this measure, was acceding to a petition from the
defence invoking an exceptional procedural option intended for use only in
special cases, such as for the protection of minors.
In defiance of the judge's ruling, on 27 May the newspaper "El Mercurio"
revealed the identity of the accused lawyer, Pedro Toledo Barrera, arguing
that the judicial resolution contradicts the principles of access to
information, of transparency in penal proceedings and of freedom of
expression.
On 30 May, the dean of the Journalists' College, Luis Conejeros, and the
president of a court journalists' group, Eric López, with the support of
legal representative Alfredo Morgado, also presented before Santiago's Court
of Appeals an appeal of the ruling.
The journalists' associations and the Human Rights Center of Diego Portales
University point out that Judge Pastene's resolution affects the
constitutional rights of the media, and consider it illegal and arbitrary.
http://www.connietalk.com/subway_stripper_071508.html
Pole Dancer Protests By Stripping On The Subway
Tuesday, July 15th, 2008 by Esmerelda
Monserrat Morilles was recently arrested for stripping on the subway in
Chile. The media there is calling her "The Subway Goddess." She was doing it
to protest prudishness in her country.
She'd find a car without children. Hop on and strip, then get off at the
next stop.
She was caught when she attempted to do her act outside the presidential
palace in Santiago.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7501015.stm
Friday, 11 July 2008 01:28 UK
Chile pole dancer arrested
Stripper Monserrat Morilles dances for subway riders
Police in Chile have arrested a stripper who was attempting to remove her
clothes outside the presidential palace in the capital, Santiago.
Her arrest comes three days after she performed a series of striptease
dances on the Santiago underground, the metro. Monserrat Morilles told
reporters that her performances were aimed at challenging the prudishness of
Chilean society and that they would continue.
Chilean media has dubbed her "La Diosa del Metro" or the Metro Goddess.
'Timid country'
Ms Morilles, 26, called her performances "happy minutes".
A professional pole dancer, she boarded the train at one station, and
stripped down to skimpy underwear in time to exit at the next station.
"This is just a beginning. We are starting an idea here that will grow and
be developed further," she told Reuters news agency as she was being taken
into custody.
"Chile is still a pretty timid country," her manager, Gustavo Pradenas,
said.
"People aren't very extroverted and we want to take aim at that and make
Chile a happier country."
http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/news-2583--2-2--.html
Haitian protesters want Aristide's return
Published on Tuesday, July 17, 2007 Email To Friend Print Version
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (UPI): Protesters backing former Haitian President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide have called for the return of the ousted leader and
denounced his successor.
Demonstrators said current President Rene Preval has turned his back on his
former ally, Aristide, The Miami Herald reported Monday.
The protest Sunday marked Aristide's 54th birthday. The former Haitian
leader was toppled in a rebel uprising and left the country in February
2004.
He has vowed to return, though said it would depend on his former prime
minister Preval as to when he does.
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/07/15/haiti.march.ap/index.html?eref=edition_americas
July 15, 2008 -- Updated 2115 GMT (0515 HKT)
Police fire tear gas at Haitian protesters
Story Highlights
Protesters storm past barricades near National Palace in Port-au-Prince
Marchers mark birthday of ousted leader Jean-Bertrand Aristide, protest food
costs
Aristide accuses U.S. of staging coup after escaping Haiti in 2004
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) -- Police fired tear gas to disperse protesters
who stormed past barricades Tuesday near the National Palace during a rally
to mark the 55th birthday of ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
Pro-Aristide demonstrators are driven back by a Haitian police officer in
Port au Prince Tuesday.
Haitian police had erected barricades at the Champs de Mars, the central
plaza of Port-au-Prince, to prevent demonstrators from reaching the National
Palace about two blocks away. Several hundred people surged through them
anyway and were repelled by riot police firing tear gas.
Until then, the protest had been largely peaceful. It began with a couple of
hundred people outside Aristide's former home and swelled to several
thousand as they marched across the capital.
Demonstrators chanted "We need Titid," a reference to Aristide's nickname,
while blowing horns and waving tree branches as they marched toward the
palace.
Mario Styr, one of the organizers, said the march was also a protest against
rising food prices, which have deepened misery in the impoverished country
and prompted the Senate to vote out the prime minister in April.
At least seven people died in April during violent protests and looting
sparked by rising food prices.
Parliament has rejected two of President Rene Preval's nominees to replace
the ousted prime minister and was scheduled to vote later Tuesday on a third
candidate, Michele Pierre-Louis.
Don't Miss
Report: Kids' lives are nightmares
The protest was a reminder that Aristide remains a political force in Haiti.
In February, 5,000 people joined a demonstration marking the fourth
anniversary of his ouster.
Aristide escaped Haiti in 2004 as a violent rebellion engulfed the country.
He lives in South Africa and accuses the U.S. of staging a coup.
http://www.haitianalysis.com/2008/5/12/brooklyn-ny-protestors-demonstrate-as-toto-constant-trial-is-postponed
May 12th, 2008
Brooklyn, NY: Protestors Demonstrate as Toto Constant Trial is Postponed
By: Kim Ives - Haiti Liberté
The trial of former Haitian death-squad leader Emmanuel "Toto" Constant for
mortgage fraud was supposed to start May 7 at the New York State Supreme
Court building in Brooklyn, but instead it was postponed until July 8.
The reasons for the postponement were unclear and apparently last-minute -
Constant's name appeared on the court docket. One suspects a deal in the
works judging from the very congenial dealings observed between New York
State prosecutors and Constant's defense lawyer, Samuel Karliner.
New York State authorities arrested Constant in New York in July 2006 for
his involvement in a mortgage fraud ring which bilked banks out of hundreds
of thousands of dollars in fake property sales from 2002 to 2006 (see Haiti
Liberte, Vol. 1, No. 41, 4/20/2008).
Constant is a notorious figure in the Haitian community for acting as the
head of the Revolutionary Front for the Advancement and Progress of Haiti
(FRAPH), a CIA-supported death-squad that engaged in murder, arson, torture
and rape during the 1991-1994 coup d'etat against the government of
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
About one dozen demonstrators gathered outside the court-house with a sound
system from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. to raise consciousness in the crowds rushing
to work and school about the trial and Constant's human rights record. Since
Constant fled a warrant in Haiti in December 1994 and clandestinely slunk
into the U.S., human rights groups have been clamoring for him to be brought
to justice for crimes against humanity.
"We now want to see that he does not get out of his economic crimes
committed against the people of New York," said attorney Jenny Green of the
Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), one of the organizations which
sponsored the rally outside the court-house. "We know that he cannot be
punished in this court for the human rights violations in Haiti. But we want
to see due process done in this case.... Constant is not just a human rights
violator. He's a thief . He needs to be punished for both categories of
crimes. He should not be allowed to return to Haiti to commit future human
rights abuses, to wreak havoc on the Haitian people."
For years, human rights and Haitian community groups called for Constant to
be sent back to Haiti to stand trial, a call which the U.S. government
resisted. Now Washington wants to see Constant sent back to Haiti while the
grassroots groups do not.
"Before we wanted to send Toto back to Haiti when the Aristide government
had made an extradition request, and we were sure he would meet with
justice," explained Ray Laforest of the International Support Haiti Network
(ISHN), another rally sponsor. "But at that point, the U.S. Justice
Department refused to send him back. Today, the Haitian people are
relatively weak, and the Haitian government is relatively weak. It is very
likely that if Toto Constant were sent back he would not remain in jail, he
would not receive justice. And it is now that we see the Department of
Homeland Security insisting that Constant be sent back to Haiti
immediately."
Public defender Lynn Stewart was also at the demonstration. "I'm proud to be
out here today to speak out against this serial murderer, killer, rapist,
runner of death squads," she said. "This is a person who was supported by
the United States government because he fulfilled their aims of keeping
Haiti a virtual colony, an economic disaster, an exploited place by the
corrupters of government. Constant then came to the U.S. Of course he was
welcomed with open arms, as are so many of his ilk."
One of the principal leaders of Aristide's Lavalas Family party, Annette "So
An" Auguste, happened to be in New York this week and also came out to the
demonstration. "If Haiti is in the state it is today, Toto Constant is one
of the reasons for that," she said. "Because the first time Haiti had a
president who was elected democratically, where the constitution gave him a
five year term, Toto Constant was responsible for killing the most people
during the coup against Aristide, who is now in exile in South Africa."
So An went on to explain that "U.S. forces captured lots of documents which
proved how Toto Constant's organization FRAPH was responsible for the death
of many people in Haiti. He was working for the CIA. The CIA brought him to
the United States. Today we see that they give money more value than people"
because Constant is being prosecuted for grand larceny and falsifying
business documents rather than crimes against humanity. "We ask for justice
for all the people that Toto Constant killed in Haiti," she concluded.
Prominent New York City council member Charles Barron decried that "our
government protects the murderers of Haiti rather than the liberators of
Haiti" in a country that through its 1804 slave revolution "has shown us
that liberation is possible."
"Anybody like Toto Constant who worked with the Tonton Macoutes, who
participated in the wholesale killing and murder of the Haitian people with
their death squads and got away with it, we need to have them brought to
justice," Barron said.
FRAPH crimes against women, particularly rape, has stirred many women's
groups to action. "Toto Constant should be held accountable for all his
crimes, whether it is mortgage fraud in New York or his crimes against
women, against humanity, and his program of rape and other torture in
Haiti," said Bertol Israel, the executive director of Dwa Fanm (Women's
Rights), a New York-based Haitian women's organization. "We hope that after
he has served his sentence in New York, he will do time for his crimes
against humanity in Haiti."
The rally outside the court-house was sponsored by the CCR along with the
ISHN, the Lavalas Family's New York chapter, and the Haitian Coalition to
Support the Struggle in Haiti (KAKOLA).
All articles copyrighted Haiti Liberte. REPRINTS ENCOURAGED. Please credit
Haiti Liberte.
http://www.workers.org/2008/world/venezuela_0529/
Protest condemns U.S. funding of counterrevolutionary student
By Jaimeson Champion
New York
Published May 27, 2008 9:10 PM
Dozens of demonstrators gathered outside the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New
York City on May 15th to protest the presentation of the Milton Friedman
Prize to Yon Goichochea. Inside, the leader of a counterrevolutionary
Venezuelan student group received the award at a lavish $500-a-plate banquet
sponsored by The Cato Institute, a right-wing think tank.
The prize-named after the founding father of neoliberal economic policy and
economic advisor to Chile's fascist dictator Augusto Pinochet-is a $500,000
award given to individuals who promote the interests of U.S. imperialism.
The protest outside the hotel was organized by the Alberto Lovera Bolivarian
Circle, and included supporters and allies of the Bolivarian Revolution from
numerous organizations.
Speakers at the demonstration asserted that Goichochea did not represent
Venezuelan students, and that he would use the award money to further fund
attacks aimed at destabilizing the presidency of Hugo Chávez. They said
Goichochea, acting as a puppet for U.S. imperial interests, seeks to reverse
the tremendous gains achieved by the Bolivarian Revolution in the area of
education.
Demonstrators also contended that The Cato Institute is interfering in
Venezuelan affairs by attempting to fund the Venezuelan opposition movement.
In the past year, Goichochea has been heralded by groups such as The Cato
Institute and pundits in the corporate press as a peaceful organizer for
"liberty and freedom of speech."
But the reality is that Goichochea is a violence-provoking, 23-year-old
student mouthpiece for the deposed Venezuelan oligarchy. He is a privileged
son of the old elite. He advocates a return to the pre-Bolivarian Revolution
days, when education was a commodity reserved only for the wealthy.
As a student, Goichochea attended the private Catholic University. One of
the few remaining private universities in Venezuela, Catholic University has
a long been a training ground for the privileged class.
The student demonstrations which Goichochea has organized have been attended
almost entirely by wealthy students from the private universities. These
demonstrations by the children of the oligarchy have received enormous
amounts of news coverage, though the participants only represent a minute
fraction of the total Venezuelan student body.
The demonstrations Goichochea and his pro-imperialist stooges have organized
have been violent and destructive. Goichochea and his supporters have
trashed publicly funded Bolivarian educational facilities.
In one 2007 demonstration, Goichochea supporters targeted the Caracas School
of Social Work. They trashed the campus, setting the building on fire and
trapping some social work students inside. Goichochea and his supporters
targeted the School of Social Work because the social work students
overwhelmingly support Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution.
Far from championing "freedom of speech," Goichochea and his supporters have
sought to violently intimidate and silence students who support the
Bolivarian Revolution.
Education in Venezuela and the U.S.: A study in contrasts
Despite Goichochea's efforts, the Bolivarian Revolution has ushered in a new
era in Venezuelan education that has led to increased access to education
for all sectors of Venezuelan society.
Chávez has implemented a massive increase in social spending, particularly
in education and health care. Social spending as a percentage of GDP has
increased from 8.2 percent in 1998 to 13.6 percent in 2006. (source:
Weisbrot, Center for Economic Policy Research)
"Bolivarian missions" such as Mission Robinson and Mission Ribas, which are
programs dedicated to improving social conditions in Venezuela, have helped
increase literacy and arithmetic skills in poorer urban and rural areas
across the country.
Another Bolivarian mission, Mission Sucre, provides free university
education to any Venezuelan, regardless of income or resources. Mission
Sucre's official statement of purpose is "to guarantee access to university
education for all undergraduates and to transform the condition of those
excluded from the subsystem of higher education." Through Mission Sucre,
hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan students who had previously lacked
access to higher education have been able to obtain a university degree.
The achievements of the Bolivarian Revolution in the area of education
highlight the great benefits of socializing production to satisfy human
needs instead of corporate greed. The Bolivarian education programs are
funded in large part through revenues from the nationalized petroleum
industry. PDVSA, the Venezuelan state oil company, funds a large proportion
of the budgets for Missions Robinson, Ribas and Sucre.
Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution are using Venezuela's productive
capacity to improve the quality of life for all Venezuelans. Rather than
enriching foreign corporations, the Bolivarian Revolution is instead
investing in the educational enrichment of Venezuelan students.
The Bolivarian Revolution's focus on increasing access to education stands
in stark contrast to the focus of the educational system in the U.S. While
an increasing number of students in Venezuela are gaining access to higher
education, the opposite is true in the U.S.
Tuition rates in the U.S. are skyrocketing. With debt loads of U.S.
students, upon graduation, now averaging more than $20,000, higher education
is becoming increasingly unaffordable for most working-class students. Many
working-class students in the U.S are forced into the armed forces in order
to afford higher education. A free university education, as is provided in
Venezuela, would be a welcome reprieve for millions of U.S. students
potentially facing a life of indebtedness.
The Bolivarian Revolution is daily proving that there is a clear-cut
alternative to the violence, greed and destruction wrought by capitalism and
U.S. imperialism. The gains achieved by the Bolivarian Revolution in areas
such as education, housing and health care provide examples to the world of
the potential benefits of socialism. The hundreds of thousands of recent
college graduates in Venezuela who attended school through Mission Sucre are
testament to the reality that a better system is possible.
Articles copyright 1995-2008 Workers World. Verbatim copying and
distribution of this entire article is permitted in any medium without
royalty provided this notice is preserved.
http://www.radiojamaica.com/content/view/9913/26/
Residents protest police killing
Saturday, 12 July 2008
It is the usual story, a police shooting and residents crying foul.
Residents of Jones Avenue near Twickenham Park in St. Catherine took to the
streets in protest Saturday over the police killing of one their own Friday
night.
The police report that they went into the Jones Avenue area seeking to
locate Andre Bryan otherwise called "Blackman" who they claim is wanted in
connection with the killing of the late Chairman of the Jamaica Urban
Transit Company (JUTC) Douglas Chambers.
However, residents who converged along the Greendale to Twickenham Park Main
Road claim the man who was killed was not Andre but his brother Kayon.
Wrong man
According to the residents, Kayon Bryan, 22, was shot in cold blood.
They believe he was mistaken for his brother but neither he nor the persons
who witnessed the incident were given the chance to explain.
His father, Garnett Bryan, related Friday night's incident to RJR News. "He
was sitting on a wall with two other youths with a lady standing beside
them. The police car drive come down ... (the officers) come out (of the
vehicle) and ask the two other men dem names, dem tell dem and (the police)
tell dem to go a dem yaad and run whey di ooman (woman). Then dem start
firing pure shot in the place ... (Kayon's) mother and aunty dem come round
and a try fi carry him go hospital but the police throw him in did (car)
trunk ad drive him weh," said Mr. Bryan.
He added that the family is not prepared to simply dismiss the matter and
will be seeking the intervention of the Office of the Public Defender.
Member of Parliament for South Central St. Catherine Sharon Hay Webster
who was at the scene of the demonstration denounced the police action.
"I'm gonna have to make some representation on this matter because it cannot
be that we speak about community policing and changing the relationship
between police and community when it's clear that the police are targeting
certain members in the community. If they want them, they must ask them to
come in and it is clear that they were incorrect because they killed the
wrong person," she said.
Contrary to the account provided by the residents the police report that Mr.
Bryan was killed after he fired at the police, but refused to comment on
whether Mr. Bryan was the man for whom they were searching.
CCN Liaison Officer for the St. Catherine North Police Division Corporal
Maxine Russell Thomas related the official police account of the shooting.
She said a police party was on patrol in the Jones Avenue area around 7pm
Friday night when on reaching the vicinity of a shopping plaza, three men
were seen.
"On the approach of the police, the men started acting in a suspicious way.
The police came out of the vehicle and the men opened fire at them and the
police returned the fire.
The men ran in different directions but one man fell clutching a .38 Smith
and Wesson revolver containing three live rounds and three spent shells,"
said Corporal Russell Thomas.
Andre Bryan was one of two suspects wanted for the June 27th attack on Mr.
Chambers.
The JUTC Chairman was killed while standing near the entrance to the JUTC's
Spanish Town depot.
He had taken a break from a meeting which was discussing plans to reduce the
company's work force.
http://www.jamaica-star.com/thestar/20080707/news/news4.html
Gang leader's arrest sparks protest
Rasbert Turner, Star Writer
Spanish Town
Several persons protes-ted the arrest of Tesha Miller, the alleged leader of
the 'Clansman' gang, in Spanish Town, St Catherine, on Saturday.
Miller was reportedly arrested in Portmore, St Catherine, by police on
Friday night after breaching his bail bond which stated that he was not to
leave his premises after a certain time of the day.
When THE STAR visited Waterloo Lane, persons were seen with placards, some
marked, 'Free the don now' and 'Wi need Tesha to be free now, im no do
nothing'.
The protesting residents, mostly women, claimed that Miller had not done
anything to be arrested. They said he went to report to the police as a
condition of his bail, when he was arrested. The protesters said they need
their leader to be released.
The St Catherine North police confirmed that Miller is in their custody and
say they are investigating a matter about which they would like to talk to
him.
The Clansman gang is said to be aligned to the People's National Party.
Miller is successor to the late Donovan 'Bulbie' Bennett.
http://sportsjamaica.com/read_article.php?id=12773
Group protests ban on Samuels
posted: 2008-06-11 06:36:59
Kwesi Mugisa, Staff Reporter
It was a scene, albeit on a much smaller scale, that one would expect to see
in cricket crazy countries like Pakistan and India but yesterday, close to
100 Jamaicans lined up to protest what they deemed to be unfair treatment
handed down to West Indian batsman Marlon Samuels.
The group, organised and led by dancehall artiste Horace Lewis, popularly
known as 'LA Lewis', was armed with placards which displayed "Free Marlon
Samuels" and similar messages. They met at Lewis' offices on Burlington
avenue, before a one hour march around Half-Way Tree, which included a brief
stop at the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's court.
Samuels was banned for two years by the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) in
early May for breaching section C4 of the International Cricket Council's
(ICC) code of conduct.
Infringement
According to the ruling for an infringement, which occurred during a series
in India in February last year, the player "received money, benefit or other
reward which could bring him or the game of cricket into disrepute".
The WICB ruling, which carries a minimum of two years, cannot be appealed
based on ICC regulations.
"We have been watching this thing over the last couple of weeks and there
has been a grave injustice done to Marlon Samuels," Lewis told The Gleaner.
"You can't ban a cricketer or any athlete for that without giving them the
right to appeal it.
"Even when you have people found guilty of murder in court they have a right
to appeal it. When the cricket people decided to do that it is almost a
human rights violation," the charismatic Lewis said.
He added: "Enough is not being said about it so we as entertainers, working
people and as sports people have come together to let our voices be heard.
"Maybe there are other people or players that would like to speak up, but
they are scared to speak up because they will meet a similar fate. If that
can happen to Marlon today though it might be someone else tomorrow."
According to the entertainer the ban, if upheld, has the potential to drive
fans away from the game, as the player is one greatly favoured by many
around the region.
Unique style
"Personally is only two people I always go to watch and that is Brian Lara
and Marlon Samuels. With Lara gone a lot of people go to watch Marlon
because he has his own unique style," he said.
"If you ban Marlon, particularly in this manner, then you will lose a lot of
support from those people," he added.
The batsman represented by lawyers, QCs Churchill Neita and Delano Harrison,
is pressing for a judicial review of the ruling.
Lewis has in the meantime vowed to continue the protest action, even taking
his message to the dancehall.
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=145539
Thousands rally in Istanbul to protest coup attempts
More than 20,000 people held a silent rally on Saturday in Istanbul's
historical Tünel neighborhood to protest recent coup attempts by the
military through several institutions that have resorted to anti-democratic
practices.
Thousands of people held a silent rally on Saturday in Istanbul to protest
recent coup attempts by the military through several institutions that have
resorted to anti-democratic practices.
More than 20,000 people gathered in Istanbul's historical Tünel neighborhood
at 5 p.m. on Saturday to raise their voices against anti-democratic
initiatives. The rally, which came in the wake of a ruling by the
Constitutional Court that annulled constitutional amendments that would have
lifted a long-standing ban on the Muslim headscarf on university campuses,
was planned in cooperation with such nongovernmental organizations as the
Young Civilians, Küresel Eylem Grubu (Global Action Group), the Association
of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed Peoples (MAZLUM-DER), Irkçiliga
ve Milliyetçilige Dur De (Say Stop to Racism and Nationalism), Lambda -- a
gay rights association -- and the Movement for Political Horizons (SUH).
A number of famous figures, such as columnists Nazli Ilicak, Abdurrahman
Dilipak and Nihal Bengisu Karaca; actress Lale Mansur; famous sociologist
Ferhat Kentel; and ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) deputy
Zeynep Dagi, participated in the march, called "70 Million Steps against
Coups."
Participants of the rally wore white gloves and they carried banners that
read "Neither the judiciary, nor the military; the nation is the greatest,"
"Shoulder to shoulder against coups," "No to juntas, yes to democracy," "We
can stop coups" and "Bow to the will of the people." The rally was held
peacefully under heightened security measures.
A statement read during the march said civilians and NGOs had gathered to
express their stance against anti-democratic practices in Turkey.
"This is the most beautiful day of the year. Here, we break our oaths of
silence in support of democracy and justice. Are we going through a military
intervention? It may not seem so at first glance, but the developments that
followed the release of an e-memorandum on April 27, 2007 have shown that
our democracy is the subject of some sort of intervention. While the country
was busy considering the consequences of closure cases [against the
governing AK Party and the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP)], the
Constitutional Court overruled the headscarf amendments, approved by 411
deputies. The demand for a more democratic constitution, voiced by all
pro-democracy powers, especially after the July 22 elections, has been
pushed aside. The notions of freedom, justice and equality have been
overshadowed. Today '70 Million Steps against Coups' shows that we are
against coups," read the statement.
Dagi expressed her support for the march, saying such platforms are of great
significance for raising the public's voice against those who wish to
prepare the groundwork for coups and anti-democratic practices. "For this
reason, we support such initiatives. Support for such rallies and protests
will stop those circles that uphold coups from reaching their objectives,"
she noted.
Ilicak recalled that Turkey has suffered several coups in its history.
"Adnan Menderes, a former prime minister, was hung in the aftermath of a
military takeover [in 1960]. We have witnessed several coups and much
suffering. Now, years later, we say 'no' to coup attempts for the first time
ever," she said.
Özden Sönmez, who spoke on behalf of the Ankara Platform for Freedom of
Belief, stressed his hope for a better future in Turkey. "Every dark night
ends with a bright morning. Today we are experiencing Turkey's brightest
day. We will have bright mornings from now on," he said.
Other civilians who participated in Saturday's march expressed their
opposition to coup attempts, too. Cemal Aydin, a retired teacher, said he
joined the rally to stand by the vote he cast in the July 22 polls. "I want
to reject all sorts of anti-democratic initiatives and see the will of the
nation be the only rule in the country," he said.
Nursen Gökçek, who attended the rally with a walking stick in her hand,
noted that she had witnessed several military interventions and coup
attempts since she was 15. "We are facing new risks of anti-democratic
interventions because we didn't raise our voices against them. Enough is
enough," she remarked.
Zeynep Ak, a university student, said the common wish of all participants of
the march was to live in a more democratic Turkey. "My thoughts and beliefs
are different from many people who are rallying beside me today. But,
despite all our differences, our common wish is to live freely in this
country," she said.
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