George Bush had the opportunity, following 11/9/01 or ‘9/11’ in Northern American usage, to show moral leadership and convince the world that the USA is a country which promotes justice, freedom and human integrity and that it was not interested in petty revenge.  

That moral high ground which was thrust into the USA’s lap by 9/11 has been utterly and completely lost as the USA in its ‘war on terrorism’ goes about creating more terrorism by pursuing war with Iraq. It is clear that Bush is gunning (sic) for Saddam Hussein and Iraq almost no matter what happens. What possible threat does Hussein offer to the West in a situation where he is hemmed in as he is now?  Significantly less than the threat from other quarters. And what had Iraq to do with 9/11?  Nothing.

If the USA was really interested in democracy and human freedom it might encourage the possibilities of nonviolent direct action against the current Iraqi regime. The experience of the Second World War showed that hidden disobedience could be effective opposition in extremely difficult situations.  And the experience of the overthrow of communist regimes in Eastern Europe showed that even the mighty and repressive can fall. That is not to say such a course of action is easy or without risks; clearly not under a brutal regime which has crushed any dissent it possibly can find.  But in the long term it would serve the people of Iraq well in terms of democratisation and equalisation of power.

Instead what the USA wants is a ‘Saddam Hussein’ dictatorship which is friendly to the West and in particular to the USA and its oil interests – just as the restoration of the Kuwaiti regime in the last Gulf War brought no changes to the regime.

Meanwhile the Irish government is plain scared of saying ‘boo’ because of the economic might and investment of the USA in Ireland. Despite a constitutional article saying the state cannot wage war or be involved in war without the consent of Dáil Éireann, the Irish government seems happy to support the USA no matter what they get up to militarily. Article 28.3.1 of the Constitution states; “War shall not be declared and the State shall not participate in any war save with the assent of Dáil Éireann.”

The USA may be an internal democracy (just about, given how the current President was elected). But it has one of the most vicious records of all countries, bar none, in fostering foreign coups, repressive regimes, and feathering its own economic nest through military action. That is a difficult message for the people of the USA to know and understand but it is true, as testified by that other ‘9/11’ in Chile in 1973.

If the USA and Britain are justified in attacking Iraq, by the same twisted logic then dozens of countries in Latin America, southern Africa, and elsewhere, are justified in attacking the USA; Chile, Cuba, Angola, to name a few, because of repressive US involvement in their internal affairs.  And Iraq would be justified in attacking Britain for its colonial misdeeds in the area.

The path of nonviolence is not always an easy one.  It does not always have instant answers.  But then neither does violence necessarily have instant answers – it just ‘looks that way’ sometimes to some persons in the street (though not necessarily in relation to the forthcoming war). An awareness of nonviolent action in all its forms is one of the best protections of the rights of citizens in Iraq, the USA, or the UK.  And the peace movements in the last two states may find themselves rapidly having to exert their claims in a situation where their foolhardy leaders are rushing in to an explosive situation and creating the very reaction from Saddam Hussein (use of weapons of mass destruction) that they say they are trying to prevent by their action.

Bush and Blair both proclaim their Christian ideology. The Christian ‘Just War’ theory is somewhat dated due to modern mass destruction techniques but that theory itself is a ‘conservative’ Christian one which was a departure from the original nonviolence of the Christian church in its first couple of centuries. There is no way that war on Iraq can be justified by ‘Just War’ thinking. In looking at US/UK government thinking we thus return to some concept of a ‘Western’ or ‘Christian’ crusade – yes, crusade – as the rationale behind their proposed military actions, that is, a further departure from the teaching of Jesus.  No, it does not go under the label of converting/killing heathens but it is essentially the same; we have might, we are right, and we are right to kill others to get what we want and how we define the interests of others.  Its logic is closed, its ears are closed, it has no compassion and only a vengeful sword.  Tony Blair as an erstwhile ‘Christian socialist’ should be ashamed of where he has ended up.  Both Bush and Blair represent the very worst of ‘Christian’ right-wing militarist thinking in relation to the current international situation.

A war, even with ‘UN approval’ – bullied and bribed by the USA – cannot be justified. The situation in which Saddam Hussein will use any weapons of mass destruction he has is when he is cornered (even the official psychiatrist advising the US government told them that). But the USA cannot accept feeling powerless when they have ratcheted up the stakes so high; this is as much, or more about the USA’s status as global superpower as it is about Iraq.  But sometimes in life the appropriate thing to do is accept that there are no instant solutions, wait – and work for justice. And one aspect of justice, on the Iraqi side, is that the cruel and inhumane sanctions which have resulted in half a million or more Iraqi deaths since the Gulf war should be removed.

If George Bush and Tony Blair were to reflect on their Christian beliefs they might discover another, different, way. If they were to reflect on their humanity, they might discover a different way.  If they were to reflect on pragmatic politics in a global environment, they might discover a different way. The desert sand in the hourglass is running out but let us hope that they can still be persuaded that there is a different way, and that humility in the situation is better than hostility; backing down would be difficult but, who knows, they could even regain some moral high ground by doing so. And they would have prevented many possible disasters.

It is our job, still at this late hour, to help Bush and Blair see the light….that may seem increasingly impossible but it is still our job at this stage - unless they really have their heads stuck so far into the Iraqi sand that they cannot see any of the reality that is so blindingly obvious around the world.

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What’s it been like at Shannon airport? Here Peace Camp/Refuelling Peace stalwart Tim Hourigan gives an account of a day in January (from the Peace Camp website at www.shannonpeacecamp.org)

Shannon Gardai Asked To Investigate Aircraft
by Tim Hourigan
Shannon Peace Camp Tue, Jan 14 2003, 7:56am
phone: 086-3784780 shannonpeacecamp@hotmail.com

No investigation as unknown cargo escapes scrutiny of Inspectors

At Shannon Sunday three military charter flights landed in the space of 20 minutes. Two were passenger planes, and we saw HUNDREDS of troops in desert cammo (so did TG4’s camera crew. Then we saw a Cargo plane, operating for the US military. We photographed it, identified it, and then rang the local Garda station (on their direct line, not 999). We informed the Gardai of the plane, that we had reason to believe that it was carrying a large quantity of munitions, explosives or other weapons. And formally requested that they urgently inspect the aircraft. They did no such thing. When the same thing happened on Monday morning the Airport Police pulled out all the stops to intimidate the monitors. Still no response from the Garda Siochana.

At 2:45 on Sunday afternoon, I was helping out at the peace camp when I spotted a suspicious white airplane landing. I grabbed my binoculars and ran from the peace camp up to the fence to get a better look. Jarleth who came up from Cork went with me. The aircraft was an L-1011 (Lockheed Tristar). It had ATA markings at the front, and on the roof it said “PLEASANT HAWAIIAN HOLIDAYS”. ATA (American Trans Air) frequent Shannon airport carrying troops (as do WORLD, NORTH AMERICAN amongst others). I called some of the others from the Peace camp to come and witness.

As we watched the ATA plane taxi in, a World Airways Md-11 landed on runway two-four, less than 5 minutes after ATA touched down. We grabbed binoculars and cameras and headed for the terminal. Ed Horgan, Jarleth and I drove up and we saw, photographed and videotaped US troops in desert camouflage battle dress disembarking and heading towards the duty free and bar of the transit lounge. As we headed to get round for a better look at the plane, we came across a TG4 camera man who was also videotaping the troops. We spoke to him and he told us how he’d been up by the tower to get a better shot but was moved on by the airport police. The Airport police were shadowing us but not approaching us or speaking to us.

I got talking to the TG4 reporter, using my limited cupla focal “ta a lan eitlean militeach feicthe agam ag an t-aerfort seo. Anois ta cupla cead saighduiri taobh istigh sa foirgneamh an t-aerfort. Is e mo thuarim go bhfuil said ag tuirlingt I gcuinne airteagal 28.3.1 Bunreacht na hEireann” and maybe one or two sentences more (apologies for errors in my very rusty Irish).

Luckily Ed arrived with his fluent Irish and did a piece to camera. As he did so, a 747 landed on runway two-four. It was just after 3pm. This aircraft was the THIRD UNSCHEDULED LANDING in 15 MINUTES.

I recognised it immediately as being a cargo jet operated by Evergreen International. Evergreen have only recently appeared in Shannon, following a US$75 million dollar contract with the US Air Mobility Command to transport cargo for the US armed forces. Evergreen have been in several times in recent days. We’re not sure how many times or different aircraft they have used, but the one common factor is that no cargo comes off the plane or goes on to it while at Shannon. The plane simply sits there for about two hours being refuelled. Obviously, its cargo is destined for someplace else.

The first few sightings were of a 747-200F (a Freighter Jumbo) registered as N485EV with serial number 23610. This time the plane was N470EV, (serial 20653) which is a 747-200C (designed to convert quickly between passenger and freight configurations). Using Ed’s video camera I taped the plane taxiing in to the cargo areaTG4 also captured it on tape as Ed spoke on. Once finished the interview/agallamh, we walked down to the tailfin sculpture to get a better look at this dodgy Jumbo. Knowing of Evergreen’s huge military contract, I believe that there is every likelihood that these jumbos are transporting serious amounts of munitions, weapons and perhaps explosives from the US bases to Kuwait or Bahrain. As admitted by Gardai and Airport Police under Oath at Dubsky’s trial, NONE OF THESE AIRCRAFT HAS EVER BEEN SUBJECT TO AN INSPECTION.

I decided that there was an urgent need to inspect the aircraft, so, I rang the direct line to Shannon Garda station. The conversation went as follows:- Garda “Hello, Shannon Garda Station”  Tim: “Hello, to which Garda am I speaking please?” Garda: “This is Garda “H” here” (“H” arrested me on September 4th 2001 shortly after Dubsky was arrested).  Tim: “Ah, Garda “H”, you know me well. It’s Tim Hourigan here”  Garda:  “Yes, Tim, how are you doing?” Tim: “Not too well actually, I’m up at the airport and there’s a serious situation here. There’s a cargo plane just landed and I have reason to believe that it is carrying a large amount of weapons and explosives. It’s a Jumbo Jet, a 747 belonging to Evergreen International, a company with a $75 million dollar contract to the US air mobility command to carry US military cargo. I’m formally requesting that you come up and investigate the aircraft. I have a decorated former UN peacekeeper here with me, ex-Army Commandant Ed Horgan, if you’d like his assistance or advice”. Garda: “Could you give that again, the plane is…”? Tim: “It’s a Jumbo Jet, a 747 belonging to Evergreen International, a company with a $75 million dollar contract to the US air mobility command to carry US military cargo. It’s a large green and white plane. It has parked at the cargo terminal and it says Evergreen International on the side in giant letters.”  Garda: “Have you a number there, a mobile”  Tim: “Yes, it’s 086-3784780”  Garda: “Okay, we’ll look into that and get back to you”. >Ends>

A good while goes past while we look at the plane, take photos of the stairs being wheeled over. No cargo doors are opened and no cargo trucks appear. The plane is being fuelled and the cabin crew come down to go into an office. Meanwhile I am interviewing Ed on camera, asking him his opinion on the likely contents of the aircraft, given his military experience. Ed says that based on his military and UN experience it is his belief that in the aircraft is very probably carrying weapons. I ask him if he would be more qualified to make that assumption than, for example, Garda Inspector Tom Kennedy who thinks these aircraft carry nothing more volatile than hamburgers, according to his statements during the Dubsky trial. Ed says that while it is possible there may be some pack rations on some of the planes, it is very probable that the bulk of the contents is weaponry, and that there is an urgent need to verify the contents. Besides his 22 years in the Army, Commandant Horgan (retired) is also a qualified security and fire safety consultant. He was rather alarmed at the vulnerable position that the aircraft was parked in, at a civilian airport. The plane has been on the ground for quite some time now, and there’s no sign of anyone inspecting the aircraft. Concerned that the Gardai have not yet shown up, Ed telephones the Garda station. I videotaped him doing this. He spoke to Garda “H”, explained who and where he was, his suspicions about the plane and formally requested that the aircraft be inspected as a matter of urgency. He gave his mobile phone number to Garda “H” as well.

We moved closer to the aircraft to better view the goings on. We stood at the fence by the catering delivery area where we could observe the aircraft without large buildings obstructing it. I heard an airport employee call security and the AP10 squad car arrived down next to the plane. It was not however inspecting the plane. The driver was patrolling up and down following us and we shot footage from different angles.

We were approached by two men who claimed to be in charge of the catering area. They said we were on private property and we had to leave. I informed them that we were on public property, that the catering company are merely tenants of the state aerodrome and that we were not interfering with their business, and were in the process of recording a possible crime. Further I added that they had no power to order us to leave unless they were warranted airport police officers or members of An Garda Siochana, whose arrival we were expecting shortly.

The Garda never came. The airport police never approached us. As we stood and watched the American Trans air plane taxi out to the runway, Garda “H” rang my mobile. Garda “H” said that he had telephoned immigration to ‘get on to it’ and that they had spoken to the pilot, who said it carried no weapons, and that

the plane had now left. I replied that the plane had not left as I was looking at it. I stated that the plane which had left was the ATA Lockheed Tristar, which carries troops, not cargo, and is about half the size of a 747. I reminded Garda “H” that I had specifically described a jumbo jet, with the words “Evergreen International” in big letters on the side. I told him no airport police had approached the area except to watch Ed and myself, and that I believed immigration must have asked the wrong pilot. At this point Garda “H” said that their received position was that there is an agreement between the Irish and US government and that we take it on faith that these aircraft are not carrying weapons, and that they will not inspect the aircraft I was disgusted. I told him that I considered this to be dereliction of duty and that I wanted to bring the matter further .I asked him who I should speak to. I asked if I could raise the matter with either Supt John Kerin or Inspector Kennedy and told him I had a mobile phone number for Inspector Kennedy.

We moved away from the area to report back to the peace camp. While I gave interviews informing the media, Ed called Inspector Kennedy. Ed rang Inspector Kennedy’s mobile and left a message, giving the details and urging a speedy response. I rang John Gormley, TD to inform him of the matter, and gave him Inspector Kennedy’s number so that he would be able to make his own enquiries. Shortly afterwards, the 747 took off from runway two-four, and turned to go east. We were incensed, not only at the use of the airport for war, but also at the lack of response by the local Garda Siochana.

I went home to eat shower and sleep. That night I would be heading to the airport to take the “graveyard shift” at plane monitoring. Ironically, the time between midnight and sunrise is often the busiest period for military flights, so it’s not quite the graveyard shift. I observed a number of aircraft land, (World and ATA) and troops were seen disembarking from them. I spent most of the night on my own, although I occasionally had company (other witnesses and providers of hot chocolate) At 08:45, I was just about ready to pack up and go, having video-taped a number of illegal flights, and run out of battery power. Then, I saw the outline of a 747 approaching from the North East. Within the last mile of final approach I could clearly see it was an Evergreen International aircraft. Before the wheels had touched the ground I had dialled 061-361212 Shannon Town Garda Station .As the plane roared past, and the sound of brakes and thrust reversers abated, Garda “K” answered the phone I gave her all the details of the aircraft, this one was N485EV  not N470EV reported the previous afternoon. I told her it was just finished its landing run and would be making a left turn to head to the cargo terminal. I gave Garda “K” my telephone number and asked her to call us back so we would know what was happening. We then went to the cargo terminal. Just me, Becky and my binoculars.

The scene at the cargo terminal was pretty similar to the previous day. No open cargo doors, not cargo trucks, just refuelling. An airport police car came down towards the plane to keep an eye on us (not the plane). After a while two airport police vans started patrolling around two. They showed no interest in asking us our business or even our names, they just kept driving around staring at us. Eventually one of the airport police vehicles came out and drove by us a few times. I tried to wave them down, and even though they passed within feet of me they would not stop. There was no sign of the Gardai, and I was out of phone credit. So I stepped out in front of the slowly approaching Airport police vehicle to alert them to the problem The APO inspector signalled to drive around me. I blocked the way saying I needed to talk to him. Fearing that he might drive away if I approached the window, Becky took my place while I went to the passenger side. The passenger was an Airport Inspector who was on prior occasions refused to give his name or produce his warrant card (as he is obliged to do under the Air Transport and Navigation Act) I asked the APO his name. He ignored me.  asked to see his warrant card. He ignored me.

I asked him if he had inspected the aircraft. He ignored me. I asked him if he would inspect the aircraft. He said was “I wouldn’t advise you to stand there now,” in a patronising tone, and waving his hand to move me on. I asked him “why not?”. He did not reply except to say again “I wouldn’t advise you to stand there”. This stonewalling went on for two more repetitions. I told him I had already called the Gardai and was awaiting their arrival and inspection of the aircraft. With that he came out of the car, marched past me, and started complaining provocatively at Becky because she had parked on a double yellow! We told him we would move the car, but more importantly he should deal with the plane. He towered over Becky and kept provoking her about the car. He was repetitive, answered no questions and used a patronising tone. I asked him again for his warrant card. At this point the fire engines started to emerge from the airfield and drive up and down past us, for no apparent reason. There were no sirens, no flashing lights, nothing to suggest a reason for them to drive back and forth, other than a show of force designed to intimidate us. We began to fear that we might be faced down with water cannons.

I asked the APO once more, loud enough for others to hear “WILL YOU PRODUCE YOUR WARRANT CARD, AS REQUIRED BY THE AIR TRANSPORT AND NAVIGATION ACT?”. “No” he replied. “You’re refusing to comply with the law?” I asked. “That’s right he said” and drove off. Then the fire engines drove up and down again.

Just then, I got a phone call from Midlands radio. They asked me what the situation was like in Shannon. I gave a live on the spot report to their listeners, even relaying the getaway from the scene of the crime as the 747 backed out from the terminal to go to the runway. Yet again, we had no sign of the police. Mary rang the Shannon Garda Station to find out what they were doing. She then rang Commissioner Byrne’s office to make a complaint that the Gardai were not investigating a crime. I went back to the house, burning up with anger at the gross abuses I had witnessed.

About 10 minutes after the plane took off. Garda “K” rang me back. “Now, you were on to me about a plane…”“Yes, it took off about 10 minutes ago” I said. She told me that the position, was that there’s an understanding between the Irish Government, Department of Justice, and the US Government, and we don’t inspect the planes.” I told her that she had sworn to uphold the STATE not the government, and that she was obliged to disobey any illegal orders she might receive. She said she did not consider them to be illegal. I offered to explain the illegality to her in a written statement after I had slept. I asked if she had a written record of my complaint. She said she did. I asked if she could produce it in the High Court. She said she did. I told her that she might end up doing so.

Later on I read about the Taoiseach denying that these planes carry weapons. If he’s right then the airport police are very, very, overprotective of the US military’s cargo of boot polish, beef rations, and big shiny medals to give to pilots who bomb defenceless Iraqi civilians.

Visit www.shannonpeacecamp.org for more.

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We are pleased to have some more from our correspondent Serge:

Serge Comment? 

Sometimes proud to be nearly Irish
At this time of night, the streets are deserted in this small provincial town. A dense fog covers everything with a thick coat of pure dampness. No signs of life, except for the street lights and the gyrating spot of the lighthouse. Night in a small French harbour: silence and loneliness…

Except for the four Kurds taking shelter (and producing heat) in the telephone booth. Or the six Afghans crouched under the local post-office porch.  Not to mention the five Kosovars who have just arrived from Hamburg and are still on the look-out for shelter. The vents of the bakery are a good spot at 4 a.m. when it’s not raining: it’s warm, and it has the smell of home.

They closed the Red Cross camp at Sangate, Calais (the last step before Holy-Brit-land on that long road that some have been on for more than a year).

And a world full of hopes keeps ending at this desolated bottleneck, ready to dig another tunnel under the seas, if necessary, to reach and conquer mythical England. No more bed and shelter under the Red Cross banner… only the street to gather their strength before embarking on the last stretch of the journey.

And they started sleeping in the church. Then the journalist came, then the Gardes Mobiles. The bishops didn’t object to the eviction… On the contrary: ‘that church has no toilet or bathroom, and it’s against respect for human rights to let people live in such conditions’ (for more than the time it takes to say Mass anyway). A simple question of Public Hygiene… (If at least they could take care of their own mental hygiene!) And after being evicted (in what manner I don’t yet know at time of writing, but I remember another eviction in Paris where the Gardes Mobiles used axes to break the church doors) those unfortunate and obstinate travellers got a five-day prefectoral pass for street hygiene… Before the hunt will start again.

In Castleknock, Ireland, which happens to be covered by the same dense fog, before leaving school a teacher checks to see if she is being followed or watched by anybody. A few turns around the block, to be sure there’s nobody behind, and she is off for an unknown destination, where two pupils from her own class await her for news… and some one-to-one classes. They are in hiding, with their mum, in the holiday home of one of the parents of the school. They are Kosovars, and the gardaí came to the school to look for them…  That teacher is performing an illegal act with a mandate, and the whole school, from the principal to the toilet cleaner, is backing her. Pure civil resistance because they know that their duty is to provide those children with proper education and rights, and not surrender them to any uniformed authority only to be dumped once again on the harsh roads of Europe. Instead of working on their traditional Xmas fundraising event, the parent/teacher association of that Educate Together school embarked on activities usually undertaken by some well-known illegal organisations, while the parents were demonstrating here and there under the banner ‘Don’t take our Kosovars away’…

Ha! sometimes I’m proud to be nearly Irish!

By the way, I lost my foreign accent in this letter, in case you didn’t notice! I’m really on the road to integration! Wether Billy King likes it or not!  

Where the Shannon protests flow
Shannon Airport, Saturday the 18th of January. It was the biggest peace demo I ever attended in my ten years in Ireland. A big success, even if the organisation was rather poor: very weak loudspeaker, no control of the order of the march (they let the political parties hijack the event by letting the Labour banner occupy the front of the march), and no control of the so-called anarchists who could have destroyed the spirit of the day if the Gardaí had not done their job properly by not responding to provocation. (That bunch of masked men – do they have such ugly faces that they have to hide them? – should go back to their history books: wearing a red and black flag and spraying walls with ‘class war’, the main stalinist slogan, is quite childish!).

Anyway, a good start for a campaign which will follow with a demo in Dublin, a court case, an e-mail and telephone ‘jam for peace’ action to block ministerial lines, and other actions that will no doubt come to light soon.

The first concrete result of the day was that all military flights were cancelled that day.

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