Vaste programme donc pour le blogueur débutant que je suis, démêler et recouper les différentes versions de ce qui s'est réellement passé à Sidi Ifni pour tenter d'y voir clair, et prendre position en conclusion. Il faut dire que j'ai longtemps hésité à traiter le sujet surtout pour le halo de mystères qui enveloppent cette émeute, comme jamais le Maroc du XXI^ème siècle n'en a connu, du moins d'aussi poussées que celle-ci.

Pour dérouler le fil des évènements je me baserais sur des sources aussi diverses que l'AMDH, le rapport d'Attac Maroc, le blog "Collectif belge pour la solidarité avec Sidi Ifni", le blog d'Ibn Kafka, le blog d'Alan Bertho, le rapport de l'OMDH, et Nichane (leur dossier est basé sur ce dernier). Pour les éléments qui sont sujet à litige, je les citerais en indiquant leur source.

Petite mise en contexte d'abord : Sidi Ifni, une ancienne enclave espagnole, a été restituée au Maroc en 1969.  Depuis, la ville marocaine, siège des tribus Aït Baâmrane célèbres pour leur résistance contre l'occupant espagnol, est l'épicentre de cette région sous-développée du Maroc. L'unique moteur du développement, le port tout juste inauguré en 2000 après deux décennies de sa programmation, enregistre la principale activité économique locale. Plus grave encore, les besoins essentiels en termes d'eau et d'électricité retardent les projets prévus, tels ce chimérique complexe industriel, et effrayent les investisseurs potentiels. C'est donc au rythme d'une situation de développement humain au bord du gouffre -et l'INDH n'est pas une recette-miracle, contrairement au tintamarre médiatique qu'on nous martèle depuis nos chaînes "nationales"-, que vit la population, ce qui la rend apte à adhérer à toute forme de contestation sociale...

Récit des évènements :

C'est par un samedi 30 mai que tout a commencé. Une dizaine de personnes se sont rassemblées devant la municipalité, juste après l'annonce des résultats d'un tirage au sort aux résultats contestés, et qui aboutit sur la sélection de 8 éboueurs parmi 972 candidats. Une marche a été organisée vers les port de Sidi Ifni, où les manifestant ont dressé trois tentes et commencé à bloquer la circulation, tandis qu'ils retenaient 89 camions chargés de poisson et 20 voitures qui se trouvaient là -bas. Une délégation de la province de Tiznit se dirigea vers les lieux du litige pour tenter de lever le blocus, en vain. Selon Nichane, les revendications des manifestants, formulées face aux autorités venues négocier, peuvent se résumer en cinq points : une province de Sidi Ifni rattachée au Sahara, création d'emplois à l'instar de ce qui se fait pour les diplômés chômeurs sahraouis, achèvement des travaux du port et implémentation de solutions aux problèmes posés, achèvement de la route reliant Sidi Ifni à Tan Tan, amélioration et gratuité des services médicaux. Alors que les rumeurs courent à propos de l'arrivée imminente des forces de l'ordre depuis Agadir, les manifestant s'empressent de bloquer l'entrée principale de la ville.

Et c'est le samedi suivant (le 7 juin), que tout s'emballera. Les forces de l'ordre débarquent de bon matin et sèment la terreur parmi les habitants. Lever le blocus, arrêter les manifestants impliqués dans des actes criminels avérés : il était naturel et légitime que les forces de l’ordre finissent par intervenir pour faire appliquer la loi. Malheureusement, et il faut vraiment s'en désoler, l’intervention sécuritaire a totalement dérapé, vu que les policiers ont poursuivi certains manifestants jusque dans leurs domiciles, les ont battus avec de gros bâtons leur causant des fractures dans différentes régions du corps et les ont humiliés par leurs insultes. De même, selon l'AMDH, les citoyennes et citoyens ont été victimes de harcèlement sexuel, de viols et de vols de leurs biens, de pillage d’ordinateurs, de téléphones portables, de bijoux et d’argent. Les forces publiques ont usé de bombes lacrymogènes, de balles de caoutchouc, de pierre et de bâtons contre des manifestations pacifiques enfreignant ainsi le code des libertés publiques. En outre, les détenus ont été gravement torturés et ont souffert de la vengeance qu’ils ont dû subir en dépit de la prohibition par les chartes internationales de la torture et de tous les actes humiliants et dégradants qui portent atteinte à l’intégrité physique et à la sécurité personnelle.

Signalons toutefois cet acte pour le moins ignoble perpétré par les manifestants : ils ont tenté de brûler vif un caïd, en déversant sur lui de l'essence pour l'enflammer ensuite. S'il s'en est sorti indemne, cette tentative n'en reste pas moins totalement condamnable.

Conséquences et résultats :

Les principaux dégâts économiques recensés par l'OMDH sont : 89 camions immobilisés d'où 6 millions de dirhams de pertes, arrêt de 400 embarcations de pêche frontalières, arrêt de ravitaillement de 30 navires et destruction de panneaux de signalisation. Les dégâts écologiques, quant à eux, résident dans le pourrissement de 700 tonnes de poisson.

Sur le plan sécuritaire, si on peut déplorer le recours à un genre de manifestation aussi radical que d'occuper le port, paralysant au passage l'activité économique , et surtout les violences ponctuelles commises ici et là par une catégorie de manifestants exacerbés, on doit aussi et surtout souligner avec insistance la dérive sécuritaire infiniment dangereuse qui a entraîné les pires exactions des droits de l'homme qui soient : Tout d'abord l'intervention dans les quartiers de Sidi ifni était parfaitement injustifiée, puisque les manifestants du port on été neutralisés presque sur-le-champ et rien n'indique qu'il eût résistance. C'est donc cette action  injustifiée qui a été à l'origine de la plupart des actes illégaux commis par les mroud (Forces auxiliaires). Par la suite, les éléments de ce corps ont proféré des insultes à l'encontre de civils sans distinction (femmes, enfants, personnes âgées...), ont frappés, blessés, rossés à coup de matraques ces mêmes civils. Ils ont envahis les demeures, et cassés portes et mobilier. Ceux qui se sont plaint de ce traitement, et bien, guess what ? , ils ont aussi été arrêtés et torturés. Des plaintes pour vols de sommes d'argent allant jusqu'à 25000 dirhams on été enregistrées, de même que des vols d'objet. En contrepartie, les forces de l'ordre ont reçu des jets de pierre de la parre des manifestants, entraînant blessure de certains agents. Bilan final : 69 blessés, dont 34 civils et 35 parmi les forces publiques, la plupart étant légèrement atteints. Enfin, il y a probablement eu des cas de viols, tandis qu'il n'existe pas de preuves formelles de décès, hormis des témoignages rapportés par l'Attac.

L'explication de cette attaque sauvage de la part des forces de l'ordre résiderait, selon Nichane, de l'humeur générales de troupes venues d'Agadir, et dont les membres pensaient que plus vite ils materaient la révolte plus vite ils rentreraient chez eux, d'où le recours systématique et appuyé à la violence illégitime et la torture barbare. Les rumeurs colportés par leurs supérieurs ont jeté le feu sur l'huile : on leur a présenté les ifnaouis comme des séparatistes, ce qui n'a pas manqué de provoqué un excès de zèle "nationaliste" des mroud.

On a trop commenté les tenants et aboutissants de la polémique médiatique Al Jazeera vs. l'Etat marocain, je ne compte pas y revenir sauf pour dire que, étant d'accord avec Larbi et Ibn Kafka, je crois à un règlement de compte du côté marocain, qui a une dent contre El Jazeera depuis bien longtemps. Il n'est qu'à se rappeler les déclarations de notre sommité de la makhzénophilie, Khalid Naciri, qui jette l'anathème sur la chaîne qatarie à chaque fois qui il en trouve l'occasion. De plus, relire les dizaines d'articles (dont voici un exemple choisi et commenté par Ibn Kafka) dans le Matin du Sahara, qui dénigraient la chaîne, connue pour sa neutralité (quoique un peu biaisée par une tendance à pencher vers les islamistes), dissipe tout doute raisonnable...

Conclusion :

Nonobstant les dérives radicales des manifestants et leurs revendications un tantinet irréaliste, ajouté à leur refus de compromis, l'État marocain doit assumer la majeure part de responsabilité de la situation à Sidi Ifni. L'intervention sécuritaire plus que musclée, a dégénéré par les violations graves des droits de l'Homme qu'elle a engendré, occasionnant chez la population locale énormément de dégâts matériels et de préjudice moral. C'est un carburant offert gratuitement pour développer les rancœurs plus qu'elles ne le sont aujourd'hui, d'exacerber les revendications sociales partout dans le Maroc. Une énième éclaboussure compromettant toute chance d'aboutir à une paix sociale, du moins à court terme. Quand est-ce que le Makhzen cessera de commettre de pareilles gaffes sécuritaires et médiatiques, et tournera définitivement la page des violations des droits de l'homme ?

PS: Pour les vidéos et autres articles de presse de part le monde, prière de se rapporter au billet d'Alain Bertho, ainsi qu'à ce billet des Observers.

Aham, e os árabes levaram mais um jogador nosso. Marcinho é um daqueles que se envolveu num recente escândalozinho com prostitutas numa festa no sítio dum flamenguista, lembra? É, ele mesmo, foi indicado por Abel Braga para jogar no clube árabe. Ele até já deixou a concentração do clube e nem joga hoje contra o Coritiba, hora de secar mais ainda o Flamengo, já que seu artilheiro foi embora.

Marcinho passou em 2005 pelo Grêmio, e em seguida foi para o Genclebirligi, da Turquia, onde não se adaptou, e voltou para o Atlético-MG. As informações são do site do Estadão. Como eu disse, hora de secar o Flamengo! Ainda mais agora que o Pereira voltou a estampar a entrada do site do Grêmio! Hohoho, que coisa hein. Vamo lá!

Por: Kaka'

He writes,

While the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis - for which Bush, and along with him, the American people who twice elected him, are responsible - is tragic, it should not be understated that the invasion itself was a crime against humanity.

The war and invasion were in clear breach of the UN charter, which prohibits invading other countries except when an attack on one's sovereign territory is about to occur or has just occurred.

Add to that US torturing of prisoners, illegal secret renditions, and a host of other human rights abuses, and you have a long list of actions that are prohibited and outlawed by US federal law.

Read the entire article here. It does make one stop and think.

Will post Part 2 when it becomes available.

Warning

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This video may contain images depicting the reality and horror of war/violence and should only be viewed by a mature audience.

AlJazeeraEnglish

Following the emergence of videos showing Mexican police being taught torture methods by a US security firm, Riz Khan speaks to Laura Carlsen of the Center for International Policy and Tamara Taraciuk, a lawyer for Human Rights Watch.

De internationale kranten hebben vandaag veel lieve woorden over voor België, op hun voorpagina zelfs. Sympathiek! ;-)

El País, Spanje: El desgobierno político vuelve a sacudir Bélgica
Le Monde, Frankrijk: La démission du premier ministre Yves Leterme ravive la crise belge
Süddeutsche Zeitung, Duitsland: Belgische Regierung am Ende
BBC Online: Belgian PM offers his resignation
NRC Handelsblad, Nederland: Leterme biedt ontslag regering aan
Al Jazeera: Belgian PM offers to quit

Ze zijn allemaal zo bezorgd over het voortbestaan van ons landje. De wereld geeft om ons, hoera!

[En only]

""" At least 15 people, including a woman and a child, have been killed in a US air raid in eastern Afghanistan, a provincial governor has said.(...) But Tamim Nuristani, the governor, told Al Jazeera that two cars carrying civilians, including doctors from a local clinic, were hit by missiles from US helicopters.(...) """ [ AlJazeera]

Mohammed Omer - Gaza Correspondent, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs

"""

At a June 16 ceremony in London, Mohammed Omer, author of the regular Washington Report feature “Gaza on the Ground,” received the 2008 Martha Gellhorn Prize for Journalism. He shared the prestigious prize with independent American journalist Dahr Jamail, who was honored for his “unembedded” reports from Iraq.

Before traveling to England to receive his award, Omer spoke in Sweden, the Netherlands and Greece about the situation in Gaza. Dutch MP Hans Van Baalen, head of the parliament’s foreign relations committee, and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist John Pilger spent weeks lobbying Israel to issue an exit permit to allow this young reporter to travel to Europe and London.

Not for the first time, however, getting home was even harder than leaving.

As soon as Omer arrived in Amman, the Dutch diplomats who were helping facilitate his travel arrangements informed him that the Israelis did not want to allow him to return. After further intervention by his Dutch sponsors, Omer finally got the green light, and on the morning of June 26 crossed from Jordan into the occupied territories via the Allenby Bridge. There he was interrogated, strip-searched and manhandled for several hours. After losing consciousness, he finally was taken to a hospital in Jericho, and from there escorted back to Gaza.

MP Van Baalen has demanded that Israel launch an investigation into Omer’s barbaric treatment.

From his hospital bed at the European Hospital in Gaza and with barely audible voice, award-winning Palestinian journalist Mohammed Omer has given a full account of the hair-raising encounter he had last week with Shin Beth agents at the Allenby Bridge border-crossing between Jordan and the West Bank.

Omer, a co-winner of the 2008 Martha Gelhorn Prize for Journalistic Excellence, said he was abused, assaulted , humiliated, ridiculed, kicked, and strip-searched at gunpoint by undisciplined Shin Beth officers until he had a nervous breakdown in which case he lost consciousness for at least 90 minutes.

A resident of Rafah at the southern edge of the Gaza Strip, Omer said he didn”t know for sure why the Shin Beth people treated him in such a barbaric manner apart from the characteristic sadism and savagery routinely meted out to Palestinians.

”They behaved with unimaginable hatefulness and vindictiveness. They couldn’t accept the very idea of a Palestinian journalist winning a renowned journalism prize. They wanted to punish me for being a successful journalist and especially for exposing Israeli barbarianism to the people of Europe.”

The following is Mohammed Omer’s story as intimated by him to this writer:

”On Thursday, 26 June, the Israeli authorities finally allowed me to return to Gaza after several days of waiting and uncertainty in Jordan. When I arrived at the Allenby Bridge Border Crossing, I was dragged away rather unceremoniously to a special room where I was made to wait for more than 90 minutes. This happened as Dutch diplomats who were accompanying me were waiting outside.

”When I arrived on the Israeli side of the Allenby Bridge, I encountered an Israeli female officer who started mocking me in a brazenly insulting manner.

”She asked me repeatedly where Gaza was. She then said I had no permit to return to Gaza via Israel.

”Then a Shin Beth officer who introduced himself as ”Avi” showed up and took me to an isolated room where I was kept stranded for an hour and a half.

”He asked me ”Oh, You are Mohammed Omer.

”Yes, I said.

”You know you are a fool,” said Avi, adding ”how could you leave Europe and return to Gaza where there is no water, no electricity, nothing.

”I told him Gaza was my country, and I was a journalist and wanted to be a voice for the voiceless.

”A voice for the voiceless,” Avi spoke sarcastically.

”He then asked me if I was carrying any contrabands or guns or knives.

”I said no, I had none.

”Then he asked me to produce the money of the prize I won. I told him that the money would be transferred later to my bank account.”

”Then one Shin Beth agent demanded in a stern tone that I hand all the money I was carrying with me over to them. They didn”t believe I didn”t have the prize money with me.

”Disappointed, Avi, who was carrying a pistol in his hand, ordered me to take off all my clothes, which I did, leaving my underwear. At the same time, another officer was pointing an M-16 rifle in my face.

”Take the underwear as well,” he said. ”I told him I wouldn’t. What do you want from me,” I protested in a suffocated voice.

”Then he ganged up on me and forcibly removed my underwear piece, leaving me completely naked.”

”Avi, training the pistol at me, told me to turn right and turn left, before telling me to get dressed again.

”At that point, I was nearly totally broken emotionally. I felt I was being raped. I cried and pleaded to them to leave me alone, but to no avail”

”Telling me I haven’t seen anything yet, they dragged me to another room where they interrogated me on my speaking tour in Britain, Sweden and Greece.

”Oh, you have not left a place in Europe without speaking at”You know these Europeans, they hate Israel.

”Then another Shin Bet officer began kicking me and pushing me. This lasted for more than ten minutes after which I fainted and lost consciousness. Eventually they began dragging me along the floor by my feet with my head banging on the floor.

”I don”t remember much of what happened to me during this period, but remember a Shin Beth officer piercing his finger right below my eyes and at the lower end of ears. Also, another Shin Beth officer was pressing his large boots against my neck as I was lying unconscious on the ground.

”I thought I was dying. I remained in a state of unconsciousness for up to 90 minutes until a medical doctor, who was carrying an M-16, performed an (electro-cardiogram) or ECG on me.

”Then I heard someone saying the word ”ambulance.”

”However, before a Palestinian ambulance from Jericho arrived, a Shin Beth officer came to me and asked me to sign a form that I was not being maltreated by the Shin Beth.

”I was too distraught, too confused and too unconscious to say anything.

”Eventually, I was taken to the Jericho hospital where I was assured by doctors that I was fine.”

Mohammed Omer said the Israeli Shin Beth inserted a special electronic device into his mobile phone which would enable them to know his whereabouts.

He also called upon his colleagues around the world to condemn in the strongest words the ”criminal and disgraceful Israeli behavior” which he said ”only befits criminals and thugs, not states, let a lone states that claim to be civilized, western and democratic.”

The Dutch Foreign Ministry has protested the traumatic treatment meted out to Mohammed Omer and demanded and explanation.

Similarly, the Dutch Embassy in Israel reportedly has raised the issue with the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

The Shin Beth, Israel”s chief domestic security agency, controls all aspects of Palestinian lives and is widely believed to systematically and grossly violate the basic human rights of Palestinians. (...)

____________________________________

The zionists will stop at no length to silence the voice of the voiceless. The truth is the biggest enemy of theirs. Murder, beatings, incarcerations, there is no end to their attempts. But the truth will get out and you can help that happen… You can contact the Israeli government offices in your areas and demand an investigation of these incidents… all contact info can be found HERE.

You can also contact the Israeli Foreign Ministry and DEMAND an investigation.

Contact information:

Foreign Minister’s office

sar@mfa.gov.il
Director General’s office - mankal@mfa.gov.il
Public Relations - pniot@mfa.gov.il

Ministry Address:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
9 Yitzhak Rabin Blvd.
Kiryat Ben-Gurion
Jerusalem 91035
Tel. 972-2-5303111
Fax 972-2-5303367

Don’t allow the voices of justice to be silenced…. Raise your own voice to stop this madness.

""""""""" [ SOURCES : Desertpeace &  davidbaldinger.blogspot.com ]

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]]> http://babs22.wordpress.com/?p=362 Sat, 12 Jul 2008 05:59:34 +0000 babs22 http://babs22.wordpress.com/?p=362 Hassan Rachidi (photo, from maroc-hebdo.press.ma), Al Jazeera’s Rabat bureau chief has been fined by a Moroccan court $6 000, over coverage of protest last month.

The verdict came on Friday, after Mr Rachidi was charged with publishing false imformation, when the channel aired a report in which a human rights activist claimed that protesters in the south of the country had been killed by security forces.

The government has denied anyone being killed during the demonstrations over rising food prices in the port city of Sidi Ifni.

On Thursday, Ibrahim Sabelail was sentenced to six months' jail and a fine 1,000 dirhams ($137). He is the Moroccan rights activist who initially told journalists about the alleged abuses in Sidi Ifni last month.

He was arrested on June 27, and for reporting deaths at Sidi Ifni and having described police intervention as a "crime against humanity", he was charged with "insulting the authorities and reporting of fictitious crimes".

Some Moroccan newspapers and other accredited international news organisations broadcast similar reports without a reaction from Moroccan authorities.

Press freedom

On Thursday, about 50 Arab and international human rights organisation appealed to the Moroccan judiciary, in order to postpone sentencing in Hassan Rashidi's case pending the completion of a fact-finding mission ordered by parliament into the Sidi Ifni event.

In a statement, the organisations said it was imperative that "the judiciary should not be party to a sensitive issue related to gross violations of human rights". They also warned against a hurried resolution to the case and the immediate impact that it would have on freedom of press in Morocco.

Arguing that the court did not allow Mr Rachidi to present all the arguments and evidence to defend himself during the trial, the National Association of Moroccan Press had earlier protested against his trial.

After the court refused to respond to a number of demands, including hearing defence witnesses involved in the events of Sidi Ifni, included security officials headed by the interior minister, Mr Rachidi’s lawyers withdrew from the case.

"What was done by the Moroccan authorities constitutes persecution of journalists and highlights the hostile attitued of the Moroccan government toward Al Jazeera and its employees in Morocco", said Reporters Without Borders, a Paris-based press freedom watchdog, calling on Morocco to restore Mr Rachidi's suspended press accreditation.

At the time of the airstrike, it was reported that twenty people had been killed in Nangarhar province, who the US army believed to be militants.  But local people said the dead were guests at a wedding.

When deaths of civilians like this occur in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq involving the US, it seems to be becoming a more regular occurence that the dead were wedding guests and not militants.

Don't militants ever go to weddings?

Mohammed bin Laden (centre), the son of Osama bin Laden (right), marries the daughter of Mohammed Atef (left). <Source: Al Jazeera>

AlJazeeraEnglish

The Israeli separation wall making its way through the West Bank cuts to the heart of the Palestinian-Israeli issue: Will the final settlement between these two peoples be negotiated, or imposed unilaterally by Israel?

• 50 gets medieval on the Middle East….virtually: Apparently 50 Cent isn’t content to just chill out with Timbaland, smoking blunts, cutting shitty rap albums, making wretched movies and promoting Vitamin Water. The man has decided to pursue a career in the world of video games as well. Granted, this shouldn’t be a surprise as he has already released one game in 2005, 50 Cent: Bulletproof, but at least that was set in New York. This new offering will take place in the Middle East. The plot of the game centers around 50 Cent doing a concert in a “fictional Middle Eastern setting,” where he and his G-Unit group don’t get paid in cash for the gig. Instead of monetary payment, the promoter gives 50 a diamond-encrusted skull, which is promptly stolen in an ambush, leading 50 and his G-Unit crew to go on a shooting spree, killing Arabs left and right to find the skull.

Let me just bypass the obvious racist and xenophobic themes infesting this premise because, quite frankly, discussing American antipathy towards Arabs is a little old hat. My main question is, "what the shit is 50 Cent doing putting on a show in a war-torn Arab country?" The only place that anyone famous ever goes in the Middle East to do a concert is Dubai and no one in Dubai would EVER stiff you if you’re wealthy. The second your plane lands you are instantly greeted by three buxom Persian "masseuses", a bottle of Dom Perignon, a hotel suite, and your own private island. They may give you a diamond encrusted skull just because they have one laying around and it would be a nice gesture, but they certainly wouldn’t ambush you for it. I would suggest that 50 was doing a U.S.O. show in Iraq or Afghanistan, but Uncle Sam doesn’t pay you for those. 50 don’t do charity events.

I also have some suggestions for in-game content to spice things up a little. First, I think that 50 cent should use his body as a gun. Since the man has been shot 9 times and presumably still has some bullet bits riddling his body, he should just be able to shoot those things out of his body to kill a terrorist or two. If he ever runs out of body bullets, he can just eat some ammo to reload. Also, for a nice cross-promotion deal there should be bottles of Vitamin Water Formula 50 lying around that he can drink to restore his health. Of course, his enemies wouldn’t be able to drink it because they are terrorists who, as we well know, are deathly allergic to the wonders of capitalist enterprise and Coca-Cola products. Finally, I think the end game boss should be Osama Bin Laden, whom 50 Cent can only kill by defeating him in a freestyle battle broadcast live on Al-Jazeera.

• Bra Bats: You heard me…Bra Bats. A nineteen year-old woman in Norwich, England felt a vibrating sensation on one of her breasts, but thought that it was just her cell phone vibrating in her jacket pocket. When she decided to investigate the matter further, a full five hours later, she discovered a baby bat nestled in the padding of her bra. How could you go this long without realizing that you have a tiny mammal on your teet? Well, the woman wears a size 34FF bra, so I suppose the bat just had a lot of room to hide. The woman said that the bat, “looked cozy and comfortable” and that she, “was sorry for disturbing it.” Although this whole matter is a bit unsettling, I am quite certain that MTV will turn the idea into a hidden-camera reality show where male contestants vie for the affections of a woman, woo her into the back of a party bus and then get ambushed by a flock of bra creatures when they try to sleep with her. Tila Tequila is seeing how many bisexual fruit bats she can fit down her shirt as we speak.

• Finally, at the crossroads of politics and prostitution lies a TV deal: Ashley Dupre, the call girl who oh-so-lovingly ended Ex-New York Governor Eliot Spitzer's political career, has abandoned her dream of being a hussy-for-hire turned musician for her other dream of being a whore turned reality TV show star, which is a tad redundant. She is teamed up with the production house Reveille to pitch a show that, according to a close source, “is the story of a woman who is desperately seeking a second chance, and is willing to put her life under the microscope on national TV to try to redeem herself." Clearly a reality TV show is the best way to redeem yourself in the eyes of the public. Just look at the immense respect that we as a nation now feel for Flavor Flav, New York, the bitch who spit in New York’s face, and that creepy Italian guy who tried to sleep with Tila Tequila, got rejected, but eventually got his own reality TV show complete with tons of hanging meat and a discothèque that he could invite sluts to. I’m sure Ms. Dupre will be vindicated in no time.

Spotted over @ NahRight.

Warning

.

This video may contain images depicting the reality and horror of war/violence and should only be viewed by a mature audience.

AlJazeeraEnglish

The victim of a beating captured on videotape outside the West Bank city of Hebron has spoken about the day he was set upon by Jewish settlers.

Midhat Abu Karsh, a 30-year-old Palestinian teacher was beaten for allegedly setting fire to fields in the area.

Nour Odeh reports on how he and human rights groups are fighting back.

Great stuff to catch up on any of the themes you might had missed.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2008/06/2008624202053652281.html
Chomsky: US public irrelevant

Noam Chomsky, the renowned US academic, author and political activist, speaks to Avi Lewis on Al Jazeera's Inside USA.

They discuss whether the US election this year will bring real change, the ongoing conflict in Iraq and why Americans should look to their Southern American counterparts for political inspiration.

Avi Lewis: I'd like to start by talking about the US presidential campaign. In writing about the last election in 2004, you called America's system a "fake democracy" in which the public is hardly more than an irrelevant onlooker, and you've been arguing in your work in the last year or so that the candidates this time around are considerably to the right of public opinion on all major issues.

So, the question is, do Americans have any legitimate hope of change this time around? And what is the difference in dynamic between America's presidential "cup" in 2008 compared to 2004 and 2000?

Noam Chomsky: There's some differences, and the differences are quite enlightening. I should say, however, that I'm expressing a very conventional thought – 80 per cent of the population thinks, if you read the words of the polls, that the government is run by a few big interests looking out for themselves not for the population [and] 95 per cent of the public thinks that the government ought to pay attention to public opinion but it doesn't.

As far as the elections are concerned, I forget the exact figure but by about three to one people wish that the elections were about issues, not about marginal character qualities and so on. So I'm right in the mainstream.

There's some interesting differences between 2004 and 2008 and they're very revealing, it's kind of striking that the commentators don't pick that up because it's so transparent.

The main domestic issue for years … is the health system - which is understandable as it's a total disaster.

The last election debate in 2004 was on domestic issues ... and the New York Times the next day had an accurate description of it. It said that [former Democratic presidential candidate John] Kerry did not bring up any hint of government involvement in healthcare because it has so little political support, just [the support of] the large majority of the population.

But what he meant was it was not supported by the pharmaceutical industry and wasn't supported by the financial institutions and so on.

In this election the Democratic candidates all have [health] programmes that are not what the public are asking for but are approaching it and could even turn into it, so what happened between 2004 and 2008?

It's not a shift in public opinion - that's the same as before, what happened is a big segment of US corporate power is being so harmed by the healthcare system that they want it changed, namely the manufacturing industry.

So, for example, [car manufacturer] General Motors says that it costs them maybe $1,500 more to produce a car in Detroit then across the border in Windsor, Canada, just because they have a more sensible healthcare system there.

Well, when a big segment of corporate America shifts its position, then it becomes politically possible and has political support. So, therefore, you can begin to talk about it.

But those aren't changes coming from pressure from below?

No, the public is the same, it's been saying the same for decades, but the public is irrelevant, is understood to be irrelevant. What matters is a few big interests looking after themselves and that's exactly what the public sees.

And yet, you can see people agitating against the official story, even within the electoral process. There is definitely a new mood in the US, a restlessness among populations who are going to political rallies in unprecedented numbers.

What do you make of this well branded phenomenon of hope - which is obviously part marketing - but is it not also part something else?

Well that's Barack Obama. He has his way, he presents himself - or the way his handlers present him - as basically a kind of blank slate on which you can write whatever you like and there are a few slogans: Hope, unity …

Change?

Change. And it does arouse enthusiasm and you can understand why. Again 80 per cent of the population thinks the county is going the wrong way.

Chomsky: Understandable that Obama is generating "enthusiasm" [Reuters]
For most people in the US the past 30 years have been pretty grim. Now, it's a rich country, so it's not like living in southern Africa, but for the majority of the population real wages have stagnated or declined for the past 30 years, there's been growth but it's going to the wealthy and into very few pockets, benefits which were never really great have declined, work hours have greatly increased and there isn't really much to show for it other than staying afloat.

And there is tremendous dissatisfaction with institutions, there's a lot of talk about Bush's very low poll ratings, which is correct, but people sometimes overlook the fact that congress's poll ratings are even lower.

In fact all institutions are just not trusted but disliked, there's a sense that everything is going wrong.

So when somebody says "hope, change and unity" and kind of talks eloquently and is a nice looking guy and so on then, fine.

If the elite strategy for managing the electorate is to ignore the will of the people as you interpret it through polling data essentially, what is an actual progressive vision of changing the US electoral system? Is it election finance, is it third party activism?

We have models right in front of us. Like pick, say, Bolivia, the poorest county in South America. They had a democratic election a couple of years ago that you can't even dream about in the US. It's kind of interesting it's not discussed; it's a real democratic election.

A large majority of the population became organised and active for the first time in history and elected someone from their own ranks on crucial issues that everyone knew about – control of resource, cultural rights, issues of justice, you know, really serious issues.

And, furthermore, they didn't just do it on election day by pushing a button, they've been struggling about these things for years.

A couple of years before this they managed to drive Bechtel and the World Bank out of the country when they were trying to privatise the water. It was a pretty harsh struggle and a lot of people were killed.

Well, they reached a point where they finally could manifest this through the electoral system - they didn't have to change the electoral laws, they had to change the way the public acts. And that's the poorest country in South America.

Actually if we look at the poorest country in the hemisphere – Haiti - the same thing happened in 1990. You know, if peasants in Bolivia and Haiti can do this, it's ridiculous to say we can't.

The Democrats in this election campaign have been talking a lot, maybe less so more recently, about withdrawing from Iraq.

What are the chances that a new president will significantly change course on the occupation and might there be any change for the people of Iraq as a result of the electoral moment in the US?

Well, one of the few journalists who really covers Iraq intimately from inside is Nir Rosen, who speaks Arabic and passes for Arab, gets through society, has been there for five or six years and has done wonderful reporting. His conclusion, recently published, as he puts it, is there are no solutions.

This has been worse than the Mongol invasions of the 13th century - you can only look for the least bad solution but the country is destroyed.

The war on Iraq has been a catastrophe, Chomsky says [AFP]
And it has in fact been catastrophic. The Democrats are now silenced because of the supposed success of the surge which itself is interesting, it reflects the fact that there's no principled criticism of the war – so if it turns out that your gaining your goals, well, then it was OK.

We didn't act that way when the Russians invaded Chechnya and, as it happens, they're doing much better than the US in Iraq.

In fact what's actually happening in Iraq is kind of ironic. The Iraqi government, the al-Maliki government, is the sector of Iraqi society most supported by Iran, the so-called army - just another militia - is largely based on the Badr brigade which is trained in Iran, fought on the Iranian side during the Iran-Iraq war, was part of the hated Revolutionary Guard, it didn't intervene when Saddam was massacring Shiites with US approval after the first Gulf war, that's the core of the army.

The figure who is most disliked by the Iranians is of course Muqtada al-Sadr, for the same reason he's disliked by the Americans – he's independent.

If you read the American press, you'd think his first name was renegade or something, it's always the "renegade cleric" or the "radical cleric" or something - that's the phrase that means he's independent, he has popular support and he doesn't favour occupation.

Well, the Iranian government doesn't like him for the same reason. So, they [Iran] are perfectly happy to see the US institute a government that's receptive to their influence and for the Iraqi people it's a disaster.

And it'll become a worse disaster once the effects of the warlordism and tribalism and sectarianism sink in more deeply.

La abismal diferencia en el acceso a Internet entre las naciones del Sur y del Norte industrializado nos vuelve a colocar en desventaja. Hoy, más de la mitad de los usuarios de Internet en el mundo son de Norteamérica y Europa, pese a que la población de estas regiones no sobrepasa un sexto de la población mundial. Son ellos también los propietarios de las tres cuartas partes de la infraestructura de Internet. La democratización de la gobernabilidad de Internet se mantiene bloqueada. Los contenidos que circulan en el ciberespacio son elaborados abrumadoramente en los países del Norte y el 95% de ellos en sólo 10 lenguas. Resulta imperativo poner la Internet bajo el gobierno de una institución multilateral y democrática, que promueva la cooperación internacional y la igualdad de acceso a la tecnología para todas las naciones.
En adición a todo lo anterior, hay un empleo creciente por parte de las grandes potencias de las tecnologías de la información y las comunicaciones para el espionaje contra nuestros países y para la guerra. Grandes redes de inteligencia electrónica, de las que la Red Echelón es la más conocida, operan con la complicidad y la connivencia de las grandes corporaciones transnacionales. Asimismo, el uso de estas tecnologías para la proliferación vertical de las armas nucleares, es también fuente de extrema preocupación. Mientras los países no alineados trabajamos a favor del desarme general y completo y, muy particularmente, del desarme nuclear, Estados Unidos anunció hace un par de semanas la puesta en operación de una supercomputadora bautizada como "correcaminos" que será dedicada al mantenimiento de su arsenal nuclear y la consolidación de su hegemonía militar.
Por si esto fuera poco, el Coronel Charles W. Williamson escribe en la Revista de las Fuerzas Armadas de Estados Unidos lo siguiente: "Los Estados Unidos necesitan (...) la creación de una red robótica de la fuerza aérea y el ejército, capaz de dirigir volúmenes de tráfico gigantescos hacia las computadoras objetivos a fin de que no puedan comunicarse más entre sí e inutilizarlas para que nuestros adversarios sólo cuenten con un amasijo de metal y plástico. Los Estados Unidos necesitan tener la capacidad de realizar bombardeos prolongados y sistemáticos en el ciberespacio".
Excelencias:
El Movimiento de Países No Alineados debe trabajar mucho más en el ámbito de la información, en cumplimiento del mandato que nos fuera planteado por nuestros Jefes de Estado y de Gobierno en la Cumbre de La Habana.
Tanto para retomar la lucha por un nuevo orden internacional de la información y las comunicaciones, como para generar iniciativas que propongan visiones alternativas a la que se nos impone, resulta imprescindible actuar unidos y concertar acciones.
Aprovecho para reconocer el esfuerzo desplegado por Malasia en la revitalización de la Red de Noticias del Movimiento de Países No Alineados (NNN) y de las Organizaciones de Radiodifusión de los Países No Alineados (BONAC). Estos mecanismos han permitido aumentar el flujo de información sobre y desde nuestros países.
Urge la articulación de proyectos multinacionales a nivel regional e internacional. La experiencia de Telesur, nacida a partir de la iniciativa del Presidente Chávez e impulsada por varios gobiernos latinoamericanos, demuestra que es posible construir una alternativa. La televisión Al Jazeera, con varias de sus corresponsalías bombardeadas, es otro ejemplo de información independiente. Iniciativas como el Fondo de Solidaridad Digital, para financiar la reducción de la brecha digital, deben ser estimuladas.
Unamos fuerzas para defender nuestro derecho a la verdad, a un orden internacional justo y equitativo y a la solidaridad internacional.
Trabajemos en esta VII Conferencia de Ministros de Información del Movimiento de Países No Alineados con la convicción de que, aunque el reto es grande, nuestra determinación es mayor.
Sí se puede luchar y lucharemos.
Muchas gracias,

Felipe Péres Roque (canciller cubano).

Warum droht die Gruppe British Muslim Initiative mit rechtlichen Schritten gegen Harrys Place?

Und warum nur hat Al-Jazeera seine Übersetzung der Bemerkungen eines Hamas-Bevollmächtigten mitten während der Kontroverse verändert?

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