Carol Anne Grayson (Radical Sister) blog

(INTERNATIONAL DAY OF DISAPPEARED PERSONS AUGUST 30TH 2013)

On 30^th August 2013 (International Day of Disappeared Persons) campaigners in Pakistan once again took to the streets to call for more government action on their missing loved ones. Earlier this month I wrote in some detail about the work of human rights activist Amina Masood Janua who has for many years spearheaded a campaign to highlight the plight of Pakistan’s “enforced disappearances” providing support to the families of those missing (see link) https://activist1.wordpress.com/2013/08/01/amina-masood-janjua-championing-the-cause-of-pakistans-disappeared-as-she-marks-the-8th-annversary-of-the-search-for-her-missing-husband/

On 3^rd July 2005 Amina’s husband Masood well known educator and businessman of Rawalpindi and Islamabad disappeared along with a friend Faisal Faraz, an engineer from Lahore. Both are thought to be secretly detained by the state. Amnesty International reports that hundreds, possibly thousands, of people became victims of enforced disappearance after Pakistan joined the US-led war on terror in 2001.

The Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) are alleged to be implicated in the cases of numerous missing persons. Many of those taken are thought to be innocent victims indefinately detained without going through fair judicial process. Amina can be heard talking about the impact of Masood’s disappearance on her family life on the following video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Mv1_s6r6FA

Amina in happier times with husband Masood

More determined than ever in her fight for justice, Amina was joined by fellow campaigners on a peaceful walk starting from D-Chowk near Parliament House, Islamabad and sent out the following message to global supporters:-

It is lamentable that today’s world is compelled to observe International Day of Enforced Disappeared despite all the scientific and technological advancements. It signifies that our world is sinking down in the pitfalls of injustice and cruelties. In the pictures (published here) you can see victim families protesting once again in front of Parliament house Islamabad, pledging to never stop until their loved ones are released or given the right to due process.

Blessed are those who have found the golden path of struggle; they never get old, they never get tired and they never lose hope.

Messages were sent to Amina from around the world, one from broadcast journalist Susan Maire read, “Amina Masood Janjua, you are one of the strongest women I know, a woman I wholeheartedly admire and support and one who fights every single day for the human rights of people who are illegally detained. God Bless You sister.”

Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Pakistan to ratify treaty known as the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, to bring perpetrators to justice and avoid abuses. This was echoed by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ).  Ali Dyan, Pakistan director for HRW said,

“ratifying the Convention against Disappearances is a key test for Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s new government. The government would send a clear political message that it’s serious about ending ‘disappearances’. And it would show its commitment to ensuring justice for serious human rights violations”  

http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/08/28/pakistan-ratify-treaty-enforced-disappearance

A recent report from International News (Aug 29^th 2013)brought to the public’s attention cases of enforced disappearance’s allegedly by officers from Naval Intelligence that had formed a gang for the purpose of kidnapping traders and industrialists in Karachi for a huge ransom http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-13-25081-Agency-men-found-involved-in-kidnapping-of-traders

It is not easy to report on controversial issues in Pakistan either as there is a tendency for outspoken reporters that question state authorities to go missing also. Sam Zarifi, Asia-Pacific regional director of ICJ is concerned at the lack of accountability for such cases with those responsible for kidnappings unlikely to come before the courts. Zafari stated that “all disappeared persons must be released or, if charged with recognizable crimes, brought without further delay before a court to see if their continuing detention is legal. The government should also fully investigate and prosecute those who are responsible for ordering, participating, or carrying out enforced disappearances.”

One mother refuses to give up on justice. Hameeda Bibi is going through the courts determined to seek redress for the killing of her son Farmanullah, whose body was found bearing signs of torture, kidnapped and returned in a sack. She is now taking on the security services in a Peshawar Court demanding compensation, Hameeda is a widow and her son was the sole breadwinner for the family http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/14/pakistan-disappeared-compensation-military-spies

Arif Jan, a lawyer for families of the “disappeared” is calling for the release of detainees allegedly held by ISI, highlighting that there are 450 habeas corpus petitions in Peshawar High Court alone. As he points out, this action is one step in the right direction and with the forceful determination of Amina and Hameeda, the day may not be too far away when those who committed such wrongful acts are finally held to account.

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

“Give us at least the bodies of our loved ones so that we can give them a decent Islamic burial” (Parveen Ahanger)

An elderly Kashmiri lady walks past the caricatures of the disappeared persons during a protest by Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) in Srinagar on Friday
Pic: Habib Naqash/GK

On the International Day for Disappeared Persons (30th August 2013) families of those missing through “enforced disappearances” and international  human rights campaigners join together in calling for a full inquiry and an end to this inhumane practice. A statement for the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) issued a statement saying:-

The state should institute an independent commission of inquiry into the complaints of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, tortures, rape and other human rights violations by state actors and provide a supportive environment to facilitate access to justice for human rights defenders.

http://freepresskashmir.com/families-of-kashmirs-missing-seek-independent-inquiry-commission-105030/

The Long Wait for News

 An estimated 8,000 to 10,000 persons are believed to have gone missing after being picked up by Indian security forces on suspicion of being militants or by separatists on suspicions of being police informers and were never seen again. However a study on families of disappeared persons (DPs) in Jammu and Kashmir argues that 72 percent of those who disappeared in the last 23 years were innocent civilians http://www.hindustantimes.com/Punjab/Chandigarh/Majority-of-disappeared-persons-in-Kashmir-innocent-Study/SP-Article1-964389.aspx

Recognizing the Resilient Women of Kashmir

The Kashmir Walla details the background to the disappearances, giving some context:-

Jammu and Kashmir is an internationally recognized dispute, an occupation and armed conflict. Since the inception of the armed conflict in 1989 Government of India has put into service more than 7,00,000 armed forces including army, paramilitary forces, police and other sponsored agencies. The armed conflict has resulted in the killing of 70,000 plus, countless cases of torture and rape, 8,000 plus enforced disappearances, Besides this illegal detentions, forced labour property damage and other forms of human rights violations remain a common practice in Jammu and Kashmir. In addition APDP has documented 7,000 plus unknown, unmarked and mass graves which still await investigation and so far the government is reluctant to conduct any comprehensive forensic examination of these graves.

http://www.thekashmirwalla.com/2013/08/international-day-of-the-disappeared-world-silent-india-ignorant-about-kashmir/

A peaceful protest was held today at Pratap Park, Srinagar. Kashmir. Parveena Ahanger, the chairperson of APDP, said, “we express solidarity and pay tribute to the courage and resistance of the families who have spent years struggling for information about the whereabouts of their loved ones, for justice and for accountability,”

   Peaceful Sit-in at Pratap Park, Srinagar to call for Action on the Disappeared

Amnesty International reports that “hundreds of unidentified graves – believed to contain victims of unlawful killings, enforced disappearances, torture and other abuses – have been found in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir”. The human rights organization calls on the Indian government to launch urgent investigations into the mass graves which are thought to contain the remains of victims of human rights abuses in the context of the armed conflict that has raged in the region since 1989.

Pain and Protest

Campaigners are desperate to locate the remains of their loved ones to be buried and finally laid to rest. APDP explain that it has been two decades since the enforced disappearances began in Kashmir. There have been about 10,000 cases of disappearances which have left their families shattered. Wives who became half-widows, looking for their husbands. Children seeking the whereabouts of their parents and parents in search of their children.

    FILM

PAPA 2 is a short film highlighting the plight of the disappeared and their families http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H26dQk2lBGQ

The following images are posted as a reminder of the pain and suffering of the families and their hope for justice after years of campaigning

.   

The Disappeared Remembered through Art

Sending a Message… 

Telling the Stories behind the Images…

Parents and Perseverance

Newspapers and Posters Document the Disappeared

Half-widows and Hope..

ADDITIONAL LINKS

The following links provide further information about enforced disappearances in the hope that more people internationally will support the families in upholding their human rights and recognize their need for information and resolution.

The Disappeared of Kashmir: The boys who never came home  (Al Jazeera Report) http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2011/04/201141710204769839.html

Half-widows in Kashmir (The Islamic Human Rights Commission) http://www.ihrc.org.uk/publications/briefings/9967-half-widows-in-kashmir

FILM… Waiting by Atul Gupta http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXzlrqQkZ3g

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

INTERVIEW WITH “WAR RESISTER IN SANCTUARY”

Photograph of Rodney Watson Jr from Ian Azariah

Q   Can you introduce yourself and tell me where you come from originally?

My name is Rodney Watson Jr and I am from Kansas City

Q   How old were you when you first signed up for the army and what motivated you to enlist?

I was about 24 years old when I signed up in 2003 and joined the Army. My reasons for joining were honorable and even though there was no draft like the past Vietnam War, I was caught up in a personal economic draft due to the fact I could not find a job shortly after 9/11.

After I lost my job of seven years in Kansas City, a long-time childhood friend offered to get me started in the illegal drug trade and even fronted me some free work, but this was against everything I believed in. Selling death to my own community was not the destiny I wanted for myself so while driving back home I got on the highway and prayed for a better way to make money. I threw the drugs out of my car window went home and prayed again and fell asleep with a now clear conscience.

The very next morning, I got a phone call just minutes after I opened my eyes. It was the older brother of my friend who fronted me the drugs I had thrown away and in a sad voice he told me to turn on the news; his brother had been shot that morning and was dead. I attended his funeral and shortly afterward I flew to New York to visit my cousin to clear my mind because it felt like some sort of tragic sign from above.

Out of work and living off money I had saved up that was running out fast, I needed a job urgently. While I was in New York, I saw where the Twin Towers had fallen. Tears fell from my eyes and the pain was great. I saw U.S. Navy sailors during Fleet Week that same day and I felt something I had never felt before – a feeling of it being my duty to serve my country like others in my family had done during WW2. I later ended up staying with a friend of my cousins in Stamford Connecticut and tried applying for some jobs one last time before making my decision to see an Army recruiter.

Q   Tell me about your basic training before you saw combat

I made the decision to join up and serve my country as an Army cook to help out and to support our brave troops even if it wasn’t infantry. I wanted to serve in some way and possibly open up my own diner after my service was completed. My basic training was at Fort Jackson and I was proud to complete it because many others could not. I thought I was doing the right thing at the time and I was proud of myself.

I was sent to Fort Hood Texas after boot camp only to find myself in the field training for a deployment to Iraq in the near future. I understood that I was a soldier first and that I might even die over there but I had already seen much violence and death back in Kansas City and I was not afraid of losing my life for what I thought at the time was a noble cause.

Q   What was your role in the army after basic training?

My role in the Army was to become a cook and eventually use what I learned and experienced in a high speed dining facility and mess hall with my G.I. Bill to try and open my own little Diner back home in Kansas city. But the Army had other plans for me and I was in the field training for a deployment to Iraq so I had really no real time in the kitchen at Fort Hood Texas where I was stationed.

I ended up searching thousands of Iraqi civilian vehicles for contraband and explosives. It felt like I was playing Russian Roulette with my life, but I performed my many duties without fear. At first I felt lied to for not being given the job I signed up for, but I just followed orders from my chain of command and I did my job very well.

Q   How long did you serve in Iraq, please tell readers about that experience

I served a one year deployment to Mosul, Iraq. A Sergeant from another unit passed me an eye opening DVD that he let me borrow with his personal little DVD player. It opened up my eyes to the lies of no weapons of mass destruction and to the fact that many were back home still suffering from hurricane Katrina while billions were being wasted as well as many lives in Iraq for something other than justifiable reasons. I was very upset and I started to view the whole Iraq war in a very different perspective. As my deployment continued, my unit came under military C.I.D investigation for drug trafficking due to an undercover agent who bought some drugs from a black guy in my unit late at night and couldn’t fully make out his identity. The next day, our First Sgt. called a formation for just the black soldiers in my unit to wait in the hot sun to be fingerprinted and photographed, in order to find the soldier who was in violation.

After feeling racially profiled for the exact same thing I refused to take part in back home – selling drugs – here I was being treated like I was a potential criminal by white men in the military C.I.D. It was one thing after another during my deployment. I had to watch racist white soldiers and civilian contractors beat and call unarmed Iraqi men sand niggers and hear them tell me that they mean no disrespect to my people, that we are all brothers in the same fight. I couldn’t report anything due to the fact I would be labelled a snitch so I had to keep my mouth shut even though I saw different racist cops back home do the same thing to my black peers, calling us niggers.

About half way through my deployment another soldier from another unit awakened my mind to the real reasons and lies why we were there. It angered me that I was risking my life for lies and potentially having to take another human life for those lives. I’m thankful I did not because I don’t know how I could live with myself knowing that I had killed for a LIE. I lost a friend I made over there a civilian contractor who worked with KBR (global engineering, construction and services company). He was shot down in a Chopper that was supposed to be taking him home because his tour was over but he was shot down right when he took off from our base of operation along with others by an RPG. I think of how his life was taken and so many others, American and Iraqi lives all for lies and it angers me greatly that the ones responsible walk this earth free while the whistle blowers and awakened soldiers of conscience who resisted continuing taking part in that war are being punished and treated like the criminals while the real criminals go free.

Q   You decided not to return to Iraq… what made you take that decision?

After my one-year deployment was finished, my unit received orders to return to Iraq within four to six months. I had seen a couple of guys in my unit become victims of Stop Loss, (the involuntary extension of a service member’s active duty service) forcing them to be deployed well beyond their contract agreement. After my experience in that unjust war based on lies, I knew I did not want to be another one of former president George W. Bush’s cannon fodder or casualty. I just thank God I didn’t spill any blood over there because that would have really weighed heavy on my mind after discovering the truth. There is a time and a season for everything, but Iraq was neither the time nor the season for us to go to war in my new personal opinion.

What made me make the decision I made was because that war was based on lies and it made no sense to kill or die for those lies after my eyes were opened. I was a good soldier but I saw how others before I deployed tried to get out based on conscience just like that crazy Fort Hood shooter did. I just saw how the Army drags their feet and redeploys soldiers or Stop Loss them while they wait for their paper work through the right channels to go through. I knew I didn’t want that and I knew I didn’t want the Army to Stop Loss me like others were in my unit. They also were trying to send us right back over there within 3 to 4 months but I didn’t see a reason to go back other than a contract I signed that I would have honored if that war wasn’t a lie but it was a big lie.

Q   What did you do to avoid being sent back?

Instead of returning to Fort Hood Texas after my two-week leave, I left for Canada thinking it would be better than risking my life again or killing for unjust reasons. My family had a few calls from the Army but they had no idea of what I did because I did not want them to have to lie for me or make any excuses for me. I’m not that far away so I knew they could just come up to Canada to visit me. The Canadian people were very kind and I fell in love and had a beautiful child with a Canadian citizen.

Q   What has happened to you in Canada?

I had a job and then after living free with a clearer conscience for three years, I received a letter of deportation from the Conservative government under Prime Minister Stephen Harper when my son was only months old. The date of my deportation, when I was to leave Canada and my new Canadian family, was September 11, 2009. That date felt like a giant slap to my face and it fuelled a fire within me to fight like crazy for my Canadian wife and son due to the fact my wife begged and cried for me to stay. I did the unthinkable and requested sanctuary at a local Vancouver church to give my lawyer time to help me remain with my wife and son. Canada made me very proud when I heard of the massive protest against the Iraq war and that it took no part in that war, but these actions taken against me and other Iraq war resisters felt like a slap in the face.

Q   What happens if you leave your sanctuary?

I am not allowed to leave the building but I know if I turn myself in, I will never be able to cross the border again when I should be granted freedom for refusing a war that even Canada said no to. Former president George W. Bush cannot even travel to certain countries without being arrested for war crimes and even Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper publicly called the Iraq war an absolute error. While President Obama campaigned to become President, he called the Iraq war a dumb war but I am still dealing with this situation in a country known for its good values and conscience and traditions and it makes no sense.

Q   What reaction have you had from family and friends?

My family and friends are still talking to me and I’m fortunate because other Iraq war resisters families have disowned them. I’m sure some of my family and friends say things behind my back but it wouldn’t even phase me at all because this is my fight along with others who were lied to while we risked our lives not them.

Q   How would you respond to those who say you are betraying your country?

I would respond to anyone face to face who dare trying to tell me that I betrayed my country to take that nonsense somewhere else because it was Bush and company who are responsible for betraying and leading the American people into a war based on lies even though George W. Bush said that God told him to go into Iraq and that’s just another lie and I know God isn’t mad at me for not killing over lies and God’s opinion of me matters a whole lot more than any human being on this planet.

Q   What support have you had since living in Canada?

The Canadian Parliament voted twice in favour of letting us Iraq War Resisters stay but PM Stephen Harper and gang ignored the will of the people. I have excellent support from many good Canadians and I’m still here and I thank God for putting decent people in my life that support me. The War Resister Support Campaign has played a huge role and the First United Church is a great place that fights for social justice and they have allowed me to  still be a part of my Canadian wife and son’s life while I go through this long legal process that I hope and pray ends soon.

Q   How do you see your role as resister and peace activist?

I try my best to honor the role of a now peace activist by keep speaking my truth and meeting with others and even leading a spiritual focus group that is open to all faiths and beliefs here at the church. I have a page on Facebook called War Resister in Sanctuary where I post truth and my poems as well as interact with supporters. I’m no Dr. King but I feel honored to at least try and continue his legacy of being against unjust wars and for social justice for me and others. I am willing to die for my Canadian family just like I was willing to risk my life for Bush’s lies and it just makes more sense for me to risk it again for the love of my family. I have sacrificed four years of my freedom when the only crime is saying NO to returning to a war based off deception and false information from a guy code named “curve ball.”

Q   What advice would you give to others that are thinking of joining the armed services?

I would tell anyone thinking of joining only my own experience because I’m not saying that we don’t need a military. I just think that we should only fight those who are trying to invade our borders and not for false flag nonsense and corporate greed and for foreign control that has nothing to do with the working class poor while the rich get wealthier off OUR blood sweat and tears.

Q    How do you feel about the actions of former soldier, whistle blower Chelsea (formerly Bradley) Manning?

I feel that president Obama should pardon Chelsea Manning and all Iraq War Resisters, that to me would be a huge step for him in honoring his Nobel Peace Prize and everything he promised about hope and change. I would love to be able to cross the border freely with my family because I’m not the real criminal and neither is Private Manning.

Q   What is your opinion on the way whistle blowers are treated by US government?

I feel that president Obama should pardon Chelsea Manning and all Iraq War Resisters, that to me would be a huge step for him in honouring his Nobel Peace Prize and everything he promised about hope and change. I would love to be able to cross the border freely with my family because I’m not the real criminal and neither is Private Manning.

Q    What are your thoughts on US use of armed drones?

At first I thought it was a good idea to use drones until I heard about all the “collateral damage” and there isn’t any excuse at all to take innocent life no matter what in my book as well as in God’s book of law. I’m a man of great faith and I have more faith than a mustard seed that God will smile on me when it’s my time to meet him. Drone strikes are like a evil video game but the mistakes can’t be respawned or brought back to life when the damage is innocent collateral damage. We must evolve and learn how to handle conflict better because this world is just going to get worse and will end up in a tragic World War 3 that will be worse than Iraq and Afghanistan combined.

Q   How do you feel about the Iraq war now?

It was bad enough after my eyes were opened to the lies for why we were over there in Iraq risking our lives but then to come home and be debriefed and to be informed that we all were exposed to depleted uranium and to be told not to make any children for at least a couple of months to allow the contamination to flush it’s self out our system. I don’t expect anyone to understand my anger but I’m still pissed! I have days when I cannot sleep no matter what I do sometimes and it makes me wonder if it has anything to do with being exposed to depleted uranium dust or just my experience over there and I pray that I don’t have any problems later in life because of that war based on LIES. So when critics try to say something about the stand I have taken I just shake my head and laugh because obviously they have NO CLUE!

Wikileaks “Collateral Murder” video exposing reality of Iraq war and whistle blower Chelsea (formerly Bradley) Manning sentenced to 35 years in prison

“Moral Obscenities”

Many moral obscenities have taken place

But the elite cherry pick tragedies to grace

Many starve every day with flies on their face

The youth in Chicago are killing at a high pace

Lies about Iraq left many dead on their Army base

Lies about Iraq left many dead on their Army base

Hatred is still killing innocent people over their race

War criminals got away with murder without a trace

Of justice for their evil deception, now it’s a closed case

I feel sorry for Syria but these endless wars are a disgrace

The LAST thing this world needs now is a WW3 to embrace

~Rodney Watson Jr

Thank-you for your time and sharing your experience…

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

LOCAL HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP PUTS OUT PLEA FOR HELP

Awoke this morning to messages and videos from Syrian opposition supporters depicting disturbing scenes of an alleged chemical attack on East Ghouta, Damascus with claims it was launched by Bashar al-Assad regime. Initially there was little on mainstream media and a friend who might have been able to check out further on the ground was not immediately contactable. Message with first video read:-

East Ghouta, Damascas province, 21-08-2013: regime’s chemical weapons attacks on Ein Tarma and Zamalka in the East Ghouta region of Damascus province tonight. According to an eyewitness in East Ghouta, regime forces are now launching missiles at the areas of the attacks in order to prevent rescuers and medical personnel from reaching them. 

THESE ARE THE FIRST VIDEOS I RECEIVED (VIEW WITH CAUTION GRAPHIC CONTENT) :-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=o7rR73Z4m18

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=9UU_uONafGE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqVeCVovF58&feature=youtu.be     

As always it is important to check as much as possible regarding authenticity as fake videos/photos are always a concern when reporting. However a series of videos show some very young children, unresponsive with distressed breathing, others are twitching with what appears to be foam at the mouth.  Given that some are clearly toddlers it would be difficult to direct those so young (if propaganda material as some allege) and even if so this would still need to be investigated as such propaganda would be serious abuse of small children.

There is one video of what appears to be an explosion from a missile in the night/early morning as sky is dark. Others show outside scenes of areas and people being hosed down with extremely distressed children and adults trying to cover their faces from exposure to contaminants. Inside a hospital are many bodies with those affected appearing to show signs of poisoning, respiratory problems, running eyes, nerve damage from toxic agents. Doctors are working on patients with hand pumps, some attempt to resuscitate tiny chests with their fingers.

On one video the words “sarin, sarin” can clearly be heard raising concerns that this is a nerve agent which may have been used in East and West Ghouta. One sarin incident that readers may remember was the devastating attack on the Tokyo Subway on March 29^th 1995 http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/tokyo-subways-are-attacked-with-sarin-gas

BBC are documenting unconfirmed reports of a chemical attack from videos received and a denial from the Assad regime, “State-run news agency Sana said the claims were “baseless” and an attempt to distract UN weapons inspectors”. BBC also report UK Foreign Secretary William Hague calling for the Syrian government “to allow immediate access to the area” for the investigators and said that Britain would raise the issue at the UN. The Arab League are also calling for inspectors to go to site.

Patrick Henningson reporter and international affairs analyst made claims on Russia TV stating that that “only the rebels benefit from chemical attack” as this incident has occurred at a time when a United Nations team are visiting Syria to investigate alleged use of chemical weapons http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejyqn__c6RY

LINK TO VIDEOS AND PHOTOS, COLLECTIVE MATERIAL CLAIMING CHEMICAL ATTACK (VIEW WITH CAUTION AS GRAPHIC CONTENT) 

The following is a link to collective material posted on Twitter by Charles Lister,  Analyst & Head of MENA, IHS Jane’s Terrorism & Insurgency Centre (JTIC), London UK and appear to show aftermath of chemical attacks… http://www.reddit.com/r/syriancivilwar/comments/1kry33/live_thread_stream_of_videos_coming_out_of/

A SEPARATE INFORMATION SHEET SHARED BY HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS IN EAST GHOUTA READS AS FOLLOWS:-

 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH OFFICE IN EAST GHOUTA

Chemical Humanitarian Massacre Hit On East Ghouta

Wednesday 14^th November 1434 to 21^ST August 2013

At // 2.45 // on the morning of Wednesday 21^st August 2013, Assad’s forces shelled with // 29 // rockets loaded with toxic chemical heads between Ain Tarma and Zamalka and Jobar, where fell, respectively. Most of the injuries and the martyrs received to the medical points were children and women and the number of martys killed were on their beds as they slept, and the shelling was in places where civilian and most of the injuries, civilian. Doctors of field hospitals said ” according to medical cases who the used gas is the Sarin gas. Civilians directed to basements and shelters trying escape from the shelling and this led to increasing numbers of martyrs . Human Rights Watch Office In East Ghouta had counted / / 1228 / / martyrs and and thousands injured The number can be increased as they divided on The following medical points ::

A – Sakba point :: 69 martyrs
B – Kvrbtna point :: 150 martyrs
T- Duma point :: 150 martyrs
W – Hamoriah point :: 300 martyrs
C – Irbeen point :: 30 children, 16 women, 17 men, 63 martyr
H – Jesreen point :: 16 points, including 3 children
X – Zamalka point :: 400 points mamartyrstyr
D – Marg point :: There are no martyrs
Y – Ain Tarma point :: 75 martyr
T – Harasta point :: 5 martyrs, including a woman,
Issue the Ghouta :: 1228 martyrs

The symptoms

: – Hyper-excessive sweating – Vomiting in some cases – White foam tend to yellow color in some cases, hallucinations and talk non – Blurred vision – Tight breath-thoracic and abdominal pain – A watery eyes – Beep of the breast – Convulsion and coma – Tremble.

We in the office appeal to all humanitarian organizations and invite them to assume their responsibilities in front of what is happening to the Syrian people, words of condemnation and denunciation cannot serve any more and the killing machine that kill our families is ongoing. We also appeal to all humanitarian organizations and relief to help us antibiotics chemical medicine (atropine, etc.) has become non-existent and we needed as that hospitals need medicines to treat the injured.

The following paper explains what to look for, signs and symptoms of a chemical attack and is a European Guidance Document On The Use of Medical Products For The Treatment Of Patients Exposed To Terrorist Attacks With Chemical Agents…

http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Other/2010/01/WC500059884.pdf

Those investigating in Syria will be likely to look for evidence from animals and plants as well as people that could give clues to any incidents of chemical attacks in the region.

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

IS THE SPOKESPERSON FOR HIZB- UT -TAHRIR BEING ILLEGALLY DETAINED? 

As Muslims throughout the world end their month of fasting and greet each other with the words “Eid Mubarak” spare a thought for those who are missing, “enforced disappearances” and away from their families who cannot share the joy of this time. One such family is that of Naveed Butt, the official spokesperson for Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT) who was seized off the street in Pakistan in front of his three children outside their home in May 2012. He remains missing. Further details can be read here on my earlier blog Where is Naveed Butt written at the time of his disappearance https://activist1.wordpress.com/2012/05/21/where-is-naveed-butt/

The Facebook page of HuT states, “Hizb-ut-Tahrir is a political party whose ideology is Islam. Its objective is to resume the Islamic way of life by establishing an Islamic State that executes the systems of Islam and carries its call to the world”. The purpose of this post is not to argue for or against establishing a Caliphate but to look at the human rights of an individual and the role of the state.

Enforced disappearances associated with the state became more widespread after 9/11 with the CIA putting pressure on Pakistan to clampdown on citizens that may be attached to terrorist organizations. Some of those who went missing were allegedly handed over to the CIA for money, and ended up in Bagram, Afghanistan and later Guantanamo. (It is important to note that many in Guantanamo were never charged due to lack of evidence and were released after years of incarceration, others have been cleared but still await their freedom).

In 2008 human rights group, Amnesty International published their report “Denying the Undeniable, Enforced Disappearances in Pakistan”.  As Amnesty explained, back in 2006 the Supreme Court took up regular hearings of petitions filed on behalf of Pakistan’s ‘disappeared’ but that changed in November 2007 when then President Pervez Musharraf imposed a state of emergency and deposed the majority of judges. This soon turned into an atmosphere of the state being above the law with a lack of accountability for those taken into custody. Families of the missing such as Amina Masood Janjua (whose husband Masood disappeared in July 2005) have fought long and hard to keep such cases in the public eye,  working on legal issues and providing practical support to those left behind http://www.amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action/end-enforced-disappearances-pakistan

Amnesty has repeatedly confronted the Pakistani authorities highlighting evidence within its reports of how government officials have “obstructed attempts to trace those who have disappeared, using official court records and affidavits of victims and witnesses of enforced disappearances.” Amina has courageously taken on the authorities and had some success in having persons released from detention but Masood is not among those freed and is thought to be illegally held by the Inter -Services Intelligence (ISI) without charge or trial. She continues to remain optimistic that they will one day be reunited but it is now over eight years since she carried out a normal family life. More about Amina’s work can be read here…  https://activist1.wordpress.com/2013/08/01/amina-masood-janjua-championing-the-cause-of-pakistans-disappeared-as-she-marks-the-8th-annversary-of-the-search-for-her-missing-husband/

According to a recent video released by the wife of Naveed Butt, her husband’s whereabouts remain unknown but he is believed to have been detained also by the state. A statement from the family on the website Free Naveed Butt highlights that “on Monday 16th July 2012, the Pakistan government’s secret agencies did not comply again with court orders to produce Naveed Butt, the official spokesman of Hizb ut-Tahrir, more than two months after his abduction.” A recent Ramadan message from Mrs Butt discussing Naveed’s disappearance can be viewed here..  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2J7eiQMlQk#at=11

Independent human rights activists point out that if a person is suspected of committing a crime, involved in illegal activity, then evidence must be produced. The family of the missing person should be informed swiftly as to where their loved one is being detained with visiting rights granted and the person held allowed access to legal representation. This does not appear to be happening for many of those deemed enforced disappearances and their relatives in what is clearly a violation of basic human rights.

In the same month that Naveed Butt disappeared, the Hong Kong-based Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) and Action by Christians Against Torture France (ACAT-France) released their report detailing Pakistan as somewhat of a black hole in terms of its human rights record. There has been  little light ahead for campaigners of the disappeared and one can only imagine what may have been swallowed up in the darkness. This report however was submitted to the United Nations Human Rights Council, under its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process and the following observation made by Mr Baseer Naweed, Senior Researcher at ALRC :-

Although Pakistan is widely recognised as being a global hotspot in terms of insecurity and turmoil, due to its political alliances, it typically avoids the level of scrutiny by the international human rights system that the scale of rights violations in Pakistan warrants. Hundreds of forced disappearances have been reported from conflict-affected Balochistan province alone, for example. Elsewhere in the world, this would generally lead to far greater outcry.

In June 2013, Chief Justice Dost Muhammad Khan of the Peshawar high court was made aware of 280 cases of missing persons and stated; “it has come into my notice that there are secret detention centres in the no-go areas of the provincial metropolis but none of the law-enforcing agencies is taking action in this regard.” Current scrutiny by the courts has led to renewed questioning concerning the legality of secret detention centres and highlighted that more attention must be paid to First Information Reports (FIRs) into missing persons and trying to establish their whereabouts.

Munir A Malik, the Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP) has spoken of his concern that it could take decades to solve cases of missing persons. Justice Jawwad S Khawaja has divided missing persons into four distinct categories:-

1)      Those about whose forced disappearance there is direct evidence.

2)      Those about whose disappearance there is circumstantial evidence.

3)      Those about whose disappearance there is no clue or evidence.

4)      Those who are missing for other reasons and do not fall in the category of forced disappearances.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013%5C07%5C02%5Cstory_2-7-2013_pg7_1

Some of Pakistan’s press appear selective on which missing persons’ cases are reported. This could be for a number of reasons, undue influence from the state, fear of ending up as one of the disappeared (given  the number of Pakistani journalists kidnapped and killed) or perhaps not being aware of some cases with families themselves afraid to file reports against state agencies. There may also be a personal bias, not agreeing with the politics of a missing person, though media is supposed to remain independent and objective in their reporting. The Express Tribune does address some of the problems in dealing with missing persons cases in its article, “Sense of Impunity” Surrounds Enforced Disappearances in Pakistan: UN  http://tribune.com.pk/story/516634/sense-of-impunity-surrounds-enforced-disappearances-in-pakistan-un/

Leaders of political parties that once appeared keen to be photographed with families of the missing in the run up to the recent elections have yet to come up with meaningful policies and revised actions to assist families recover their loved ones. It is important that the courts are not alone in calling for accountability and condemning the illegal detention centres in Ghallanai, the headquarters of Mohmand Agency, Orakzai, Bajaur and Kurram agencies but that politicians do so too.

Hizb-ut-Tahrir has held protests outside embassies in several countries over the alleged kidnapping of Mr Butt and claim that their website highlighting the disappearance of their spokesperson has been subject to a ban at times. Whatever the politics surrounding HuT and its policies, the fact remains that procedures should be in place to protect citizens whether or not there is reason to take a person into custody. The wife of Naveed Butt has every right to know what has happened to her husband and the rights of those detained must be protected legally. There are also children to consider that have been traumatised by the disappearance of their father and need to be reassured that he is safe and well.

It is often said that the measure of a society can be judged by how it treats its disadvantaged citizens and its prisoners. In terms of those detained, alongside the efforts of judges and campaigners, there needs to be much greater efforts towards transparency and upholding human rights from the current government to ensure all in Pakistan work within the law and not above it.

It has been announced that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will review the recommendations of the Ministry of Law and Justice regarding missing persons and is to set up a Special Task Force. Let’s hope that this initiative is not just a talking shop but will put pressure on people to open their eyes and face up to what could be very uncomfortable findings. It is vital that justice is achieved for all those affected by enforced disappearances including the family of Naveed Butt.

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

DEDICATED TO ABDULLAH ALESEHAQ, AGE 12, KILLED IN A DRONE STRIKE AUG 1st 2013 …

Message received today “there is one child, Abdullah Alesehaq,12 years, he is from poor family, he stopped them to carry him to his family”

This is the drone strike  http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/08/01/new-us-drone-strike-in-yemen-as-hadi-to-meet-obama/

As a human rights activist I condemn the use of armed drones and deplore the killing of a young child.

NOT IN MY NAME!

My prayers for the family of Abdullah Alesehaq… May he rest in peace.. 

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

Photos : “US drone strike Hadhramaut, Yemen today. AQ must be building homes. Hilux targeted was carrying concrete blocks” (Haykal Bafana, lawyer, Yemen)

TODAY’S VICTIMS NAMED

Drone strike in Hadhramaut :

Abu Al-Magdad Al Sai-aari,

Mundhar Al Sai-aari,

Bashar Al Sai-aari

and a child (also Al Sai-aari tribe).

Reported by Reuters (Canada) as “Three suspected militants killed in drone strike South Yemen official” (Aug 1st 2013)

http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCABRE9700QC20130801

NO WONDER LOCAL WROTE “GOD CURSE AMERICA”!

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

“I am a firm believer and my faith has been my strength all the way. I believe in one thing for sure: that Masood is going to come back to me”

On 3th July 2005 Amina Masood Janjua’s world became a living nightmare on receiving the devastating news that the name of her husband Masood Janjua, a well-known educator and businessman of Rawalpind and Islamabad had been added to a long and ever growing list of Pakistan’s “disappeared”. Masood (then age 44) vanished from sight alongside his friend 25 year old Faisal Faraz, an engineer from Lahore while travelling together on a bus from Rawalpindi to Peshawar.

It is believed that the two men are in secret detention at the request of the CIA. Amnesty International reports that hundreds, possibly thousands, of people became victims of enforced disappearance after Pakistan joined the US-led war on terror in 2001. Cases were being investigated initially by the Supreme Court and then later transferred to a Judicial Commission, authorities however have been reluctant to examine the role of the intelligence services in “enforced disappearances” or hold anyone to account.

For years the security services denied any involvement in these disappearances, however it was reported this week in DAWN that the Attorney General of Pakistan recently informed the Supreme Court that over 500 persons reported to be ‘missing’ were in the custody of security agencies.

In an interview with Moazzam Begg, Director of Outreach at human rights organization, CagePrisoners, Amina recounts her distress on learning that Masood was one of those missing:-

I remember the time of Masood’s disappearance with a shudder, recalling how I was helplessly lying in bed for three months crying in a deep shock and depression. All the while my innocent children Muhammad (14), Ali (12) and Aishah (8) were sunk in a sea of shock, lost in a world of their own, their eyes desperately searching for Abbu (father) and Ammi (mother) both.

I pulled myself together with a determination never to give up and to bring my loved one home — to bring back the same old golden days of our union, when life was joy and fun and nothing else mattered. For the comfort of my children, I stretched over myself a confident smile. “I will bring your Abbu to you,” I promised to them

http://www.andyworthington.co.uk/2011/03/31/amina-masood-janjua-champion-of-pakistans-disappeared-tells-her-story-to-cageprisoners/

In 2006 Amina began spearheading demonstrations in front of Parliament House to wake up the government of Pervez Musharaff (believed to be involved in many of the missing person’s cases).  Fearless and determined she set the ball rolling for a long succession of street demonstrations, rallies, day/night sit-ins and months’ long protest camps across the country, along with seminars and awareness campaigns

In an article on Pervez Musharraf and Pakistan’s disappeared, The Real News reported the following:-

Pervez Musharraf admits in his biography that he handed over hundreds of suspects, including many Pakistani citizens, without charge or trial, to the U.S. for bounties totalling millions of dollars. The campaign later included domestic political dissidents, human rights organizers, journalists, or those who simply appeared suspect. Some have ended up renditioned to U.S. secret prisons around the world. Others are assumed held by Pakistani agencies, for years without charge, trial, or any contact with the outside world

Amina has been successful in getting over 600 people released but also learnt of a dark world where people were tortured and men who were abducted later turned up dead. One such case was that of investigative journalist Saleem Shahzad who disappeared after writing on drones and a militant attack on Mehran Navy base. Saleem spoke to persons within the armed forces and highlighted divisions and anger over the government’s failure to stop drone attacks that were killing many civilians not involved in terrorist activity.

One of Saleem’s allegations based on his interviews was that some within the military were “actively” recruiting insurgent sympathisers into the services…  Soon after writing on Mehran, the author was kidnapped on his way to a television studio and later found dead. His body revealed signs of torture. Saleem’s last interview can be seen on the following link… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmTM6gyHxbo

In 2012 the Supreme Court took action on some cases ordering that named persons must be charged or released. Amnesty reported that seven men were brought before the Supreme Court in Islamabad looking severely emaciated, some with urine bags protruding from their trousers. After the brief appearance in court they were taken away and remain missing”. Catherine Baber, Deputy-Director for the Asia-Pacific at Amnesty International had this to say, “if court orders can bring these disappeared people to light in a matter of days or weeks, the question remains – how many more are being held in intolerable conditions in secret detention centres across Pakistan?”

Interior Minister, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, has now set up a Federal Task Force (FTC) to resolve the issue of missing persons. The first meeting was held on 29^th July at the Ministry of Interior. Officials from Defence and Law ministries, provincial home ministries and police departments, intelligence agencies, FATA additional chief secretary and the ICT chief commissioner were invited to attend.  A hearing was previously held in the Supreme Court on July 23, 2013 during which the court directed that the government policy on “missing persons” should be submitted to the court. The date of the next hearing is August 2nd http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/islamabad/26-Jul-2013/ftf-on-missing-persons-set-to-be-active

Amina, not easily intimidated, set up a network of victim’s families several years ago who call themselves “Defence of Human Rights”. Her energies are also channelled into mentoring others and providing counselling for those in a similar situation to herself. There is however a history of intimidation against victims with some too afraid to even launch a report. The financial cost to families can also be high losing a breadwinner and having to campaign and fund legal and educational initiatives. There are times when Amina’s bank account is running on empty.

Amina describes the enormous effort undertaken to highlight and locate those that are gone which she shared with the International News and I stating :-

 A complete book can be written on the pain and the courage it took to reach here. I am proud and honoured to share that at the moment I am fighting 749 cases of the ‘disappeared’ by the special permission of the Supreme Court as a lawyer – although I am not a qualified lawyer. 

As the number of the disappeared grows, so does my passion and determination to put an end to this torture of making innocent citizens go ‘missing’ and keeping them in secret detentions. This issue has gone a long way in scarring our land and its people. It is a needless compromise of our national honour and integrity and a bloody sacrifice given in the name of the so-called war on terror.

I asked Amina for more information about Defence of Human Rights. She sent me the following from her publication, An Outcry :-

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

To bring back all the enforced disappeared safely back to their homes

Advocacy to make policies and laws which will stop the phenomenon of enforced disappearances once and for all

To bring positive change in foreign policies pertaining to superpowers of the world

Advocacy to sign and ratify U.N’s convention against Enforced Disappearances

To ensure fundamental rights of all human being as declared in Universal Declaration of Human Rights; irrespective of their caste, creed, colour, race, nationality or religion

Bring peace and justice to the world through consistent peaceful struggle

ROLE OF DHR

DHR submits each case of disappearance in Supreme Court as well as in commission of inquiry for missing person which takes an average of ten to twenty days for each case

Amina Masood as Chairperson has not missed a single haring of missing person case in Supreme Court in the last eight years, which is a record. Whereas adjournment due to absence of judges and lawyers is a common occurance

DHR does not charge a single penny for its service, instead it provides travelling and staying expenses to poor families that come for court hearings.

With the help of supporters DHR has provided monetary support to up to 200 families so far

DHR highlights an impressive list of achievements working on issues at home and abroad and has also campaigned to release prisoners from Bagram and Guantanamo and on drones to name but two. There was also a successful Missing Person’s Camp in 2012 where demonstrators camped out outside Parliament House in Islamabad for two and half months. This proved to be a milestone in the struggle of missing persons.

Despite the long struggle and her difficult existence as a “half-widow” Amina is more determined than ever. In a conversation with Pakistani blogger Sana Saleem she spoke of the need for help from all factions of society, lawyers, NGO’s, writers, human right activists, youth anyone that can assist her cause. The committed activist is appreciative of any help she receives stating on social media yesterday, “I want to thank all those who have been a real source of support and comfort, who stood by me in rain and sunshine and fought along with me for Masood Janjua, all these 8 long dark years.” If anyone can bring a missing person back home in Pakistan it will surely be Amina!

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

STAND FAST FOR JUSTICE

When I woke up on Monday morning 22^nd July 2013 it wasn’t part of the week’s plan to go on hunger strike. I had been following a friend Clive Stafford –Smith, human rights lawyer at Reprieve on Twitter when he announced an initiative called Stand Fast For Justice to draw attention to the plight of his client Shaker Aamer, held at the notorious Guantanamo Bay Detention Centre, Cuba.

Shaker is the only remaining British resident in Guantanamo Bay, cleared for release but still held, his case can be read on the following link http://www.reprieve.org.uk/cases/shakeraamer/ The idea was to pledge a few hours or days without food in solidarity with those at “Gitmo” that had begun their hunger strike months ago to protest their conditions and were now being forcibly fed by doctors at the camp.

Clive, leading by example, had tweeted his week without food, with the comedian Frankie Boyle taking up the mantel when his 7 days ended. This fast has now become a continuous and ever growing communal act of support for those deprived of their freedom, families and many basic human rights.

A chance sighting of a tweet to Clive which read “ordinary people should join in too” hit home with me on that Monday morning. I had intended to pledge time, so what was I waiting for. I had eaten my last meal on Sunday evening, hadn’t yet had breakfast… I would start my fast immediately.

Why did I feel the need to go on hunger strike?

Several years ago I had attended a talk by former detainee Moazzam Begg at Newcastle University and listened in horror and incredulity as he recounted his tale of capture, torture and imprisonment only to be released several years later from Gitmo without charge. Later I discovered that Moazzam was not an exception, 86 out of 166 detainees had been cleared for release (some years before) but were still languishing in captivity waiting to be set free.

Alongside hearing Moazzam’s experience I had also encountered Col. Morris Davis online and discovered that the former Chief Prosecutor at Guantanamo was now strenuously campaigning for its closure. (President Obama has yet to make good on his promise to close down Gitmo).

Col. Morris had thrown a spanner in the works by refusing to accept evidence from detainees obtained by undue coercion (read torture) except Bush has declared that the US does not officially torture people. Morris, under great pressure to comply wrote, “with two people now exercising command authority over me who seemed to lack any legal or moral objection to what most would call torture, it was time to quit”.

He went on to say:-

I have come to regard Guantanamo and the still-floundering military commissions as profound and shameful stains on America’s reputation as a country that stands for freedom and justice for all.

At last count, there were still 166 detainees at Guantanamo, a large number of them so despairing that they are willing to contemplate death as a preferable option to remaining in prison, with many of them having gone on hunger strike. The U.S. military is force-feeding 46 of those detainees to prevent them from starving themselves to death.

I had also come into contact with Johina Aamer, the young daughter of Shaker Aamer and was touched by her strength, maturity and impressive fight to bring Shaker home. Her words moved me, to think of all the years that she had been denied the presence and support of her father, and there was Johina’s mother without a husband. Shaker’s youngest son Faris has never even seen his father. … what must he think of this world. As journalist Yvonne Ridley wrote:-

Today Prince William got to see and hold his beloved son – and we wish them well. But I want us all to think about another father … Shaker Aamer who has never met his son Faris, or held him or whispered loving words in his ear from father to son. Faris is 11 years old and in all that time Shaker has been held without trial or charge in Guantanamo. Where’s the justice?

The children’s moving letters released by Reprieve were presented to a Senate hearing on Guantanamo and can be read on my blog https://activist1.wordpress.com/2013/07/25/guantantamo-children-of-shaker-aamer-appeal-for-the-return-of-their-father/

My hunger strike was not the first action taken on Guantanamo. I had previously written a letter to the office of Public Safety Minister, Vic Toews, Correctional Service Canada (CSC), to ask him to accept detainee Omar Khadr who was hoping to be transferred from Gitmo to Canada https://activist1.wordpress.com/2012/06/22/omar-khadr-and-canadas-history-of-human-rights-violations/

Alongside demonstrations to close Guantanamo. I had also written an article in May 2013 as a former nurse protesting at force-feeding of detainees and arguing for the right NOT to be force-fed https://activist1.wordpress.com/2013/05/02/guantanamo-the-right-not-to-be-force-fed/  This included highlighting the following from Anne Gallagher, director of the International Centre for Nursing Ethics, at the University of Surrey, in England, and editor of the journal Nursing Ethics:-

Health professionals regularly make decisions about the continuation and discontinuation of treatment and they have to accept patients’ decisions to refuse treatment even if this may result in their deaths. The right to refuse medical interventions to provide nutrition and hydration should also be extended to prisoners as autonomous individuals.

We must have the utmost respect for nurses and other professionals who work ethically in military and custodial care settings and appreciate the many challenges that arise. We must also express our solidarity with those who refuse to do something that conflicts with their professional values.

Nurses who refuse to participate in force-feeding are, in my view, acting in accord with their professional values. Force-feeding is not part of nurses’ caring repertoire.

For an insight into force feeding see the disturbing video where actor, rapper and social activist Yassin Bey (aka Mos Def) volunteers to undergo the process…. and imagine if that were you  http://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2013/jul/08/mos-def-force-fed-guantanamo-bay-video

Irish prisoner, Marion Price was left with permanent damage after being force-fed over 400 times while on hunger strike in a British prison, this is her description of that time in an interview with Dublin magazine The Village:-

Four male prison officers tie you into the chair so tightly with sheets you can’t struggle. You clench your teeth to try to keep your mouth closed but they push a metal spring device around your jaw to prise it open. They force a wooden clamp with a hole in the middle into your mouth. Then, they insert a big rubber tube down that. They hold your head back. You can’t speak or move. You’re frightened you’ll choke to death.

This image kept springing to mind, I could stop my hunger strike any time I wanted, for those at Guantanamo, using their bodies is their only real way of protesting for their human rights to be upheld.

Finally as someone whose husband and brother in law were unlawfully killed by the state and termed in court as US “collateral damage” I have my own bizarre connection to the US prison system. I firmly believe that if my concerns regarding other prisons particularly Arkansas State Penitentiary had been addressed rather than suppressed it would have been much more difficult to export unethical and dangerous practice to Guantanamo.

So how did my week on hunger strike go?

The first three days were the hardest until my body adjusted to zero calories. I started the day watching a video from Jason Leopold, morning prayers at Guantanamo’s Camp 5, where you view the guards pacing the corridor but never see the face of the haunting voice from one of the cells http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2g9X0E3HFc This made me feel quite emotional especially knowing that this is the time of Ramadan, so important to Muslims everywhere.

Initially I felt hunger pangs and had a headache, so increased my fluid intake. (I drank only water and tea minus milk and sugar for the week). On day two I broke a vase and put this down to low blood sugar as I rarely break anything, my body is used to enjoying sweet things.

I was buoyed up by the support from family and friends who sent encouraging messages and reposted articles on Guantanamo on my Facebook and Twitter pages. Julie Christie, the actor and social activist came to mind too as we were sharing the same week of food deprivation. I also thought of one person who had pledged 10 days initially but was reconsidering the length of time as he was already tweeting from bed.

Day 3 was probably the worse. I had been asked to give an interview for Russia TV on Guantanamo on one of the hottest days of the year. My head was pounding as I sat in a link up studio in Newcastle in intense heat propped up in an uncomfortable chair and trying hard not to faint.

Concentration was difficult, not helped by the fact that a light on the equipment had suddenly failed with minutes to go. I was made aware of the fact that I was unfortunately wearing a blue top (other colours weren’t apparently affected by this technical malfunction) which I was informed might make me “see through” and was asked “did I have a jacket to put on top”. Given the temperature I didn’t and contemplated borrowing the engineer’s T shirt.

I did what I could to highlight conditions at Gitmo (but oh how I wish they had got me on day 6 when I was somewhat euphoric without nourishment and finding a new lease of life). I hoped people would realize that the hunger strike was kicking in as opposed to my being intellectually challenged. My parents watched the news and described me as looking “pale and hollow” but at least not see through!

I was told things would improve on Day 4 and they did. I started to feel clean and alert, detoxified from all the gunge that had accumulated in my body. I lost feelings of hunger and on a trip to buy catfood at Tesco, focused on an image of Mos Def in the feeding chair to distract me from the shelves of chocolate goodies.

On days 5 and 6 I was on a natural high, out for walks, championing the wonders of water, glad to be alive and very grateful for my freedom. I noticed how focused my mind had become with all my concentration channelled into the men at Guantanamo and their families. I even managed to write a couple of articles.

Day 7 … when the time finally came to eat, I was extremely reluctant to give up my hunger strike and felt guilty at taking food. How could I be sat experiencing pleasure while others were suffering at Guantanamo…

I can only say that as my stomach emptied during the 7 days, my mind opened up to contemplating the difficulties of others. What campaigners want now is Shaker released back to the UK and to his family. Friends that had followed my week of fasting have now started contacting to ask how they can participate…the movement will grow and grow. So for all those wanting to stand fast for justice, you too can do your bit upholding human rights by clicking on the link provided  http://www.standfastforjustice.org/ and pledging just a little of your time.

Clive Stafford-Smith remains concerned that his client is still not on the list for transfer from Guantanamo though two Algerian men are now leaving. He states, “the UK Government has repeatedly said that they want Shaker returned to the UK. David Cameron must strain every sinew to ensure that Shaker returns to his family in London as soon as possible.”

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.

US HYPOCRISY ON HUMAN RIGHTS, GITMO AN “ISLAND” OF INJUSTICE

Shaker Aamer is the last British citizen to he held in Guantanamo Bay Detention Centre, Cuba http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/guantanamo-bay He has been held there since 2002. As his lawyers at Reprieve human rights organization state,

Shaker has long been cleared for release by the United States. He has never been charged by the United States with a crime and has never received a trial. However, he has been repeatedly abused and subjected to extended isolation in Guantánamo Bay.

You can read Shaker’s case in detail here http://www.reprieve.org.uk/cases/shakeraamer/

Shaker has a wife and 4 children and in a week when the world celebrates the birth of a royal baby, one young boy Faris has yet to meet his father.

The following letters are the words of two of his children, released by Reprieve on Wednesday 24th July 2013:-

Detainee: Shaker Aamer
ISN: 239
British Resident
Family members: Michael Aamer (son) & Johina Aamer (daughter)
Residence of family members: UK

Dear Senators,

My name is Michael Aamer and I am 13 years old. My dad, Shaker Aamer, is in Guantanamo. It makes me so sad to know that even after trying to get him out, he is still in prison. And even though he has been cleared for release, he has been tortured.

I see my dad on skype when we speak to him. Sometimes a guard stands behind him. We have to be very careful about what we talk about—we can only talk about ourselves or the guards will stop the call.

Since I have grown up, I find it very difficult without my dad. I can feel how hard it is for my mum. I can’t imagine how my dad is coping with all the ill-treatment he has been facing.

I always hear my friends talking about how their dads give them treats and presents. I feel really lonely knowing that I am the only one whose dad is away in prison.

I was very little when my dad was taken away, and I hope I won’t have to wait too long before I can see him again.

Sincerely,

Michael Aamer

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Dear Senators,

I am Johina Aamer. For over 11 years now, my dad Shaker Aamer has been detained in Guantanamo. Most men there could never be a threat to anyone. Why is there such injustice?

We all live our lives, passing through every day with food, clothes, and most importantly freedom. Can you imagine being locked up for 10 years? Imagine losing ten years of your life and possibly many more years to come if everyone sits there and does nothing about it. Try imagining being treated like a circus animal in a cage and being taken away from your home and everything you love. It is painful isn’t it?

Well my dad has already been through this and is going through this now. I am fifteen years old, and I was just a little girl when he was taken away. My youngest brother Faris has never even met his dad.

Please Senators, I ask you to do something about it. We are a big family and we do our best to live a normal life, but without dad back home with us, it will never be possible.

Thank-you for your time and attention.

Best Regards

Johina Aamer

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HOW YOU CAN HELP

Read Shaker’s experience of torture and humiliation at Guantanamo http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2319550/Guantanamo-Bay-British-inmate-Shaker-Aamer-describes-torture-humiliation.html

Write a letter to your MP calling for the return of Shaker to the UK. Ask what the government is doing in practice to assist his process.

You can also pledge a few hours or days of your time to Stand Fast For Justice where you can adopt a hunger strike in solidarity with campaigners at Guantanamo that are refusing food to highlight inhumane treatment and violations of detainees’ rights. I will be detailing my personal experience of being on a 7 day hunger strike on my blog once completed. Check link and see how you can participate below  http://www.saveshaker.org/stand-fast-for-justice/398

DON’T STAY SILENT ON ABUSE

Carol Anne Grayson is an independent writer/researcher on global health/human rights and is Executive Producer of the Oscar nominated, Incident in New Baghdad.  She is a Registered Mental Nurse with a Masters in Gender Culture and Development. Carol was awarded the ESRC, Michael Young Prize for Research 2009, and the COTT ‘Action = Life’ Human Rights Award’ for “upholding truth and justice”.