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Announcement :: International Relations |
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International "Occupation Watch Center" In Iraq |
Current rating: 0 |
by Global Exchange
(No verified email address) |
06 Jul 2003
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A primary goal of the center is to monitor the direct impact of the U.S.-U.K. invasion: This includes keeping track of civilian casualties; civilian access to the basic necessities of food, water and shelter; and how depleted uranium weaponry and cluster bombs have affected Iraq. The center will also keep an eye on the military occupation and U.S.-appointed government in terms of potential violations of human rights, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, labor rights and the rights of women. |
BAGHDAD, IRAQ - July 3 - Global Exchange co-founder Medea Benjamin is in Baghdad until July 9 where she is organizing the launch of the International Occupation Watch Center. The IOWC will monitor the military occupation forces and foreign corporations, host international delegations to Iraq, and keep the international community updated about the occupation forces' activities through a new website, www.occupationwatch.org.
"We need to keep international attention focused on what happens in Iraq now that the heavy fighting has stopped," said Benjamin. "We can't bomb this country and then move on to the next 'hot spot' when the Iraqis don't even have the right to self-determination, much less basic security and basic services like electricity."
The center is supported by an impressive advisory board of international academics, writers, and human rights advocates. It will function under the auspices of United for Peace and Justice (www.unitedforpeace.org), a U.S. anti-war coalition with more than 600 member groups, with participation from a diversity of international groups including Focus on the Global South, Iraqi Democrats Against Occupation, and members of the World Social Forum.
A primary goal of the center is to monitor the direct impact of the U.S.-U.K. invasion: This includes keeping track of civilian casualties; civilian access to the basic necessities of food, water and shelter; and how depleted uranium weaponry and cluster bombs have affected Iraq. The center will also keep an eye on the military occupation and U.S.-appointed government in terms of potential violations of human rights, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, labor rights and the rights of women.
Foreign corporate activity in Iraq will also come under scrutiny, with a particular emphasis on the use of Iraqi oil resources. The center will report on contracts obtained by corporations such as Halliburton and Bechtel and their track record on the ground in Iraq. The international delegation will deliver to Iraqis several letters from communities around the world subjected to the Bechtel corporation's privatization efforts. Finally, the center will actively support the creation of independent Iraqi organizations such as media and environmental groups, groups that promote women's rights, and independent trade unions.
"This is a critical effort of friendship and solidarity initiated by one of the main anti-war coalitions in the United States, as opposed to the aggression and occupation of their government," says Iraqi professor and Advisory Board member Kamil Mahdi. "That is why my colleagues and I are giving it our full support." |
See also:
http://www.occupationwatch.org
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Rockin' The Boat- Occupation Watch: Medea Benjamin In Baghdad |
by V-Man via ML
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
06 Jul 2003
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Interview w/ Medea Benjamin of Global Exchange, who is currently in Baghdad, Iraq helping to organize the Int'l Occupation Watch Center, to monitor the military occupation forces and foreign corporations, host international delegations to Iraq, & keep the world updated about the situation through a new website, http://www.occupationwatch.org
Recorded 7/05/03 at Free Radio Santa Cruz 96.3 FM 16:18
audio: http://sf.indymedia.org/uploads/medea.mp3
http://www.freakradio.org |
