[DEBATE] : Fwd: [Freethe SF8] Nobel laureates call charges to be dropped against SF 8

[tony roshan samara]

: To: "Asian Americans for the SF 8!" <AA4SF8 at gmail.com>, 

                                Nobel Peace Prize laureates are calling for all charges to be dropped
 against eight former Black Panthers
 
 New York
 
 http://freethesf8.org/international_call_SF8.html
 
 Friday, November 30, 2007, 11 am
 
 At a press conference held at the Interfaith Church Center, World
 Council of Churches representative Lois M. Dauway officially released
 the International Call on the San Francisco Eight, a document drafted
 to bring the attention and the solidarity of the global peace and
 human rights community to the case. The Call, currently signed by
 three Nobel Peace laureates and two activists in leadership positions
 with Nobel peace prize winning organizations, is based on
 internationally recognized principles of prisoner rights, human
 rights, and against all forms of torture. Dauway, a senior executive
 of the Women's Division of the United Methodist Church, stated: "The
 time has come to set free those who have been bound. The case of the
 SF8 requires all of us to come together, and take an active stand for
 justice for all U.S. political prisoners."
 
 In addition to Nobel peace related and church organizations, the
 International Call will bring world-wide and key regional associations
 into direct contact with the Committee in Defense of Human Rights, and
 other groups working on behalf of the SF8. Intended also as a tool for
 local activists within the U.S. to help reach out to local religious
 and community based organizations, the Call will eventually be used to
 put pressure on both federal and local California authorities to see
 that justice is done for all members of the Eight, and all who have
 suffered torture at the hands of the U.S. criminal justice system.
 Call organizer and War Resisters International activist Matt Meyer
 reported that interest in the Call has already been generated amongst
 the founders of the Nobel Women's Initiative, in academic circles, and
 in key constituencies across three continents. "We have a great
 opportunity," he noted, "and a great responsibility to bring news of
 this case far beyond our usual circles, until justice is finally
 done."
 
 The full text and current signers of the International Call is
 attached and below.
 
 International Call on the San Francisco 8
  Given our commitment to and history in the global justice and human
 rights movements,
 
 Given our commitment to reconciliation between peoples and governments,
 
 Given that the U.S. government and Federal Bureau of Investigation
 has been shown, through past U.S. Congressional hearings and legal
 proceedings, to have been involved in illegal policing activities
 against civil and human rights organizations;
 
 Given that these illegal activities, epitomized by the FBI Counter
 Intelligence Programs (COINTELPRO), targeted the Black Panther Party,
 and appears to have an ongoing presence;
 
 Given that eight former Black Panthers--men now all in their fifties,
 sixties, and seventies-were arrested on January 23, 2007;
 
 Given that these arrests were based on charges related to a 1971
 murder, a murder investigated and brought to court in 1975 with the
 charges dismissed;
 
 Given that no new evidence has been uncovered, and that the alleged
 evidence in the 1973 investigation was thrown out of court due to a
 judicial finding that statements were made under conditions of extreme
 torture, including: electric shock, cattle prods, beatings, sensory
 deprivation, plastic bags and hot, wet blankets for asphyxiation; and
 
 Given that these new charges amount to little more than continued
 governmental harassment, violating basic principles set forth in the
 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations
 Convention against Torture;
 
 We call on all appropriate legal and governmental authorities to:
 Investigate and end all incidents of torture within the U.S. criminal
 justice system; Drop all current charges for all eight men in
 question, namely: Herman Bell, Ray Boudreaux, Richard Brown, Henry W.
 (Hank) Jones, Jalil Muntaqim (Anthony Bottom), Richard O'Neal, Harold
 Taylor, and Francisco Torres; Convene official investigations into the
 ongoing legacy and possible continued operation of COINTELPRO and
 similar programs, with an eye towards true reconciliation and human
 rights based on internationally recognized standards and principles;
 and Release immediately, on humanitarian grounds, Herman Bell and
 Jalil Muntaqim (Anthony Bottom)-each of whom has served over thirty
 years of disproportionately long sentences based on the COINTELPRO
 criminalization of the Black Panther Party and the U.S. civil rights
 movement.
  The Most Reverend Dr. Desmond Mpilo Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus of Cape
 Town, Primate of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa; Nobel
 Peace Laureate 1984
 
 Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Community of Peace People, Northern
 Ireland; Nobel Peace Laureate 1976
 
 Betty Williams, Community of Peace People, Northern Ireland; Nobel
 Peace Laureate 1976
 
 Darryl Jordan, Director-American Friends Service Committee* Third
 World Coalition (Nobel Peace Laureate 1947)
 
 William Wardlaw, Executive Director's Leadership Council, Amnesty
 International* (Nobel Peace Laureate 1977)
 
 * Organizations listed for identification purposes only
 
 For more information on the International Call, contact: Matt Meyer,
 War Resisters International, 339 Lafayette Street, NY 10012 USA
 mmmsrnb at igc.org; and the Committee for the Defense of Human Rights,
 www.freethesf8.org
 
 _______________________________________________
 Please support these brothers by sending a donation. Make checks
 payable to CDHR/Agape and mail to the address below or donate on line:
 
 www.freethesf8.org/donate.html
 
 Committee for the Defense of Human Rights (CDHR)
 PO Box 90221
 Pasadena, CA 91109
 (415) 226-1120
 FreetheSF8 at riseup.net
 
     
             __._,_.___                                                 Messages in this topic           (1)                                          Reply           (via web post)           |                     Start a new topic                   
                                 Messages                                                                      
                                                         **************  Visit our website at www.asata.org  **************
 The Alliance of South Asians Taking Action (ASATA) works to educate, organize, and empower the Bay Area South Asian communities to end violence, oppression, racism and exploitation within and against our diverse communities.
 
 
 To Post a message, send it to:   asata at yahoogroups.com
 
 To Unsubscribe, send a blank message to: asata-unsubscribe at yahoogroups.com                           
                                   
       Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required) 
       Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch format to Traditional 
                 Visit Your Group         |                Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use       |                Unsubscribe            
        
                                                        Visit Your Group           
                                                                          Yahoo! Finance
  It's Now Personal
  Guides, news,
  advice & more.
                   
                                            Best of Y! Groups
  Check it out
  and nominate your
  group to be featured.
                  
                                            Endurance Zone
  A Fitness Group
  about overall
  better endurance.
                  
           
        
      .
 
    
  __,_._,___