The Largest Minority

November 13th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

I’m a bit late on reporting this, but I’m going to pretend that I’m not.

There was a heated exchange between President Chavez of Venezuela and King Juan Carlos of Spain on Saturday when Chavez repeatedly referred to the former Prime Minister of Spain, Jose Maria Aznar, as a “fascist” during the XVII Ibero-American Summit.

Aznar was a pro-Bush prime minister and supported America’s imperialistic Iraq War, along with the failed US-backed coup against Chavez in 2002. After Chavez was overthrown, despite being the democratically-elected President of Venezuela, Aznar tried to gather Latin American support for the new US puppet regime. You can understand why Chavez might describe such a man as a “fascist”.

After Chavez’s speech, Spain’s current Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriquez Zapatero, told Hugo that he should be more diplomatic. President Chavez tried to interject, but his mic was cut off. This led to the king of Spain angrily lashing out at the Venezuelan President by saying, “Why don’t you shut up?” before leaving the chamber. Of course, Aznar is a fascist, but you don’t just come right out and speak the truth in politics. Who does this commie think he is?

The next day, Chavez spoke of the incident to a Spanish newspaper. He said he hoped the confrontation would not damage relations between the two countries, but reiterated; “Mr King, we are not going to shut up.” Chavez recalled the previous day: “They told me some Spanish officials grabbed him by the arm, because he’s strong and tall. He acted like an angry bull” as he stormed out. “I’m no bullfighter - but ole!”

Chavez suggested that King Juan Carlos was also aware of the 2002 coup since Spain’s ambassador immediately visited Venezuela to offer the king’s blessing to the interim president that replaced Chavez. “Mr King, did you know about the coup d’etat against Venezuela, against the democratic, legitimate government of Venezuela in 2002?” Chavez asked. “It’s very hard to imagine the Spanish ambassador would have been at the presidential palace supporting the coup-plotters without authorization from his majesty.”

Supporters of the Venezuelan president rallied in Caracas to show their support for Chavez over the weekend. One of the demonstrators said of the Spanish monarch, “He’s insolent. He has to respect a sovereign leader. The king is just a monarch and Spain has been sacking the people of Latin America for the past 500 years. President Chavez has more right to say what he pleases than the king because he was elected by the Venezuelan people.”

Western powers still have not given up on trying to bring down Chavez . He currently faces the threat of protests in his country from Washington-backed opposition groups.

h/t BoRev for the pic of the Spanish king after he apparently stepped out of a Velázquez painting.
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November 12th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

Muhammad Abdul Bari of the Muslim Council of Britain said on Saturday that there is “a disproportionate amount of discussion” about Muslims in the UK which creates an atmosphere of “suspicion and unease”. He likened the climate of fear against Muslims to that in Nazi Germany. “Every society has to be really careful so the situation doesn’t lead us to a time when people’s minds can be poisoned as they were in the 1930s.”

Bari continued, “What you had in the 1930s was all sorts of popular fictions were spread about the Jewish community that they were responsible for all ills that were occurring to Germany. They were made into folk-devils and I think there is a danger that the word ‘Muslim’ in the UK is becoming synonymous with bad news.” According to a 2001 census, there are about 1.6 million Muslims in the UK out of an overall population of around 60 million.

Abul Bari also criticized Jonathan Evans, head of the M15 (the UK’s domestic intelligence agency), for recent comments which he felt were “creating a scare in the community and wider society”. Evans had earlier claimed that there were 2,000 people living in the UK who posed a terrorism-related danger, and said that organizations like al-Qaeda were targeting Britain’s children.

Bari further criticized the very language used by officials. He said it is inappropriate to describe people as “Islamic terrorists,” as officials never called the Irish Republican Army (IRA) “Catholic terrorists”.

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October 27th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

Human rights groups, including the French-based International Federation of Human Rights Leagues (FIDH) and the U.S. Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), have filed a lawsuit against Donald Rumsfeld for authorizing interrogation techniques that led to rights abuses at detention centers in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay when he was defense secretary of the United States.

The Bush administration has been consistent in its claims that it does not torture, claims which have been debunked as complete bullshit. Exposure to extreme temperatures and waterboarding are methods the administration admits to employing under the guise that they are not torture (as well as the “I’m not touching you” technique demonstrated by Rummy in the accompanying picture).

The Abu Ghraib jail in Iraq hit the headlines in April 2004 when details of the physical abuse and sexual humiliation of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. soldiers were made public, badly damaging the reputation of the U.S. military.

Former prisoners at Guantanamo Bay are suing Rumsfeld and 10 military commanders for alleged torture and violations of their religious rights during their detention there.

The CCR and FIDH have already filed suits in Germany in 2004 and 2006 in a bid to have Rumsfeld tried for rights abuses.

Both were rejected by the courts, though an appeal is due to be heard in the second case next week, the groups said.

The plaintiffs argue that French courts have universal jurisdiction, under the 1984 Convention Against Torture, which allows them to try foreigners in cases which occurred abroad. In a statement posted on the FIDH website, Michael Ratner said, “We will only stop once the American authorities involved in the torture program are brought to justice. Donald Rumsfeld must understand that he has nowhere to hide. A torturer is an enemy of humanity.” The statement went on to say that, “Rumsfeld’s presence on French territory gives the French courts the authority to try him, in that he ordered and authorized torture and other inhuman and degrading treatment on detainees at Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib and elsewhere.”

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September 17th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

France’s Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has stated on French television and radio that the world needs to prepare for a war with Iran over its nuclear energy program. “We have to prepare for the worst, and the worst is war,” he said. Kouchner also stated that French companies have been advised not to undertake new work or contracts in Iran. France wants the EU to back new sanctions against Iran outside of the UN Security Council, despite the fact that Iran is enriching far less uranium than previously thought.

Since there is absolutely no evidence that Iran is seeking to build a nuclear weapon, the French minister was reduced to talking in hypotheticals by saying that it would be a “real danger for the whole world” if Iran possessed a nuke. Reiterating France’s commitment to battle this unverifiable threat, Kouchner said that “we will not accept that the bomb is manufactured.” He hinted at military action, but insisted that such plans were far away. Sayed Mohammed Mirandi, a political analyst at Tehran University, said; “Most doubt that there will be any military conflict because the US is in enough trouble as it is in Iraq. The new French government seems to be taking the place of the former British government…acting as Bush’s poodle.”

As a signatory to the NPT, Iran has every right to pursue nuclear power. Because of this right, Iran has failed to comply with UN Security Council resolutions ordering the state to suspend its uranium enrichment. Following Kouchner’s statement, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in an interview, “Of course we will not step back. The West is talking about imposing sanctions on us, but they cannot do this.” Yet, just as with the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the US and its allies are not concerned with what the opposing party is entitled to under international law – but what concessions that party will make to appease the world’s only superpower which has the leverage to enforce its own framework for debate.

The five permanent Security Council members, along with Germany, will be discussing a new draft for a UN resolution on the 21st of this month to impose sanctions on Iran. Kouchner’s comments come after French President Nicolas Sarkozy said last month that diplomacy was the only alternative to “an Iranian bomb or the bombing of Iran.” Sarkozy is taking a harder stance on Iran than his predecessor, Jacques Chirac, who correctly stated that Iran would still not be a threat, even if they did have a nuclear bomb. Defense Secretary Gates of the US maintains that “all options are on the table” in regards to Iran.

President Ahmadinejad will arrive in New York on the 24th to attend the United Nation’s 62nd General Assembly session. Ahmadinejad is expected to deliver a speech to the General Assembly and meet with other heads of state and Iranian-Americans during his two day visit. During last year’s session, the Iranian president slammed the US and Britain, two permanent members of the UN Security Council, for “committing crimes” in Iraq and Afghanistan. He argued that the Security Council itself had no legal validation since it was composed of criminals. From New York, Ahmadinejad is expected to head to Venezuela to meet with America’s favorite leftist leader (as if we’ve ever known one we didn’t try to kill) Hugo Chavez.

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September 3rd, 2007 by Manila Ryce

The Swiss People’s Party, Switzerland’s biggest political party, has put forth a proposal to deport entire families if one child is convicted of drug offenses, fraud, or a violent crime. Ronnie Bernheim of the Swiss Foundation against Racism and Anti-Semitism says the idea is similar to the Nazi practice of “Sippenhaft,” where relatives of criminals were held responsible and punished equally. As we know all too well, you can’t be neutral on a moving train and Switzerland’s ticket was paid for with Nazi gold (I kid, I kid).

What really drives the message home is the campaign poster (above) which exploits the rampant xenophobia in Switzerland by depicting three white sheep kicking a black sheep out of the country. This racism is poorly hidden under a common colloquialism regarding an outcast or “black sheep” who is shunned by the herd. President of the People’s Party Ueli Maurer said, “As soon as the first 10 families and their children have been expelled from the country, then things will get better at a stroke.” The party is seeking 100,000 signatures to force a referendum on the issue. Much like the BNP and KKK, the Swiss People’s Party (SVP) insists they are not racist.

So far, there has been little backlash against the posters, and observers say it may even help the party in the October national elections. Another racist anti-immigration ad, put out by the party in 2004, showed black hands reaching into a pot full of Swiss passports. It too was popular amongst the majority of Swiss voters. Earlier this year, a nationwide initiative was also proposed by the party to ban minarets. The ban is not only unconstitutional, but directly aimed at Muslims, as no such restrictions are placed on Christian churches or Jewish temples. If this new proposal becomes law, it’s inevitable that trumped up charges will be made against immigrants in order to “cleanse” the country of the black sheep some people think don’t belong in Europe.

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August 28th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

French President Nicolas Sarkozy stated in his first major foreign policy speech that even though France had opposed the invasion of Iraq in 2003, that it was ready now to help end the involvement of the countries involved. Sarkozy said “A clear horizon must be defined concerning the withdrawal of foreign troops,” stressed that extremists must be marginalized, and stated that a process of national reconciliation must occur.

The president also held out the prospect of improved relations with Syria if Damascus agrees to help break the current political crisis in Lebanon, France’s close ally in the Middle East.

Sarkozy said France would not allow a “Hamastan” to emerge in the Palestinian territories after the takeover of the Gaza Strip by Hamas group in June. “We cannot resign ourselves to this outcome,” he said.

Avoiding a clash between Islam and the West was the “first challenge” facing French diplomacy in the 21st century and security agencies in Western governments must work in “total co-operation” to combat terrorism, he said.

Sarkozy underscored the importance of the Franco-US friendship but added that France was free to disagree with the US. “To be allied does not mean to be aligned,” he said.

Not to state the obvious, but it’s rather pathetic when conservative leaders in other countries are always further to the left than our so-called liberal American leaders. Democrats are so far to the right that they even run away from being called “liberals.” How pathetic.

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July 27th, 2007 by Manila Ryce

John Oliver uses the recent London flooding to illustrate what any �self-respecting western democracy� is suppose to do during a major catastrophe. Security, water, and shelter are top priorities. Thanks to England�s version of FEMA, even the darkies aren’t left to drown.

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June 29th, 2007 by Manila Ryce