U.S.: Detained Migrant Women Shackled During Childbirth http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=50546When Maricopa County sheriff's deputies raided Celia Alejandra Alvarez's workplace and discovered her hiding place, she says they lifted her off her feet and slammed her face into a wall, causing injuries to her jaw and teeth. Later, in detention for having false documents, she says she was not given medical care.
"I'm never going to forget what I went through behind bars," the 32-year-old Mexican immigrant told IPS. Last month, she filed a lawsuit against the sheriff's office. Alvarez is not alone. Other immigrant women and mothers like her describe allegations of physical abuse and being shackled during childbirth while in the custody of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.
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MUST READ-NEW-Honduras After the Coup: Fear and Defiance(special report) http://insidecostarica.com/special_reports/2010/2010-03/honduras_after_coup.htm
Honduras has long been an important platform for the United States to dominate the region. The military forces that overthrew the democratic government of Jacobo Arbenz of Guatemala in 1954 were organized and trained there. The CIA used Honduras to organize the terroristic attacks of the "contras" against the Nicaraguans in the eighties. The Palmerola air base is used by the United States as a training base and to wage its "war on drugs."
The newly-installed government of Pepe Lobo presents itself as a government of reconciliation. Lobo has appointed ministers from opposition parties, and has begun to set up a "truth commission" to be led by a former vice-president of Guatemala. The United States is leading an effort to get other countries to restore diplomatic relations, and a few of its clients, such as Israel and Colombia have done so. South Korea and Taiwan have an interest in the cheap labor available in Honduras, so they too are falling into line.
But the resistance is not accepting any of these moves. Whatever credibility the newly appointed ministers may have had evaporated as soon as they accepted positions in a government that owes its existence to an election held under conditions of violent repression and censorship. The "truth commission" includes not a single representative of those who have been repressed, and is therefore seen as a sham, a "whitewash commission." Since it is generally assumed that the United States was complicit in the coup in some way, any international recognition that the Lobo government achieves will not add anything to its credibility in Honduras.
comment-also see...ISS - Key leaders of Honduras military coup trained in U.S http://www.southernstudies.org/2009/06/key-leaders-of-honduras-military-coup-trained-in-us.html Washington behind the Honduras coup: Here is the evidence http://links.org.au/node/1147 The Honduran coup: another US destabilization operation http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=14171 Foreign Policy in Focus | Honduran Coup: The U.S. Connection http://www.fpif.org/fpiftxt/6329
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Bolivia Accuses U.S. Of Using Drug Fight To Subdue Latin American Governments http://www.insidecostarica.com/dailynews/2010/march/04/latam-10030403.htm
Bolivian President Evo Morales said Wednesday that the U.S. government uses the fight against drug trafficking to "politically subdue" Latin American governments and establish its hegemony in the region.''For the United States, the anti-drug fight is a tool of political control over the countries," Morales said. "It is only a tool for realizing its hegemonic goals or expressing the discredit of the governments, including Bolivia, which actually has declared a real fight against drug trafficking."Morales also oppugned the intentions of the United States of conducting cooperation with and sending military troops to some countries in the region, under the pretext of fighting drug trafficking and terrorism.
He reaffirmed his objection to the recent report of the U.S. Department of State where Bolivia was discredited in the fight against drugs."It is clear that the U.S. veto on Bolivia is for political reasons," Morales added.He said that during his administration the number of anti-drug operations increased from 28,219 in 2000 to 42,928 in 2005, during which the cocaine seizure went up from 48 tons to 91 tons.The U.S. yearly report on the drug trafficking combat said Bolivia and Venezuela failed do enough in this regard in 2009.
comment-also see...Fake & Corrupt US War on Drugs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80FCkmjiOvk The Contras, Cocaine, and Covert Operations http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB2/nsaebb2.htm Mike Ruppert - CIA and Drug Running http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7009998324250484369
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Nigeria's constitutional crisis and US interference http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/62744
With Nigeria locked in a constitutional crisis, Funmi Feyide-John discusses the role of the US government's interference. While praising the Nigerian government for its ability to calmly transfer power to Vice-President Goodluck Johnson following President Umaru Yar'Adua's absence due to poor health, Feyide-John writes, the US's alleged favouritism towards particular political players risks severely undermining democracy in Nigeria through casting whoever ultimately ends up as president as a foreign puppet.
In meeting former military dictator Ibrahim Babangida in Yar'Adua's absence, Feyide-John stresses, the US's actions give credence to suggestions of its intent to secure a Nigerian base for its AFRICOM (Africa Command) initiative and bolster its access to oil, as part of political dabbling which will doubtless have a lasting impact on Nigerian politics.
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Covering up colonialism's crimes on Diego Garcia http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/62731
Mauritian socialist party Lalit de Klas has written to environmental NGO Greenpeace UK, asking it to reconsider its support for plans by the British government to create a marine protected area on the Indian Ocean island of Chagos, where Britain also maintains ‘a polluting nuclear base’ in Diego Garcia.
The Chagossians were forcibly removed by Britain and the US and decolonisation of the island should be the first priority ‘for all concerned people’, says Lalit de Klas. ‘After decolonisation, the people whose land and sea it is can decide on how to protect and nurture it best, how to affect a clean-up of the base once it was closed down, and how to re-generate it into the beautiful atoll it once was.’
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Celebrating Compromises in Uruguay: José Mujica Inaugurated as President http://upsidedownworld.org/main/uruguay-archives-48/2385-celebrating-compromises-in-uruguay-mujica-inaugurated-as-president
Mujica, a former Tupamaro guerilla who was imprisoned and tortured under the country’s dictatorship, stood in front of the multitude with his wife and vice president as he led the crowd in singing folksongs that were outlawed during military rule, La Nación reported.Among other campaign platforms, Mujica has promised to focus on the development of new housing projects for the country’s poor, reactivate the train system, expand the access and quality of education, and participate actively in regional integration with other South American nations. Presidents from Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela attended the inauguration.
Mujica appointed two other former imprisoned guerrillas in his government, including Luis Rosadilla as the Minister of Defense and Eduardo Bonomi as the Minister of the Interior. The bloody Uruguayan dictatorship lasted from 1973 to 1985.The new president pledged to get rid of extreme poverty in the country and focus on Uruguay’s neglected rural areas; 93% of the population live in urban areas.At the same time Mujica emphasized that he wants to strengthen the private sector, increase wealth and attract investment to the country. Uruguayan political science professor Juan Andrés Moraes told IPS News, "Mujica says his government will be more like [Brazilian President] Lula's than the administrations of Evo Morales or Chávez. Basically, Mujica himself sees the differences clearly.”
comment-its all nice to be like lula,but uruguai is not brazil,nor a country with the same resources nor infrastructure,that being said,lets just hope he can stick to his promises and figth poverty...as fara s strengthening the private sector,thats a double-edged sword...
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AUDIO-Endangered Mangroves http://www.radiomundoreal.fm/Endangered-Mangroves
The expansion of the industry of shrimp in departments at the coasts of Ecuador is causing the disappearance of the mangrove system, and this situation could get worse with the passing of a decree by President Rafael Correa.This is what Ecuadorian activist Lider Gongora, head of the National Coordination in Defense of Mangroves and RedManglar International, said in an interview with Real World Radio. These organizations estimate that mangroves in Ecuador went from 365 thousand hectares down to 108 thousand hectares.
The advance of this industry (it is estimated that there are over 230 thousand hectares with shrimp pools) goes hand in hand with a systematic violation of human rights and the displacement of thousands of families who depend on this ecosystem.Benefits of the installation of shrimp companies were promoted during neoliberal administrations, with the support of international organizations such as the World Bank and the FAO, who spoke of the wellbeing this industry would mean for local communities.
However, Gongora states that none of those things were true and regrets that Correa´s administration –whom he supported- is strengthening these policies detrimental to mangroves. The communities started to submit claims to the Executive in October, 2008, when a decree aiming to regularize the industry of shrimp went public.The organizations state that the decree violates the National Constitution and is not consistent with the promises made by Correa.
“The developed world wants to eat that delicious shrimp. But they don´t know at what costs it is being produced. The consumers should be aware that they are eating the spilled blood of our peoples”, said Gongora.Shootings, attacks and at least six Ecuadorian leaders murdered because of their struggle against the industry of shrimp is part of the result of this long history of abuses against communities. RedManglar has information of murders related to this issue in Bangladesh (approximately 150 cases), Honduras, Guatemala and Brazil
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Humanity vs. Insanity http://usa.mediamonitors.net/content/view/full/72083
Recurring stories about Iran’s alleged pursuit of nuclear weapons mostly come from an Israeli network of undercover operatives and an intelligence apparatus that reaches deeply into our government. Why does Israel want to hurt Iran and especially Ahmadinejad? Alone among world leaders he has been outspoken in calling for justice in Palestine, highlighting the suffering of its people and the maddening hypocrisy in making Palestinians pay for a European crime.
Meanwhile the USA, still smarting over losing its puppet ruler in the 1979 revolution , continues vindictively attempting to destroy the Islamic regime. It is the threat of imperial collapse more than control of oil that moves America into such easily manipulated desire for destroying Iran’s revolution, but Israel’s hatred is more malevolent and dangerous.
The present danger finds a globally dominant imperial force with power capable of wiping out millions the world over fast losing its control. But the empire and its minions are either in complete denial of material reality or motivated by immaterial beliefs that only their rule and mythology is worthwhile and all others must succumb or be destroyed. If we were confronted by a maniac wielding an ax we’d have a frightening problem, but when that maniac is an empire in possession of nuclear weapons and incredible fire power, all humanity has a terrifying problem.
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Colombia to investigate 100 judges for corruption http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/8537-ig-to-investigate-100-corrupt-judges.html
Colombian Inspector General (IG) Alejandro Ordoñez announced Thursday that corruption has infiltrated the government's judicial branch and over 100 Colombian judges will be investigated for corrupt practices.Speaking at the Bogota Forum on Judicial Transparency, Ordoñez said that in the decisions of many judges there are "seeds of corruption" that are have "giant implications" for the state and its assets.Ordoñez gave the example of judges granting settlements to plaintiffs that are between 12 and 150 times the standard value of such pay-outs.
The IG said his office had received more than 100 complaints on judges' conduct and noted that there are gaps in the regulation of Colombia's judicial system. Ordoñez said that one of the causes of judicial corruption is "judicial activism", in which judges make decisions of dubious but not necessarily illegal nature."A society without justice is a society of outlaws... We must make sure [citizens] feel the state exists and can react appropriately to acts of corruption." Ordoñez said."What concerns me is the risk we are running that judicial inefficiency will affect institutional stability," he added.
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Colombian authorities reveal plot to assassinate Supreme Court judges http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/8532-assassination-plot-against-supreme-court-judges-revealed.html
Colombian authorities revealed Thursday that they are investigating assassination plots against three Supreme Court judges, including the former head of the court, Augusto Ibañez.Police captured two alleged assassins close to the homes of one of the three judges in the north of Bogota, El Tiempo reported. One of the assassins was reported to be carrying a pistol equipped with a silencer.In addition, a suspicious vehicle containing firearms was recently found near the home of another of the targeted judges.Authorities said that they have also intercepted various communications involving the group of assassins.
Assassination targets Ibañez, and Judges Javier Zapata and Jorge Luis Quintero Milanes, who were set to vote on a new prosecutor general, suspended their session, while police develop a special security plan to ensure for their protection. Demobilized paramilitary leader "Ban Ban", who is cooperating with authorities before the Justice and Peace tribunal, allegedly revealed the assassination plots to the authorities three weeks ago.Authorities are currently working on capturing other members of the group involved in the planned attacks.
comment-the former paramilitary leader ban ban has accused the executive gov of uribe and general montoya of commanding the auc and has given a full list of businessmen and corporate ceos who hired them to do their dirty work...http://www.elespectador.com/articulo187125-alias-bam-bam-reitera-nexos-de-altos-militares-y-fiscales-paramilitares
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Executing Handcuffed Afghan Kids? http://www.counterpunch.org/lindorff03042010.html
I called the Secretary of Defense’s office to ask if any investigation was underway into this crime or if one was planned, and was told I had to send a written request, which I did. To date, I have heard nothing.I also contacted the press office of the House Armed Services Committee to see if any hearings into this crime have been planned. The answer is no
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The establishment of capitalist supremacy http://www.blacklistednews.com/news-7650-0-5-5--.html
Thus, capitalism has not been allowed to die a natural death. First it was put on a life-support system, as mentioned above, with globalization, privatization, derivative markets, etc. Then it was injected with a euthanasia death-drug, in the form of toxic derivatives. And when the planned collapse occurred, rather than industrial capitalism being bailed out, the elite bankers were bailed out. It's not that the banks were too big to fail, rather the bankers were too politically powerful to fail. They made governments an offer they couldn't refuse. The outcome of the trillion-dollar bailouts was easily predictable, although you wouldn't know that from reading the financial pages. National budgets were already stretched, and they certainly did not have reserves available to service the bailouts. Thus the bailouts amounted to nothing more than the taking on of immense new debts by governments. In order to fulfill the bailout commitments, the money would need to be borrowed from the same financial institutions that were being bailed out. With the bailouts, Western governments delivered their nations in hock to the bankers. The governments are now in perpetual debt bondage to the bankers. Rather than the banks going into receivership, governments are now in receivership. Obama's cabinet and advisors are nearly all from Wall Street; they are in the White House so they can keep close watch over their new acquisition, the once sovereign USA. Perhaps they will soon be presiding over its liquidation.
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FBI Operative Hal Turner Says Government Urged Him to Make Violent Statements http://www.informationliberation.com/?id=29096
Hal Turner took the stand today in his federal trial and accused the FBI of instructing him to make violent and racist statements. The North Bergen, New Jersey, radio talk show host is on trial for allegedly threatening three Chicago-based federal appeals court judges. In June of 2009, Turner said the judges "deserved to be killed" for a ruling they made in a gun control case.
In more than two hours of testimony, Turner described how he was recruited in 2003 by the FBI's Newark-based Joint Terrorism Task Force. He said he was paid "in excess of $100,000" by the FBI during his almost five years as an informant, according to The Record.
comment-other possible hal turner types...frank weltner and mona montgomery...
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This is Where the Revolution Starts http://www.dominionpaper.ca/articles/3223
"A nation is not conquered until the hearts of its women are on the ground. Then it's lost; it's down. No matter what. No matter how strong its warriors; no matter how powerful its weapons," said Mabel Nipshank, a Metis woman of Cree and French descent.
She exposed the original intent in the violence directed against Native women as she spoke from the steps of the police station. The priority for Europeans at first contact with Aboriginals, she said, was the disenfranchisement of women."They were afraid of the power of the First Nations women because when First Nations women spoke it echoed like thunder," she said.
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Paradise Lost http://coto2.wordpress.com/2010/03/04/paradise-lost/
We owe the residents of the tiny island paradise called Vieques full compensation for the illnesses they are suffering courtesy of the U.S. Navy — and we owe them so much more than that.We owe them a full accounting of what was done to their Manhattan-sized island, about 10 miles off the coast of Puerto Rico (the island is part of Puerto Rico and hence part of the United States) between 1941 and 2003, when it served as the Navy’s premiere weapons testing site.
Bombs were dropped and guns were tested on the eastern portion of the island at least 200 days out of the year for 62 years; an estimated 80 million tons of ordnance pummeled the island’s fragile, tropical ecosystem over that time, contaminating soil, water and air, and bequeathing an array of serious health problems — cancer, birth defects, cirrhosis of the liver and much more — to the island’s 10,000 residents.
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US Govt Admits Man-Made Earthquakes Possible http://www.moneyteachers.org/HAARP.htm
"some scientists in their laboratories trying to devise certain types of pathogens that would be ethnic specific so that they could just eliminate certain ethnic groups and races; and others are designing some sort of engineering, some sort of insects that can destroy specific crops. Others are engaging even in an eco- type of terrorism whereby they can alter the climate, set off earthquakes, volcanoes remotely through the use of electromagnetic waves."
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The World Federalist Manifesto II: UNEP´s Green Hell http://euro-med.dk/?cat=5
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