Hi,
Although it is not in the news − this week, the US Senate is debating if
it will set up an independent inquiry into wrongdoing under Bush’s War on
Terror. This is big!
Such an investigation could have massive global consequences, and if properly
set up would have the power to find out what really happened in Guantanamo Bay
and it could reach all the way up the chain of command.
If enough of us around the world make clear to the US Government that we
support an effective and powerful inquiry − we could tip the debate.
Click here to sign a global petition. I just did it and only takes one second:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/end_the_war_on_terror/98.php?cl_taf_sign=1559fb403ef28ca9608530bceb786f6d
Below you will also find an email with more information about the campaign.
Thanks!
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Dear friends,
This week, the US Senate is taking its tentative first steps towards
establishing an independent commission into Bush’s War on Terror −−
an open investigation into torture, detention, wiretapping and illegal
transfers to secret prisons across the globe. This is a major development, but
as expected there are very nervous and powerful interests who want to bury it.
A Commission of Inquiry is essential to unravel the full extent of eight years
of cover−ups, to hold those responsible to account and to prevent such
injustice from happening again. It would send a powerful message that the US
wants to repair the damage done to human rights by the Bush years, while
strengthening the fight against terrorism.
But without a massive global and US show of support, champion US Senators may
not rally the numbers needed to have this commission established. Sign the
petition −− which will be presented to the Senate Judiciary
Committee before they make their decision this week −− and help get
an inquiry with real teeth over the line:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/end_the_war_on_terror/98.php?cl_taf_sign=1559fb403ef28ca9608530bceb786f6d
After 8 damaging years, this campaign for justice has a lot to unearth. The
hearing this week will begin a process throughout 2009, and as this petition
grows, our voices will be submitted to decision makers at every opportunity.
But it all starts with a thorough and unflinching Commission of Inquiry −
not just to end impunity, but to make sure that the abductions, deaths and
disappearances of Guantanamo are never repeated.
Worryingly, the so−called War on Terror is not yet over. Last week the
Obama’s Department of Justice argued, as they had under Bush, that detainees at
the US facility in Bagram, Afghanistan have no legal right to challenge their
detention. Conversely, in a major turnaround it was separately announced that
the only remaining ‘enemy combatant’ on US soil is finally to be tried by a US
civilian court.
These conflicting decisions reveal an Administration still making up its mind.
Now is the time to draw a line in the sand with a bi−partisan Commission
that puts the past behind us and empowers an Administration committed to human
rights, definitively rejecting torture, refusing to arbitrarily detain and
championing the rule of law in its fight against terrorism and in all its
global dealings.
http://www.avaaz.org/en/end_the_war_on_terror/98.php?cl_taf_sign=1559fb403ef28ca9608530bceb786f6d
As long as the wrongdoing of the Bush years is kept secret and those practices
unaccounted for or allowed to continue, mistrust and violence between nations
will flourish. Let's plant a seed of hope, understanding a shared commitment by
reading this dark page in history before we turn it.
With hope,
Brett, Alice, Pascal, Ricken, Paula, Ben, Graziela, Paul, Iain, Milena,
Veronique − and the entire Avaaz team
More information on the Commission of Inquiry:
http://www.voanews.com/english/2009−02−25−voa58.cfm
What Amnesty says about a Commission: Investigation, prosecution, remedy
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/AMR51/151/2008/en
Some options for the Administration
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/22/weekinreview/22shane.html
More about the Senate Judiciary Committee
http://judiciary.senate.gov/
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