Please Support the Anarchist Birthday Brigade!

The Anarchist Birthday Brigade (ABB)/ Joint Birthday
Project began has a collaboration between the Los
Angeles Anarchist Black Cross Federation (LA-ABCF) and
Break the Chains (BTC). In small gestures, it is
designed to let Political Prisoners and Prisoners of
War know that they are still in our minds and in our
hearts during certain seasons or holidays. Through the
project we send holiday/birthday gifts and/or cards to
our imprisoned comrades. We encourage people to take
part in this program by taking a moment of your time
to write these comrades listed below, wishing them a
happy birthday. For bios on some of these prisoners,
please check out our site at www.abcf.net/la.
Bread and Roses,
LA ABCF


February

JACOB CONROY
93501-011 / Box 5300
Adelanto, CA 92301
FCI Victorville Medium I
February 3rd

VERONZA BOWERS JR.
35316-136 / Box 52020
Bennettsville, SC
FCI Bennettsville
February 4

ALBERT WOODFOX
#72148
CCR Upper B Cell 13
Louisiana State Prison
Angola, LA 70712
February 19, 1947

BYRON SHANE CHUBBUCK
#07909-051
Beaumont USP
PO Box 26030
Beaumont, TX 77720
February 26, 1967

Report from Briana Waters Pretrial

from Olympia Civil Liberties Resource
olycivlib@riseup.net

The judge closed the hearing to the public. The dozen or so supporters
waited outside and gave support to Briana at breaks and lunch. There was
some media there as well. Both witness lists are out and public.

The trial is confirmed for February 11, 2008 in Tacoma, WA at the federal
courthouse, 1717 Pacific Ave. It is expected to run for a month or more.
It will start Monday at 8:30- 3:30. It is expected to go Monday through
Thursday with some Fridays.  Appropriate dress for the court is requested.
Carpools will be leaving daily from Olympia. The public observation is
important for this case. We need to bear witness to this precedent setting
case.

LA ABCF: 10 Years of Solidarity and Resistance

January 2008 marks the tenth anniversary of the Los
Angeles chapter of the Anarchist Black Cross
organization. We are proud and honored to be the
longest running self-proclaimed anarchist group in the
Los Angeles area.
LA ABC was formed by members of the Black Star
Collective, Alternative Gathering Collective and
Whittier Food Not Bombs. The group was formed by
several anarchists who wanted to engage in concrete
work based on the ideas of mutual aid and solidarity –
two major tenets of anarchism.
Many of the earlier contributors had directly been
affected by the prison system and thus became a
natural interest in their politics. After a chance
meeting with Lorenzo Komboa Irwin (former anarchist
political prisoner) in San Francisco, it became clear
to the anarchists that political prisoner support was
a necessary part of the anarchist movement and began
to build the foundation for the ABC chapter in Los
Angeles.
During the first year, the struggle to stop Mumia
Abu-Jamal’s execution was gaining momentum, allowing
for LA ABCF to jump straight into a campaign of utmost
importance. In March of ’98, members of the LA ABC met
up with several Anarchist Black Cross Federation
chapters during the Jericho march in Washington DC.
Six months after the march, LA ABC joined up with the
ABCF.
Since its inception, the LA ABC has continued to work
diligently for support of political prisoners in North
America. As part of the ABCF, we have collectively
raised over $50,000 through the Warchest program (a
program designed to provide support to political
prisoners in financial need.) We have developed
campaigns for several local political prisoners-
including Romaine Chip Fitzgerald and Matt Lamont.
More importantly, we have built strong relationships
with current and former political prisoners, working
day and night on their support and freedom. We have
been honored to know some comrades, such as Rich
Williams, who has enrich our lives prior to have their
lives taken in struggle.
Members of LA ABC have also focused on trying to
rediscover the history of the Anarchist Red/Black
Cross movement. Over the years, we have created an
archive of the ABC, with some material dating as far
back as 1913.
We are proud to have reached this benchmark and look
forward to another decade of resistance and support.
This statement about our 10th anniversary would be
meaningless if we did not ask in closing for people to
take a moment out of their day to write at least one
of our imprisoned comrades. You can view their
addresses and short biographies on our site:
www.abcf.net/la.
In Solidarity,
LA ABCF

Feb. 1st-Support PRican Grand Jury Resisters

Puerto Rican community in United States and Puerto Rico maintain that the subpoenas to the grand jury are part of a larger, systematic campaign to repress the independence movement in Puerto Rico and instill fear and discord among its allies and supporters. It's the latest chapter of a long history of repression waged against Puerto Rican community.

January 30th Letter Campaign:

On January 30 we are calling on all supporters and citizens that are outraged about the Grand Jury being used as a tool of repression and harassment against the Puerto Rican community to Fax the District Attorney Benton J. Campbell. Please talk to people in your family, community, church and organizations about the the situation and grand jury's use as a tool of repression and ask them to fax in a letter.

Letter: http://www.geocities.com/resistgrandjury/campaignletter.pdf

PICKET AGAINST GRAND JURY REPRESSION
AGAINST THE PUERTO RICAN COMMUNITY

Friday, February 1, 2008 @ 9:30am
All to Federal Court, 225 Cadman Plaza East at Tillary St, Brooklyn, NY
Take the A, C or F train to Jay St.-Borough Hall; M or R train to Court St.-Borough Hall; 2,3, 4 or 5 to Borough Hall; or G train to Hoyt-Schermerhorn and walk 7 block

Hostos Grand Jury Resistance Campaign
For more information: 646-233-2028 or resistgrandjury@gmail.com http://www.geocities.com/resistgrandjury

flyer: http://www.geocities.com/resistgrandjury/flyer111en.pdf

Feb. 5th-Meeting to Plan NYC Cuban 5 Conference

FREE THE CUBAN 5

NEW YORK CITY CONFERENCE ON THE CUBAN 5

Inspired by the International Conference on the Cuban 5 that took place in Canada in 2007, The Popular Education Project to Free the Cuban 5 invites you to work with us on a MASSIVE East Coast organizers conference for the Cuban 5!

Now more than ever the Cuban 5 need our support!! We must EDUCATE, ORGANIZE AND MOBILIZE for the freedom of these innocent men!!

Join the Organizers’ committee!!

TUESDAY FEB. 5^TH 2008 AT 6:30PM

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Labor Center/1199 SEIU

310 W43rd St. (bwtn. 8-9th Avenues)

Weather chaos could trigger civil unrest

Oxford study calls on Western governments to overhaul security and disaster planning
Jan 28, 2008 04:30 AM

Mitch Potter
EUROPE BUREAU
Toronto Star

LONDON–The world's wealthiest countries could face the beginnings of societal breakdown by mid-century in the form of boiling domestic unrest over climate change, a new British report warns.

A tide of protest against polluting companies and perceived government inaction and, in extreme cases, the emergence of new forms of ecoterrorism are among scenarios outlined by security think tank the Oxford Research Group.

The report, An Uncertain Future: Law Enforcement, National Security and Climate Change, sounds a warning quite different from the conventional assumption that carbon-induced global warming could trigger waves of environmental refugees from abroad driven by the quest for food, water and shelter.

"Most analysis of global warming focuses on the potential for security threats from `over there' in the form of mass migration," said report author Chris Abbott of Bristol University's Centre for Governance and International Affairs.

"That may well be the case. But our research indicates that there is a range of potential threats from civil unrest within the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States – all the Western nations, in fact. We see those threats growing more acute over time, if governments continually fail to protect us from climate change."

The Oxford report calls on Western governments to overhaul their approach to security and disaster planning, with an emphasis on helping police, security and military forces adapt to preventative, rather than reactive, strategies. A conventional strategy of using force to deter unrest, the report says, is doomed to failure.

Abbott cited the staging of a "Climate Camp" protest village outside London's Heathrow Airport last August as an example of the danger of "tarring a whole movement with the extremist brush." Despite a rash of media reports warning that "ecoterrorists" intended to cripple commercial aviation in Britain, the protest came and went without a single flight being disturbed.

"The term ecoterrorism is applied very loosely and it is a dangerous game," Abbott told the Toronto Star. "The vast majority of the social environmental movement has a legitimate agenda and does not deserve such an unfair label. But if you look at current trends and extrapolate the impact of government inaction in the coming decades, the possibility of far greater unrest later in this century is a serious concern."

The report says that, because Europe and North America have a far greater capacity to adapt to rapid climate change, neither continent is likely to engage in climate-related regional conflict predicted in the most resource-depleted parts of the developing world.

What is "almost certain," the report said, is that by 2050 droughts, food scarcity and flooding would trigger the movement of as many as 200 million environmental refugees. The vast majority is likely to flow toward the developed world, said Abbott. But internal migration is also a factor that is likely to come with its own security issues.

Acknowledging that climate change and security is "a young area of analysis," the Oxford report said its predictions are likely to change, for better or for worse, over the coming decades.

http://www.thestar.com/World/Columnist/article/298018

Rebel Gets 60 Years for Hostage-Taking

By MATT APUZZO Jan. 28, 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) A Colombian rebel leader was sentenced to 60 years in prison Monday and labeled a terrorist for helping hold three U.S. contractors hostage as part of a decades-long struggle with the Colombian government.

Though he denounced terrorism and said he hoped the hostages would be released, Ricardo Palmera restated his allegiance to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, and justified its actions as part of a legitimate military revolution.

"My conscience absolves me and I join the ranks of so many others who history can and will absolve," Palmera said, concluding an hour-long speech that railed against a Colombian government he called oppressive and corrupt.

Palmera, who is better known by his nom de guerre, Simon Trinidad, was convicted in July of hostage-taking conspiracy. He admitted serving as the FARC's chief negotiator and spokesman during discussions over the release of the hostages but he said he never saw the three Americans or kept them hostage himself.

Prosecutors bristled at such a distinction.

"Guerrillas who can point an AK-47 at a hostage are a dime a dozen, but finding someone with the negotiation skills to go toe-to-toe with the Colombian government and the entire international community is not easy," prosecutor Ken Kohl said. "You need a proven, bare-knuckle political icon like Simon Trinidad, who won't allow a sense of shame or humanity get in the way."

At one point, Kohl compared Palmera to Osama bin Laden. Palmera, in his speech, chose Nelson Mandela and Simon Bolivar.

The three hostages Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes and Keith Stansell were civilian Pentagon contractors flying a surveillance mission over the Colombian jungle when their plane crashed in 2003 in a rebel stronghold. They were taken hostage and were most recently seen in late April.

U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth listened intently to Palmera's speech but wasted little time in handing down the sentence, the maximum allowed under the U.S. extradition treaty with Colombia.

"This was and is an act of terrorism," Lamberth told Palmera. "The crime is heinous and barbaric and against the law of all civilized nations."

Palmera, stood stoically as Lamberth spoke, then turned and smiled, pumping his fist to a handful of supporters in the courtroom. Palmera is 57 and, unless he prevails on appeal, is likely to die in prison. There is no parole in the federal system.

Defense attorney Robert Tucker chastised the U.S. government for treating Palmera as if he had hijacked an airplane or violently ransomed hostages for money. The FARC is in a legitimate revolutionary army and though its ideas may be questioned, Tucker said, it is unfair for the U.S. to prosecute the one person who sought peaceful negotiations to release the three men.

Tucker compared the conflict to the U.S. Revolutionary War, a comparison Kohl objected to. The Americans revolted against the British, he said, but didn't kill civilians or take them hostage to barter with.

It is unclear what effect the sentence will have on the three hostages. The U.S. had hoped Palmera's conviction and the threat of a lengthy sentence would prod the FARC to release the men.

"After this, the FARC will have absolutely no interest in freeing the three Americans," said Carlos Lozano, who edits the Communist newspaper Voz and who has served as a mediator between the FARC and the Colombian government. "This shuts down the possibility of a goodwill gesture by the guerrillas to free one of the Americans."

Palmera is also awaiting a second trial on cocaine trafficking charges. The first case ended with a jury deadlocked at 7-5 in favor of acquittal. Jurors did not dispute that the FARC was in the cocaine business but most felt the government could not prove Palmera was part of that enterprise.

Associated Press writer Toby Muse contributed to this report from Bogota, Colombia.

Writing from Maliki Shakur Latine, Political Prisoner

from nycabc[at]riseup[dot]net:

Maliki Shakur Latine

December 20, 2007

I am still maintaining my health and I am optimistic about being 
released on parole during the summer of ’08 (Insha Allah). At which 
time I look forward to being a  valuable asset to the endeavors of 
liberation and progress. I’ve been following the political and socio-
economic developments (or under-developments) occurring around the 
country. And, I’ve been closely monitoring the “Presidential 
Campaign” (with all its window-dressings and the usual clichés) 
offered for public consumption. The younger generation have a 
serious, huge and profound role to play in defining what the future 
(if there is one) of this country is to be. Each generation is solely
 responsible for the course and direction to be pursued in their 
lives. They can readily choose, by virtue of their own “humanity,” 
the course, direction and reality already “defined” for them by the 
Plutocracy (as led and headed by the “Skull and Bones”) or they can 
determine, for themselves, what the reality of the future is to be, 
by virtue of what they know and truly believe to be right, just and 
humane as dictated by their own heart-felt conscience—as opposed to 
that of any u.s. government “Party,” who are more determined to serve
 that of “class interest”—than any kind of just rights of the entire
 citizenry! Let the people of the “Resistance” know my message to
them  as expressed above. They can make a difference, no matter how 
difficult the challenges may appear, its all but a passing but dark 
cloud—soon the light shall appear with its radiance of achievement 
and splendor! Truth shall prevail!

In Solidarity, Strength, and Unity!
Maliki Shakur

http://abcf.net/abcf.asp?page=prisoners#

Suspected “eco-terrorist” on trial

By Kim Lee The Daily Washington
January 28, 2008

Photo by Daniel Kim.

Merrill Hall, the Center for Urban Horticulture, was set on fire in May
2001. The building was rebuilt Jan. 19, 2005.

Nearly seven years after an arson caused about $1.5 million in damages
to UW’s Center for Urban Horticulture, Briana Waters, 32, will be facing
trial on Feb. 11 for her alleged participation in the attack.

Federal prosecutors said Waters was a part of the five-person Earth
Liberation Front (ELF) team that set fire to professor Toby Bradshaw’s
office on May 21, 2001, according to a Jan. 21 article from The Seattle
Times (“Arson suspect facing trial”).

“Ms. Waters naturally has very little recollection of exactly what she
was doing in the early morning hours of May 21, 2001,” said her
attorneys Robert Bloom and Neil Fox, in a statement to the Times. “She
is, however, certain that one thing she did not do is participate in the
arson at the University of Washington Center for Urban Horticulture.”

Waters’ trial will be the first of the 18 men and women accused of being
involved in the series of attacks that caused tens of millions of
dollars in damages to institutions they believe to be threats to the
environment and animals.

Bradshaw’s research on genetically modifying poplar trees was seen as an
“ecological nightmare” for the biodiversity of native forests, according
to an ELF news release.

The arson attack set back research at the center a number of years, said
Norm Arkans, executive director of media relations for the UW.

“It was a horrible event that destroyed a number of people’s work,” he
said. “It was misdirected because the people who were involved [at the
center] were eco-friendly.”

Rebuilding the facility cost $7 million, which did not offset the damage
done to research or the destruction of several endangered plants.

“It was from our perspective a type of violence that is not effective,”
Arkans said. “It was a serious act of eco-terrorism and it was not the
best way to make a point.”

The U.S. Justice Department labeled the ELF as the top domestic terror
group in 2001.

If Waters is convicted on charges of conspiracy, arson and the use of a
destructive device in a crime of violence, she will face a prison
sentence of 35 years.

However, if defense attorneys are able to succeed in challenging the
prosecutors’ use of the term firebomb to describe the timed devices and
buckets of fuel that caused the fire, then Waters could face only five
years in prison.

The use of a destructive device in a crime of violence carries a minimum
sentence of 30 years, while arson charges have a mandatory sentence of
five years.

Since 1996, ELF and the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) have started
arsons at a U.S. Forest Service office, a ski lodge in Vail, Colo., a
slaughterhouse in Oregon, a Eugene car dealership and a federal
agriculture research center in Olympia.

Water’s refusal to accept a plea deal has put her in the position of
potentially receiving the harshest punishment of anyone sentenced thus
far. Twelve others have reached plea agreements, landing sentences
ranging from probation to 13 years.
_________________________________

Eric McDavid's Hearing Moved

ELP Information Bulletin (25th of January 2008)

Dear friends

ELP has just learnt that American eco-defence prisoner, Eric McDavid, has his hearing on the motion for a new trial/acquittal has been moved to the 21st of February.

As of right now, sentencing is also still set for that date.

More news on this as ELP gets it (oh and many many many thanks to Eric's support campaign for this news).

++++++++++++++

Earth Liberation Prisoners Support Network
BM Box 2407
London
WC1N 3XX
England
www.spiritoffreedom.org.uk

Jonathan Paul Support Website

ELP Information Bulletin (25th of January 2008)

Dear friends

ELP has just received the following e-mail concerning American Animal/Earth Liberation prisoner Jonathan Paul, who is serving 51 months for his role in an arson against a horse meat plant:

Greetings - Jonathan's support site is finally up and we'd appreciate
it if you could add the link to your site. http://www.supportjonathan.org

Thanks for all your work and support.

In solidarity for the earth and the animals,

[name deleted]
Friends of Jonathan Paul

+++++++++++++++

Earth Liberation Prisoners Support Network
BM Box 2407
London
WC1N 3XX
England
www.spiritoffreedom.org.uk

fire to the prisons #2 online download

NEW! Fire to the Prisons Zine out Now!
from A Longing for Collapse Press
the second issue of fire to the prisons is out now. fire to the prisons is an insurrectionary anarchist quarterly focusing on anti-prison and prisoner support content mostly, but also incuding misc. articles to inspire opposition to this cold world. the link to the site to download the pdf is included at the end of this bulletin, if you have any problems downloading, feel free to contact us directly with your email, and well send it to you directly. our email is, guerillaheart@yahoo.com
PLEASE feel free to print and distribute this zine to your full capability, or forward the file to someone who will.
if youd like, please respond with a confirmation that you will be furthering distribution for the zine, its good to know where it gets around.
also, the zine is intended to be free, but if you sell it, we ask that all profits go to benefit misc.political prisoners.
this is a longing for collapse press project.
also if printing resources are slim, we could send bulk copes! were only asking for postage to be paid for.
visit our site and blog at
myspace.com/alongingforcollapsepress
for total destruction and liberation
in solidarity
lfcp
site with pdf download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?4v711uxjwm0

Briana Waters Pretrial Change

from Olympia Civil Liberties Jan 24, 2008

Briana Waters Pretrial conference hearing has changed to Tuesday January
29, 2008. It is important to come dressed and act appropriate for the
court.

Carpools are scheduled to leave from Olympia that day once the time is
confirmed for court. Judge Burgess maintains a prompt start to his court.

Belgian DHKP-C trial verdict 7th February

Symposium Isolation wrote:

Decision in the Belgian DHKP-C trial on 7th February

Anvers
DECISION: 7 FEBRUARY 2008
COURT OF APPEAL ANTWERPEN
(Members of CLEA will gather from 8.30 a.m. in front of the court house)

Appeal to international organisations:

*
Show presence at the trial
*
Send your message of solidarity

To: contact@leclea.be
CC:isolation@post.com


The Belgian press continues to publish articles regarding the expected decision trial in Antwerp on 7th February. Some days ago the French-language daily newspaper "Le Soir" published an article in the name of the president of Bar Association of Dinant, lawyer Jean-Marie Dermagne. In his article Dermagne pointed to the positive result of a political trial in Denmark and he expressed his expectations that the Belgian judges of the DHKP-C trial will act with the same sobriety.

The article by the barrister was entitled "It was not the purpose of the T-shirt sellers to destabilise society".
The article continued: "The trial concerning 'terrorist T-shirts', which stood on the agenda for three months and finally came to a conclusion before the Copenhagen court, is quite interesting. A 56-year-old sausage seller, a teacher, a public servant, a copy shop employee, a computer geek and two students were tried for financing terrorism. Sheer madness!
As members of the association 'Fighters + Lovers' they discussed online about the idea to sell T-Shirts with the emblems of the organisations PFLP and FARC. One morning their houses were raided by rambos of the anti-terrorism police."

Their crime was clear, they sold 600 T-Shirts carrying emblems of the organisations PFLP and FARC, which are declared 'guilty' by the main terrorist USA, in support of these organisations. So, is there any bigger 'crime' than to support revolutionary organisations? It was sufficient to raid houses and to open a trial... The collected funds and remaining T-Shirts were confiscated as 'elements of an offence' and evidence.
They were brought to court. At the court they declared that each of these objects with motifs carried a profit of 5 Euros and with that money there were plans to finance logistical equipment (for example radio stations).

As a consequence of it, the Danish prosecutor demanded the punishment of the accused for 'financing terrorist activities'.

In the following trial days there were experts and witnesses heard, both for the plaintiffs and the accused, in order to clarify if the organisations PFLP and FARC were terrorist movements or on the contrary, if one of them was a legitimate resistance movement against the Israeli occupation and the other against the regime in Bogota, which is defined as a dictatorship by many people. Under the pretext that the prosecutor wanted to criminalise the sale of 'evil' T-shirts, the Danish judges were forced to deal with the most geopolitical questions such as the legality of the Israeli occupation of Palestinian soil or the democratic character of the Colombian regime.

In the same days the trial was re-opened in Antwerp of Belgian (or based in Belgium) activists and sympathisers of the revolutionary organisation from Turkey, the DHKP-C. The sentences passed against the defendants of the DHKP-C trial were cancelled by the appeal court earlier. Therefore the trial was re-opened in Antwerp. The verdict, which was scheduled on 20th December, was first postponed to 17th January and later to 7th February.

There's a lot to say about this process indeed. As the defendants in this trial stated earlier, the results of this trial will concern the Belgians and oppressed peoples in general, not just the 'sentenced' DHKP-C activists, since it is a matter of violation and deprivation of democratic rights through 'demagogies of terrorism'.

In his article, lawyer Jean-Marie Dermagne continues: "On the other side the sale of T-shirts with revolutionary emblems. As easy as it is to find similarities in these two cases, the results are alarming. Has anyone not at some time sold, distributed or bought clothes or other items which carry the picture of the Argentinian revolutionary Che Guevara, who was shot by the CIA and has won the hearts of all rebellious teenagers?

If Ernesto Guevara, who didn't follow a different strategy from the FARC, PFLP or DHKP-C were still alive today, he would certainly declared as terrorist by the USA, which constantly hunts green, black or red witches, or by the new McCarthys of all its satellite states.

Consequently: All citizens who dream of climbing mountains to fight alongside Che against an unjust world, will fall into a certain security pot, which has bubbled since September 11. It is always necessary to stay logical.

This was understood by the Danish judges! And they discharged seven 'Fighters and Lovers' on 13th December. This judgement unleashed 'worldwide amazement' and it is a ray of hope for all defenders of freedom of opinion and activists," lawyer Dermagne stated. And he adds: "It is only to be expected that the judges in Antwerp will issue their verdict with the same sobriety as their Danish colleagues did."

U.S. Farm Activists Denied Visit With Political Prisoner, Flavio Sosa, in Oaxaca Mexico

from infoshop news

For Immediate Release:
Jan. 20th, 2008

Contact:
John E. Peck, executive director, Family Farm Defenders #608-260-0900
John Kinsman, president, Family Farm Defenders #608-986-3815

Family Farm Defenders Demand Immediate Release of Flavio Sosa and
Other Political Prisoners Held in Oaxaca ,Mexico

U.S. Solidarity Delegation Calls Upon Mexican Government to Respect Basic
Human Rights and to Renegotiate NAFTA

On Wed. Jan. 16th, Mexican prison authorities denied U.S. farm
activists the right to see Flavio Sosa, a prominent leader of the
Popular Assembly of the Peoples of Oaxaca (APPO). Sosa is one of
several political prisoners still being held in Mexico even though he
was arrested over a year ago. The eighteen U.S. farm activists from
three states - Wisconsin ,Kentucky , and Maine - were in Oaxaca
,Mexico from Jan. 10th - 17th as part of a solidarity delegation
organized by Family Farm Defenders.

Since the violent repression of the democratic movement by Oaxacan
Gov. Ulises Ruiz, with support of federal troops in May 2006, over
500 people have been detained, many tortured while in custody, and
over a dozen people have also been killed, including U.S. journalist
and WI native, Brad Will on Oct. 27th, 2006. U.S. farm activists
joined Mexican human rights groups and other grassroots
representatives for a press conference the morning of Jan. 17th to
renew the demand for Flavio's immediate and unconditional release.
The Family Farm Defenders delegation then traveled for several hours
through mountains to reach the prison where Sosa is held only to be
told by guards that they could not visit him. Back in Oaxaca City ,
several thousand APPO supporters rallied in defense of basic
democratic freedoms that are apparently no longer guaranteed in
Mexico .

"When our neighbors to the South are detained and murdered simply for
standing up for democracy and human rights, our elected officials
have a responsibility to take action. The vicious crackdown in Mexico
is just another ugly face of neoliberal free trade policies. Even our
host family in Oaxaca had been imprisoned and tortured by soldiers
who had been trained at U.S. taxpayer expense at the School of
Americas in Ft. Benning ,GA. We will not let this matter rest until
justice is served," noted John Kinsman, organic dairy farmer from
Lime Ridge ,WI and president of Family Farm Defenders.

In order to amplify pressure on the Mexican government, Family Farm
Defenders will be contacting Congressional leaders, such as Sen. Russ
Feingold (D-WI) to demand that the Mexican government respect basic
human rights and immediately release all political prisoners in
Oaxaca . As part of Via Campesina's International Day of Action on
Sat. Jan. 26th, farm activists will also be staging actions across
the U.S. to raise public awareness about the ongoing political
repression in Oaxaca and the violence perpetrated by the Mexican
government against its own people.
In Madison , Family Farm Defenders members will be leafleting the
Sat. Jan. 26th Dane County Winter Farmers Market from 8 am -12:00
Noon at the Senior Center (330 W. Mifflin) urging people to contact
the Mexican consulate in Chicago to demand the release of Flavio
Sosa. On Thurs. Jan. 31st at 7:30 pm at Escape Java Joint ( 916
Williamson St. ) in Madison participants in the Family Farm Defenders
solidarity delegation will also be holding a slideshow presentation
and report back on the ongoing political repression and democratic
resistance struggle in Oaxaca .

###

Please contact the Mexican Consulate in Chicago to demand the
immediate and unconditional release of Flavio Sosa and other
political prisoners now being held in Oaxaca .

Mexican Consulate
300 N Michigan Ave, Suite #4
Chicago, IL 60601
Tel. 312-855-1380
Fax. #312-738-2383

You can also contact your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators to
express your concern about human rights abuses in Oaxaca and ask that
they contact the Mexican government on behalf of Flavio Sosa and
other imprisoned leaders of the pro-democracy movement.

Congressional Switchboard:
#202-224-3121

more info at: http://www.familyfarmdefenders.org

On prisoners in Greece

Prisoners of the greek state:

- anarchists and anti-authoritarians:

Vaggelis Botzatzis: he is in pre-trial emprisonment since 26/11/2007 accused for arsons against a french brand car yard, a "millenium" bank subsidiary and two state-run power company (ppc) cars. He is currently held in Komotini juridicial prison. Another three anarchists, two men and a woman are fugitives, wanted for the same case, based on the accusation of a security guard that claims he recognised Vaggelis' car near the car yard, the night of the arson attacks.

Giorgos Voutsis-Vogiatzis: he is in a pre-trial emprisonment since 3/10/2007, when he was "arrested" by a truck-driver, after a bank robbery, while leaving on a bike. Held in Korydallos prison. (translations of his letter http://anarcores.blogspot.com/search?q=voutsis-vogiatzis)

Giannis Dimitrakis: Condemned (1st degree) to 35 years! (25 maximum) for an armed bank robbery that turned into a shoot out with the police. He did n't fire at any cops, but got shot 3 times and wounded severely. Held in Alikarnassos Prison, Crete after moving from Korydallos to Malandrino (where his severe beating by prison guards lead to mutinies in prisons across the country), then to Neapoli, and currently Alikarnassos. (his prison letter: http://www.325collective.com/prisons_letter-from-giannis-d.html)

Stelios Malindretos: accused for beating up Polyzogopoulos, a known member of ex-ruling party (PASOK) and former president of the main syndicalist union GSEE (where PASOK has a majority). He is illegaly detained in Dafni mental illness detaintion center, in total, he is under continuous detaintion since 6/2/2006!

Marios Tsourapas, Chrissostomos Kontorevithakis: They attempted to burn up a municipality police car in Paleo Faliro (Athens) but got arrested by undercover policemen and tortured. Marios is held in Korydallos juridicial prisons while Chrissostomos is at the juvenile prisons of Avlona. (More info and translations of their letter at www.geocities.com/anarcores/faliro3.html)

- Accused for membership in November 17 revolutionary organization (all of them kept in special prison cells of Korydallos):

Giotopoulos Aleksandros: 17 life-time emprisonment (25 years: maximum)
Koufontinas Dimitris: 11 life-time emprisonment (25 year: maximum)
Ksiros Savvas: 5 life-time emprisonment (25 years)
Ksiros Vassilis: 25 years
Ksiros Christodoulos: 6 life-time empr. (25 years)
Tzortzatos Vassilis: 4 life-time empr. (25 years)
Tselentis Patroklos: 25 years
Kostaris Iraklis: 1 life-time (25 years)
Telios Konstantinos: 22 years
Kondilis Sotiris: 11 years and 3 months
Serifis Thomas: 8 years

(To sign a petition for the release of near-deathly injured Savvas Ksiros visit http://freesavvasxiros.webs.com/english.htm)

- At the time, all prisoners accused for membership in ELA (People's Revolutionary Struggle) are out of prison.

- In addition, more than 11.000 persons (official number: 10.983 - October 1, 2007 report) are currently held prisoners of the greek state. This number has tripled during the last decade! Almost one half of them are remanded under detaintion, and kept in a prison for up to 18 monthes, until their trial. According to the greek ministry of justice, there is room (cells-beds) for about 7.500 prisoners (a couple of years ago this number was estimated to 5.500). Immigrant prisoners are up to 4.500 (around 40-42%) not to count those kept in "immigrant reception centers", and there are no less than 500 women immates (half of them immigrants), and another 500 juveniles. Around 4.600 persons are emprisoned under the narcotics law (there is no definition on how many are for trafficking or for own use). More than 750 persons are under life sentences (25 years maximum, according to the greek penal code). It is not easy to count how many people die or "suicide" in prisons, because these cases do not always come to light, but according to official statistics there are for sure some 50 persons each year. Conditions are also cruel for people that suffer from AIDS, usually 20 or more persons are packed in a cell for 5-6 inmates, allowed only three hours per day out, in a small yard.

These numbers are not precise, because the ministry of justice does not regularly announce its statistics for the last couple of years.

The greek state (together with its cypriot partner state) also negotiates with Albania on the potential to expell albanian prisoners (the strongest minority inside greek prisons) to albanian prisons, or even to build its own state-run prisons in albanian territory.

In Greece, there are for the time, 14 prisons, 13 juridicial prisons, 1 mental illness detaintion center, 1 prison hospital (in Korydallos) and 1 drug addict prisoners withdrawal center (Thiba). Within 2008, there will be 4 new prisons, in: Grevena, Drama, Nigrita (Serres) and Chania (Crete) with a capability of about 2.700 inmates. Women inmates from Korydallos prisons (Athens) will be transfered to Eleonas (Thiba).

During April 2007, after the anarchist Giannis Dimitrakis was severely beaten by a prison guard, riots erupted in 11 prisons across the country. The prisoners took over the rooftops and yards of the prisons, lighting fires and vandalising the prison institutions for days and nights. Anarchists and antiauthoritarians organised large demonstrations outside the prisons, in solidarity to the rebellious prisoners. After five days of insurgency, the riot-police invaded most prisons and repressed the insurrection (For further information: http://athens.indymedia.org/features.php3?id=463) As a reply, there were multiple attacks and arsons against the police and other economic targets. Prisoners that participated in the insurrection, as Vaggelis Palis, Panagiotis Georgiadis and many others are still under repression, in the form of forced transfers to other prisons, overtime emprisonment etc.

(To contribute with a translation of this report, or any other prison letter/info on prisoners in greek, you can communicate with anarcores@yahoo.gr)

Arson suspect facing trial

By Hal Bernton Seattle Times staff reporterBriana Waters could get 35 years if convicted.

In the predawn hours of May 21, 2001, Briana Waters says, she was nowhere
near the University of Washington campus in Seattle and was most likely
asleep in Olympia.

Federal prosecutors say Waters served as a lookout that morning for a
five-person Earth Liberation Front team that set fire to the UW's Center
for Urban Horticulture.

Next month, in a federal courtroom in Tacoma, the 32-year-old violin
teacher is scheduled to face trial for her alleged role in an attack that
caused more than $1.5 million in damage to the university's building.

Waters faces charges of conspiracy, arson and use of a destructive device
in a crime of violence. If convicted on all counts, she faces a mandatory
prison sentence of 35 years.

It would be the first trial for any of the 18 men and women indicted on a
charge of their alleged involvement in a militant Pacific Northwest
underground that carried out more than a dozen acts of arson and sabotage
against targets deemed a threat to the environment or animals. The attacks
caused tens of millions of dollars in damage.

Waters is not considered to be a ringleader of the underground cells. But
because she has refused to accept a plea deal, she risks a courtroom
verdict that could stick her with the harshest prison term of anyone
sentenced to date.

Twelve other people have reached plea agreements, and, according to court
documents, their sentences are expected to range from probation to 13
years. Four others have fled from federal authorities. And Bill Rodgers —
an alleged ringleader of the attacks — committed suicide after being taken
into custody in Arizona in 2005.

Waters now lives in California, where she is married and has a young
daughter. She has hired two attorneys — Robert Bloom, of Oakland, and Neil
Fox, of Seattle — who have been involved in a bitter run-up to the Feb. 11
trial.

Much of the dispute involves an initial FBI interview with Jennifer Kolar,
one of those who made a plea agreement and a confessed participant in the
arson. In that Dec. 2005 interview, the FBI notes indicate Kolar named
four other participants in the UW arson, and that list did not include
Waters. Only in later interviews, did Kolar name Waters, according to
court documents.

Defense attorneys initially did not have access to the FBI notes. Instead,
they were given a summary of the interview that said Kolar could not
definitively remember all the participants, only herself and Rodgers.

Defense attorneys allege that federal officials intentionally crafted a
misleading summary, and sought unsuccessfully to have U.S. Assistant
Attorney Andrew Friedman removed from the case for misconduct.

Federal prosecutors in Seattle say there has been no misconduct and that
they have fully complied with all disclosure laws. They, in turn, have
accused defense attorneys of "a deliberate attempt to poison the jury
pool" by seeking a pretrial court hearing earlier this month to address
the allegations.

advertising

The trial stems from a lengthy government investigation into the Earth
Liberation Front (ELF) and the Animal Liberation Front, groups which the
U.S. Justice Department portrays as domestic terrorists with hubs in
Olympia and Eugene, Ore.

During a six-year period that began in 1996, various members launched
arsons targeting a U.S. Forest Service office, a Vail, Colo., ski lodge, a
central Oregon slaughterhouse, a Eugene car dealership, a federal
agriculture-research center in Olympia and other sites.

Water is accused of joining a "double-whammy" on May 21, 2001, intended to
strike a blow against the genetic engineering of fast-growing poplar
trees.

According to trial briefs filed by the Justice Department, separate
five-person teams set two fires — one that burned buildings at a
Clatskanie, Ore., tree farm and a second that targeted the Center for
Urban Horticulture office of Toby Bradshaw, a University of Washington
professor involved in poplar research.

The ELF mistakenly thought he was genetically engineering trees.

Federal prosecutors say that both teams launched their actions from
Olympia and that the cell involved in the UW attack then drove north to
Seattle in a rented sedan, which Waters had helped acquire. There, they
ate at the Greenlake Bar & Grill and then headed out to the UW, where the
fire was set with time-delayed devices that ignited buckets filled with a
mixture of gasoline and diesel, the prosecution says.

An ELF news release issued five days later said the poplars posed an
"ecological nightmare" threatening the biodiversity of native forests.

Waters, who grew up outside of Philadelphia, attended The Evergreen State
College.

In the spring of 2001, she was finishing a documentary she had filmed and
directed about the protests two years earlier to save old-growth trees on
federal forestland outside of Randle, Lewis County.

Waters' boyfriend at the time was Justin Solondz, now a fugitive accused
in federal indictments of participating in the UW attack. But defense
attorneys say Waters and Solondz maintained separate households and that
Waters was not involved in any of the planning or execution of the UW
arson.

"Ms. Waters naturally has very little recollection of exactly what she was
doing ... in the early morning hours of May 21, 2001, other than likely
being asleep in bed," her attorneys wrote in a trial brief. "... She is,
however, certain that the one thing she did not do is participate in the
arson at the University of Washington Center for Urban Horticulture."

During the trial, defense attorneys are expected to challenge the
creditability of key prosecution witnesses who have pleaded guilty to
participating in the arson and sabotage conspiracy.

Kolar is expected to come under some of the toughest questioning for her
flip-flop in FBI interviews that first excluded Waters from the UW arson,
then included her.

Defense attorneys also are challenging prosecutors' use of the term "fire
bomb" to describe the delayed-timing devices and tubs of fuel that ignited
the fire.

More than semantics are at stake. If they succeed in that challenge, then
Waters could not be charged with "use of a destructive device in a crime
of violence," the highest-penalty offense that carries a minimum mandatory
sentence of 30 years. The arson count carries another mandatory sentence
of five years.

Prosecutors, in trial briefs, have said that both Kolar and Lacey
Phillabaum, who has pleaded guilty in the UW arson, will testify at the
trial that Waters assisted in carrying out the UW arson.

Phillabaum is expected to testify that she was at Waters' home in Olympia
during the weekend before the attack. There, Phillabaum observed Solondz
soldering timers in a "clean room" in preparation for the arson attack,
according to prosecutors' trial briefs. She alleges that the team drove to
Seattle in a car that Waters arranged to rent.

Prosecutors say two team members involved in the Oregon poplar-farm arson
will provide "corroborating details" about Waters' involvement.

Canada to Rewrite Manual US Criticized

By CHARMAINE NORONHA
Associated Press Writer

TORONTO (AP) -- Canada's foreign ministry said Saturday that it will rewrite a training manual used by Canadian diplomats that lists the United States as a site of possible torture following pressure from its closest ally.

The department document, released Friday, singled out the U.S. Detention center at Guantanamo Bay. It also names Israel, Afghanistan, China, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Syria as places where inmates could face torture.

"I regret the embarrassment caused by the public disclosure of the manual used in the department's torture awareness training," Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier said in a statement issued Saturday.

"It contains a list that wrongly includes some of our closest allies. I have directed that the manual be reviewed and rewritten. The manual is neither a policy document nor a statement of policy. As such, it does not convey the government's views or positions," the statement added.

Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Marina Wilson said Saturday that she could not say yet how long it would take to review the manual or what the process might involve.

The document prompted a sharp response from the U.S., a key NATO ally and trading partner, which asked to be removed from the manual.

"We find it to be offensive for us to be on the same list with countries such as Iran and China. Quite frankly it's absurd," U.S. Ambassador David Wilkins told The Associated Press on Friday. "For us to be on a list like that is just ridiculous."

He said the U.S. Does not authorize or condone torture. "We think it should be removed and we've made that request. We have voiced our opinion very forcefully," Wilkins said.

An Israeli Embassy spokesman also said that the ambassador of Israel would expect his country to be removed from the list.

A Canadian citizen, 21-year-old Omar Khadr, is in custody at Guantanamo on charges that include killing a U.S. Medic with a grenade during a July 2002 firefight in Afghanistan.

He has claimed in the past that he's been abused, but Canadian Foreign Affairs officials have said they accept U.S. Assurances Khadr has been treated humanely. Human rights groups believe Canada has not done enough to ensure Khadr, who has been in custody since he was 15, is being fairly treated.

The government inadvertently released the manual to lawyers for Amnesty International who are working on a lawsuit involving alleged abuse of Afghan detainees by local Afghan authorities, after the detainees were handed over by Canadian troops.

The document offers a section on laws prohibiting torture and what diplomats should do when cases are suspected. It cites interrogation techniques such as stripping prisoners, blindfolding and sleep deprivation.

Alex Neve, secretary general of Amnesty International, said that he's unhappy with Canada's decision to rewrite the manual.

"It was commendable to see that manual, which seemed to include an important section that was an objective assessment of human rights concerns around the world," said Neve. "To see that now be undermined by concerns about embarrassing allies is very disappointing."

Associated Press Writer Rob Gillies contributed to this report.

Political Persecution in Puerto Rico: A Conversation with Don Rafael Cancel Miranda

The ProLibertad Freedom Campaign
http://www.myspace.com/ProLibertad
ProLibertad@hotmail.com and ProLibertad.Campaign@gmail.com
ProLibertad Hotline: 718-601-475
________________________________________________

Political Persecution in Puerto Rico:
A Conversation with Don Rafael Cancel Miranda

Friday Jan. 25th, 2008 at 6:30pm
St. Mary's Episcopal Church
521 W126th St.(Btwn. Amsterdam Avenue and Broadway)
Take the 1 train to W125th St.

Puerto Rican nationalist and former political prisoner for 28 years, who, along with Andrés Figueroa Cordero, Irvin Flores and Lolita Lebrón, protested the criminal nature of the U.S. colonial domination of Puerto Rico by opening fire on the U.S. Congress in 1954. He was sentenced to eighty-four years for “an attempt to overthrow the government by force and violence.” As a result of pressure from the Puerto Rican Independence movement and the international community, he was released without conditions in September of 1979.

For more information: contact: ProLibertad at ProLibertad@hotmail.com or 718-601-4751

The Eric McDavid Story

By Sacremento Prisoner Support

On January 13, 2006, Eric McDavid, Zachary Jenson and Lauren
Weiner were arrested in Auburn, California, and charged with
one count of conspiracy to destroy public or private
infrastructure by means of explosives or fire. Twenty months
later, Eric went to trial alone to fight this charge. In the
interim, both Weiner and Jenson had agreed to cooperate with
the government in a variety of ways, including testifying
against Eric at his trial.

Weiner began talking to the FBI a week after her arrest and was
released on $1.2-million bail. Six months later, having previously
been denied bail twice as an alleged public danger and flight risk,
Jenson agreed to cooperate and was released on $40,000 bail. Eric was
denied bail twice and remained in jail, struggling for vegan meals.
After four months of pressure from supporters and a two-week hunger
strike, he was finally able to gain access to vegan food—but a week
before trial, the jail cut off his vegan meals once again, in an
apparent attempt to weaken him. He has not received vegan food since
that time. Eric has been in solitary confinement since his arrest.

After months of delays, Eric’s trial finally began on September 10.
The trial was fraught with clearly biased and improper rulings, and
lies were rampant.

The trial opened with the government’s star witness: cooperating
witness “Anna,” a young woman who was paid $65,000 by the FBI to
befriend and entrap Eric and his codefendants. Anna, who was 17 at
the time she began working for the FBI, admitted repeatedly during
her testimony that she was a liar. At one point Eric’s attorney, Mark
Reichel, said to her, “All lies, all the time, 24-7 would be the ad
in the phonebook, right?”

“When I was undercover, in my role, correct,” she responded.

Despite the government’s best attempts to obscure the truth, Anna’s
testimony proved that she was the driving force behind the
“conspiracy” and that without her and her FBI masters, it never could
have happened.

The other two key witnesses for the government were Eric’s former
codefendants, both of whom admitted that they had agreed to cooperate
because of the “75-percent-off sale,” as Reichel dubbed it—the 75
percent reduction in prison time they were promised in exchange for
cooperating. They also both stated that their sentencing had been
delayed until after Eric’s trial so that the government could see how
they performed first. Weiner seemed visibly shaken throughout her
testimony. She also seemed relieved, when Reichel cross-examined her,
to finally have the opportunity to speak something more closely
resembling the truth. This was not the case with Jenson, who behaved
like a trained monkey.

After six full days in court, the jury left the courtroom, and both
sides began to argue over the instructions that the jury would
receive. These instructions would guide the members of the jury in
making their decision about Eric’s innocence or guilt, but the judge
issued devastatingly incorrect instructions. The first blow came when
the judge denied the inclusion of the “lesser included offense”
instruction. This instruction would have allowed the jury to find
Eric not guilty of the crime he was charged with, but guilty of the
charge that Weiner and Jenson had pleaded to. While this clearly
would not have been an outstanding victory, if Eric had been found
guilty only of the lesser offense, it would have capped his sentence
at five years, instead of 20.

The other huge point of contention in the jury instructions was the
definition of “predisposition.” For the government to prove beyond a
reasonable doubt that a defendant was not entrapped (and is therefore
guilty), it first must prove that the defendant was inclined to
commit a crime prior to contact with a government agent—in this case,
Anna. After a series of intense arguments, the judge instructed the
jury to examine the question of predisposition beginning in June
2005—the moment at which the government claimed the conspiracy began,
and almost a year after Eric and Anna had met and remained in
contact. This ruling was in clear defiance of not only logical
reasoning, but also of case law, which says: “Quite obviously, by the
time a defendant actually commits the crime, he (sic) will have
become disposed to do so.... The relevant time frame for assessing a
defendant’s disposition comes before he has any contact with
government agents, which is doubtless why it is called predisposition
(US v. Poehlman).”

Armed with a set of faulty instructions, the jury returned after two
days of deliberation with a guilty verdict.

The Aftermath

After the delivery of the verdict on September 27, Reichel conducted
informal interviews with members of the jury. Here is a rundown of
what they had to say:

•They wanted to acquit Eric, but felt that they could not because of
the instruction the judge had given them about “first contact” and
“predisposition.”

•They thought that Anna was despicable, and they didn’t believe a
word she said unless it was on tape.

•They were appalled at the behavior of the FBI and told the agents so
to their faces.
While much of this information is validating for Eric and his case,
it’s also maddening to know that Eric would be free today if not for
one jury instruction. However, this bodes well for Eric’s chances of
appeal, which will be the next step in his struggle for freedom.
Unfortunately, this process will take at least a year, and Eric will
remain imprisoned in the meantime.

Lies, Lies, Lies

Not surprisingly, the media and the government have made a number of
inaccurate and misleading statements about Eric and his case. Perhaps
the two most egregious lies made during the trial were that Eric
threatened to kill Anna if she was a cop and that she awoke one night
with him waving a knife over her. There was absolutely no evidence to
support either of these claims, other than the word of an admitted
professional liar. During the time that the second incident was
alleged to have happened, Eric and Anna were in a cabin completely
wired with video and audio surveillance. Yet despite repeated
requests from Reichel, the government never produced any documentary
evidence. When Anna told this story during her testimony (after a
lunch break, after it was clear that the government was grasping at
straws), Reichel asked her if she had gone right back to sleep after
the alleged incident, and she said yes. If you wake up with someone
waving a knife over you, do you fall right back asleep? Both of these
outrageously slanderous statements were clearly meant to smear Eric
in front of the jury.

After the trial, US Attorney McGregor Scott was quoted as saying,
“Can you imagine what would happen if they succeeded in blowing up
Nimbus Dam? It would make New Orleans look like a Sunday pancake
breakfast.” But both Weiner and Jenson testified that Nimbus Dam was
not a target at the time of the group’s arrest in January.

The list of falsehoods, hyperbole and fear-mongering statements made
by the government over the last two years is far too extensive to
detail here. The bottom line is that the government has no qualms
about spouting off the most malicious of lies in its desperate
pursuit to convict innocent people.

A Bit of Context

Eric was arrested amidst the whirlwind government crackdown on
radical environmentalists known as the “Green Scare.” What sets
Eric’s case apart from the majority of these others, however, is that
Eric was not actually charged with carrying out a crime—rather, he
was charged with “conspiracy” to commit one. In essence, Eric was
pursued and arrested for “thought crime.” Nothing makes this more
clear than the prosecution’s non-ironic invocation of association
with CrimethInc. as proof of in itself of criminality. It is unclear
whether the prosecutors are aware that the word they constantly
uttered has the same Orwellian roots as the case itself.

A quick glance at the criminal complaint against Eric and his former
co-defendants (which can be viewed on his web site) reveals the
extent to which the charges against him stemmed from the state’s
targeting of certain lifestyles and political beliefs. The 15-page
complaint uses the words “anarchist,” “anarchy” or “anarchism” 26
times and makes multiple references to CrimethInc., train-hopping and
hitchhiking while tracing Eric’s path across the country to various
political protests and gatherings. The focus on anarchism and
political thought extended into trial, with a rather heavy focus on
the works of one author, Derrick Jensen. At one point, the prosecutor
actually confused Derrick Jensen with co-defendant Zachary Jenson and
claimed that the author had visited Zach’s mom in Tennessee over the
Winter! Derrick Jensen was probably mentioned in the trial more than
anyone other than Eric and his co-defendants.

This case makes it clear how far the government is willing to go to
spy on and repress people based on their politics and lifestyle. Eric
met Anna in August 2004 and the two remained in contact after that
time. It was made clear during trial that Eric had fallen in love
with Anna and that she used his feelings to keep him hooked and,
eventually, to entrap him. Anna manufactured this “crime” by
providing the means for it to occur and by manipulating the three
into doing things that would allow her employers to arrest and
prosecute them. She constantly pushed and cajoled Eric, Weiner and
Jenson when they showed resistance to her plans. She paid for their
entire existence—the cabin they lived in, their travel across the
country, the car they used, the computers they used (which the FBI
later confiscated), groceries and supplies. Weiner testified that
Anna pulled $100 bills out of her pocket and gave them to Eric so
that he could purchase groceries and supplies—leading to Anna’s
outlandish statements during trial that the money the group used came
from Eric and Lauren’s pockets!

Eric was not released on bail because the government said that he
train-hopped, hitchhiked and “lived off the land.” The most the
government had to say about Eric’s predisposition is that he read an
interview of Derrick Jensen and shared it with others. This case is
clearly meant to terrify people who are seeking a way to be free in
their minds and in their lives—to get them to police themselves and
each other in order to avoid persecution.

And Then....

Eric’s struggle is far from over. He is committed to continuing his
fight against these charges through the appeals process. Due to the
many legal errors made by the judge during Eric’s trial and to the
response from the jurors during the informal interviews, we remain
positive about Eric’s chances for appeal.

But this will not be an easy battle. Much work needs to be done in
preparation, and Eric needs support now more than ever. There are a
number of things that you can do to help Eric make it through his
coming months in prison and actualize his freedom. First of all,
appeals are not cheap. Unfortunately, we will need to raise many
thousands of dollars to cover Eric’s legal fees. We need everyone’s
help with this—please start working on fundraisers now and visit
Eric’s web site to make a donation online.

Second, Eric is still without vegan meals. Please call the jail and
request that they resume feeding him meals he can eat.

Third, Eric’s sentencing is scheduled for December 6. We would love
to see the courtroom full of supporters for Eric on that day. Eric is
facing 20 years in prison, and the government has indicated that it
will be pushing for the maximum time. The government also continues
to dangle the threat of a terrorism sentencing enhancement over his
head.

Finally, please take a few minutes and write Eric a letter of
support. Hearing from everyone around the world who keeps him in
their hearts and minds helps keep Eric going day to day.

Eric is an amazing individual. Those of you who know him know how
compassionate and caring he is—how full of integrity and courage he
is, and how he embodies these qualities in his day-to-day life. Eric
has taught us all so much, especially in these last two years. Most
of all, he’s taught us what it means to choose life—to keep pushing
forward and doing what’s right, despite substantial obstacles, and to
infuse every moment with joy and love. After the jury delivered its
verdict, Eric turned to all of us sitting behind him as he was
leaving the courtroom, a look of concern on his face, and reminded us
all: “Breathe....”

Let’s all keep breathing... and keep fighting.

For more information, contact sacprisonersupport@riseup.net;
www.supporteric.org.

Send letters of support to Eric McDavid, X-2972521 4E231A, Sacramento
County Main Jail, 651 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.

Sacramento Prisoner Support is based in Sacramento, California, and
has been doing support work for Eric McDavid since his arrest in
January 2006.

http://www.earthfirstjournal.org/article.php?id=326

Tom Ridge: Waterboarding Is Torture

Go to Original

By Eileen Sullivan
The Associated Press

Friday 18 January 2008

Washington - The first secretary of the Homeland Security Department says waterboarding is torture.

"There's just no doubt in my mind - under any set of rules - waterboarding is torture," Tom Ridge said Friday in an interview with the Associated Press. Ridge had offered the same opinion earlier in the day to members of the American Bar Association at a homeland security conference.

"One of America's greatest strengths is the soft power of our value system and how we treat prisoners of war, and we don't torture," Ridge said in the interview. Ridge was secretary of the Homeland Security Department between 2003 and 2005. "And I believe, unlike others in the administration, that waterboarding was, is - and will always be - torture. That's a simple statement."

Waterboarding is a harsh interrogation tactic that was used by CIA officers in 2002 and 2003 on three alleged al-Qaida terrorists. The tactic gives the subject the sensation of drowning.

The CIA has not used the technique since 2003, and CIA Director Michael Hayden prohibited it in 2006, according to U.S. Officials. The debate was recently revived when the CIA revealed it had destroyed videotapes showing the interrogations of two alleged terrorists, both of whom were waterboarded.

Ridge's comments come a week after a report that Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell said he would consider waterboarding torture if it were used against him.

In a separate interview with The Associated Press on Thursday, the current Homeland Security secretary, Michael Chertoff, refused to say what he thinks of the interrogation technique. Chertoff, a former federal prosecutor and judge - who was also assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Criminal Division in 2002 - said the question should be asked in the context of a specific set of facts and a specific statute and should not be posed abstractly.

"This is too important a discussion to have based on throwing one question at somebody," Chertoff said.

Attorney General Michael Mukasey has declined so far to rule on whether waterboarding constitutes torture. An affirmative finding by Mukasey could put at risk the CIA interrogators who were authorized by the White House in 2002 to waterboard three prisoners deemed resistant to conventional techniques.

Ridge, homeland security adviser and then secretary from 2001 to 2005, said he was not involved in the discussions about CIA interrogation techniques. Rather, his department was a consumer of any intelligence gleaned from them.

"I have no idea how any of the intelligence community extrapolated any information from anybody - where they got it, how they got it, and from whom they got it. But waterboarding is torture."

Ridge, a lawyer, wades into the waterboarding debate with both a military and civilian background. He is also a former Pennsylvania governor and congressman. He has since started his own homeland security consulting firm.

"As a former soldier, I will tell you that we go to great pains, and a lot of men and women, who serve in the military at risk of their own lives, do everything they can to minimize civilian casualties and certainly do everything they can to respect the Geneva Convention."

The House and Senate intelligence committees want to prohibit the CIA from using any interrogation techniques not allowed by the military. That list includes waterboarding. If their intelligence bill containing the restriction is approved by Congress, it almost certainly will face a veto from President Bush.

Canada manual: US prisoners face torture

By ROB GILLIES, Associated Press Jan 18, 2008

TORONTO - A training manual for Canadian diplomats lists the United
States as a country where prisoners risk torture and abuse, citing
interrogation techniques such as stripping prisoners, blindfolding
and sleep deprivation.

The Foreign Affairs Department document, released Friday, singled out
the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay. It also names Israel,
Afghanistan, China, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Syria as
places where inmates could face torture.

The listing drew a sharp response from the U.S., a key NATO ally and
trading partner, which asked to removed from the manual.

"We find it to be offensive for us to be on the same list with
countries like Iran and China. Quite frankly it's absurd," U.S.
Ambassador David Wilkins told The Associated Press. "For us to be on
a list like that is just ridiculous."

He said the U.S. does not authorize or condone torture. "We think it
should be removed and we've made that request. We have voiced our
opinion very forcefully," Wilkins said.

Michael Mendel, the Israeli Embassy spokesman, said Israel's Supreme
Court "is on record as expressly prohibiting any type of torture. If
Israel is included in the list in question, the ambassador of Israel
would expect its removal," he said.

A Canadian citizen, Omar Khadr, is in custody at Guantanamo, but
Canada has long publicly said it accepts U.S. assurances that Khadr
is being treated humanely.

The government inadvertently released the manual to lawyers for
Amnesty International who are working on a lawsuit involving alleged
abuse of Afghan detainees by local Afghan authorities, after the
detainees were handed over by Canadian troops.

Canada said the manual is for training, and does not amount to
official government policy.

"It is not a policy document or any kind of a statement of policy. As
such it does not convey the government's views or positions," said
Neil Hrab, a spokesman for Canada's Foreign Affairs Department.

"The training manual purposely raised public issues to stimulate
discussion and debate in the classroom."

Human rights groups have long called on Canada to pressure the United
States to return Khadr from Guantanamo. They say Canada has not done
enough for Khadr, who has been in custody since he was 15. Khadr is
accused of tossing a grenade that killed one U.S. soldier and wounded
another in Afghanistan in 2002.

He is the son of an alleged al-Qaida financier, and his family has
received little sympathy in Canada, where they've been called the
"First Family of Terrorism."

Dennis Edney, one of Khadr's lawyers, said the foreign affairs
document shows that Canada says one thing publicly but believes
something else privately.

"Canada was well aware that Omar Khadr's allegations of being
tortured had a ring of truth to it. Canada has not once raised the
protection of Omar Khadr when there are such serious allegations,"
Edney said. "What does that say to you about Canada's commitment to
the rule of law and human rights? It talks on both sides of its face."

Briana Waters Pretrial Conference Hearing

from Olympia Civil Liberties

Briana Waters pretrial Conference Hearing will be on January 25, 2008 at
9am. Please dress and act appropriate for court.

Briana Waters' trial will begin February 11, 2008.

The scope of the investigation has been targeted at several Olympia
residents and groups. It is important that Olympians create a presence
during the trial to bear witness to the events.

More info at www.portlandindymedia.org/greenscare

A Repost:

Tacoma, Washington, U.S. - U.S. District Judge Franklin Burgess today
refused to hear evidence that federal prosecutors and FBI agents had
conspired to and did manipulate evidence to make their case against
accused eco-saboteur Briana Waters. Less than two weeks ago, her lawyer,
Robert Bloom, filed motions that alleged that authorities committed
perjury in their effort to produce evidence that pointed towards Water's
guilt. Bloom asked for a conference with the judge to discuss his charges
against two federal prosecutors and two FBI agents, but was turned down
flat.

Waters was indicted two years ago, on charges that she aided in the
destruction of a research facility that was supposedly conducting
dangerous genetic engineering experiments. The action was claimed in the
name of the Earth Liberation Front. The state's case against her rests
largely, if not entirely, on the word of two admitted arsonists who helped
light the blaze and were caught or turned themselves in about two years
ago.

Previous article:

Seattle, Washington, U.S. - The lawyer of accused Earth Liberation Front
(ELF) lookout, Briana Waters, has charged that two federal prosecutors and
two FBI agents committed perjury to build a case against his client.
Attorney Robert Bloom filed motions for dismissal before U.S. District
Judge Franklin Burgess Wednesday.

Waters, 32, of Berkeley, California, is a violin teacher and the mother of
small child. She was arrested in early 2006 as part of the FBI's Operation
Backfire. Prosecutors say that she acted as a lookout for four individuals
who started a fire, at University of Washington research facility, in
2001. The action was claimed in the name of the ELF.

As for the four individuals prosecutors claim actually started the fire -
two, Jennifer Kolar and Lacey Phillabaum, have been co-operating with
investigators and aiding their efforts to indict others since late 2005
and early 2006. Bill "Avalon" Rodgers took his own life in an Arizona jail
shortly after his arrest and Justin Solondz has yet to be arrested and is
believed to be out of the country. The FBI considers Solondz a "fugitive
from justice."

Waters faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 35 years in federal prison,
if convicted of all charges. Her lawyer claims that the report from a
December, 2005 FBI interview with co-operating government witness Jennifer
Kolar was doctored to include Water's name, when it initially did not. He
also says that evidence of his client's innocence was suppressed. A trial
date is currently set for February 11th.

Powerless in Prison: Sexual Abuse Against Incarcerated Women

By Nicole Summer, RH Reality Check
http://www.alternet.org/story/73784/

"I am 7 months pregnant [and] I got pregnant here during a sexual assault. I have been sexually assaulted here numerous times! The jailers here are the ones doing it!"

-- excerpt from a letter from an inmate in a jail in Alabama to Stop Prisoner Rape.

Surviving a sexual assault and then navigating the health care system to receive adequate counseling and reproductive medical attention is daunting enough for those who walk freely on the outside. For women in prison, these hurdles can seem insurmountable. Unfortunately, sexual assault, particularly guard-on-prisoner sexual assault, is a fact of life for many incarcerated women, and the ensuing implications for their reproductive health are many.

The power dynamics in prison severely disadvantage the prisoner, who is at the absolute mercy of her guards and correctional officers, relying on them for necessities such as food and for the small privileges and luxuries such as cigarettes. Guards have unlimited access to prisoners and their living environment, including where they sleep and where they bathe. With such an imbalance of power, the likelihood of sexual assault increases. Sexual abuse in prison can range from forcible rape to the trading of sex for certain privileges. While the latter may seem consensual to some, the drastic power disparity makes the idea of "consent" almost laughable. In fact, all 50 states have laws that make any sexual contact between inmates and correctional officers illegal, "consensual" or not. "It's always unacceptable and illegal," says Lovisa Stannow, executive director of Stop Prisoner Rape.

While guard-on-prisoner sexual assault is common, putting a number on the instances is difficult because so many assaults are unreported. As with sexual assault on the outside, many survivors in prison are ashamed and embarrassed to come forward, fear that their claim will be hard to prove or fear that their attackers will retaliate. In prison the fear of retaliation is heightened, as the prisoner continues to live with her attacker controlling her daily life. And inmates who report a sexual assault are frequently put in segregated isolation, ostensibly to protect them from retaliation, but this isolation can be emotionally and physically draining, and well, terribly isolating. And many women in prison have been sexually abused in the past, before they were incarcerated, or are accustomed to using sex to get what they want, on the inside or the outside. "A lot of women don't view it as abuse," says Deborah Golden, staff attorney at the D.C. Prisoners' Project of the Washington Lawers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs. About 80 percent of women inmates have already experienced some kind of sexual or physical abuse before prison, says Sarah From, director of public policy and communications at the Women's Prison Association.

Despite the widespread underreporting, some statistics exist. First, there are about 200,000 women incarcerated in the U.S. (in federal, state, local and immigration detention settings), a number that is growing exponentially and that makes up about 10 percent of the total prison population. Amnesty International reports that in 2004, a total of 2,298 allegations of staff sexual misconduct against both male and female inmates were made, and more than half of these cases involved women as victims, a much higher percentage than the 10 percent that women comprise of the total prison population. It can vary from institution to institution, but in the worst prison facilities, one in four female inmates are sexually abused in prison, says Stannow.

The risk of pregnancy as the result of a sexual assault is, of course, a concern for many survivors, incarcerated or not. But obtaining emergency contraception or an abortion, if one is desired, may be more difficult for women on the inside. Because many inmates do not report the sexual assault immediately (if at all), using emergency contraceptionis usually not possible, if it is even available. While prisoners' rights and reproductive rights organizations report hearing few complaints about emergency contraception being inaccessible to women in prison, they are unconvinced that it is widely available. Golden believes emergency contraception should be made readily available and should be on the prison's prescription formulary.

Unlike access to emergency contraception, access to abortion by inmates has seen its way through the courts. Crucially, women do not lose their right to decide to have an abortion just because they are in prison; rather, the issue is how the prison accommodates (or refuses to accommodate) her decision. "There are constitutional minimums," says Diana Kasdan, staff attorney with the ACLU's Reproductive Freedom Project. Although the details can vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, prisons must provide access to an abortion if one is desired. "Providing access" can range from providing transportation to an off-site medical facility, to allowing for a furlough or to providing abortions on-site, although Kasdan says she has not heard of the latter. A court in Arizona recently ruled that a court order to obtain transportation for an abortion cannot be required, and a federal court in Missouri ruled last year that a prison cannot refuse to pay for the transportation of inmates to receive abortions.

Paying for the abortion itself is yet another issue for women inmates, and it is a patchwork quilt of inconsistency throughout the states. Some state prison systems fund abortions, some states refuse to pay for what they consider "elective" abortions and some states simply have no official written policy, research by Rachel Roth has shown. Only two states specifically mention sexual assault in their prison abortion policies; both Minnesota and Wisconsin allow for government-subsidized abortions when the pregnancy results from a sexual assault. The federal Bureau of Prisons also pays for the abortion in the case of sexual assault.

In prison, the possibility of a coerced abortion can hang over an inmate who discovers she is pregnant as the result of a sexual assault by a guard. In a letter to Stop Prisoner Rape, one inmate writes:

A rumor had spread through the facility that I was pregnant. I'm not sure how the rumor got started, but medical staff came to my cell and forced me to provide a urine sample that they could use to test for pregnancy. They did not ask me any questions, offer me any support, or seem at all concerned for my well-being. That same night, three guards, two female and one male, came into my cell, sprayed me in the face with mace, handcuffed me behind my back, threw me down on the ground, and said, "We hear you are pregnant by one of ours and we're gonna make sure you abort." The two female guards began to kick me as the male guard stood watch. The beating lasted about a minute, but it felt like ten or more. Afterwards, the male officer uncuffed me and they left.

The prisoner's rights as a mother, if she becomes pregnant and chooses not to terminate the pregnancy, are complicated, to say the least. Few jurisdictions allow women to keep their children in prison with them once they are born. Frequently, if there is no family member on the outside to take the child, the child will enter the foster care system, and the state will move to terminate the parental rights of the mother because she is absent. The parental rights of mothers in prison is a fraught and complicated issue, one that goes well beyond the particular problem of sexual assault by guards.

Access to counseling after a sexual assault in prison is virtually nonexistent. An inmate cannot simply call a hotline, since all calls are monitored and she has no privacy. When one inmate sought mental health care from prison services after a sexual assault, she was offered sleeping pills, says Golden. "There's no capacity in prisons for talk therapy," she says. And any counseling inside the prison is not confidential. Some community therapists will come in on visiting days to counsel an inmate, but usually only at the behest of a lawyer, says Golden.

Despite the overwhelming power imbalance, guard-on-prisoner sexual assault is preventable, insists Stannow. Efforts such as making sure the staff is well trained, educating the prisoners about their rights, eliminating impunity for guards and following up on reports of sexual abuse would go a long way toward prevention, she says. Congress had similar goals in mind when it unanimously passed the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) in 2003. PREA aims to establish zero-tolerance standards of sexual assaults, to increase data and information on the occurrence of prison sexual assault and to develop and implement national standards for the detection, prevention, reduction and punishment of prison sexual assault. "PREA has been enormously important in ending sexual violence in detention," said Stannow. "Congress made clear that it's a problem that must be addressed." Perhaps most excitingly, PREA created a federal commission to generate binding national standards regarding sexual violence in detention. But "the existence of the law doesn't mean the problem is gone," Stannow continues. "Now we need to make sure that we build on the momentum of the law to make every corrections system in the country acknowledge that sexual violence in detention is a major problem, and does everything it can to end it."

One of the largest obstacles to eliminating prison sexual assault is the "social invisibility" of prisons. The general public neither knows nor cares about the plight of the incarcerated, and thus cannot demand that its government properly protect prisoners' bodily integrity and rights. Perhaps PREA is the beginning of the end of this social invisibility.

Nicole Summer is a writer and lawyer living in New York City.

Will The Real Eco-Terrorists Please Stand Up?

friendsofjonathanpaul@yahoo.com

2nd Prison Dispatch from Jonathan Paul

When I was arrested in early 2006 for the destruction

of the Cavel West horse slaughterhouse, the media went

into a frenzy with headlines describing me as an

“eco-terrorist” or “eco-terror suspect”. The local

newspaper in my area had a heyday putting out stories

fed to them by the federal government. The news media

in my area surely enjoyed being the mouthpiece for the

corporations and the government. For me it was not

the fact that they reported the story of my arrest,

but how they reported it.

The government’s use of the term “eco-terrorist” works

well for their fear-mongering and paranoia inducing

plans to terrify the general public into complacency,

inaction and silence. After the September 11th

attacks, the government proclaimed that anyone who

opposed the policies of our government would now be

dubbed a “terrorist”. This was the perfect

opportunity to begin to shred the Constitution and to

reign in our civil liberties protected under the

Constitution by using fear. By instilling fear in the

American public, our government and the corporations

that rule the government, began to criminalize the

people’s right to oppose their practices, therefore

ensuring their bottom line – maximum profits for 1% of

the population, the super-rich and elite.

This is all disturbing to me not only because our

rights are being trampled, but more importantly,

because they are destroying our natural world with

impunity. The war on nature is directly related to

the war on the Constitution. Don’t get me wrong – I

am not a patriot of our current government. I am a

patriot for the planet and the natural world as a

whole. In our country people have rights – or we

used to. But what happened to the will of the

people, or the “public interest?” It is the special

interests and corporations that call the shots, not

the “will of the people”. Our government does not

govern based on what is best for the public interest,

as our values and voices are slowly being silenced by

the fear instilled by the powers-that-be. We are

becoming zombies with no voice because we are being

lulled into a state of hopelessness and apathy. But

this is not an incurable disease; we have the power to

make change.

So how does this fit in with the “eco-terrorist”

issue? It is all part of the bigger plan. “Natural

resource extraction” is a necessity in the bottom-line

of corporate industry. By painting those who are

concerned with the natural world with the broad

“fanatic-bunny hugging – tree hugging - terrorist”

brush, the corporations and government can continue to

justify their “resource-extraction” (or earth rape as

I prefer to call it) and deter future activists from

trying to address the dire environmental issues facing

the world that our government refuses to acknowledge

because it will not increase profit for their

corporate friends (Halliburton, Chevron, Blackwater,

to name a few) .

In the 1980’s a man by the name of Ron Arnold created

the term “eco-terrorist”. He defined this term as any

crime committed to save nature. As a leading figure of

the “wise use movement” this new term was a great tool

for Arnold. The wise use movement consists of

resource extraction corporations such as the timber,

mining, oil, fishing and cattle farming industries.

The same industries that will sacrifice the health of

the planet and its inhabitants for their bottom line.

The term “wise use” is intended to delude the public –

that these industries are “concerned about the

environment and use the land wisely”. This couldn’t

be further from the truth and is a classic example of

early spin doctoring by industry hacks. The dire

impact that these industries produce is the major

reason why our planet is in calamitous trouble. This

is also why these industries need to create the public

perception that they are “earth friendly” or “green”.

Here are some examples of greenwashing that come to

mind: “Eco-Imagination” by General Electric, a

corporation responsible for nuclear proliferation; and

“Clean Coal” by the coal industry as it continues to

excavate whole mountains from the earth and spew

toxins into the air.

By advertising themselves as “green”, these industries

hope to convince the public that their #1 concern is

the environment and they are doing everything in their

power to make things “green”. Unfortunately, many

will watch the commercials that these industries

produce and say, “Oh, that’s nice, it’s good to see

they are changing.”

I question who are the REAL eco-terrorists. Is it the

activist who breaks into a lab after the government

refuses to take action against blatant illegalities

and frees hundreds of dogs, cats, monkeys, rabbits and

other unfortunate animals from horrendous pain and

torture? Is it those who choose to sabotage the

machines that cut down the forests, dig the land into

open pit mines that pollute the water and air after

the government refuses to enforce even the meager

environmental regulations that exist? Is it even

those who choose to burn an empty building that is

slaughtering up to 500 horses a week with the blood of

those horses running out of the sewers after even

local government and communities wanted them shut down

for breaking the law?

Or is it the timber companies that clear-cut hundreds

of square miles of old-growth forest until less than

3% is left in the US alone while the federal agencies

charged with protecting our public resources turn a

blind eye? Is it the energy companies that spew out

tens of thousands of pounds of greenhouse gasses into

the air? Is it the oil and gas industry that moves

into the pristine wilderness, drilling millions of

acres of untouched offshore habitat, endangering the

lives of countless species and the lives of the

indigenous people who rely on that environment to

survive? Is it the industry that dumps toxic waste in

our water and land and pollutes the air we breathe?

Could it be our government, run by, and complicit with

the earth-raping corporations who believe we the

people are too stupid to stop them?

Who are the real eco-terrorists? I suggest that the

industries of the world stand up and be counted.

They, in fact, are the real eco-terrorists. How many

thousands of people have died because of their callous

disregard for the health and safety of people and the

planet? How many species of plants and animals have

gone extinct because of their destructive, illegal

practices and outright greed? Those in the present

administration and law enforcement who protect the

bottom line of industry may also stand up and be

counted. They too are responsible for not only

encouraging the industries to continue their

exploitation, but also enable them to expand their

ways under the protection of the police state.

I would also like to give Exxon-Mobil a special

commendation of top general in the eco-terrorist

movement, or “family,” as the feds like to say. By

spending millions in the last 20 years to muddy the

waters on the issue of green house gasses and climate

change, they have prevented us from changing to clean

energy and brought us to the tipping point if we are

not already past it.

And to the last CEO of Exxon-Mobil, Lee Raymond, with

his severance of 400 million dollars, HE should be

looking at life plus a thousand years in prison, not

my codefendants. He should be forced to pay

restitution to all the people he has sickened or

killed, and all the land, air and water he has

irreparably poisoned. He is guilty of eco-terrorism.

His corporation has terrorized the planet and

detrimentally changed its delicate balance of life

forever.

I have been known to be a pessimist. Those who know

me know my famous quote – “we’re doomed”. The

question is – are we really doomed? We very well may

be in many respects. But does this still justify our

dirty deeds? No. Does this mean the Captains of

Industry can continue destroying our planet? No.

Even with the dire predictions of the future we must

take action. The people of the world must stand up

and demand clean alternative energy, the

rehabilitation of forests around the world, curb

species extinction, reduce our own population, and

most of all – make a change in our own consciousness

that we pass down to the next seven generations. If

we can begin to attain this goal then radical

effective change may be possible.

When all the animals are free from exploitation and

the earth is treated like our true mother, then those

who choose to fight at night can take off their masks

and retire for good.

The Captains of Industry, the government, and the

media they control can call me a terrorist and lock me

in their prisons. They can try to break my spirit and

make me one of them. They can enable and support the

ones who attempted to take my life. They can even try

to convince the public that I am a “danger to society”

and make me out to be the devil. But I have a light

you can never extinguish because I am a true patriot.

I may not be a patriot to the death culture, but I am

a patriot for the earth. I, along with many others,

stand for the culture of justice and life. I stand

for the earth and all her creatures.

As I sit here in prison I see red-tailed hawks flying

overhead. I see rabbits running through the fences

and razor wire like it isn’t there. I see ducks and

songbirds fly over me. I see true freedom. I hate

being here. I know why I am here. Although I chose

many years ago not to use fire as a tactic because of

the inherent dangers involved, I know somewhere out in

the world a wild foal is born and a herd of horses run

free because the Cavel West horse slaughterhouse no

longer exists.

In solidarity for the animals and the earth,

Jonathan Paul

#07167-085

FCI Phoenix

Federal Correctional Institution

37910 N. 45th Ave.

Phoenix, AZ 85086

Friends and Family of Jonathan Paul

PMB# 267

2305 Ashland St., Ste. C

Ashland, OR 97520

Moscow Anarchist Black Cross is reorganised

Sat, 12 Jan 2008 A-Infos.ca

After almost three years of prisoner support activity by various concerned
individuals only, Anarchist Black Cross of Moscow was finally reorganised as a
functioning group last summer, as criminal persecutions against anarchists in
Russia reached their highest level in years. Previous concepts of collective
membership of existing anarchist groups proved itself not capable of
encouraging
initiative, thus new group consists of individuals only, and is completely
independent of any existing anarchist groups (although our webpage is still
hosted by Autonomous Action).

Our focus of activities remains the same as
focus of the group that existed 3 years ago - we focus on support of anarchist
and anti-authoritarian prisoners, we translate informations about repressions
worldwide to Russian and from Russian language, we encourage people to write
letters of solidarity, we raise funds for legal costs by various
means, we also
have an an idea to publish our own zine. We have already organised solidarity
for anarchist class war prisoner Pavel Delidon, for St .Petersburg anarchists
whom state attempted to frame up for bombing "Nevskiy Express" train
with other
Moscow anarchists.

Our contact (please update, if you published our old contact anywhere!):

P.O. Box 13

109028 Moscow Russia

(please do not write name of the group to envelope!)

http://www.avtonom.org/abc

myspace: www.myspace.com/abcmsc

e-mail: abc-msk (at) riseup (dt) net (PGP key available at
http://www.avtonom.org/index.php?nid=538)

WebMoney (http://www.wmtransfer.com/eng/addfunds/)

US$: ---- Z260630952047
Russian ruble: ---- R321197368781
Euro: ---- E311886845482
Ukrainian hryvnias: ---- U237258703810
Belarussian ruble: ---- B477420859355

Below is our introductory text - it is mostly the same as that of the
previous group.

About Anarchist Black Cross of Moscow

After heated years 1905-1907 thousands of anarchists and socialists were
sent to labour camps and exile, first groups of Anarchist Black Cross (until
1919 called Anarchist Red Cross) were founded 1906 to support them.
Organisation became international the next year already, when a group was
set up in London. Although contact with anarchist political prisoners of the
Soviet Union was lost in 1930's, international organisation has continued
its activity in various forms ever since.

Russian anarchist movement newborn in 1980's was immediately targeted with
repressions, and during the following 15 years several successful and
unsuccessful campaigns against repression were organised. But during first
years of the 21st century these initiatives disappeared completely from
Moscow, and in summer of 2003 it was decided to refound Moscow group of ABC,
since still no-one is protecting anarchists against repressions except
anarchists themselves.

We support all anti-authoritarians, who are persecuted due to their
political activities or acts which do not contradict ideal of anarchism. And
whenever possible, we support also prisoners who became anti-authoritarians
during their sentences, so-called "social prisoners" who were forced to
break laws for subsistence or in fight against despotism of the ruling
class, and prisoners who fight against the prison-industrial complex from
inside. As anarchists we are against all prisons. We believe in direct
action for destruction of the capitalism and the state. We are not a human
rights organisation, since our goal is not defence of the laws but their
destruction. In some cases we may support prisoner for purely humanitarian
reasons.

Most elementary form of help is writing to prisoners, since the main goal of
power is to isolate our comrades from the movement. We are publishing list
of addresses of the political prisoners, so that anyone could send letters
of support. We also have a support fund, which helps with legal costs and
supports prisoners materially, fund also finances literature to prisoners,
such as journals Avtonom and Pryamoe Deystvie which we send for free to all
those prisoners in the former Soviet Union upon request, who are not enemies
of the anarchist movement. We try to react quickly against all repressions
against authoritarians all around the world, and we are connected to Black
Cross groups all around the world. We are not only reacting against most
outrageous acts against our freedom, we also distribute information on
alternatives of the prisons, cops and electronic surveillance of the
everyday life. We also try to prevent repression, this is why we distribute
information about behaviour in interrogations, during arrests and other
similar situations among the revolutionary movement.

Moscow group of Anarchist Black Cross is a structure independent from all
other anarchist groups, it is organised by people who do not feel
indifferent about repressed anarchists. We invite anyone to support and to
participate to our work - most elementary form of support is to write to
prisoners and to distribute our materials. It would be even better if you
could participate to our projects, or to set up your own Black Cross group
in your area - for that you need only thirst of equality and solidarity.

(from https://avtonom.org/index.php?nid=1509)

6th Anniversary of the Detention of Ahmad Sa'adat

Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa'adat
http://www.freeahmadsaadat.org




6th Anniversary of the Detention of Ahmad Sa'adat

Today is January 15, 2008, which is the sixth anniversary of the detention of Ahmad Sa'adat by Palestinian Authority security forces on January 15, 2002. Sa'adat was invited under a false pretext to a meeting with an official of the PA, where he was immediately abducted and detained. Since that time he has been imprisoned - first in the Muqata while it was under siege by the invading Israeli army, then transferred to Jericho prison - a Palestinian Authority prison, yet under the control of U.S. and British "monitors" and guards, and today, inside the jails of the occupation and facing a military trial and the potential of lengthy imprisonment with over 11,000 of his fellow Palestinian political prisoners. The six years of Ahmad Sa'adat's imprisonment, as a case of a Palestinian national leader, illustrate the situation of Palestinian prisoners and the multiple forces that have been brought to bear against the Palestinian people and their struggle for justice and liberation. These six years of injustice demand that we support Palestinian prisoners in their cause of justice.

On the sixth anniversary of Ahmad Sa'adat's detention, the Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa'adat needs your support! Only with the attention and action of people around the world demanding freedom for Ahmad Sa'adat - and all Palestinian prisoners - can we create the international force and pressure needed to make a difference.

Today, take action to work for freedom for Ahmad Sa'adat and all Palestinian Prisoners!

1. ENDORSE THE CAMPAIGN - Send your organizational and/or individual endorsement for the Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa'adat to us at info@freeahmadsaadat.org . We have received a number of statements, letters and words of support, but it is critical now to build an extensive campaign with the support of organizations and activists around the world. Organizational endorsements are particularly critical - please bring the Campaign to your solidarity group, union, student association, women's group, community organization or other organization! We are looking to develop a strong, numerous list of endorsers, and your support and assistance are needed.

2. HOLD AN EVENT OR ACTIVITY - Organize a forum or event on the case of Ahmad Sa'adat, Palestinian prisoners, or political prisoners in general. Email us at info@freeahmadsaadat.org to tell us about your event; we will list it on our Events page in advance, and send us reports from your events that have already taken place. Such events are critical in informing the public and the progressive community about this case and the struggle of Palestinian prisoners.

3. DONATE TO THE CAMPAIGN - Visit our website at http://www.freeahmadsaadat.org/ where you can donate online. Your donations will help us to produce materials and hard-copy information, operate our website, hold events and expand our work. Your donation is extremely helpful - donate today!

--
Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa'adat
http://www.freeahmadsaadat.org/

Jan. 25th-Celebrate the Life of Luis Miranda

Celebrate the Life and Contributions of Compañero Luis Miranda,

Casa De Las Américas, Cuba & Our Solidarity with The Cuban 5!

SATURDAY, JANUARY 26^TH MARTIN LUTHER KING LABOR CENTER

310 WEST 43 STREET, MANHATTAN [between 8^th and 9^th Avenues)

7pm

Join us on Saturday, January 26, 2008 to celebrate the life and political contributions of Brother Luis Miranda, the long-time president of Casa de las Americas, a giant in the defense of all the causes of oppressed and exploited humanity, and in particular the defense of the Cuban Revolution, for over five decades in New York City. Honor the memory, venerate the cause, and emulate the example of this friend and comrade to all people who fight for their liberation. ¡Luis Miranda Presente!

CO-CHAIRS: Nancy Cabrero, Mariana Lamberti, Rosemari Mealy & Frank Velgara

PROGRAM
Luis Miranda Rivas – A Film Retrospective
Bread and Roses Gallery Photo Exhibition
Representative of the Cuban Mission to the United Nations
Rafael Cancel Miranda, Pro-Independence National Heroe, Puerto Rico
Andres Gomez, Antonio Maceo Brigade, Miami, Florida
Nancy Cabrero, President Casa de las Américas

Bonnie Massey, Venceremos Brigade

Carlos “Carlito” Rovira, ANSWER, Party for Socialism & Liberation

Zayid Mohammed, Poet, Black Panther Party

Roger Wareham, December 12^th Movement

Elombe Brath, Patrice Lumumba Coalition

Radhames Morales, Fuerzas de la Revolución Dominicana
Lenny Weinglass, Attorney, Cuban 5 Case

Cultural Presentation: Pleneros de la 21
Celebration/Mixer to Follow

Committee to Celebrate the Life of Luis Miranda Rivas

Nieves Ayress, La Pena del Bronx, Nellie Bailey, Harlem Tenants Council, Reverend Luis Barrios, Iglesia San Romero de las Americas – UCC, Nancy Cabrero, Casa de las Americas, Leslie Cagan, United for Peace and Justice* William Camacaro, Alberto Lovera Bolivarian Circle, Maura Deluca, Young Socialists, Stephen Durham, Freedom Socialist Party, Wellington Echegaray, Cuba Solidarity New York, WBAI Justice and Unity Campaign, Pedro Colón Almenas, Former Puerto Rican Political Prisoner/ProLibertad, Franklin Flores, Casa de las Americas, Jane Franklin, Julie Fry, FIST, New York Committee to Free the Cuban Five, Pat Fry, Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism, Panama Vicente Alba, Robert Gold, New York State Greens, Bob Guild, Venceremos Brigade, Teresa Gutierrez, Workers World Party, Larry Hamm, People’s Organization for Progress, Martin Koppel, Socialist Workers Party, Steve Kramer, Executive Vice President (Health Systems II), 1199East*, Ray Laforest, Haiti Support Network, Anne Lamb, Jericho NYC, Marianna Lamberti, family of Luis Miranda, Sandra Levinson, Center for Cuban Studies, Alex Majumber, International Action Center, Camilo Matos, Puerto Rican Nationalist Party-NY Junta, Luis Matos, World Organization for the Right of the People to Health Care, Inc., Jaime Mendieta, Cuba Solidarity New York, Casa de las Americas, Ignacio Meneses, US/Cuba Labor Exchange, Bob Miller, Cuba Solidarity New Jersey, Roger Wareham, December 12 Movement, Zayid Muhammed, Black Panther Party, José Velasquez, October 27 Committee, Pancho Cruz, Attorney/Activist, Radhames Morales, Fuerzas de la Revolución Dominicana, Ike Nahem, Cuba Solidarity New York, Sally O’Brien, WBAI “Cuba in Focus”, Ben Ramos, Popular Education Project to Free the Cuban Five, Merle Ratner, Brecht Forum, Rhadames Rivera, Vice President, 1199East, Carlos Rovira, ANSWER Coalition, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Christy Thornton, North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA), Ben Treuhaft, Send a Piana to Havana, Jarvis Tyner, Communist Party USA, Lourdes Vela, Colombian activist, Frank Velgara, ProLibertad, Socialist Front of Puerto Rico, Nalda Vigezzi, National Network on Cuba, Rev. Lucius Walker, IFCO/Pastors for Peace, Michael Tarif Warren, Leonard Weinglass, Paulette D’euteil, Red Dragon Collective/NYC Jericho, Emily Woo Yamasaki, Radical Women *Organization listed for identification

‘Operation Condor’ Was No Mystery to Washington

RIGHTS-LATIN AMERICA: ‘Operation Condor’ Was No Mystery to Washington
By Ángel Páez

Credit:Courtesy of La República Harry W. Shlaudeman

LIMA, Jan 12 (IPS) - The intelligence services of Peru and Argentina kept Washington informed in real time about a 1980 joint clandestine operation in which four alleged members of Argentina’s Montoneros guerrilla movement were "disappeared," according to documents declassified in the United States.

The incident forms part of the case opened in December by Italian Judge Luisianna Figliola, who issued arrest warrants for those responsible for this and other actions carried out in the framework of Operation Condor, a coordinated plan among the military governments that ruled Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay in the 1970s and 1980s, aimed at tracking down, capturing, torturing and eliminating left-wing opponents.

Townsend B. Friedman, political officer at the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires, revealed in a secret Aug. 19, 1980 memo to Claus Ruser, the ambassador’s number two man, details about the operation involving the supposed Montoneros in Lima, and the fatal outcome.

In that memo, which has now been declassified thanks to the efforts of the National Security Archive, an independent Washington-based non-governmental research institute, Friedman told his superior that an Argentine intelligence official had provided them with details of the Lima operation on Jun. 16, 1980.

The date is key: the joint action by the Batallón 601, a special Argentine army intelligence unit, and Peru’s Army Intelligence Service (SIE) was recorded four days earlier, and the purported Montoneros were turned over by Peruvian agents on Jun. 17 to Bolivian military personnel, in the presence of agents from Argentina.

The documents show that the U.S. government was fully aware of what was happening, at the time it was occurring, and that it knew ahead of time that the alleged Montoneros would be killed.

"A member of an Argentine intelligence service who has been quite reliable in these matters told the (U.S.) Embassy that the four individuals were apprehended in Peru, that they were still being held there but that they would be expelled to Bolivia from where they would be handed over to Argentina; once in Argentina they would be interrogated and then disappeared," Friedman reported to Ruser.

The capture in Lima and forced disappearance of Noemí Gianetti de Molfino, a member of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo Argentine human rights group, María Inés Raverta and Julio César Ramírez was planned by Batallón 601 after the seizure in Argentina of Federico Frías, who was going to take part in Lima in a meeting with high-level members of the Montoneros, the armed branch of the leftist wing of Argentina’s Peronist party.

After he was brutally tortured, Frías was taken by his captors to Peru, where he had agreed to tell them the names and addresses of supposed guerrillas, according to the testimony of a former Peruvian agent who took part in the operation, which appears in the book "Muerte en el Pentagonito" (Death in the Little Pentagon: The Secret Killing Fields of the Peruvian Army) by journalist Ricardo Uceda.

According to the declassified Aug. 19, 1980 memo, the U.S. ambassador to Argentina at the time, Harry W. Shlaudeman, spoke of the case of the supposed "Montoneros" with General Pedro Richter, at the time prime minister, minister of war and commander of the Peruvian army.

"Peruvian Prime Minister Richter Prada told Ambassador Shlaudeman in July (1980, a month after the kidnappings) that the Argentines had been expelled to Bolivia and that he believed the Bolivians had probably handed them over to the Argentines," Friedman told Ruser.

"In addition, (Richter) revealed to Ambassador Shlaudeman that he had been in personal touch with Argentine Army Commander (Leopoldo Fortunato) Galtieri on the matter.

"Galtieri had informed Richter that there could be ‘an interesting development’ in the case early the week of July 14. Richter suggested to Ambassador Shlaudeman that Galtieri’s comment might foreshadow a live appearance of the three Montoneros who the Peruvians claimed they handed over to the Bolivians," the memo adds.

The "interesting development" came to light on Jul. 21, 1980, when the murdered body of Gianetti de Molfino, one of the women kidnapped in Lima, was found in a hotel in Madrid. Nothing was ever heard of again about Raverta, Ramírez or Frías. The general, who is now dead, became the head of Argentina’s military junta in November of the following year.

Shlaudeman had close ties with the Peruvian dictatorship of General Francisco Morales Bermúdez (1975-1980), as confirmed by the declassified documents. When the alleged Montoneros were abducted in Lima, he was already in Buenos Aires.

The path followed by Shlaudeman’s career is particularly interesting. He was U.S. State Department Deputy Chief of Mission in Chile from 1969 to 1973, during which time the coup d’etat that overthrew socialist president Salvador Allende (1970-1973), ushering in a 17-year dictatorship, was being planned.

He then served as State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary for Inter-American Affairs, from 1973 to 1975, under President Richard Nixon; in 1977 he was appointed ambassador to Peru; and in 1980 he became ambassador to Argentina, a post he held until 1983, when democracy was restored in that country.

In 1992, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from George Bush, the current U.S. president’s father.

The June 1980 operation in Lima was neither the first nor the only one carried out as the result of coordination between the de facto military regimes of Peru and Argentina -- something that Shlaudeman was clearly aware of.

According to another declassified secret document, dated Jul. 11, 1977, Shlaudeman reported the Apr. 12, 1977 kidnapping of Argentine citizen Carlos Alberto Maguid, who had been granted political asylum in Peru, to then U.S. Secretary of State Cyrus Vance.

Shlaudeman told Vance that a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) official, Lone Hogel, had informed him that Maguid had been seized by members of the Peruvian military in coordination with agents from Argentina.

The Peruvian government, "in the persons of the minister of the Interior (General Luis Cisneros Vizquerra) and the son of president Morales Bermúdez, has denied that any agency of the (government) was responsible for his disappearance," Shlaudeman wrote, before stating that Hogel had accurate information on the case.

"Hogel said that it was her personal opinion, based on anonymous but apparently well-documented letters, that Maguid was arrested by the Servicio de Inteligencia Nacional (SIN)," perhaps at the urging of the Argentine government, and that he was being held somewhere in Peru, Shlaudeman wrote to Vance.

The cases of Maguid, as well as those of Gianetti de Molfino, Raverta, Ramírez and Frías, were not isolated ones, but formed part of a coordinated strategy by the military intelligence services of the South American dictatorships. This is made clear by a joint Jun. 25, 1980 report by the U.S. embassies in Argentina and Peru, drafted a week after the kidnapping of Gianetti de Molfino and the others in Lima.

"This incident is not unique. In recent years there have been several similar cases that attest to a high degree of cooperation among the intelligence and security agencies of the southern South American countries and to their tendency to resort to illegal means in treating suspected subversives," says the document.

Nevertheless, U.S. authorities continue to deny that they were aware of the coordinated criminal activities committed under Operation Condor.

In 2005, J. Patrice McSherry, a political science professor at Long Island University in New York, published a revealing document in her book "Predatory States: Operation Condor and Covert War in Latin America".

The document was a declassified memo by James Blystone, a former regional security officer (RSO) in the U.S. embassy in Argentina, in which he reported to his superiors that an Argentine intelligence source had informed him of the kidnapping of four "Montoneros" in Lima, and had told him that they would be "disappeared."

"Clearly, the RSO (Blystone) had been briefed on a top-secret Condor operation involving the intelligence services of three separate countries (Argentina, Bolivia and Peru); he was accepted as a trusted member of Condor's inner circle," wrote McSherry.

Blystone wasted no time responding. In January 2006, he published his version of the events in the "Foreign Service Journal", in an article titled "The Domino Effect of Improper Declassification".

"During the time that I was in Argentina (1978-1980)…I stumbled onto the fact that the Argentine security services were carrying out some operations in neighbouring countries. But I do not recall ever hearing the term ‘Operation Condor’ used, either there (Buenos Aires) or in Santiago, by any of my contacts or embassy colleagues," the former foreign service officer wrote.

But Blystone could have asked Shlaudeman, who was perfectly well informed of Operation Condor, as shown, for example, by an Aug. 30, 1976 report he sent from Chile to then secretary of state Henry Kissinger on the characteristics and scope of the coordination between intelligence and security agencies in the Southern Cone region.

There is also the Oct. 8, 1976 declassified briefing from Shlaudeman to Kissinger in which he reports on a meeting with Colonel Manuel Contreras, the powerful chief of the now dissolved National Directorate of Intelligence (DINA) -- the Chilean dictatorship’s secret police -- and the true head of Operation Condor.

"As expected, Contreras denied that Operation Condor has any other purpose than the exchange of intelligence," says the cable.

But the U.S. government knew that Contreras was lying. "Operation Condor" had already taken off on its death flight. (END/2008)

Eric McDavid - Two Years and Counting

Sun, 13 Jan 2008
From: sacprisonersupport@riseup.net

Dear friends,

Two years ago today our friend, our loved one, our comrade was snatched
away from us by the state. They charged him with “conspiracy” (thought
crime in the most literal sense) and threw him in total separation
(isolation) – where he has remained ever since. Since his arrest, Eric
has not had any physical contact with his loved ones. For two years we
have been forced to communicate through pen and paper, through telephone
wires, through thick plexiglass windows, with only our words and the light
in our eyes to offer comfort. But even the cold, lifeless mediums we have
been forced to utilize cannot repress or dampen the love we feel in our
hearts, the joy and the pain all mixed up in our tears, or the courage and
strength that we draw from each other every day. There are still some
things they can’t take away.

Since his arrest, Eric has endured so much more than the “normal” grief
associated with being ripped from one’s community and loved ones, stripped
of all one’s freedoms, and thrown in a cage. He has endured the agonizing
pain of betrayal, first as he discovered someone he loved and trusted was
actually a government informant, and then later as two people he loved
dearly also turned into collaborators with the state. He has endured two
years of isolation, deprived of the essential humyn connections derived
from the beauty of touch. He has endured two separate struggles to secure
access to food he can eat, remaining true to the compassionate principles
that drive not only his veganism, but the ways in which he lives all
aspects of his life. Both times he underwent grueling two- week hunger
strikes, and both times he was victorious against the seemingly endless
power of the state and his captors. He has endured two separate bouts of
pericarditis – a painful heart condition most likely caused by his total
lack of nutrition – and the subsequent complete lack of medical care from
the jail. He has endured two years of a concerted effort by the
government to vilify and criminalize him, his lifestyle, and all he holds
dear. This extended so far beyond the bounds of “government misconduct” –
the outright lies and misinformation – that even the jury which ultimately
convicted him saw through much of it, and commented to the press
afterwards that they were ashamed of the FBI, and described their conduct
as “scary.” And he endured a trial which, by all rational and legal
standards, was fraught with blatantly unjust and erroneous legal rulings.

Now he faces 20 years in prison for a crime that was never committed- for
falling prey to government intrusion, infiltration, and entrapment. The
government is doing everything in its power to slap the label of
“terrorist” on Eric – a label which is not only patently false and
insulting to those who have experienced real terrorism (often at the hands
of the state), but which also carries with it a great weight. The weight
of social implications, and the much more concrete weight of time. If the
government is successful in applying the terrorism enhancement to Eric’s
sentencing, it could turn what could otherwise be a 5 year sentence, into
a 20 year sentence.

Eric’s sentencing is currently set for February 21st. But this will not
be the end of his struggle. Eric will be appealing his conviction – and
we can honestly say that we feel he has a strong case (for more
information on why, read the alert dated 10/04/07 at
http://www.supporteric.org/updates.htm – particularly the section on the
verdict. You can also read Eric's motion for a new trial at:
http://www.supporteric.org/motion.pdf). However, regardless of the
appeal, Eric will be spending much more time in jail and prison. The
appeals process can take a very long time, and after his sentencing he
will be moved to a federal facility. While we can hope that he is sent to
a facility near his friends and family, we have absolutely no guarantee of
that. The prospect of Eric being sent even further from us is not an easy
one to accept. It will be a difficult time for everyone, and we will need
all of you to keep supporting Eric and sending him all of your energy and
love.

And, of course, appeals will cost money. A lot of money. As soon as
sentencing is over we will need at least $35,000 for Eric’s legal defense.
We need help from all of you to cover these fees. We cannot stress this
enough. Eric has consistently remained true to his principles and
maintained his integrity throughout this ordeal. In choosing to fight the
charges against him he incurred the complete and total wrath of the state.
If we are to remain true to our principles, raising money for Eric’s
defense is the least that we can do. Please start planning your next
fundraisers now! We are more than happy to help in any way we can – just
let us know what you need. Together we can make this happen – Eric’s
freedom is hanging in the balance.

If you would like to make a direct donation to Eric's appeal fund, you can
donate through PayPal at:
http://www.supporteric.org/howtohelp.htm#Fundraising

or you can send a check or money order made out to Sacramento Defense Fund
to:

SPS
PO Box 163126
Sacramento, CA 95816

If the check/money order is not made out to Sacramento Defense Fund, we
will not be able to deposit it.

Hearings Moved

Just a reminder, the motion for a new trial/acquittal will now be heard on
January 24. The sentencing hearing has been moved AGAIN – it is now on
calendar for February 21st. Please consider coming to Eric’s sentencing
to show your support.

Also – remember to write your letter to the judge, urging the lowest
possible sentence for Eric. Information and suggestions on what to write
can be found at: http://www.supporteric.org/updates.htm in the alert
dated 1/08/08.

Thank you all for your continued support.

Yours,

SPS

www.supporteric.org

Rafael Cancel Miranda in NYC

The ProLibertad Freedom Campaign
http://www.myspace.com/ProLibertad
ProLibertad@hotmail.com and ProLibertad.Campaign@gmail.com
ProLibertad Hotline: 718-601-4751
_________________________________________________________________________

SAVE THE DATE!! MARK YOUR CALENDARS!! BE ON THE LOOKOUT!!

Rafael Cancel Miranda is coming to New York City!!

ProLibertad is organizing a special night of conversation and dialogue with NATIONALIST HERO AND FORMER POLITICAL PRISONER, Rafael Cancel Miranda!!

Friday Jan. 25th, 2008 at 6:30pm
St. Mary's Episcopal Church
521 W126th St.(Btwn. Amsterdam Avenue and Broadway)
Take the 1 train to W125th St.

FLYER WILLBE SENT OUT THIS WEEK!!

SAVE THE DATE!! MARK YOUR CALENDARS!! BE ON THE LOOKOUT!!

John Bowden - Latest News

Official Report Discredits Lies of Prison Social Worker

No Action Taken - Yet

In late December 2007, following a lengthy investigation by Perth and Kinross Council into my complaint that Matt Stillman, a social worker employed by them and temporarily seconded to Castle Huntly jail last year, had deliberately lied in a critically important parole report about my involvement with what he had claimed was a “terrorist organisation”, the Council has issued the following statement:

“The complaint concerned two specific statements in the report for the Parole Board that was completed by Matt Stillman.

Statement 1: That Brighton Anarchist Black Cross website was a website for eco-terrorists or paramilitaries, and that you were involved with this organisation. On investigation, there is no evidence to substantiate the claims made in the report to the Parole Board. Our conclusion is that the website, although clearly political is not paramilitary or eco-terrorist, therefore the statement to the Parole Board is incorrect.

Statement 2: That the prisoner (John Bowden) whilst in Edinburgh Prison received visits from terrorists. On investigation the officer could find no evidence to support this allegation in either Social Work or Prison files. Therefore again we conclude that this statement is incorrect.”

Inaccurate reporting is commonplace in parole reports but rarely has such a report prepared by a social worker contained such a dramatic allegation that a prisoner currently in an open jail in preparation for release is in fact a member of a terrorist organisation. When Stillman’s report was submitted last April the consequences were extreme and brutal. Just a month before a crucial parole tribunal to decide my suitability for release after 25 years in prison, I was suddenly thrown into solitary confinement and then transferred from Castle Huntly Open Prison to Maximum-Security Glenochil Prison. A local newspaper, The Dundee Courier, screamed across front-page headlines, “Castle Huntly Killer Has Terrorist connection” and published verbatim Stillman’s ludicrous claim that Anarchist Black Cross (in fact a perfectly legal and legitimate prisoner support group) was composed wholly of terrorists and paramilitaries, some of whom had visited me in prison.

The prison system itself, against whom I’d campaigned against for years in furtherance of prisoner’s rights, jumped at the opportunity to bury me againin maximum-security conditions and use Stillman’s claims to justify subjecting me to a battery of psychological assessments and evaluations to determine the extent of my dramatically increased danger to the public. The only thing I was able to marshal in my defence was the support of ABC friends and comrades on the outside who protested and demonstrated on my behalf and campaigned tirelessly to expose Stillman’s lies. Their efforts alone forced the Scottish Prison system to take a more defensive position and distance themselves from Stillman’s ridiculous claims. Finally in October last year, following the completion of an “updated psychological risk-assesment” report on me by forensic psychologist, Dawn Harris, who explicitly rubbished Stillman’s allegations.

Although the prison system has backed down in the face of the prolonged protests organised by ABC on my behalf, Stillman’s lies had cost me six months locked-down in maximum-security and at least another year, possibly more, in prison. Stillman was investigated by Perth and Kinross Council, who provide the social work team at Castle Huntly Prison, and when initially questioned by their investigation officer he claimed that he had been “advised” by others about the nature of the ABC organisation. When questioned further about the source of his information regarding ABC he changed his story and claimed that he had seen some reference to it in an existing prison file on me. The investigation revealed this to be a lie. Stillman was clearly guilty of malpractice in deliberately presenting lies as fact in an official parole report, and yet he remains employed by Social services in Fife and to date hasn’t been subject to any form of disciplinary action.

They conclude the report of their investigation with the following: “As a result of this investigation we have looked at our procedures when producing parole reports and will consider how we can ensure that proper stands are met, etc, etc”. Translated, this means that no concrete action will be taken against Stillman or his line-manager in the social work department at Castle Huntly, Christina Brown, who enclosed with Stillman’s report to the Prison Board a covering letter supporting the validity of Stillman’s claims and swearing to his honesty and integrity. Stillman’s lies were always going to be unsustainable when subjected to even a perfunctory examination, and the investigator at Perth and Kinross Council had little choice but to admit that. But that was as far as he was prepared to go – in terms of what motivated or encouraged stillman to make the accusation of terrorism against myself and ABC, the lid was placed back on. No one is culpable and a “lessons have been learned” statement considered adequate to close the matter.

The matter, however, is far from closed. Apart from the Perth and Kinross investigation, the Scottish Social Service Council, a body set up to oversee and enforce a code of conduct in the treatment of service users, is also conducting an investigation into Stillman’s conduct following a complaint from me. Should the SSSC accept the decision of the Perth and Kinross investigation then the removal of Stillman’s social work licence on the grounds of misconduct should, by any standard of natural justice, follow.

I intend also to pursue legal actions against both Stillman’s social work employers and the Scottish Prison Service, during which I intend to expose the full extent of the prison system’s complicity in Stillman’s lies and attempt to bury me indefinitely in prison. I would ask all supporters to write letters of complaint to the following:

Dave Roberts, Executive Director of Perth and Kinross Council, 5 Whitefriars Crescent, Perth PH2 0PA demanding that proper disciplinary action be taken against Stillman and Christina Brown.

Stephen Moore, Head of Social work at the Social Work Office, South Street, Glenrothes, Fife, KY7 5NL demanding that he explain why Stillman continues to be employed at Fife Social Services.

Scottish Prison Service HQ, Communications Branch, Room 338, Calton House,5 Redheugh Rigg, Edinburgh, EH12 9HW demanding that Christina Brown, still employed at Castle Huntly Prison and so obviously complicit in encouraging Stillman to concoct lies in parole reports, be dismissed.

John Bowden

HMP Noranside

Fern By Forfar

Angus

DD8 3QY

Scotland

Police Brutality in "Democratic" Chile

Mapuche Student Shot Dead; Political Prisoner Slowly Dying From Hunger
Strike

13th January 2008

A peaceful protest by the Mapuche met a bloody end on 3rd January when
police opened fire into the crowd, killing 22-year-old university student
Matias Catrileo Quezada. The young Mapuche man was shot in the back upon
retreating, when Chilean police began firing indiscriminately into the crowd
with machine guns. Among the protestors were elderly civilians and children,
and it was a miracle that nobody else was killed.

For years the Chilean judicial system has refused to deliver justice and
return the indigenous land illegally taken by the estate Santa Margarita,
owned by Jorge Luchsinger, in the district of Vilcun. The local Mapuche
protested by moving onto their land to attract the attention of the
authorities. The police responded by shooting into the crowd, which
immediately dispersed and ran for cover.

Due to serious mistrust in the conduct of Chilean institutions, including
the police (who have a long history of manipulating the evidence to meet
their own ends), Matias' body was handed to the local Catholic Church, who
appointed Bishop Sixto Parzinger to arrange an independent autopsy, and
mediate with the authorities. This murder has caused immediate outrage among
both the Mapuche communities and non-Mapuche throughout the ancestral
territory of the Mapuche, and the capital of Chile, Santiago.

The ensuing civil outcry has been met with yet more unnecessary police
brutality, which has resulted in many protestors being injured and detained,
including Matias Catrileo's mother, Monica Quezada, his sister, and various
other members of his family. On the 9th January, in the city of Temuco,
Monica Quezada was arrested along with 16 other protestors during a march
condemning the murder of her son by the police.

The tension between the Mapuche people and the Chilean authorities has been
growing since the 10th of October 2007, when six Mapuche political prisoners
went on hunger strike and were subsequently ignored by their government. The
prisoners originally agreed to stop their protest upon the intervention of
Bishop Camilo Vial, who organised a mediation between the Mapuche and the
government in an effort to clarify the conditions concerning their
imprisonment. Including why the authorities had decided to use the
Anti-Terrorism Law, a relic from the time of the Pinochet dictatorship that
only last year the President had promised never again to use upon the
Mapuche. The Chilean government agreed to this mediation, and on the 17th
December the negotiations were supposed to start. With this agreement, all
but one of the prisoners, Patricia Troncoso, stopped their hunger strike.
Patricia decided that she would wait until the talks began to take place,
and she was sure of the government's integrity in this situation, before she
joined them. And she was right to do so, as this agreement has apparently
now been forgotten.

Patricia Troncoso is now being kept alive by a saline drip. She has been on
hunger strike for 93 days. According to the latest medical report issued on
the 7th January 2008, Patricia has lost 26.2% of her original weight, is
suffering from cramps, slowed heart rate, respiratory difficulties, and has
a very weak pulse. The mental examination found that she is speaking very
slowly, she is disorientated, and she is drifting in and out of
consciousness. The prognosis for her future shows that, even if she were she
to stop this now, she would still never fully recover. Her body has suffered
too much damage to be able to return to its former health. Patricia
continues her protest, but she is dying. Patricia's private doctor, Doctor
Berna Castro Rojas, advises that her patient be kept in the hospital
permanently, rather than the current situation of traveling back and forth
from prison. She also states that Patricia should be undergoing at least
daily examinations, but that this is not happening. She is being neglected.
In her final report, Doctor Castro Rojas requested that Patricia be
immediately interned in a hospital that would guarantee her life, have
doctors continuously accessible, and respect her rights of protest.

The present outrage felt by the Mapuche communities has been expressed
through many public protests. These demonstrations, though passionate, have
not been violent on the side of the Mapuche; however, they have been
aggressively broken up by the ‘military police', who have used water cannons
to disperse the crowds, and have beaten and arrested countless Mapuche and
supporters, including children. The result of this is that the tension is
continuing to escalate.

For further information, please visit our website at www.mapuche-nation.org

MAPUCHE INTERNATIONAL LINK
6 Lodge Street
Bristol BS1 5LR
England

Tel/Fax: + 44-117-9279391
E-mail: mapuche@mapuche-nation.org
Website: www.mapuche-nation.org

Support for Rod Coronado Message

ELP Information Bulletin (12th of January 2008)

Dear friends

As most ELP supporters will be aware, as well as having recently pleaded Guilty to telling people how to make a incendiary device in exchange for a 1 year jail term, Rod Coronado, along with another Earth First! activist were put on trial a couple of years ago for their role in a highly sucessful Mount Lion Hunt Sabotage which saw the disruption of a mount lion hunt. As a result of that trial Rod served a short prison sentence.

Anyway with regards to the Mount Lion Hunt Sabotage, ELP has just received the following e-mail from Rod's support campaign.

More news on this and other trials as we get them.....

From: info@supportrod.org

We have received great news today! It comes at a time when we are finding resolve in the decision we made just last month to accept a plea in regards to the San Diego case. It comes at a time when I need to feel like their may be some justice….

Today Rod’s lawyer from the Sabino Mountain Lion case contacted us with news that the 9th circuit will, indeed, be hearing oral arguments regarding the appeal that was submitted over a year and a half ago (not a fast process). Yes, on February 11, at 9 am in San Francisco, three 9th circuit court judges will hear a total of 20 minutes of arguments from both Rod’s and his co-defendant, Matt Crozier’s, lawyers. We are thrilled, and hopeful, and believe that there is a great chance that the guilty verdict may get overturned. In this case their are myriad possibilities of what may come. It would definitely protect future activists from being targeted with the same law.

Rod served an eight month sentence already, and so the best we would get from a victory would be getting rid of the current probation! That would be a huge weight lifted from our everyday reality! That is, besides the vindication of a overturned ruling!

We invite those who are able and interested to attend the hearing. Rod is going to try to be there, although financially it may not be possible!

We had a fantastic vacation back to the Midwest with family and loved ones! We thank every one who was able to contribute to the travel expenses. We made it there and back, maxed out credit cards and all! Smiles on our faces, and love in our hearts! We really couldn’t have done it without your help!!!!!

Again, February 11, at 9 am is the big day!

Love and peace in the times of war,

[name deleted]




The following physical address is associated with this mailing list:

PO Box 732
Tucson, Arizona 85702
USA

Stop Criminalizing The Mentally Ill Petition

Hello Friends,

In hopes of accomplishing the work we've been involved in.

I ask that you please sign this petition and forward it to others,

who may support this much needed change we are working towards.

Here's the link:

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/961883011

Thank You.

Too many incidents that should have been handled differently by the NYPD and have resulted in serious injuries if not death or imprisonment of the mentally ill.
I seek to promote the people's word for the need for change through this petition and ask all to join as concerned members of society.

Crimes of State

By Mumia Abu-Jamal

Crimes of State

{col. writ. 1/2/08} (c) '08 Mumia Abu-Jamal

A president is charged with violating the law and constitution of his country.

He is charged with opening the money pits of the nation to his cronies.

He is charged with approving the torturing of people in the name of a 'war on terror', listening to the phone calls of countless citizens and unleashing his hordes of malevolent minions against critics, journalists and opponents of his virtually imperial rule.

Am I describing a recent novel? For surely -- surely -- this can't be a real president, in a real country, facing real charges.

And yet, it is.

But not here.

It's in Peru, where Alberto K. Fujimori (once affectionately nicknamed 'El Chino' for his Asian features) faces a slew of criminal charges stemming from his years in power as president.

The former president faces charges from his 10 - year reign over Peru's version of a "dirty war" against virtually all opponents of the State. From armed combat against Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) and the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (known as the Tupamaros), to massacres of students and leftists by secret government death squads, the former president left behind him a legacy of blood.

In the twenty years of this long internal war, some 70,000 people lost their lives, according to the findings of a Peruvian government commission in 2003.

If convicted for his role in the carnage, Fujimori, now 69, faces 30 years in prison.

Why is this surprising?

Because, here, in the US, we see so much government immunity that the very notion of trying our presidents for war crimes, violations of international law, or even violations of the Constitution, seems the stuff of fiction.

The closest we have come, was at the resignation of Richard M. Nixon from the presidency, after impeachment was imminent. Not to worry. His successor, President Gerald R. Ford, granted him a pardon -- before he was even charged! And his crimes, which culminated in the Watergate scandal, are all but forgotten.

I saw a foreign news broadcast today (from China) which reported that a million people -- 1 million people -- had died in Iraq since the US invasion and occupation. A million people.

And yet, no crime. No impeachments. Indeed, there isn't even serious rap about either possibility. At the very hour of victory, when a so-called 'democratic' majority was granted majority power by an energized, and angry electorate, House Speaker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D.Ca.) announced, "Impeachment is off the table." And so it has remained.

Immunity.

What can the world's sole remaining superpower learn from a relatively small, relatively poor, predominantly Indian nation on Latin America's west coast?

Apparently, not a damned thing.

--(c) '08 maj

[Source: Romero, Simon, "Ex-President Stands Trial In Edgy Peru," New York Times, Mon., Dec.10, 2007, p.A6.]

***************

Mumia Abu-Jamal is a political prisoner in the United States, framed and in prison, with what could be the final decision on his legal appeals possibly coming down soon. That decision could give Mumia his freedom, a new trial, life in prison, or execution. It is time to turn up the heat against this injustice.

Free Mumia!

CT Protesters Denounce Prison Condiitons

Protesters say prison conditions terrible

AARON LEO aleo@ctpost.com
01/09/2008

Maria Tracy, of Bridgeport, holds a photo of her uncle David... (Brian A. Pounds/Connecticut Post)

BRIDGEPORT — Bridgeport Correctional Center inmates are sleeping on hallway floors and on beds made of milk crates and cardboard because of prison overcrowding, protesters charged at a rally Wednesday opposing Gov. M. Jodi Rell's August suspension of parole for violent felons.

"I got a personal friend who just went in there" for a 2-year sentence, William Tracy said. "He's sleeping on a floor in a hallway." He wouldn't identify his friend.

Another protester said the inmate lunchroom and the gymnasium double as sleeping quarters.

The candlelight vigil of about 30 people took place outside the BCC, on North Avenue, on the Fairmount Street side Wednesday night.

Brian Garnett, Department of Correction spokesman, said the DOC has been "forthright that some of our facilities are crowded." But the state's prisons are "safe, secure and humane across the system," Garnett said.

Some of the protesters were relatives of David Tracy, an inmate who hanged himself in April 2000 after the state transferred him and 483 other prisoners to a Virginia super-max prison to alleviate Connecticut prison overcrowding.

They said Tracy was a non-violent offender who should have been in treatment. Nonviolent offenders make up much of the prison population, many on drug charges, they said.

Chris Cooper, spokesman for Rell, said the governor agrees that nonviolent offenders should be granted parole. Although the statewide prison population has hit 20,000 since the suspension,

Cooper said the population declined in the past two weeks to about 19,400.

The parole issue touches the Tracy family.

Tracy's brother, Thomas Tracy Jr., 42, of Success Village, said he has a felony conviction and has been on parole for the last 13 months.

He said he's been in jail 26 times in his life for drugs and drug-related crimes.

"Parole helped me get started," Tracy said. "Parole worked for me."

Aracelis Aquino, of Waterbury, said her brother has served 27 years for killing someone in a domestic incident. She said he's served his time and was on track for parole until Rell suspended the release of violent felons. She wouldn't identify her brother, who she said is incarcerated in Northern Correctional Institution in Somers.

The ban stems from two paroled burglars — violent felons — accused of forcefully entering the Cheshire home of Dr. William Petit and killing his wife and two daughters last July. Petit was severely beaten but survived. The men have been arrested and charged with the murders in connection with the incident.

On Tuesday, Rell proposed a three-strikes law for persistent violent offenders.

The protesters also opposed that proposal.

Groups including People Against Injustice attended the rally.

"Sister" Nikki Brown of the PAI disagreed with the governor, saying the suspension includes nonviolent offenders.

Regarding the overcrowding, she said, "They are human beings in there. They're not dogs and cats."

The protesters also called for programs to keep children off the streets and away from crime, and for counseling and treatment for people in and getting out of prison.

Thomas Tracy Jr. said he wants to help with a group he wants to form called TRACY, or Teaching, Rehabilitating and Counseling Youths. He wants to open a thrift store to help inmates just getting out and families of current inmates.

He said he regularly writes to inmates and urged more to write to him in Success Village at Building 57, apt. 238, Bridgeport, CT 06610. His telephone number is 331-6134.

Another protester, Barbara Fair, said they set the rally on Wednesday to coincide with visiting day.

More than 10 people had lined up at the visitors' entrance during the protest.

Law and Disorder Interview With Paul Wright on Prison Profiteers

---

The following site includes streaming audio of a radio interview with me that took place on Dec. 31, 2007, about PLN's latest book, Prison Profiteers: Who Makes Money from Mass Imprisonment. The show was on WBAI’s Law and Disorder, the interviewers were Heidi Boghosian, Executive Director of the National Lawyers Guild and Michael Smith, and Michael Ratner president of the Center for Constitutional Rights and Dahlia Ashad of Amnesty International’s USA Program.

The book is available from PLN at the following link:

http://www.prisonlegalnews.org/104_ProductDetails.aspx

Radio show is at:

lawanddisorder.org/2007/12/23/law-and-disorder-december-24-2007/

Paul Wright, Editor

Prison Legal News

972 Putney Rd. # 251

Brattleboro, VT 05301

802-257-1342

pwright@prisonlegalnews.org

www.prisonlegalnews.org

Seattle Office:

Prison Legal News

2400 NW 80th St. # 148

Seattle, WA 98117

206-246-1022

German antifa activist jailed

Urgent ELP! Bulletin (9th of January 2008)

Dear friends

ELP has just learnt that a German antifa activist, Andrea Neff, has been jailed for four months for merely having pepperspray on her (something which is actually LEGAL in Germany!). She now faces additional prison time for breaching probation conditions imposed on her after she attended an anti-nazi rally with some eggs full of pepper.

Please send urgent letters of support to:

Andrea Neff, Bnr: 746/07/2

Justizvollzugsanstalt fur Frauen in Berlin

Arkonastrasse 56

13189 Berlin

Germany

Below is an activist media report on Andrea taken from www.brightonabc.org.uk

Berlin antifascist imprisoned (07/01/08)

Andrea was in a neighbourhood in southeast Berlin where a Neo-Nazi demonstration was taking place. On the 1st December 2007 the Munich local court sentenced her to 4 months without probation for having pepperspray on her person, which is usually legal. Following this sentence, she faced also the loss of a precedent probation of three months, when she was caught with some eggs full of pepper during an anti-fascist action on 1st of May 2005, in Berlin. During a trial on the 31st of July, under which several accusations against her got regrouped, she was sentenced to five more months more.

She has been accused of participating within an action of the "Uberflussigen" (an autonomous group active mainly on the theme of precarity) against the racist immigration office in Berlin-Lichtenberg; In October 2006, for a blockade attempt against a Neo-Nazi march in August 2006; For masking up during the protests against a Neo-Nazi demonstration towards the prison of Tegel in solidarity with Michael Regner "Lunikoff" (singer of a famous Neo-Nazi band, serving a couple of years in that prison), in October 2006. On top of this come two months without probation following a squatting acton in the Liebigstrasse, Berlin-Friedrichshain. Altogether she will be spending the next 14 months behind bars. After one and half weeks in Lichtenberg prison, Andrea was transferred by surprise on the 11th to the prison of Pankow. Through this she lost a visit she had already applied for, and now she had to apply again for all the usual things like mail, exercise, visits..

Andrea Neff, Bnr: 746/07/2, Justizvollzugsanstalt fur Frauen in Berlin, Arkonastrasse 56, 13189 Berlin, Germany

For donations:

Rote Hilfe e.V.
Kontonummer: 7189590600
BLZ: 100 200 00 Berliner Bank
Verwendungszweck: Soli Andrea

Solidarity actions are of course always welcomed!

+++++++++

British Earth Liberation Prisoners Support Network

BM Box 2407

London

WC1N 3XX

ENGLAND

www.spiritoffreedom.org.uk

DB on Gran Jury/Support Grand Jury Resisters

The ProLibertad Freedom Campaign
ProLibertad@hotmail.com and ProLibertad.Campaign@gmail.com
____________________________________________________________________

Live Despierta Boricua segment on Friday Jan. 11th, 2008 at 6:45am with Benjamin Ramos, of Prolibertad, and Mario Murillo, Wake Up Call, on the gtran jury work in PR and NYC. WBAI 99.5fm FRiday Wake Up CAll 6:45 am-7am, http://www.wbai.org



PROLIBERTAD ALERT

FBI/NYPD Grand Jury Subpoenas Target Boricuas:

The FBI/NYPD Anti-Terrorism Task Force (Joint Terrorist Task Force) has been visiting Puerto Ricans and serving them with Grand Jury subpoenas. In one case they claimed to be investigating the “extremist group: The Welfare Poets”. Two others have been served with Grand Jury subpoenas
to appear at the Federal Court at 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn on Friday, January 11, 2007 at 9:30 a.m. and, as of this communication, one is being sought to be served.

As was the case with the assassination of Machetero Leader Filiberto Ojeda Rios on September 23, 2005, a key historical date for the Puerto Rican Independence Movement, the FBI/U.S. Justice Department has chosen the date of January 11 for the Grand Jury hearing in New York, a date when independence forces celebrate the birth and contributions of Eugenio
Maria de Hostos to the independence struggle against Spain.

To date, subpoenas to appear before the Grand Jury have been issued to; Tania Frontera, a graphic designer, pro-independence activist and participant in the Vieques struggle, activist and social worker Christopher Torres and filmmaker Julio Pabón, Jr. In addition, there are indications that Hector Rivera, one of the founders of the political/cultural group the New York based “Welfare Poets,” was visited to be served with a subpoena but was not home in NY at the time.

In Puerto Rico the group La Nueva Escuela convened a meeting with a broad range of pro-independence political forces to plan the response and mobilize legal and political resources. They also appealed to those active in the FBI Out of Puerto Rico campaign. A demonstration in front of the Federal Court House in San Juan has been called for January 10th.

In New York City on Saturday, December 29, 2007, Puerto Rican
pro-Independence activists, organizations and allies met with some of the subpoenaed activists, family members, legal advisors, friends and allies, to update themselves on the activities of the FBI/NYPD anti-terrorism agents leading to the Grand Jury hearings on January 11th. A call for a mass protest on January 11th at the Federal Court House in Cadman
Plaza, Brooklyn was made, work committees were formed, a list of legal resources was presented and a general call outlined for support for these latest targets of Federal Grand Jury repression. A flyer is being drafted, and everyone is urged to mobilize.

The Hostos 111 Grand Jury Resistance Movement is the tentative name of this mobilization and an email has been established while a toll-free number is setup where messages and endorsements can be left.

The email is: resistgrandjury@gmail.com

Organizations are asked to email endorsement for the demo on January 11th.

ALL OUT JANUARY 11TH!

RALLY AGAINST GRAND JURY REPRESSION OF PUERTO RICAN INDEPENDENCE ACTIVISTS

FRIDAY JANUARY 11TH, 9:30 A.M.

Brooklyn Federal Court
225 Cadman Plaza East
Brooklyn, New York

Take subways: A/C Subway to High Street, 2/3 to Clark Street, M/R to Court St-Boro Hall, 4,5 to Borough Hall, F to Jay St-Boro Hall, G to Hoyt-Schermerhorn).

U.S.A./F.B.I. – Out of Puerto Rico!

Unity In Action, Against Repression!

Eric McDavid Update - 1/08/08

From: sacprisonersupport@riseup.net

Dear friends,

We just wanted to give you the latest information about Eric's upcoming
hearing dates. Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond our control,
the hearing on the motion for a new trial has been moved to January 24,
and sentencing has been moved to February 14th. Every time a hearing gets
moved it's a frustrating and emotionally trying situation for all of us,
as this only prolongs the amount of time that Eric has to spend in
Sacramento County Main Jail (which has much worse restrictions and living
conditions than a federal facility, for which he is ultimately headed,
will have). It also prolongs the wait we have to endure before we can
start the appeals process, which can't begin until after sentencing.
Please keep writing Eric! Your letters always help him through these
difficult times. Information on writing Eric can be found on his website:
www.supporteric.org

Also, if you haven't already, please consider writing a letter to Judge
England encouraging him to give Eric the lowest possible sentence. The US
Attorney is still indicating that they will be pushing for the maximum
sentence of 20 years. The judge needs to hear from Eric’s friends and
family – he needs to know that Eric is a well-respected, honest,
compassionate, non-violent person. It is important for Judge England to
know that the acts charged in the indictment are out of character for
Eric.

Some things you might mention in your letter include:

-How you met Eric and how you know him (through school, work, mutual
friends, etc.); how long you have known Eric.

-What you know about Eric's character, his reputation in the community;
personal experiences you have had with him that illustrate important
aspects of his character.

-What you know about Eric's relationship with his family, his close
friends, his partner - the people who will be his personal support when he
is in prison and when he is released. Describe for the judge how these
people will assist him through these difficult times.

-How you personally will be able to help Eric get back to a normal life
when he is released from prison, whether it is through helping him to
pursue his education, remain employed, or establish a home.

-Examples, from your personal knowledge, of what Eric has done in his life
to help others, whether it is through activist work, charitable work, work
for non-profit organizations, or personally helping you or someone you
know with something. Specific examples of Eric's contributions to
charitable, community, and non-profit organizations are helpful.

-The judge may consider whether Eric is likely to commit another crime.
If you have specific reasons to share with the judge to demonstrate why
you believe that Eric is unlikely to commit another crime, please explain
those in your letter.

-The judge may consider whether to sentence Eric as a "terrorist" under
certain provisions of federal law and sentencing guidelines. While this
is largely a technical issue that Eric's lawyer will write about, you may
wish to write to the judge about how Eric's case compares to other crimes
and incidents that you are personally aware of that either have or have
not been treated as "terrorist" incidents.

-There may be other things you wish to say to the judge as well. Our
suggestions are just that - suggestions. Please make sure you write in a
polite, respectful manner to the judge.

What not to write about

Some topics are simply not helpful subjects of discussion in a letter to
the Court related to sentencing. We ask that you not justify or
rationalize the incidents Eric is accused of. We ask that you not compare
Eric to others who have already plead to a crime and who are also facing
sentencing.


Address your letter to:

Judge England
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California-Sacramento
501 “I” Street
Sacramento, CA 95814

Please DO NOT send your letter directly to Judge England. Instead, please
send them directly to Eric’s lawyer:

Mark Reichel
555 Capitol Mall, 6th Floor - Suite 600
Sacramento, CA 95814

Please mail your letter with your original signature as soon as possible.
Again, letters should be sent to Eric’s lawyer, Mark Reichel, and not to
the judge.

Finally, we can end with some good news - Eric is still receiving two
veggie burgers a night, and has also been getting breakfast items he can
eat (such as oatmeal) and peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. While this
is obviously nowhere near a "balanced" vegan diet, it is a huge
improvement over his previous nutritional situation. Thanks to everyone
for their phone calls, letters and emails to the jail! Eric couldn't have
won this victory without your help.

So thanks again for your continued support!

Yours,
SPS


5 Reasons to write a letter to the Judge for Eric

1) This is the last big thing you are being asked to do before Eric's
sentencing.

2) You have a chance to write one page that could help save our friend
from being unfairly locked away in prison for twenty years. This is a
chance to use whatever status, privilege, or prestige you might have in
the eyes of society and put it towards supporting a targeted activist like
Eric.

3) Because you don't want to live in a world in which targets of
repression are not supported by their friends and their community. Because
you don't want to see what would happen to free speech and civil liberties
if we didn't support each other.

4) The decision over how many years Eric will spend in prison will
ultimately come down to one person and you have a chance to express to him
what Eric means to you.

5) Because you would want everybody to do this if you were in Eric's
position.

ACTION ALERT Solidarity Against Intimidation

Dozens of organizations in Puerto Rico and the United States will participate
in protests on Thursday January 10 and Friday January 11, 2008 against the new
wave of  FBI repression against Pro Independence Puerto Ricans. On this
occasion a New York City Grand Jury issued subpoenas to three young Puerto
Ricans. Tania Frontera, Christopher Torres and Julio Pabon Jr. are
scheduled to appear before a Federal Grand Jury on January 11, 2008.
Representatives of 20 Puerto Rican organizations will rally on
Thursday January 10, 2008 at 5 pm in front of the U.S. Federal Court in Hato Rey. Another 40
Puerto Rican organizations in New York, Philadelphia , Cleveland, Los Angeles,
Chicago, San Francisco and Orlando will hold rallies on either January 10 or
January 11.
-------------------------------------------------------------
San Juan
U.S. Federal Court House in Hato Rey
Thursday, January 10
5:00 pm
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
New York
Rally Against Gran Jury Repression of Puerto Rican Independentista Activists
Friday January 11 at 9:30 am
U.S. Federal Court,  Federal Court 225 Cadman Plaza East Brooklyn, New York
A/C Subway to High Street, 2/3 to Clark Street, ).
Brooklyn, New York
Take (subway) A/C to High Street o 2/ 3 to Clark Street. M/R to  Court St-Boro
Hall, 4/5 to Borough Hall, F toJay St-Boro Hall, G to Hoyt-Schermerhorn
One of the email contracts:The Hostos 111 Grand Jury Resistance Movement
resistgrandjury@gmail.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Los Angeles
Friday, January 11
Rally at the Federal Building in Los Angles
300 N. Los Angeles St.,
4:30 PM  Contact: Lawrence, Puerto Rican Allliance Of Los Angeles
310-460-8586,
alianzapr@hotmail.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chicago
Thursday January 10
5:00 pm
Federal Building
Dearborn corner with Jackson
Contact: michellem@boricuahumanrights.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Los Angeles
Friday January 11
Rally Federal Building in Los Angeles
300 N. Los Angeles St.,
4:30 PM
Contact:  Lawrence, Puerto Rican Allliance Of Los Angeles 310-460-8586,
alianzapr@hotmail.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Other activities against Gran Jury Repression and in support of our boricua
brothers and sister are planned for the following cities:
Boston
Cleveland
Philadephia
Orlando
San Francisco
We waiting for the details.


Feds target Puerto Ricans in New York

Groups and individuals from diverse sectors of the Puerto Rican
pro-independence movement and the Boricua Community in general, are currently
urgently meeting in Puerto Rico and throughout the Diaspora to
organize against
the latest offensive by the U.S. Department of Justice, after being informed
that several young Boricua pro-independence activists from New York City have
been subpoenaed to appear before a Federal Grand jury investigating the Puerto
Rican Independence Movement in general, and in particular, the
Ejercito Popular
Boricua (EPB: Popular Boricua Army) aka the Macheteros.

Tania Frontera, Christopher Torres and Julio Pabon Jr. are scheduled to appear
before a Federal Grand Jury on January 11, 2008. Hector Rivera, co-founder of
the cultural institution The Welfare Poets, is also expected to be served with
a subpoena to appear on that day. In the past, due to the fact that some
pro-independence activists have traditionally refused to receive the subpoenas
from the Grand Jury or to respond to its questions, many have ended up behind
bars.

Both the FBI and U.S. Dept. of Justice have made it clear that there is an
ongoing investigation focused on the Ejercito Popular Boricua
(EPB)-Macheteros.
Special Agent Luis Fraticelli, who heads the FBI in San Juan, has
said that the
agency intends to capture Comandante Guasabara of the EPB, who is believed to
have succeeded Filiberto Ojeda Ri­os in the leadership of the clandestine
revolutionary organization. Ojeda Ri­os was assassinated by the
federal agents
on September 23, 2005.

The initial rumors that the recent subpoenas had been issued and served began
to circulate almost simultaneously as the new progress report of the White
House committee revewing the colonial conditions of Puerto Rico was made
public. The subpoenas, all served in New York City are to appear before the
Federal Grand Jury on the following January 11.

Although many are shocked by the identity of some of the particular
individuals
targeted, this latest offensive by the U.S. Federal Government has not come as
a total surprise to the Pro-Independence Movement, which has been
organizing to
prepare for an expected new wave of political repression and possibly arrests.


SAN JUAN/Corresponsal EDLP — Agrupaciones de diversas vertientes del
independentismo se reunían con carácter de urgencia en San Juan para
trazar un plan ante la nueva ofensiva del Departamento de Justicia de Estados
Unidos, tras recibirse informe de que varios independentistas
boricuas de Nueva
York han sido citados a comparecer al gran jurado.

Debido a que tradicionalmente los independentistas puertorriqueños
se niegan
a aceptar las citaciones del gran jurado o responder sus preguntas, los
referidos emplazamientos usualmente desembocan en el encarcelamiento de los
luchadores por la independencia de esta nación caribeña, colonia de EEUU
desde 1898.

Los informes recibidos hasta ayer en Puerto Rico eran en el sentido de que los
citados en esta ocasión fueron identificados como la diseñadora
gráfica Tania Frontera, el trabajador social Christopher Torres y el
cineasta Julio Antonio Pabón, hijo. Además, había indicaciones sin
confirmar sobre que el Buró Federal de Investigaciones estaba tratando de
localizar para emplazar también a Héctor Rivera, uno de los
fundadores de
la prestigiosa institución político-cultural con base en Nueva York
“Welfare Poets†.

La reunión fue convocada por el grupo La Nueva Escuela, pero se indicó
durante el día que habían confirmado su asistencia organizaciones de
distintas vertientes. Los organizadores anticiparon que podrían usarse
recursos legales y recurrir al derecho internacional, además de que se
arreciaría la campaña para demandar que el FBI sea retirado de Puerto
Rico.

Normalmente ni el FBI ni el Departamento de Justicia dan información
pública sobre las pesquisas en proceso, pero en cuanto al tema del
independentismo puertorriqueño han dejado claro que hay una
investigación
continua contra el Ejército Popular Boricua-Macheteros. El Agente
Especial a
Cargo del FBI en San Juan, Luis Fraticelli, ha dicho que esa agencia intenta
capturar al Comandante Guasábara, que sucedió en la jefatura de los
Macheteros a Filiberto Ojeda Ríos, a quien mató un grupo comando
estadounidense en 2005.

Las nuevas citaciones expedidas en Nueva York son para comparecer ante el
cuerpo investigativo el 11 de enero, cuando en Puerto Rico se conmemora al
prócer Eugenio María de Hostos por lo que la fecha tiene una gran
connotación para los grupos que luchan por la independencia. De hecho, los
primeros rumores de que se habían emitido las citaciones comenzaron a
circular casi a la vez que se hizo público el nuevo informe de progreso del
grupo de trabajo de la Casa Blanca sobre el caso colonial de Puerto Rico.

Las citaciones no han resultado del todo sorpresivas en Puerto Rico, donde a
principios de mes se llevó a cabo una reunión de grupos independentistas
para discutir precisamente lo que se esperaba sería una nueva ofensiva de
represión policial y posibles encarcelamientos.


ALERT FROM A COMPAñERO:

I am writing to state the conclusive facts to all whom are aware and those who
are not.

Two brothers and a sister are right now facing grand jury subpoenas on January
11,2008.

The FBI under the guise of carrying out an investigation has historically
attacked the members and sympathizers of the Puerto Rican Independence
movement.

The policy of subpoenas is to initiate a campaign of intense harassment and
intimidation. We will rally and provide support to all those whom are
subpoenaed and their families.

I am calling on all people to unite and mobilize to the federal court
in Camden
Plaza in Brooklyn on January 11,2008.

The FBI in a gross violation of our human rights in Puerto Rico and our
internationally protected right to self-determination killed of Puerto Rican
Patriot and leader Filiberto Ojeda Rios on September 23 2005. Despite
the years
of bombing and destroying illegally our beautiful island of Vieques we
organized and rallied our people to conduct peaceful civil
disobedience, prayer
vigils, forums and fund raisers.

The FBI seeking to intimidate these brothers and a sister have been submitting
them to harassment visits at their homes and jobs, then upon failing to gain
their cooperation three have been subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury and
testify or face incarceration.

I guarantee that like in the past this campaign will fail. It will once again
fail like it did the many times in the past because the people of Puerto Rico
understand that the FBI and Homeland Security are the same cowards
whom cruelly tortured, assassinated and incarcerated patriots and leaders of our nation
since the illegal invasion and occupation July 25,1898 of our nation.

The people marched out in the streets in support of the great patriotic leader
Filiberto Ojeda Rios and by the thousands attended his wake and
burial. We must
resist and in unity build support for all those who are investigated,
harassed,
and jailed. We must wholeheartedly stand firm and strong in support of these
brothers and sisters who dare to struggle and dare to resist.

It is important to note the fact that the Puerto Rican Independence Movement,
nor Los Macheteros are terrorists. The only "Terrorist" act linked to our
movement has been the assassination of the Comandante of Los Macheteros,
Filiberto Ojeda Rios on Sept. 23rd, 2005, the day that Puerto Rican people
commemorate the uprising against Spanish Colonialism by the F.B.I.


IF APPROACHED BY AGENTS OF LAW      ENFORCEMENT

YOU ARE ONLY REQUIRED TO IDENTIFY YOURSELF
YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT. YOU SHOULD DO SO.

TELL THEM " I AM EXERCISING MY RIGHT NOT TO SPEAK WITH YOU WITHOUT MY ATTORNEY
BEING PRESENT". GIVE THEM YOUR LAWYERS NUMBER. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE
ONE, ASK THEM FOR THEIR INFORMATION TO GIVE TO A LAWYER

IF APPROACHED, CONSULT WITH AN ATTORNEY BEFORE MEETING, SPEAKING ON THE PHONE,
WRITING OR IN ANY WAY ANSWERING ANY QUESTIONS,

ANYTHING YOU SAY CAN BE USED AGAINST YOU. THEIR REPORTS WILL REFLECT "THEIR
VERSION" OF CONVERSATIONS OR STATEMENTS ALLEGEDLY MADE BY YOU

LYING TO A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENT "IS A CRIME'"

DO NOT APPEAR BEFORE ANYONE FOR QUESTIONING, CONSENT TO ANY SEARCHES OF YOUR
HOME OR PRIVATE PROPERTY, SURRENDER ANY EVIDENCE OR IN ANY WAY LET YOURSELF BE
INVOLVED IN ANY ASPECT OF ANY INVESTIGATION WITHOUT A COURT ORDER AND
WITH YOUR ATTORNEY

IF THERE IS ANY "LEGITIMATE" REASON , LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENTS CAN
OBTAIN A COURT ORDER. DO NOT CONSENT TO ANYTHING WITHOUT IT. .

FEDERAL AGENTS ARE HARASSING PEOPLE BY VISITING THEM IN THEIR PLACE OF
EMPLOYMENT. THEY ARE USING THIS METHOD TO "INVITE" PEOPLE OUT TO "JUST" TALK
OVER COFFEE

FEDERAL AGENTS ARE LYING TO PEOPLE THEY APPROACH BY TELLING THEM THEY
JUST WANT TO TALK, ATTEMPTING TO ENGAGE THEM IN CONVERSATION AND THEN SERVING
THEM WITH A SUPOENA.

DO NOT LET YOU SELF BE INTIMIDATED

FBI arrested the wrong man in UCSD bomb hoax

UNION-TRIBUNE BREAKING NEWS TEAM
11:27 a.m. January 7, 2008

SAN DIEGO – The man the FBI first arrested in the UCSD bomb hoax in
December is no longer suspected of the crime, the FBI said Monday.

The FBI dismissed charges against Timothy Bryon Kalka in the hoax and
arrested Richard Sills Jr., 54, of Encinitas, instead.

Sills, a temporary employee in the UCSD Biomedical Science Building, is
charged with giving false or misleading information to engage in a hoax
with explosives, the FBI said.

The bogus device was found the morning of Dec. 5 at the Leichtag Family
Foundation Biomedical Research building where Kalka, who had recently
been fired from the university, had worked, officials said.

Kalka has since been cleared, the FBI said.

Minutes after the device was found, a caller phoned in a threat to
detonate a bomb inside the building.

Officials said the university had also received a letter that day that
stated a group called the Animal Liberation Front would detonate
explosive devices at research buildings on campus if research animals
were not evacuated.

Several buildings at the La Jolla campus were evacuated while
authorities investigated the device. It took the Metro Arson Strike Team
seven hours to determine it was harmless.

Sills is expected to have his first appearance in federal court downtown
Monday.

Phoenix jail beating video

If anyone is litigating a failure to protect claim against the Phoenix jail this video, a one hour beating captured on jail video, which is apparently unmonitored, should serv as prima facie evidence of deliberate indifference. Arpaio’s odiousness is appalling. And don’t forget he is the chair of Mitt Romney’s AZ campaign.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=bca5dae693

Paul Wright, Editor

Prison Legal News

972 Putney Rd. # 251

Brattleboro, VT 05301

802-257-1342

pwright@prisonlegalnews.org

www.prisonlegalnews.org

Seattle Office:

Prison Legal News

2400 NW 80th St. # 148

Seattle, WA 98117

206-246-1022

Cuban Five: Jailed for Fighting Terrorism

"I am certain that many young Cubans, in their struggle against the Giant in the Seven-League Boots, would do as they did. Money can buy everything save the soul of a people who has never gone down on its knees."– Fidel Castro on the Cuban Five, 27 December 2007

by Alexander Martin Remollino
Jan. 6, 2008
Reprinted from Bulatlat (Philippines)

"(Jose) Marti taught us that ‘all of the world’s glory fits in a kernel of corn.’ Many times have I said and repeated this phrase, which carries in eleven words a veritable school of ethics.

"Cuba's Five Heroes, imprisoned by the empire, are to be held up as examples for new generations. Fortunately, exemplary conduct will continue to flourish with the consciousness of our peoples as long as our species exists."

"I am certain that many young Cubans, in their struggle against the Giant in the Seven-League Boots, would do as they did. Money can buy everything save the soul of a people who has never gone down on its knees."

This is what Cuban President Fidel Castro said about the five men now known as the Cuban Five in a message to Cuba’s National Assembly a few days before the New Year.

The Cuban Five are Gerardo Hernandez, Antonio Guerrero, Ramon Labañino, Fernando Gonzales, and Rene Gonzales – Cuban nationals currently serving prison terms in the U.S. for alleged espionage, conspiracy to commit murder, and other illegal activities.

The five Cubans had been sent to Miami, Florida in the 1990s on a mission to infiltrate organizations conducting terrorist activities against Cuba, particularly Brothers to the Rescue, and relay information about their activities to the Cuban government.

On June 17, 1998 the Cuban government and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) met in Havana.

The Cuban government presented to the FBI the results of its investigations into the activities of Miami-based anti-Cuba groups like Comandos F4, Coalition of United Revolutionary Organizations (CORU), Alpha 66, Omega 7, and Brothers to the Rescue – all based in Miami. These included documents, photographs and surveillance reports showing that these groups were planning to stage a number of new "terrorist" attacks.

Attacks against Cuba

Based on an item in the website Miami 5

(http://www.granma.cu/miami5/ingles/index.html), the attacks against Cuba included the following cases:

Oct. 7, 1992: An armed attack against the Varadero Melia Hotel perpetrated from a vessel manned by four Miami terrorists who were later arrested and questioned by the FBI, then released.

April 2, 1993: The tanker ship Mikonos sailing under the Cypriot flag was fired upon 7 miles north of Matanzas from a vessel crewed by Cuban born, U.S. based terrorists.

November 1994: Terrorist Luis Posada Carriles and five of his accomplices smuggled weapons into Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, during the IV Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government in order to make an attempt on the life of President Fidel Castro. However, the security belt kept him at a distance thus thwarting his aim. Posada Carriles later told the New York Times: "I was standing behind some journalists and I saw Castro's friend, (Gabriel) García Márquez, but I could only see Castro from a long way away."

March 11, 1994: A terrorist group from Miami fired on the Guitart Cayo Coco Hotel.

Sept. 4, 1994: Two U.S.-based terrorists infiltrated into the area around Caibarien, Villa Clara, with the aim of carrying out sabotage in that province. A number of weapons and large amounts of military equipment were seized.

Oct. 6, 1994: Another armed group fired automatic weapons at the Guitart Cayo Coco Hotel from a boat that set out from Florida.

Oct. 15, 1994: A group of armed terrorists coming from the United States landed on the causeway to Cayo Santa María near Caibarién, Villa Clara, and murdered comrade Arcelio Rodríguez García.

May 20, 1995: The Guitart Cayo Coco Hotel was attacked the second time by terrorists manning a fast launch coming from the United States.

Feb. 11, 1996: After firing on our coastline, a vessel coming from the United States carrying three terrorists was captured by the Cuban cost guard patrol.

April 12, 1997: An explosive device was detonated in the Melia Cohiba Hotel in the City of Havana.

July 12, 1997: Bombs blasted in the Capri and National hotels.

Aug. 4, 1997: Another bomb exploded in the Melia Cohiba Hotel.

Arrest and trial of the Cuban Five

The FBI promised to take action on the results of Cuba’s investigations – including the surveillance reports, which had been prepared by Gerardo Hernandez, Antonio Guerrero, Ramon Labañino, Fernando Gonzales, and Rene Gonzales.

The five, however, were arrested on Sept. 12, 1998 and charged with espionage, conspiracy to commit murder, and other crimes. For 17 months they were kept in solitary confinement.

Their trial began in November 2000. The U.S. government insisted on their being tried in Miami, in spite of several requests for a transfer of venue citing the "impossibility of a fair trial" in the said city.

After a six-month trial involving 24,000 pages of documents and 119 pages of testimonies, the five were convicted and sentenced to four life terms and 75 years in prison.

On Aug. 9, 2005, the Cuban Five won a victory on appeal and a three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a new trial outside of Miami. However, on Oct. 31 that same year, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals conducted an en banc hearing and voted 10-2 denying them a new trial.

The wives and children of the Cuban Five have repeatedly been denied U.S. visas preventing them from visiting the five in jail.

International support

The campaign for the freedom of the Cuban Five has gained broad international support.

On May 27, 2005 the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) adopted a report by its Working Group on Arbitrary Detention criticizing the trial and conviction of the Cuban Five. The report stated, among other things, that:

"The Working Group notes that it arises from the facts and circumstances in which the trial took place and from the nature of the charges and the harsh sentences handed down to the accused that the trial did not take place in the climate of objectivity and impartiality that is required in order to conform to the standards of a fair trial as defined in Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which the United States of America is a party."

In 2006, eight Nobel Prize winners have also written and sent petition letters to the U.S. Attorney-General calling for freedom for the Cuban Five. The signatories are Zhores Alferov (Physics, 2000), Desmond Tutu (Peace, 1984), Nadine Gordimer (Literature, 1991), Rigoberta Menchú (Peace, 1992), Adolfo Pérez Esquivel (Peace, 1980), Wole Soyinka (Literature, 1986), José Saramago (Literature, 1996), and Gunter Grass (Literature, 1999).

In the United Kingdom that same year, six MPs wrote to then Prime Minister Tony Blair urging him to call on the U.S. to act against terrorists in Miami and release the Cuban Five. Blair declined to take any action.

Among the most prominent supporters of the campaign to free the Cuban Five in the U.S. are writer Alice Walker and actor Danny Glover.

At present there are support groups for the Cuban Five in 27 countries.

The Five

Gerardo Hernandez was born in Havana in 1965, and has a degree in International Political Relations. He has been a cartoonist and humorist from his youth, and while at school he was also part of a theater group. In 1989 he was part of the Cuban forces supporting Angola against the invading South African apartheid regime. Several of his cartoons and jokes were published in 2002 in the book You Can Achieve Zeverything with Love and Humor.

Antonio Guerrero was born in 1958 in Miami. Their family returned to their native Cuba the following year, after the victory of the Cuban Revolution. He trained as an airfield construction engineer in Kiev, Ukraine and graduated in 1983. As an engineer he was responsible for, among other things, the expansion of the Santiago de Cuba International Airport. Also a poet, he has published several poems in both Spanish and English in the book Desde Mi Altura (From My Altitude).

Ramon Labañino was born in Havana in 1963 and was schooled in Economics at the University of Havana, where he graduated with honors.

Fernando Gonzalez, who was born in 1963 in Havana, earned a degree in International Political Relations with high honors. He was active in theater and participated in international cultural festivals. From 1987 to 1989 he was part of the Cuban forces supporting Angola against the South African apartheid regime.

Rene Gonzalez was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1963. Their family returned to Cuba in 1963. He served in Angola from 1977 to 1979. He studied aviation after that and graduated as a pilot and flight instructor in 1982.

activist guilty in SHAC case asks for support

From: http://www.infoshop.org/inews/article.php?story=20080101120224210

Support Dylan Barr!
Facing The State's Extortion for Solidarity Against Repression
From: http://www.supportdylan.org

Background
On October 29, 2007, Dylan Barr entered a guilty plea to one felony count of Second Degree Extortion in Seattle, WA for disrupting the operations of Washington Mutual Bank with a Denial of Service attack because of its investment in Huntington Life Sciences. After a two-year period of legal limbo and non-snitching plea deal negotiations, he was sentenced to 232 hours –29 days— of community service and ordered to pay Washington Mutual Bank $25,000 in restitution.

Who is Dylan?
Dylan is a long-time anarchist and activist from New Orleans, and he has been a member of the Iron Rail Book Collective for over three years. Dylan moved to Seattle just prior to Hurricane Katrina, but has now moved back to the Crescent City. He helped organize the 2007 New Orleans Book Fair and is involved with the rebuilding of Nowe Miasto, a long-running collective space in the city, as well as being involved in the recent struggles over public housing in New Orleans. In the past, Dylan has also been involved in Books 2 Prisoners, Food Not Bombs, Critical Resistance, Indymedia, the Buffalo Field Campaign, anti-free trade, indigenous support, union/worker solidarity, and environmental campaigns and organizations. He plans on continuing with these efforts in spite of his sentence.

What motivated the action?
Solidarity has been an important part of the success of the Stop Huntington Animal Cruelty (SHAC) campaign. This Denial of Service (DoS) attack was done in solidarity with the imprisoned SHAC 7, and from a desire to not let their imprisonment break an entire campaign. A Denial of Service (DoS) attack is an overload of e-mails that causes a server to partially shut down, preventing other information from being sent or received. Some of the emails sent were also considered to be threatening and harassing by the prosecution.

How can I help?
Dylan would like your solidarity and support. More than anything else, he needs help paying his $25,000 restitution. The government, the real extortionist, imposes a 12% interest rate on restitution payments, ensuring that it's nearly impossible to pay them off. Individual contributions in any amount would be greatly appreciated, but so would any type of benefit events. You can also help spread the word with, flyers, coming soon on the website.

Get in touch:
supportdylan (at) gmail (dot) com

Help Dylan pay off his restitution by donating through the PayPal Button on his website:
http://www.supportdylan.org

Or send checks or money orders to:
Dylan Barr
2846 Grand Route St. John
New Orleans, LA 70119
USA

A longer, in depth article about this case and it's lessons can be found in the forthcoming issue #13 of Bite Back Magazine(www.directaction.info), due out in late January 2008.

Iraq Prisoner Amnesty To Exclude Gays

by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff

Posted: January 2, 2008 - 11:00 am ET

(Baghdad) The Iraq government is considering the release of some 5,000 prisoners but a spokesperson said it would not include terrorists or homosexuals.

The Iraqi government has about 20,000 people in custody, while the U.S. military holds about 25,000.

Homosexuality itself is not illegal in Iraq, but police regularly arrest gays on other charges often trumped up.

The amnesty bill drafted by the Shiite-dominated government falls far short of Sunni demands. About the only thing on which the two sides agree is that imprisoned gays not be freed.

The amnesty would cover less than a quarter of the total number of people held in Iraqi prisons, and none of those held by the American military.

Sunni parliamentarians have criticized the bill for its limited scope. They have argued that most prisoners are charged with terrorist crimes, rendering it ineffective. Some also fear referring the bill to Iraq's gridlocked parliament will actually delay prisoner releases.

The total number of gays being held is not known. And, they may be the lucky ones, according to some LGBT activists.

Death squads imposing strict Islamic law are reportedly responsible for the murders of hundreds of gay men across Iraq.

Last year the leader of an exiled Iraqi LGBT rights group told a London conference on homophobia that that militias blamed for the murders of hundreds of gay men and women are sanctioned by the government and the US-led coalition is doing little to stop the killings. (story)

Ali Hili said that the Badr and Sadr militias - the armed wings of the two main Shia parties that control the government of Iraq - are routinely rounding up men and women, primarily in Baghdad, suspected of being gay. The men and women are never heard from again.

Five members of Hili's own group were taken away in November of 2006. About a dozen members of Rainbow For Life, another Iraqi LGBT group also have been seized and are presumed dead.

Another 70 have been threatened with kidnapping Rainbow For Life has said.

In 2006 the Iraq government strongly criticized a U.N. report on human rights that put its civilian death toll in 2006 at 34,452, saying it is "superficial" because it included people such as homosexuals.

Mumia Abu-Jamal Fact Sheet

Partisan Defense Committee P.O. Box 99, Canal Street Station, New York, NY 10013

email: partisandefense@earthlink.net www.partisandefense.org

PRESS RELEASE – 2 January 2008

Contact: Kevin Gilroy (212) 406-4252

Just Out! PDC Fact Sheet Presents Evidence of Mumia Abu-Jamal’s Innocence: A Refutation of Murdered by Mumia’s Big Lies in the Service of Legal Lynching

A new fact sheet providing massive evidence of the innocence of Mumia Abu-Jamal was released by the Partisan Defense Committee on 31 December 2007. It is online at http://www.partisandefense.org/ and provides a detailed, point-by-point refutation of the book Murdered by Mumia (The Lyons Press, December 2007). The PDC fact sheet exposes the book as “a compendium of myths, falsehoods, misrepresentations and omissions—all aimed at the legal lynching of an innocent man, Mumia Abu-Jamal.”

Mumia is a former Black Panther Party spokesman, targeted by the Feds and cops since the age of 15, who became a supporter of the MOVE organization and a respected journalist known as the “voice of the voiceless.” He was framed up for the 9 December 1981 killing of Police Officer Daniel Faulkner in Philadelphia and sentenced to death explicitly for his political views. With a decision on Mumia’s case by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals due any day, the fight for his freedom is now reaching a critical stage.

Murdered by Mumia, by Michael Smerconish and Maureen Faulkner, Daniel Faulkner’s widow, claims that the records of Mumia’s 1982 trial and pre-trial witness statements “tell the story of how Abu-Jamal murdered my husband.” In fact, the trial records are replete with inconsistencies, unproven assertions, contradictory evidence and all the hallmarks of a racist frame-up. There is no evidence that Mumia shot Daniel Faulkner, and the “facts” claimed in Murdered by Mumia supposedly proving this story do not exist in the trial record. Since the 1982 trial, there has been a growing mountain of new evidence, including the sworn confession of Arnold Beverly that he, not Mumia, killed Faulkner. This evidence proves not only that Mumia is innocent, but that the police and prosecution falsified and suppressed evidence, coerced witnesses and orchestrated a monumental frame-up.

The PDC’s fact sheet was developed in consultation with attorneys Rachel Wolkenstein and Jonathan Piper, who were on Mumia’s legal team from 1995 to 1999. It cites transcripts, including dates and page numbers where testimony appears, from the 1982 trial and pre-trial testimony and 1995-97 post-conviction relief (PCRA) hearings (all designated as “N.T.”--Notes of Testimony), as well as affidavits filed in federal and state courts and police investigation reports (IIR--Investigation Interview Record), and citations from Murdered by Mumia including page numbers.

Journalists, activists, researchers—anyone concerned with uncovering the truth—should also see the July 2006 PDC pamphlet, The Fight to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal—Mumia Is Innocent!, which includes a detailed factual review of the case as well as affidavits and declarations. It is available at http://www.partisandefense.org/pubs/innocent.

The PDC’s aim is to arm those fighting for Mumia with the facts to refute the mendacity of those who want to execute him. This is part of the PDC’s effort to mobilize mass protest action on Mumia’s behalf that is centered on the social power of the labor movement and is based on the understanding that Mumia Abu-Jamal is an innocent man, the victim of a racist and political frame-up who must be freed now!

# # # # #

The PDC is a class-struggle, non-sectarian legal and social defense organization which champions cases and causes in the interest of the whole of the working people. This purpose is in accordance with the political views of the Spartacist League.

Matt Lamont's 2002 Case Thrown Out!

LA ABCF

A major victory took place today for former political prisoner Matt Lamont. Matt received the news in court that his case has been thrown out- officially erasing his conviction.

Matt Lamont was arrested on April 20, 2002 accused of trying to blow up a white power show in La Habra, CA. He was found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison. Since his release Matt has faced constant harassment by local police and federal agents- including imprisonment for parole violations, raids of his home and continued threats and harassment. As late as November, Matt was threatened by FBI agents to either provide information or face possible arrest for parole violation. He refused to cooperate despite not having any information regarding ‘criminal’ activities.

Last month, another case was thrown out because of the illegal manner in which the police searched the car. Because of the decision in this case, evidence against Matt was also thrown out. With no evidence against Matt, his conviction fell apart. Earlier this week Matt was released early from his parole- this was a good indicator that today’s court hearing was going to go in Matt’s favor.

Matt is extremely relieved about the decision and looks forward to the opportunities he now has by no longer having a criminal record. He has had hard time finding and keeping jobs with a criminal record and continued harassment by police and federal government. He no longer has to live under the shadow of this case.

Matt will soon be joining the Los Angeles chapter of the Anarchist Black Cross Federation- working for the support of political prisoners- something he has a great deal of knowledge about. Thanks for everyone that has helped Matt during his on-going battle over the last six years. Without your support all this would not be possible. Matt’s victory is a victory to all of us in the Anarchist movement.

In Solidarity,

Matt H.

LA ABCF

“The work is not done for the glory, but because we believe in Mutual Aid” – B. Yelensky

Misconduct alleged in firebombing case

Attorney of suspect in UW arson says prosecutors, FBI committed perjury

By PAUL SHUKOVSKY
P-I REPORTER

An attorney for a woman facing trial for allegedly participating in the 2001 firebombing of the Center for Urban Horticulture at the University of Washington has accused the government of "egregious prosecutorial misconduct."

Briana Waters, 32, of Berkeley, Calif., is one of five people allegedly linked to the Earth Liberation Front to be charged with setting the facility ablaze in what they thought would be a blow against genetic engineering of plants. The fire destroyed years of botanical research. The UW spent $7 million to rebuild the facility.

In a court filing Wednesday asking for a conference with the judge, attorney Robert Bloom asserts that two federal prosecutors and two FBI agents, all based in Seattle, committed perjury and obstruction of justice.

Bloom charges that they suppressed evidence of his client's innocence and prepared false FBI summaries of a witness interview incriminating Waters.

In September, U.S. District Judge Franklin Burgess of Tacoma denied a defense motion seeking an investigation into the alleged misconduct and dismissal of the charges.

In his ruling, Burgess called Bloom's allegations "speculation" and said prosecutorial misconduct "cannot rationally be concluded from the so-called discrepancies pointed to" by the defense.

Bloom insists that a report detailing a December 2005 FBI interview with admitted firebomber Jennifer Kolar was doctored to hide the fact that Kolar did not name Waters during the interview.

Bloom said his Wednesday motion seeking a hearing provides Burgess with information that was not before the judge in September.

"We fully anticipate that the motion will be rejected," First Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Bartlett said Thursday.

The other prosecutor on the case, Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Friedman, had no comment. Neither did an FBI spokesman responding for Special Agents Ted Halla and Anthony Torres.

The Waters case is scheduled for trial Feb. 4. She faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 35 years if convicted.

Kolar, of Seattle, and Lacey Phillabaum of Spokane have pleaded guilty to arson, conspiracy and use of a destructive device during a crime of violence.

Another suspect, Justin Solondz, most recently of Jefferson County, is a fugitive. William Rogers was arrested in connection with the arson and committed suicide in his jail cell.

P-I reporter Paul Shukovsky can be reached at 206-448-8072 or paulshukovsky@seattlepi.com.

Support the Eco-Prisoners January 2008

Spirit of Freedom
(January 2008)
Produced by
EARTH LIBERATION PRISONERS SUPPORT NETWORK

"The whole experience has been tough, but all the kind and strengthening
words and wise thoughts from strangers made it much easier!"
(Former Swedish Animal Rights Prisoner)

Welcome to the January 2008 edition of Spirit of Freedom.  First off I would
like to apologise for the lack of any publication of Spirit of Freedom over
the past few months.  Things have been rather busy recently.  However that's
no excuse and British ELPs New Years resolution is to get back into
producing regular prisoner listings again.  And thinking of our prisoner
lists.  ELP always tries to make our lists as up to date and accurate as
possible.  However we are only a small group of volunteers so we do make
mistakes!  If you are aware of any prisoner who is not listed in the below
lists, or aware that any of our details are incorrect, please contact ELP as
soon as possible and we will endeavour to correct our mistakes.  However
saying that, we have tried to make sure our lists are accurate and so please
do send letters of support to the prisoners.  Remember, no matter where you
are in the world, support the eco-prisoners and no compromise in defence of
Mother Earth!


ECO-DEFENCE PRISONERS

Tre Arrow, CS# 05850722, Vancouver Island Regional Correction Center, 4216
Wilkinson Rd., Victoria, BC, V8Z 5B2, Canada.  On remand accused of
involvement with an arson on logging trucks and an arson on vehicles owned
by a sand & gravel company.  Both arsons occurred in the USA.  Tre is
fighting his extradition to the USA.

Grant Barnes #137563, San Carlos Correctional Facility, PO Box 3, Pueblo, CO
81002, USA.  Serving 12 years for setting fire to a number of SUV vehicles.
On one of the vehicles the letters ELF was spray-painted.

Nathan Block, #36359-086, FCI Lompoc, Federal Correctional Institution, 3600
Guard Road, Lompoc, CA 93436, USA.   Serving 7 years & 8 months for an ELF
arson against a Poplar Tree Farm and an ELF arson against an SUV dealership.
Also admitted his role in an ELF/ALF conspiracy.

Marco Camenisch, Postfach 3143, CH-8105 Regensdorf, Switzerland.  Serving 18
years.  1) Ten years for using explosives to destroy electricity pylons
leading from nuclear power stations.  2) Eight years for the murder of a
Swiss Boarder Guard whilst on the run.  In '02 Marco completed a 12-year
sentence in Italy for destroying electricity pylons in Italy.

Ibai Ederra, Carcel de Pamplona, C/San Roque. Apdo. 250, 31080 - Iruñez -
Pamplona, Navarra (España), Spain.  Serving just under 5 years for
sabotaging machinery at the controversial Itoiz dam construction site.

Jeffrey Luers, #1306729, Lane County Adult Corrections, 101 West 5th Ave,
Eugene, OR 97401-2695, USA. Awaiting resentencing.  Originally sentenced to
22 years & 8 months for arson on a SUV dealership & the attempted arson of
an oil truck.

Eric McDavid X-2972521 4E 231A, Sacramento County Main Jail, 651 "I" Street,
Sacramento, CA 95814, USA.  Awaiting sentencing having been found guilty of
planning to destroy the property of the U.S. Forestry Service, mobile phone
masts and power plants.

Daniel McGowan #63794-053, FCI Sandstone, Federal Correctional Institution,
PO Box 1000, Sandstone, MN 55072, USA.   Serving 7 years for an ELF arson
against a Poplar Tree Farm and an ELF arson against a lumber company.   Also
admitted his role in an ELF/ALF conspiracy.

Christopher McIntosh #30512-013, FCI Fairton, PO Box 420, Fairton, NJ 08320,
USA. Serving 8 years for setting fire to a McDonald's resturant.

Jonathan Paul - See details in Animal Liberation Prisoners List.

Costantino Ragusa, Casa Circondariale, Via Prati Nuovi 7, 27058 Voghera
(PV), Italy.  Il Silvestre activist serving 2½ years.  1)  18-months for
burgling and firebombing a multinational company. 2) 12-months for
organising an anti-GM protest.  Costanino is also awaiting trial accused of
using explosives to damage an electricity pylon in protest at nuclear
energy.

Julio Villanueva, C.P. Prision De Pamplona, 31080, Iruna (Navarra), Spain.
Serving just under 5 years for sabotaging machinery at the controversial
Itoiz dam construction site.

Joyanna Zacher, #36360-086, FCI Dublin, 5700 8th St.- Camp Parks- Unit F,
Dublin, CA 94568, USA.  Serving 7 years & 8 months for an ELF arson against
a Poplar Tree Farm and an ELF arson against an SUV dealership.  Also
admitted her role in an ELF/ALF conspiracy.

ANIMAL LIBERATION PRISONERS

Jon Ablewhite TB4885, HMP Lowdham Grange, Lowdham, Nottingham, NG14 7DA,
England.  Serving 12 years for attempting to blackmail a farmer who supplied
guinea pigs for vivisection.

Gregg Avery TA7450, HMP Winchester, Romsey Road, Winchester, SO22 5DF,
England.  On remand accused of conspiracy to blackmail, in relation to his
involvement with the SHAC campaign.

Natasha Avery NR8987, HMP Bronzefield, Woodthorpe Road, Ashford, Middx. TW15
3JZ, England.  Jailed for breaching her parole conditions imposed on her for
telling a fox hunting murdering scum what she thought of them.  Also
awaiting trial accused of conspiracy to blackmail, in relation to her
involvement with the SHAC campaign.

Nathan Block - See details in Eco Defence Prisoners List.

Mel Broughton TN9138, HMP Woodhill, Tattenhoe Street, Milton Keynes, Bucks
MK4 4DA, England.  On remand accused of involvement with an arson and
blackmail campaign against an Oxford University vivisection establishment.

Jacob Conroy #93501-011, FCI Victorville Medium I Federal Correctional
Institution, P.O. Box 5300, Adelanto, CA 92301, USA. Serving 48 months
imprisonment for helping organise the SHAC-USA campaign.

Donald Currie A3660AA, HMP Parkhurst, Newport, Isle of Wight, PO30 5NX,
England.  Serving an Indeterminate Sentence, of not less than six actual
years, for carrying out arsons against targets associated the vivisection
industry including HLS.

Lauren Gazzola #93497-011, FCI Danbury, Federal Correctional Institution,
Route #37Danbury, CT 06811, USA. Serving 54 months imprisonment for helping
organise the SHAC-USA campaign.

Sarah Gisborne, LT5393, HMP Downview, Sutton Lane, Sutton, Surrey, SM2 5PD,
England.  Serving 5½ years for conspiracy to cause criminal damage following
the damaging of 8 vehicles owned by people linked to Huntingdon Life
Science.

Joshua Harper #29429-086, FCI Sheridan Federal Correctional Institution,
P.O. Box 5000, Sheridan, OR 97378 USA.  Serving 36 months imprisonment for
helping organise the SHAC-USA campaign.

Kevin Kjonaas #93502-011, FCI Sandstone, PO Box 1000, Sandstone, MN 55072
USA.  Serving 72 months imprisonment for helping organise the SHAC-USA
campaign.

Daniel McGowan - See details in Eco Defence Prisoners List.

Heather Nicholson VM4859, HMP Bronzefield, Woodthorpe Road, Ashford, Middx.
TW15 3JZ, England.  On remand accused of conspiracy to blackmail, in
relation to her involvement with the SHAC campaign.

Jonathan Paul, #07167-085, FCI Phoenix, Federal Correctional Institution,
37910 N 45th Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85086, USA.  Sentenced to 51 months for an
ALF arson on a horse meat plant.  Also admitted his role in an ELF/ALF
conspiracy.

John Smith TB4887, HMP Lowdham Grange, Lowdham, Nottingham, NG14 7DA,
England.  Serving 12 years for attempting to blackmail a farmer who supplied
guinea pigs for vivisection.

Andrew Stepanian #26399-050, FCI Butner Medium II Federal Correctional
Institution, PO Box 1500, Butner, NC 27509 USA. Serving 36 months for
helping organise the SHAC-USA campaign.

Kerry Whitburn TB4886, HMP Lowdham Grange, Lowdham, Nottingham, NG14 7DA,
England.  Serving 12 years for attempting to blackmail a farmer who supplied
guinea pigs for vivisection.

Joyanna Zacher - See details in Eco Defence Prisoners List.

PLOUGHSHARES PRISONERS

Helen Woodson, 03231-045, FMC Carswell - Admin. Max. Unit, POB 27137, Ft.
Worth, TX  76127, USA.  Serving 8 years 10 months for actions that focused
on the interrelationship of war & the destruction of the natural world.  The
actions included pouring red paint over the security desk of a federal court
and making threatening communications.  Previously Helen had served 20½
years for: 1) Using a hammer to disarm a nuclear missile silo.  2) Burning
$25,000 on the floor of a bank whilst denouncing war, environmental
destruction & economic injustice.  3) Mailing warning letters with bullets
attached to Government & corporate officials.

THE LECCE FIVE
The Lecce Five have been charged with "subversive association" accused of
damaging Esso petrol pumps to oppose the War on Iraq; sabotaging the cash
machines of a bank which funds an immigration centre; and targeting the
multinational company Benetton in support of Mapuche land rights activists
in Chile.  All of the defendants are currently either under house arrest or
released on bail.

ANTIFA PRISONERS

Lasandra Burwell W063658, Ohio Reformatory for Women, 1479 Collins Ave.
Marysville, OH 43040, USA.  Serving 5 years for taking part in an
anti-fascist demonstration which turned into a riot.

Vahtang Devitlidze, ul. Libbedova 42, UO 68/2, otryad 14, brigada 142, g.
Hagyshensk, Krasnodarskiy Kray, 352680 Russia.  Serving 2½ years for
stabbing a neo-nazi in the leg whilst defending himself from attack.

Augustin Kraus, Vazebni veznice, PP-1, Litomerice, 41 201, Czech Republic.
Serving 14 months for his participation in attacks against local neo-nazis.
His charge was "bodily harm". He speaks Czech, Slovak and Polish.  You can
also write him short postcards in English.

Gubski Maxim, VK-2 - 21, Batowa str. 4, Bobruisk, 213800 Belarus.  Serving 3
years for fighting with neo-nazis.

Vladislav Vladimirovich Plyashkevich, IK-10 otryad 4, Novopoltsk-5
Vitebskaya oblast, 211440 Belarus.  Serving 3 years for fighting with
neo-nazis.

Christian Sümmermann, BNR: 727/07/7, JVA Tegel, Seidelstr. 39, 13507 Berlin,
Germany.  Serving 40 months for breaching the peace whilst serving a
suspended sentence issued for anti-fascist activities.

Tomasz Wiloszewski, Zaklad Karny, Orzechowa 5, 98-200 Sieradz, Poland.
Serving 15 years for accidentally killing a neo-nazi whilst defending
himself.

OTHER PRISONERS

Oscar Santa Maria Caro, CERESO, Miahuatlan de Porfirio Diaz, Oaxaca en Hall
B, Cell 5., Mexico.  On remand.  The exact charges against Oscar are unknown
but Oscar is a member of RATA, a known animal rights group.

Sacramento Delfino Cano Hernandez, CERESO, Miahuatlan de Porfirio Diaz,
Oaxaca en Hall B, Cell 5., Mexico.  On remand.  Co-defendant of Oscar Santa
Maria Caro.

Olga Aleksandrovna Nevskaya, UU163/5, 7 Otryad, pos. Dzerzhinskiy, Mozhaysk
140090 Moskovskaya oblast, Russia. Eco-activist serving 6 years for arson,
criminal damage and causing explosions in protest at the war in Chechnya.
Due for release in 2009.

Fran Thompson, #1090915 HU 1C, WERDCC, PO Box 300, Vandalia, MO 63382, USA.
Serving Life for killing, in self-defence, a stalker who had broken into her
home. Before her imprisonment Fran was an eco, animal & anti-nuke
campaigner.

MOVE
MOVE is an eco-revolutionary group who carried out protests in defence of
all life. There are currently eight MOVE activists in prison each serving
100 years after been framed for the murder of a cop in 1979.  9th defendant,
Merle Africa, died in prison in 1998.

Debbie Simms Africa  (006307), Janet Holloway Africa  (006308) and Janine
Philips Africa (006309)  all at: SCI Cambridge Springs, 451 Fullerton Ave,
Cambridge Springs, PA 16403-1238, USA.

Michael Davis Africa (AM4973) and Charles Simms Africa (AM4975) both at SCI
Graterford, PO Box 244, Graterford, PA 19426-0244, USA.

Edward Goodman Africa  (AM4974),  SCI Mahanoy, 301 Morea Rd, Frackville, PA
17932, USA.

William Philips Africa (AM4984) and Delbert Orr Africa (AM4985) both at SCI
Dallas Drawer K, Dallas, PA 18612, USA.

Mumia Abu Jamal, (AM8335), SCI Greene, 175 Progress Drive, Waynesburg PA
15370, USA.  In 1981 Mumia, former Black Panther and vocal supporter of
MOVE, was framed for the murder of a cop.  He was originally sentenced to
death but is currently awaiting re-sentencing following a court hearing in
2001.

STATEMENT ON VIOLENCE
Some people listed in this newsletter have carried out violent actions.
'Spirit of Freedom' does not condone violence.  But we are also against
censorship & believe people can decide for themselves who they wish to
support.

ABOUT E.L.P. SUPPORT NETWORK
ELP is an international eco-prisoner support network founded, in Britain, in
1993 to support jailed eco-activists.  We support the prisoners by producing
various regular prisoner lists:

Spirit of Freedom is ELP's international monthly prisoner listing which is
circulated by e-mail.

Urgent ELP! Bulletin is an e-mail service that distributes the names of any
new eco-prisoner as soon as ELP gets their details.  For more info e-mail
ELP4321@hotmail.com

On-Line Newsletters - ELP has a number of websites that provide news,
prisoner lists and additional info about ELP & the prisoners.

English language ELP Website
www.spiritoffreedom.org.uk

North American ELP Website
www.ecoprisoners.org

Turkish language ELP Website
www.geocities.com/yesilanarsi/elp.htm

ELP Extra is an e-mail group that circulates the details of political
prisoners, ELP learns about, who do not fall within the remit for support by
ELP.  To subscribe to the list e-mail ELP4321@Hotmail.com

Belgium ELP.SN is our Belgium contact.  For more info e-mail
elp_bel@hotmail.com

German ELP.SN is a prisoner led initiative run by eco-prisoner Marco
Camenisch.  For more info contact Marco Camenisch, Postfach 3143, CH-8105
Regensdorf, Switzerland.

North American ELP is our North American contact.  For more information
e-mail naelpsn@mutualaid.org

Turkey ELP.SN is our Turkish contact.  For more info e-mail
yesilanarsi@yahoo.com

Jan. 11th-Support PRican Grand Jury Resisters

PROLIBERTAD ALERT

FBI/NYPD Grand Jury Subpoenas Target Boricuas:

The FBI/NYPD Anti-Terrorism Task Force (Joint Terrorist Task Force) has been visiting Puerto Ricans and serving them with Grand Jury subpoenas. In one case they claimed to be investigating the “extremist group: The Welfare Poets”. Two others have been served with Grand Jury subpoenas
to appear at the Federal Court at 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn on Friday, January 11, 2007 at 9:30 a.m. and, as of this communication, one is being sought to be served.

As was the case with the assassination of Machetero Leader Filiberto Ojeda Rios on September 23, 2005, a key historical date for the Puerto Rican Independence Movement, the FBI/U.S. Justice Department has chosen the date of January 11 for the Grand Jury hearing in New York, a date when independence forces celebrate the birth and contributions of Eugenio
Maria de Hostos to the independence struggle against Spain.

To date, subpoenas to appear before the Grand Jury have been issued to; Tania Frontera, a graphic designer, pro-independence activist and participant in the Vieques struggle, activist and social worker Christopher Torres and filmmaker Julio Pabón, Jr. In addition, there are indications that Hector Rivera, one of the founders of the political/cultural group the New York based “Welfare Poets,” was visited to be served with a subpoena but was not home in NY at the time.

In Puerto Rico the group La Nueva Escuela convened a meeting with a broad range of pro-independence political forces to plan the response and mobilize legal and political resources. They also appealed to those active in the FBI Out of Puerto Rico campaign. A demonstration in front of the Federal Court House in San Juan has been called for January 10th.

In New York City on Saturday, December 29, 2007, Puerto Rican
pro-Independence activists, organizations and allies met with some of the subpoenaed activists, family members, legal advisors, friends and allies, to update themselves on the activities of the FBI/NYPD anti-terrorism agents leading to the Grand Jury hearings on January 11th. A call for a mass protest on January 11th at the Federal Court House in Cadman
Plaza, Brooklyn was made, work committees were formed, a list of legal resources was presented and a general call outlined for support for these latest targets of Federal Grand Jury repression. A flyer is being drafted, and everyone is urged to mobilize.

The Hostos 111 Grand Jury Resistance Movement is the tentative name of this mobilization and an email has been established while a toll-free number is setup where messages and endorsements can be left.

The email is: resistgrandjury@gmail.com

Organizations are asked to email endorsement for the demo on January 11th.

ALL OUT JANUARY 11TH!

RALLY AGAINST GRAND JURY REPRESSION OF PUERTO RICAN INDEPENDENCE ACTIVISTS

FRIDAY JANUARY 11TH, 9:30 A.M.

Brooklyn Federal Court
225 Cadman Plaza East
Brooklyn, New York

Take subways: A/C Subway to High Street, 2/3 to Clark Street, M/R to Court St-Boro Hall, 4,5 to Borough Hall, F to Jay St-Boro Hall, G to Hoyt-Schermerhorn).

U.S.A./F.B.I. – Out of Puerto Rico!

Unity In Action, Against Repression!

Message from Ramon Labañino Salazar

December 25, 2007

FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS OF THE EMPIRE – STRUGGLE FOR THEM – COMMITTEE IN SOLIDARITY WITH CUBA – PUERTO RICO

Message received . . .

Brothers and Sisters:

Ramón finds himself subjected to further punishing conditions since las December 11^th and for this reason he has not been able to send all the letters and greetings for the new year to his friends around the world. In a very brief 5 minute telephone conversation this morning, December 20, he asked me to send this message to all the sisters and brothers that do so much to promote the cause of the Cuban 5 and to achieve genuine justice in this case. It is because of this that I hastily prepared this message in his name and our family’s, full of the love that inspires us to continue to struggle for the freedom of our family members. Also receive on behalf of our daughters a warm greeting and the wishes that you have a merry Christmas and that you have a prosperous new year 2008.

Elizabeth Palmeiro Casado.

Mensaje de Ramón Labañino Salazar

Message from Ramón Labañino Salazar

Dear Brothers and Sisters Throughout the World:

We are now nearing the celebrations for Christmas and the 2008 new year and we want to send you our greetings accompanied with all the gratitude and affection for the support you’ve shown to this cause which united us: The solidarity with Cuba and the freedom of the five.

At this time we always reflect on the things we have done and have to do, and, it is for this reason that upon remembering all the activities that have been realized during this year 2007 with purpose of gaining more solidarity with our cause, that we are filled with strength and more optimism in the certainty of our victory.

It doesn’t matter how long this cruelty continues, that victory will be ours and because of this we will continue to struggle alongside all of you to bring an end to the false morality of the empire that says it struggles against terrorism and yet keeps us imprisoned not recognizing the history of terrorist attacks against the people of Cuba.

From Argentina to Canada and the United States, throughout Central America and the Caribbean, from the other side of the Atlantic, from Spain to Vietnam and Australia, in the African Continent, in every corner of the planet, the voice of justice has been heard demanding our freedom. Your letters inform us every day about all the actions, events, and demonstrations of solidarity. Always count on us to be there for every just cause, soon we will join all of you.

Thank you brothers and sisters for letting us know that we can always count on you to bring an end to so much injustice. Injustice that for more than 10 years has kept us away from our loved ones and our beloved homeland.

For Cubans these celebrations are also accompanied by those that he hola for yet another anniversary of the revolution that returned our dignity and freedom to us. Dignity and freedom that today many peoples of our continent struggle for.

Long live the 49 anniversary of the triumph of the Cuban Revolution!

Until Victory Always!

RAMON LABAÑINO SALAZAR

USP BEAUMONT , TEXAS

DIC. 20, 2007

Indomitable/Unyielding

They come to ask me to surrender

to betray my country and my ideals

they even offer jewels and beautiful things

and riches and limitless money that I would have.

They come to tell me to betray

that there is no reason to struggle

that lacking love and emotions

without principles

is indeed an infertile valley.

Stubborn, Insolent and Infamous

they do not know the fidelity to ideals

and that I would prefer to die in combat with them

how rich to live among the infamous.

I will live and struggle among our people

and will leave betrayal and treason to the cowards.

Ramón Labañino Salazar

“ . . . the matters that we presenting provide us at this time the biggest of our opportunities to free the Five. This is a critical moment and it is very important that the network of support is aware and actively involved in the case.” Leonard Weinglas, northamerican lead defense lawyer.

www.antiterroristas.cu , www.amigosdecuba.com.ar , www.libertadaloscinco.org

Matt Lamont Off of Parole!

Today former anarchist political prisoner, Matt Lamont
went to report for his monthly parole meeting with his
Parole Officer. He was informed that he is officially
off of parole and was given his papers for release.

Thanks to everyone for there support.

LA ABCF

Woman who tried to kill Ford freed

By PAUL ELIAS, Associated Press dec. 31. 2007

Sara Jane Moore, who took a shot at President Ford in a bizarre assassination attempt just 17 days after a disciple of Charles Manson tried to kill Ford, was paroled Monday after 32 years behind bars. Moore, 77, was released from the federal prison in Dublin, east of San Francisco, where she had been serving a life sentence, the Bureau of Prisons said.
Bureau spokeswoman Felicia Ponce said she had no details on why Moore was let out. But she said that with good behavior, inmates sentenced to life can apply for parole after 10 years.
Moore was 40 feet away from Ford outside a hotel in San Francisco when she fired a shot at him on Sept. 22, 1975. As she raised her .38-caliber revolver and pulled the trigger, Oliver Sipple, a disabled former Marine standing next to her, pushed up her arm. The bullet flew over Ford's head by several feet.
Two weeks earlier, Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme, a follower of Manson's, tried to kill the president in Sacramento.
In recent interviews, Moore said she regretted her actions, saying she was blinded by her radical political views and convinced that the government had declared war on the left.
"I was functioning, I think, purely on adrenaline and not thinking clearly. I have often said that I had put blinders on and I was only listening to what I wanted to hear," she said a year ago in an interview with KGO-TV.
During what was expected to be a routine pretrial hearing before a federal judge, Moore blurted out that she wanted to plead guilty, and her lawyer couldn't stop her. The judge immediately accepted the plea.
Moore's background — which included five failed marriages, name changes and involvement with political groups like the Symbionese Liberation Army — baffled the public and even her own attorney.
"I never got a satisfactory answer from her as to why she did it," said retired federal public defender James F. Hewitt. "There was just bizarre stuff."
Ford insisted the two attempts on his life shouldn't prevent him from having contact with the American people.
"If we can't have the opportunity of talking with one another, seeing one another, shaking hands with one another, something has gone wrong in our society," he said. "I think it's important that we as a people don't capitulate to the wrong element."
Ford died just over a year ago.
There was no immediate comment from the Ford family on Moore's release. Calls and an e-mail seeking comment were placed to Penny Circle, who was Ford's chief of staff at the time of his death.
Moore was born Sara Jane Kahn in Charleston, W.Va. She acted in high school plays and dreamed of being a film actress.
In the 1970s, Moore began working for People in Need, a free food program established by millionaire Randolph Hearst in exchange for the return for his daughter Patty, who was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army in 1974.
Moore soon became involved with radical leftists, ex-convicts and other members of San Francisco's counterculture. At this time, Moore became an informant to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
She has said she fired at Ford because she thought she would be killed once it was disclosed that she was an FBI informant. The bureau ended its relationship with her about four months before the assassination attempt.
"I was going to go down anyway," she said in a 1982 interview with the San Jose Mercury News. "If the government was going to kill me, I was going to make some kind of statement."
Moore was sent to a West Virginia women's prison in 1977. Two years later, she escaped but was captured several hours later.