Saturday, August 18, 2007
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Friday, August 17, 2007
Important Trial Dates for Rod Coronado
From: Support for Rod Coronado <info@supportrod.org>
Here are two upcoming important dates for the San Diego Trial. We
encourage you to support Rod at these hearings by attending them in San Diego!!!!
It is very detrimental that we show the Judge that this is an important case, and we are
paying attention to issues that affect our First Amendment, the freedom of
speech. This certainly is about what we are allowed to say and what is
protected by law. Rod has been selectively prosecuted due to his strong voice
advocating a world view which stands up for the Earth and all life
that resides
here.
We need to remind the administration that we recognize the importance of this
case, and we will be there to stand beside those who are targets of government
repression. This is a new law that has only been used 5 times, and never been
tried in court. The outcome of Rod's trial will set a tone which will in turn
affect the greater community. Remember, if they silence those who have been
most outspoken, it is only a matter of time that they will use the law more
broadly.
With that in mind, please come and show your support!!!!!! Due to the
conservative presence in San Diego, we ask that you come to the court wearing
clean and unripped cloths. Bring a friend, or two, and learn some new facts
about how protected your speech is, or isn't.... You will also be able to see
some legendary lawyers in action. Tony Serra is has an outstanding history of
protecting those who are being attacked by the government.
We also request that there are no protests outside of the courthouse.
If there are protesters, it certainly is not at our request.... please don't join in to
fuel any conservative fires....
Ok, thanks for reading, and here are the dates:
InLims Hearing
August 31, Friday, 11 am
Judge Millers Courtroom, room 5, floor 3
940 Front Street, San Diego
Rod's Trial
September 10, 2007
We look forward to a large presence! It will let them know that they cannot
take away our rights while we remain silent! *
Report-back: "Bookin’ For Daniel" Marathon Fundraiser Breaks Finish Line
Esther, co-founder of Eberhardt Press, started taking donations and pledges for her 26.2-mile run on behalf of Daniel a month before the marathon, documenting her training and preparations on the "Bookin' for Daniel" blog (bookinfordaniel.eberhardtpress.org). Readers could use the website to make a donation or pledge their support on a per-mile basis. The funds will be used to help support Daniel's efforts to obtain a Master's Degree while serving a seven-year sentence for crimes committed in defense of the earth.
The long run was challenging, Esther wrote in a recent blog posting, "but knowing that I was raising awareness of the case and raising funds for Daniel's education helped get me through those last grueling miles."
McGowan is one of the so-called "Green Scare" defendants, who were rounded up in 2005 by Federal authorities in a nationwide sweep of activists called "Operation Backfire." Although the actions being prosecuted, which included arson, were intended to avoid the possibility of injury to human beings or animals, some of these defendants were sentenced with a "terrorist enhancement" for acts of property destruction alone.
"My goals in this project were to gather funds for Daniel's education while raising awareness of Daniel's Case and the Green Scare," Esther wrote. "I also wanted to show Daniel and his family that many, many people care about him, support him and plan on being around for the long run."
Daniel was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken on June 4, 2007, to 84 months, after taking a plea agreement which required only that he provide information about his own actions, and not the actions of his co-defendants or others. Under the terms of the plea agreement, he and three co-defendants were able to avoid participation in government investigations and prosecutions of political activists. Judge Aiken denied McGowan's request for a later report date after prosecutors informed her that Daniel's support website continued to be "operational," and that he had conducted a lengthy interview on journalist Amy Goodman's news program, Democracy Now.
Throughout his prosecution, a strong group of friends and family have supported Daniel, and they remain resolutely determined to stand by him as he begins serving his seven-year term as a political prisoner.
Thanks to the generosity of many supporters, the "Bookin' for Daniel" project succeeded in raising a significant sum for Daniel's education fund. Daniel has been accepted at Antioch College and is seeking his Master's Degree. Donations can still be made at www.supportdaniel.org or bookinfordaniel.eberhardtpress.org.
For more information, contact Eberhardt Press at info@eberhardtpress.org, or Friends and Family of Daniel McGowan at friendsofdanielmcg@yahoo.com.
update on Sadie and Exile
latest WA DOC tactic to block books to prisoners
When Did Used Books Become Contraband?
Thanks to a controversial “approved vendor system,” state prisons are slowing the flow of books behind bars.
By Karla Starr
Used books like this are considered contraband by the state’s Department of Corrections.
Earlier this year, Carla McLean, a librarian and volunteer for the organization Books to Prisoners (the group's function is self-evident), struck up a correspondence with a Buddhist pen pal at the
"Why did he not get those books?" she wonders. "It's not because of a three-item limit."
McLean is speaking from Books to Prisoners' headquarters, which occupy a dark, 500-square-foot basement in
"Offenders are clever, frankly," says DOC spokesperson Mary Christiansen, explaining the rationale behind such stringent policies. "People can hide things very well, and we always have to balance an offender's ability to get legitimate things with security. The balance for us is that offenders do need to read, but we have addressed that by allowing them to buy books from legitimate vendors, versus people just sending books in to somebody."
While Books to Prisoners had been sending its requested materials to inmates at Airway Heights for years, Andy Chan, who has been volunteering with BTP for more than 10 years, says, "Recently, they just started sending them back with a note: 'Not an approved vendor.'" Similarly, according to McLean, another pen pal at
Turns out, grandmothers cannot send books to anyone in a
While not mandated by the state, DOC spokesperson Chad Lewis states that "there are some facilities that only allow books to come from certain vendors." While official state policy says that "offenders may receive gift subscriptions and/or publications from any party other than another offender or the friends or family of another unrelated offender," the personal-property policy states that "offenders may acquire personal property only through the following sources: 1. Facility offender stores, 2. Approved vendors."
According to the DOC's Christiansen, "There is a line within the property policy stating that there is an approved vendor list, and it's up to each facility to establish each list of who's approved. That's based on safety and security. It kind of makes a difference based on which vendors are allowed to send things in."
Seattle's Prison Legal News, the nation's longest-running prison newsletter, has had its own share of troubles getting its materials—including books—sent to prisoners. After discovering that PLN wasn't on the initial list at
"It's probably unconstitutional," he says of the lists. "But it's going to take someone to step up to the plate and challenge it."
Theoretically, the concept of approved vendors is to provide offenders with their books in a more timely fashion. "This is good for the offenders," says Risa Klemme,
In order to compile their approved vendor list, Klemme says, workers "identified vendors our offenders commonly used. We met with the tier reps and got some agreements on what vendors we selected." She says 16 tier reps—i.e., inmate representatives—were contacted.
Yet one of McLean's pen pals at
While
Indeed,
In order to be added to the approved vendor list, a few criteria have to be met. "We have to be sure that it's not a small business running out of a home or garage that could close overnight," says Christiansen. "It's to protect the vendor from being able to correct errors with the shipment or a problem with the product, making sure they're established enough so the company doesn't forget to fill the order, or runs out of money and possibly goes out of business. And we want to make sure that they can process any return items and money, too, so that's the basic criteria for approval."
But the entire point of BTP is that it doesn't charge the prisoners any money for the books they receive. And the books it gets the most requests for—technical manuals for inmates wishing to improve skills like repairing motors—are also the most expensive to buy. Regarding Books to Prisoners, Christiansen says, "I've never dealt with them, but I've heard they deal with used books. I don't know anything about them. If they want people to buy their books, they can request to be added to the list."
"For as long as I can remember, individuals haven't been able to send in books to their loved ones—they've either had to go to a bookstore or come to us," says BTP's Chan. "And some of [the relatives of inmates] are in financial straits and not in the position to go to Barnes & Noble, buy a new book, and pay the rates that Barnes & Noble would charge for shipping. In the more narrow sense, my major concern is a certain trend of only allowing certain specific vendors to send in books to prisons. If these other organizations don't actually send books for free, then indigent prisoners are stuck."
ProLibertad/Welfare Poets: CD for the PR Prisoners
The ProLibertad Freedom Campaign
ProLibertad@hotmail.com and ProLibertad.Campaign@gmail.com
http://www.ProLibertadWeb.com
ProLibertad Hotline: 718-601-4751
_______________________________________________________________________________
A CALL TO ARTISTS! Calling all Boricua/Non-Boricua Artists for a Fund
Raising CD to aid our Puerto Rican Political Prisoners!!
The Welfare Poets and The ProLibertad Freedom Campaign have come
together to collaborate on a fund-raising project to directly aid the
current Puerto Rican Political Prisoners; incarcerated for fighting
for the independence and self-determination of Puerto Rico.
Additionally, we would also want to assist past political prisoners
who have been freed and are now attempting to survive in a system
where many channels are closed to them. It is also our intention to
create a general legal fund to assist present and even possibly
future political prisoners.
We are directing this posting to local bands and world renown Puerto
Rican artists who have the eye of the music world. Depending on how
many artists come forward and who actually submit songs, there is a
po-tential for us to get funds so distribution can be created on a
larger scale.
Regarding Song Submissions:
•We have begun accepting submissions.
•All submissions and questions about submissions can be sent to:
FreedomAlbum@gmail.com
•We want all artist of all genres to be apart of this potentially
monumental album for Freedom -- Bomba, Plena, Hip Hop, Reggaeton,
Salsa, Jibaro, Regggae, Punk, Rock or any other form of music
•Songs do not need to be directly about the political prisoners and
the struggle for Puerto Rico's Indpendence, although we definitely
won't discourage you to do so. For the most part, they should be
uplifting and somehow connected to our people, island, culture and
history.
Goal:
•We hope this album serves to raise the necessary funds as outlined
above, but also to unify the Puerto Rican community on many levels.
Unifying Puerto Rican artists from NYC, Chicago, California,
Philadelphia, New Jersey and all over the Puerto Rican Diaspora, with
each other and other artists from the island – all coming together
under the banner of supporting those who have sacrificed everything
for the
•We also hope to unify organizations in an attempt to move forward on
better grounds on behalf of the companeros.
•Not only will we be spreading the word about the Puerto Rican
Political Prisoners' existence and indi-vidual cases to a wide range
of individuals open their eyes for the first time or updating those
who are already in the know, but we will also be offering the people
a way to assist, all people who support the struggle for our
companeros release, Puerto Rican and beyond.
To Organizations:
•We call on other organizations to help put this album together.
There is so much to be done and time is most precious. Collectively,
our efforts can reach the necessary millions to make a significant
impact. These are our prisoners, they remain in jail and isolated due
to our collective inaction and we can rem-edy this. To endorse thie
effort, please email us at freedomalbum@gmail.com
For information:
•About the Puerto Rican Political Prisoners and the ProLibertad
Freedom Campaign, go to: www.ProLibertadweb.com or
myspace.com/freeourpolitcalprisoners; about the Welfare Poets, go to
www.welfarepoets.com
Log on to myspace.com/freeourpolitcalprisoners for future information
regarding the project and planning meetings
The fight for Puerto Rico's Independence go as far back as indigenous
resistance to Spanish occupation. For well over 600 years, countless
and nameless individuals have fought for our islands sovereignty.
Some have paid the ultimate price with their lives.
Others have been held captive, arrested against their will, by a
court which held no jurisdiction over their cases and tramples on
their international right to fight for the lib-eration of their
homeland, our homeland, Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rican people have
been able to free many of our political prisoners. We did so because
we created unity amongst ourselves and because we welcomed the
solidarity of all our allies. This Freedom Al-bum is another example
of our creativity in building solidarity and unity amongst ourselves.
This album will educate, agitate and help further build our movement
to free our compañer@s behind the walls.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Our Political Prisoners are:
Oscar Lopez Rivera was born in San Sebastian, Puerto Rico on January
6, 1943. At the age of 12, he moved to Chi-cago with his family. He
was a well-respected community activist and a prominent independence
leader for many years prior to his arrest. Oscar was one of the
founders of the Rafael Cancel Miranda High School, now known as the
Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos High School and the Juan Antonio Corretjer
Puerto Rican Cultural Center. He was a com-munity organizer for the
Northwest Community Organization (NCO), ASSPA, ASPIRA and the 1st
Congregational Church of Chicago. He helped to found FREE, (a
half-way house for convicted drug addicts) and ALAS (an educa-tional
program for Latino prisoners at Stateville Prison in Illinois).
He was active in various community struggles, mainly in the area of
health care, employment and police brutality. He also participated in
the development of the Committee to Free the Five Puerto Rican
Nationalists. In 1975, he was forced underground, along with other
comrades. He was captured on May 29, 1981, after 5 years of being
persecuted by the FBI as one of the most feared fugitives from US
"justice". Oscar, who has a daughter named Clarissa, is currently
serving a 55-year sentence for seditious conspiracy and other
charges. He was convicted of conspiracy to escape along with Jaime
Delgado, (a veteran independence leader), Dora Garcia, (a prominent
community activist) and Kojo Bomani-Sababu, a New Afrikan political
prisoner.
Oscar was one of 13 Puerto Rican political prisoners offered some
form of leniency by the Clinton Administration in the fall of 1999.
According to the Chicago Sun Times, he "declined the president's
offer, which still would have him left with 10 years to serve on
conspiracy to escape charges. Now he faces at least 20 more years in
prison. His sister, Zenaida Lopez, said he turned the offer down
because he would be on parole. 'Accepting what they are offering him
is like prison outside of prison,' she said. Zenaida Lopez said her
brother 'was in total agreement' with the decision of the 11 others
to take the conditional clemency." Oscar is presently in prison in
Terre Haute, Indiana and his release date is 7/27/2027.
Carlos Alberto Torres was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico on September 19,
1952. His parents moved to New York, finally settling in Chicago. He
studied in the University of Illinois in Carbondale and Chicago. He
studied sociology at Southern Illinois University and the University
of Illinois at Chicago. Carlos Alberto was involved in the struggles
to recruit more Latin@s to the University, against racism, and police
abuse. Carlos was one of the founders of the Rafael Cancel Miranda
Puerto Rican High School now known as the Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos
Puerto Rican High School and participated in the Committee to Free
the 5 Nationalists. In 1976, Carlos was forced to go underground and
was on the FBI's 10 most wanted list. He was captured along with
other comrades and sentenced to 78 years on charges of seditious
conspiracy, among other charges.
Although the Clinton Administration offered clemency to 12 Puerto
Rican political prisoners in the fall of 1999, no leniency was
granted to Carlos Torres, whom prosecutors described as a leader of
the Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional (FALN), an underground
organization which fought for Puerto Rico's independence in the 1970s
and '80s. His release date is 2024. He is currently in prison in
Oxford, Wisconsin.
Haydee Beltran Torres was born in Arecibo, Puerto Rico on June 7,
1955. When Haydee was 12 years old, her parents moved to Chicago. At
Tuley High School, she organized a boycott that demanded the firing
of a racist principal. Haydee attended the University of Illinois
where she was an outspoken defender of Latino students’ rights.
Haydee was forced underground in 1976 and was captured April 4, 1980.
She has been sentenced to life in prison on charges including
seditious conspiracy. Haydee was the first POW to receive a life
sentence. She was kept in total isolation from the other prisoners of
war and was transferred to a special control unit which limited
visits. It was a year before she was allowed to see her family.
At the MCC in Chicago, she was classified as “no visitors allowed”.
Haydee was subject to physical abuse in interrogations for refusing
to implicate her comrades in unfounded crimes. This was done several
times by FBI and other government agents. These and other inhumane
acts by the U.S. government have led to serious injuries which prison
medical directors have misdiagnosed; also, Haydee has received
injections of unknown medications.
Jose Perez Gonzalez was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico on January 14th,
1968; he is the son of a butcher and his mother is retired government
worker. He is married with three children. He is a member of
Mayaguezano por La Salud y el Ambiente. He is well known in his
neighborhood, of Barrio Segundo in Ponce. He is a family man with
three children. He was a civil disobedient and served three months in
jail for his support activities. Jose was the only member of the
Vieques 12 who went to trial. He was found guilty and was sentenced
to five years in jail. His release is 1/17/2008.
In Iraq, sex is traded for survival
By Afif Sarhan in Baghdad Al Jazeera
When Rana Jalil, 38, lost her husband in an explosion in Baghdad last year, she could never have imagined becoming a prostitute in order to feed her children.
A mother of four, Jalil sought out employment, but job opportunities for women had decreased since the US invasion.
She begged shop owners, office workers and companies to hire her but was treated with what she calls chauvinistic discrimination.
Within weeks of her husband's death, a doctor diagnosed her children with malnutrition.
Fighting tears, she recalled the desperation which led her to the oldest profession: "In the beginning these were the worst days in my life. My husband was the first man I met and slept with, but I didn't have another option … my children were starving."
She left the house in a daze, she recalled, and walked to the nearest market to find someone who would pay her for sex.
She said: "I'm a nice-looking woman and it wasn't difficult to find a client. When we got to the bed I tried to run away … I just couldn't do it, but he hit and raped me. When he paid me afterwards, it was finished for me.
"When I came home with some food I had bought from that money and saw my children screaming of happiness, I discovered that honor is insignificant compared to the hunger of my children."
Iraqi widows desperate
Prior to the US invasion, Iraqi widows, particularly those who lost husbands during the Iran-Iraq war, were provided with compensation and free education for their children. In some cases, they were provided with free homes.
However, no such safety nets currently exist and widows have few resources at their disposal.
According to the non-governmental organization Women's Freedom in Iraq (OWFI), 15 per cent of Iraqi women widowed by the war have been desperately searching for temporary marriages or prostitution, either for financial support or protection in the midst of sectarian war.
Nuha Salim, the spokesperson for OWFI, told Al Jazeera: "Widows are one of our priorities but their situation is worsening and we are feeling ineffective to cope with this significant problem. Hundreds of women are searching for an easy way to support their loved ones as employers refuse to hire them for fear of extremists' reprisals."
She said the NGO has documented the disappearance of some 4000 women, 20 per cent of whom are under 18, since the March 2003 invasion.
OWFI believes most of the missing women were kidnapped and sold into prostitution outside Iraq.
Although few reliable statistics are available on the total number of widows in Iraq, the ministry of women's affairs says that there are at least 350,000 in Baghdad alone, with more than eight million throughout the country.
Bitter trade
As Iraqi families continue to fall on hard times, some have been forced to make the most painful of decisions – selling their daughters.
Abu Ahmed, a handicapped father of five who is himself a widower, sold his daughter Lina to an Iraqi man who came to Iraq to "shop" for sex workers. Abu Ahmed said he could not afford to buy food for his other children.
He told Al Jazeera: "I'm sure that whatever she is, at least she is having food to eat. I have three other girls and a son and what they paid me for Lina is enough to raise the remaining ones."
Abu Ahmed had been initially approached by Shada, the alias of a woman living in Baghdad, who sought young women for Iraqi gangs running prostitution rackets in neighboring Arab countries.
She told Al Jazeera that her role was to convince young women from impoverished families that a better life awaited them beyond the country's borders.
She said: "Families don't want them and we are helping the girls to survive. We offer them food and housing and about $10 a day if they have had at least two clients."
"Our priority is virgin girls; they can be sold at very expensive prices to Arab millionaires."
Shada said she sleeps in a different house every few nights as armed groups have marked her for trial and assassination.
Escape from Jordan
OWFI's Salim says cases like Lina's have become very common as poverty is increasing in Iraq and desperate families sometimes sell their daughters for less than $500 to traffickers.
But increasingly, young Iraqi women arrive in neighboring capitals to find that prostitution carries a heavy and dangerous price.
Suha Muhammad, 17, was sold to an Iraqi gang by her mother, herself a prostitute, after her father was killed.
When she arrived in Jordan, she was gang-raped by four men who told her they were teaching her the tricks of the trade.
She told Al Jazeera she had been sold to a gang that caters to VIPs in Syria and was often shuttled to Amman, the Jordanian capital, for high-profile clients.
After six months, she escaped: "I ran away and an Iraqi family helped me by driving me to the immigration department where they helped me get a passport to return to Iraq.
"My aunt is now taking care of me in Baghdad. She never imagined that my mother could sell me, but unfortunately women in Iraq are not important and respected."
Traffic
Mayada Zuhair, a spokesperson for the Baghdad-based Women's Rights Association (WRA), said Iraqi and Arab NGOs are trying to monitor the trafficking of young women from the war-ravaged country to neighboring destinations.
She told Al Jazeera: "We are trying to find out the fate of many widows and teenager girls who were trafficked. Unfortunately it is not an easy process and without international support, funding, and resources, we fear more young Iraqi women will be taken abroad to work in the sex trade."
In the meantime, however, prostitution remains the only option for Nirmeen Lattif, a 27-year-old widow who lost her husband in an attack on Shia pilgrims south of Baghdad.
When she turned to her husband's relatives for financial support, they could not afford to help her.
She says she tries not to think of the gravity of what she does or the dishonor it carries in conservative Muslim society.
"I think of my children, only my children; without money we starve in the streets."
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/36B04283-E43F-4367-90BB-E6C60CB88F76.htm
Support the Eco-Prisoners (August 2007)
Spirit of Freedom
(August 2007)
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 August 2007 edition of Spirit of Freedom. Regular
readers of Spirit of Freedom will notice that this issue of the
newsletter is slightly different to previous issues. As long-term
ELP supporters will be aware, back in 2000, after the arrests &
remandings of a group of Irish anti-road protesters ELP launched its
e-mail “Urgent ELP!” service. Over the years this service has proven
very popular with most of our supporters now receiving their news via
e-mail with very few people receiving the newsletter in its paper
version. With that in mind, ELP has decided to end its paper version
of its newsletter. And because most of the “Court Reports & Legal
Updates” news contained in Spirit of Freedom has already been
circulated via e-mail we are dropping this from our newsletter and
from now on “Spirit of Freedom” will solely be a prisoner listing
publication. However, to remind everyone of all the prisoners we do
support we will be circulating the “Spirit of Freedom” prisoner
listing on a monthly basis, to give everyone a regular reminder of
all the prisoners we support. Whilst looking through the list, if
you notice an error, please contact ELP and we will correct it
immediately. In the meantime, remember, no matter where you are in
the world, support the eco-prisoners and no compromise in defence of
Mother Earth!
ECO-DEFENCE PRISONERS
Fadalla Idris Alajaimy (address unknown). Sudan anti-dam protester
on remand accused of Waging War against the State for protesting
against the construction of a dam.
Mohamed Ahmed Alajaimy (address unknown). Sudan anti-dam protester
on remand accused of Waging War against the State for protesting
against the construction of a dam.
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 #1533241 22, Denver County Jail, PO Box 1108, Denver, CO
80201, 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.
Betty Krawczyk, Alouette Correctional Centre for Women, P.O. Box
1000, Maple Ridge, BC, V2X 3K4, Canada. Serving 10-months for
protesting against the development of the Winter Olympics site on
traditional Squamish territory
Jeffrey Luers, #13797671, OSP, 2605 State St. Salem, OR 97310, USA.
Serving 22 years & 8 months for arson on a SUV dealership & the
attempted arson of an oil truck.
Ali Mohamed Alhassen Massad (address unknown). Sudan anti-dam
protester on remand accused of Waging War against the State for
protesting against the construction of a dam.
Eric McDavid X-2972521 4E 231A, Sacramento County Main Jail, 651 "I"
Street, Sacramento, CA 95814, USA. On Remand accused of planning to
destroy the property of the U.S. Forestry Service, mobile phone masts
and power plants.
Daniel McGowan, #63794-053, MDC Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention
Center, PO Box 329002, Brooklyn, NY 11232, 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.
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.
Joyanna Zacher, #0707300576, San Bernardino CDC, 630 E. Rialto Ave.,
San Bernardino, CA 92415, 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.
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 TN4593, HMP Whitemoor, Longhill Road, March, Cambs,
PE15 OPR, England. Serving an Indeterminate Sentence, of not less
than six actual years, for carrying out arsons against targets
associated the vivisection industry including HLS.
Darius Fullmer #26397-050, FCI Fort Dix Satellite Camp, P.O. Box
1000, Fort Dix, NJ 08640 USA. Serving 12 months for helping organise
the SHAC-USA campaign.
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 Cookham Wood, Rochester, Kent, ME1 3LU,
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.
Joseph Harris TN5728, HMP Bullingdon, Patrick Haugh Road, Arncott,
Nr. Bicester, Oxon, OX25 1WD, England. Serving 2 years for damaging
the property of people associated with Huntingdon Life Sciences.
Kevin Kjonaas #93502-011, FCI Sandstone, PO Box 1000, Sandstone, MN
55072 USA. Serving 72 months imprisonment for helping organise the
SHAC-USA campaign.
Josephine Mayo PR6508, HMP Drake Hall, Eccleshall, Staffs, ST21 6LQ,
England. Serving 4 years for attempting to blackmail a farmer who
supplied guinea pigs for vivisection.
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, c/o Friends of Jonathan Paul, PMB 267, 2305 Ashland
St., Ste. C, Ashland, OR 97520, 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.
Mark Taylor TT6636, HMP YOI Onley, Rugby, Warkwickshire, CV23 8AP,
England. Serving four years for organising loud demonstrations
outside the offices of companies with links to HLS.
Suzanne Taylor, TM7154, HMP Foston Hall, Foston, Derby, Derbyshire,
DE65 5DN, England. Serving two and a half years for helping organise
loud demonstrations outside the offices of companies with links to
HLS.
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.
OTHER ANTI-WAR PRISONERS
Brendan Walsh 12473-052, FCI/FSL Elkton, PO Box 10, Lisbon, OH 44432
USA. Serving 5 years for an arson on an army recruitment office in
protest at the War on Iraq.
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.
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 Grateford, PO Box 244, Grateford, PA 19426-0244, USA.
Edward Goodman Africa (AM4974), 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
North American ELP Prisoner Fund. The North American ELP group has
set up a fund where people can pay money, for North American
Eco-Defence and Animal Rights prisoners, which will then be
distributed to the North American prisoners. For information about
the Fund and how to make a donation please contact
naelpsn@mutualaid.org
DEDICATION
This Edition of Spirit of Freedom is dedicated to Bill ‘Avalon’
Rodgers, the American ‘Oregon Defendant’ who ended his own life in
December 2005 whilst on Remand.
Vicious Police Attack on IWW Solidarity March in Providence, Rhode Island
Submitted by intexile iww.org on Wed, 08/15/2007 - 3:04pm.
On Saturday, August 11, 2007, the Providence wobblies organized a march on Jackie's Galaxy, which is a restaurant chain that is being supplied by HWH in New York City, a supplier who is notorious for its slave labor conditions of up to 110 hours per week without basic labor rights (minimum wage and overtime).Saturday, August 11, 2007
Independence Movement Demands FBI leave Puerto Rico
NYC Indymedia
Por Francisco Quiñones/El Nuevo Dia, 10 de Agosto 2007
The widow of the late machetero leader Filiberto Ojeda Rios
reappeared today to demand that the FBI leave Puerto Rico.
The expressions of Elma Beatriz Rosado Barbosa, who accompanied Ojeda
Rios for more than a decade in clandestinity, were part of a press
conference called by the independence supporting organization La
Nueva Escuela, during which they denounced that they are target of
alleged harassment on the part of federal authorities.
"The FBI will not take a step backwards. Every time the FBI dares to
make a move to touch, or even to look at a fellow independence
supporter, we need to all be willing, we all need to be there
available to defend that person 'tooth and nail.'
"[The people] should prevent, whichever way they can, the FBI from
conducting searches and raids against our independence comrades, or
from conducting attempts against their person. They assassinated
Filiberto, the FBI assassinated him, the US Government assassinated
him. They will not touch any other Puerto Rican comrade, no matter
what the cost. They will leave here", stated Rosado Barbosa during
the press conference during which La Nueva Escuela denounced an
illegal search/seizure by federal agents against biologist Roberto
Viqeira Rios last Tuesday.
According to Martin Gonzalez, Viqueira Rios' lawyer, on Tuesday
morning, his client was stopped by the Police of Puerto Rico, after
which a contigent of federal agents took him out of his car,
handcuffed him, and searched his car without showing him a search
warrant. After this act, the agents seized and kept his cell phone
and his work planner and left him there.
This is not the first incident Viqueira Rios has experienced with FBI
agents. The independence supporter indicated that on one occasion
the federal agents visited his job, demanded information about him,
and interrogated several of his co-workers. Viqueira also noted that
he has noticed several occasions where agents are prowling around
the area where he lives.
Michael Gonzalez, a leader of that independence group, assures that
Viqueira is not the only member of La Nueva Escuela who has been
subject to unwarranted searches by federal agents and advised that in
due time, they will take the necessary actions against federal
authorities. These actions may include the filing of formal
complaints against agents, civil litigation in federal court, and
even civil disobedience.
Aside from Ojeda Rios' widow, there were other people present who
joined the demands of the independence organization, such as former
political prisoners Rafael Cancel Miranda, Luis Rosa, and the well
known independence leader Norberto Cintron Fiallo, whose residence
was searched and raided by the FBI a few months after the operation
that resulted in the death of the alleged leader of the Boricua
Popular Army.
