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PMA newsletter - September October 1997
Kia ora, first and foremost we would like to thank all of you who responded in our
time of crisis both with donations which have alleviated our cashflow problems and
also with messages, cards and letters of support.
We were astonished (and pleased !) at the level of your support, and it has greatly
increased our enthusiasm as we go about sorting out the 'bureaucratic bits' to ensure
PMA works well both now and in the future - so we can achieve the vision of our strategic plan which is to be in a position where we can support individuals and groups
with peace work, travel and research; as well as to continue with our day-to-day
work.
Thanks also to Louise May for her help and support over the past few extremely busy
weeks, and of course to the volunteer workers who keep us going.
Edwina is now back working in the office, although the days will vary until the end
of the year due to peace and other commitments; to compensate for not having regular
times when the office is open, the voicemail is being cleared daily.
Thanks again to you all for your tremendous support, kia kaha till next month.
Things to do, news and views ...
The first project of the newly launched Maori Law Commission is to research traditional
Maori dispute resolution methods and develop a practical model for use by whanau,
hapu and iwi. The research will be undertaken by Maori Legal Services lawyers Moana
Jackson and Jason Fox.
This exciting initiative will endeavour to reclaim and revalidate traditional dispute
resolution practices for Maori, and will be a valuable addition to the body of knowledge
on conflict resolution in this country.
Support is warmly welcomed - interest in assisting with fundraising to support the
project, or with direct donations can be directed to : Julie Lambie, Maori Law Commission,
tel (04) 473 1249; fax (04) 473 1781.
Privacy Act Review
The Privacy Commissioner is currently reviewing all aspects of the 1993 Privacy Act
and public submissions have been invited for this. The deadline for submissions on
some discussion areas was 20 October - but you still have time to get your submission
in on :
Intelligence Organisations and the Privacy Act
(DP11) and
Codes of Practice and Exemptions
(DP4) have a 3 November deadline;
New Privacy Protections
(DP12),
Public Register Privacy Issues
(DP5),
Complaints and Investigation
(DP6),
Information Matching
(DP7), and
Compliance and Administration Costs
(DP9) have a 10 November deadline.
If you wish to submit comments on any of these areas, you can get the Discussion Papers
from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, PO Box 10-094, Wellington; (04) 474
7597, fax 474 7595, <privacy@actrix.gen.nz>
Official Information Act Review
Following its review of the OIA, the Law Commission has recommended it be changed
to help people who are requesting information. Furthermore ... "access to information
about the government is vital to effective participation in a democracy" (Dominion
, 07-10-97). Well ! there you have it - any ideas on how the government will respond
to this radical idea ?
... not very positively we suspect if their 'progress' on Consistency 2000 is anything
to go by ... this was the project whereby the Human Rights Commission was to review
all legislation and the policies and practices of all government agencies to identify areas of conflict with the Human Rights Act. The intention was to bring all these
into line with the HRA by 1 January 2000 when the government's exemption (under section
151) would expire.
But alas, what price human rights ? It appears that the government is planning to
introduce legislation to give itself and its agencies permanent exemption from the
provisions of the Act, and
... with a touch of that exquisite subtlety in which they excel, this legislation
would be introduced in 1998 - the 50th anniversary of NZ's signing of the Declaration
of Human Rights.
The now even longer awaited review is currently said to be expected to be made public
NEXT month with an associated White Paper.
But in the meantime the war of words continues on this with a variety of articles
in the Dominion
and other papers pointing to the sad state of the various bits of the armed forces
... and more concerns expressed by the Australian Defence Minister (speaking in Washington
this time !) not only about NZ's defence force spending cuts and the possibility of the third and fourth frigates being purchased from the US instead of Australia,
but also about NZ's anti-nuclear policy.
Labour defence spokesman Geoff Braybrooke has also said we should be worried about
how National has cut the defence budget and run defence into the ground (Dominion
, 10-10-97) - well, we're not.
Why we need a defence force
And as we know, the battle over the future of the defence forces is not just being
waged in the media - but also in our secondary schools (see August PMA Newsletter
). The critique of the kit put together by Commander Rob Green RN (Retired) states
very clearly that contrary to the MoD's assertions, the kit is in fact a propaganda
exercise and at one point itself admits that the video is an updated recruiting film
!
... four defence staff members set off on a $33,000 trip to have a look at the second-hand
US frigates, and then advised against buying them as they would work out more expensive
than ANZAC frigates in the long term (Dominion
, 02-10-97) ...
But the most startling news in the frigates debate came today -
Peters torpedoes third frigate
(Dominion,
14-10-97). What is not yet apparent is whether he is referring only to more ANZAC
frigates or no third and fourth frigates at all - hmmm, we'll have to wait and see
on that one.
Meanwhile, General Motors Canada has offered the government a 'sweetheart' deal on
armoured personnel carriers; but alas for GM it appears that the makers of M113 APCs
in the US are 'almost giving them away' - it is rumoured that around $140 million
will be set aside for APCs in the Spending Review.
... and a fascinating article on this (The Press,
30-09-97) has come our way following Paul East's February statement that a resumption
of exercises with the US would certainly occur within the next few months, and Jim
Bolger's April call for joint NZ/US exercises and training.
The bit we wanted to share with you is a quote from Josiah Beeman (US ambassador)
saying that the opinion polls showing 70% of NZers wanting a return to ANZUS and
others showing 70% wanting to retain the anti-nuclear legislation ... demonstrates
a schizophrenic attitude !
Urgent action needed -
re the Malaysian resolution calling for timed negotiations leading to a nuclear weapons
convention which will be put to the UN General Assembly again this October.
Please contact Don McKinnon and Jim Bolger and whoever else you can think of with
the following points
a) congratulating the NZ government on supporting the resolution last year; b) asking
that NZ co-sponsors the resolution this year; c) checking that NZ definitely will
be voting YES again on it this year; d) asking that they use their influence with
the Australian government (!) to encourage them to also support the resolution.
Don McKinnon's office tel (04) 471 9999, fax 471 1444; Prime Minister's office tel
(04) 471 9998; fax 473 7045; or write to them at Parliament Buildings, Wellington
(no stamp needed); or email <mailbox@mx.parliament.govt.nz>, marked attention of
whoever it is addressed to.
Wiri stonefields
News last month that Watercare's construction of their sewage pipeline across the
Wiri stonefields (see June/July PMA Newsletter
for details) has been stopped after Justice Salmon ruled that the Environment Court
had misdirected itself. He ruled that the matter be returned to the Environment Court
for reconsideration.
The claim lodged with the Waitangi Tribunal over native flora, fauna, traditional
knowledge and intellectual property has enormous international significance - not
just in the assertion of the rights of indigenous peoples, but also as a direct challenge
to the corporations who are increasingly commoditising and privatising knowledge and
biodiversity all around the world.
It is expected that these hearings will take up to a year, and we'll let you know
as more information comes to hand. WAI 262 raises the basic question of whether we
want local control of local resources or transnationals to profit from them ...
... which leads us directly to the MAI - we have received loads of information on
this and the more we hear, the more worried we get ! Included with this mailing is
the MAI leaflet produced by GATT Watchdog, and please feel free to contact them or
us if you would like to know more about the MAI. GATT Watchdog are happy to provide speakers
for local and national meetings.
The Student Christian Movement (Aotearoa) has circulated 'highlights' from MPs replies
to their letters raising concern about the MAI - current favourite is that from Joy
McLauchlan, National list MP - ...
"For your interest, and perhaps to provide balance to some of the material you have,
you might like to read the enclosed speech from Bob Matthew [Chairman of the NZ Business
Roundtable]. I always find their material helpful when I wish to find the middle
ground".
While the Alliance is speaking out against the MAI, Labour is dithering on it - we
suggest that if you wish to work against the MAI it would be useful right now to
focus on trying to influence Labour to oppose it, and also your local authority as
they will be bound by its provisions.
Independence Day - 28 October
... and moving along from threats to sovereignty, the chance to celebrate our independence
is coming up. If you are not already involved in local ceremonies or events, perhaps
this would be an ideal time to get your banners out in favour of tino rangitiratanga and against MAI, privatisation, falling social welfare / health / education provision,
the many faceted losses of sovereignty we appear subject to ...
Snippets from across the Tasman
- the Australian government has given the go ahead for the Jabiluka uranium mine to
open in Kakadu national park;
uranium mine expansion - in South Australia where the state government has given the go ahead for new mines
to be opened at Beverley and Honeymoon; as well as an expansion of
uranium processing at Roxby Downs.
RMIT occupations ends - following the RMIT management agreeing to student demands including a student
and staff referendum on the proposed up-front fee paying system.
Monash Tent City continues - with no end in sight to the Monash Corporate Plan which the campers are opposing.
Boycott Kleenex !
- news from Otways Forest Watch (who have called for a boycott of Kleenex products
to try and prevent the clearfelling of Otway native forest) of a weekend camp and
'clearfelling inspection' teams.
Largest ever defence mission to UK
- took place in September, Bronwyn Bishop (Minister for Defence Industry, Science
and Personnel) and 25 Australian defence manufacturers representatives. Mrs Bishop's
press statement complained that the defence industry was ignored by the previous
Labour government ... "In particular our defence exporters received no encouragement. That
is a shocking indictment of Labour's disinterest in this area" she said.
Lucas Heights reactor - campaigners are still working on trying to get a full public enquiry into the decision
to proceed with the construction of the new research reactor.
I'm not a racist, but ... the week of programmes devoted to the theme of racism screened by SBS TV. This
included differing experiences and a look at racism in North America, Britain, the
Czech Republic, Austria, Sweden, India, South Africa, Germany, Algeria, Rwanda, Guiana,
France, Australia and New Zealand.
Singapore - has announced a joint bid with Sweden to finance r &d undersea warfare projects;
this follows the recent purchase by Singapore of four Sjvormen class boats;
Malaysia - bit of a saga here, with Transfield (Australia) losing out on their bid on a $Aus
2 billion contract to build 27 patrol boats, the contract went to a German company;
however, it was announced on 30 Sept that this contract and other major military
purchases has been shelved as Malaysia's economic crisis worsens;
Taiwan - is to give Paraguay 12 secondhand F-5E/F fighter planes;
South Korea - defence spending this year will be $US 17 billion, with $19 billion planned for
next year;
India - has announced closer ties on arms deals and military technology with both South
Africa and Russia in the past few days;
Indonesia - the British government has approved a further 11 new arms contracts with Indonesia
worth 'millions of pounds';
- the memorandum of understanding with Germany for the purchase of five U206 subs
has now been signed;
- British Aerospace Australia is to help Indonesia develop a maritime patrol version
of the CN-235 twin turbo-prop military transport plane;
Australia - Transfield is still awaiting word on the Australian Navy's planned purchase of
6 patrol boats priced at $Aus 1.6 billion; but the navy has confirmed it will still
be requiring the eight ANZAC frigates ordered from Transfield.
Bougainville
Rather more optimism this month about the prospects of long term peace in Bougainville
following the latest peace talks in Christchurch between Papua New Guinea and Bougainville
representatives.
On 10 Oct it was announced they had unanimously agreed to a truce calling for an immediate
end to armed conflict on the island and for all parties to work towards reconciliation
and a return to normalcy.
military exercises in the region
These involving NZ defence forces - include recent : Joint Warrior Interoperability Demonstration (pretty much worldwide) with
US, Australia, Canada , Britain and other NATO; Kakadu III (Darwin) with Australia,
Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand; Tasman Eagle (northern Queensland) with
Australia, ongoing : Northern Sustainer (North Island), Taiaha Tombak (Malaysia)
and other defence forces - recent : US Marine Corps training (Oahu); ongoing :MARCOT'97 (US, Canada, Britain, Chile, Australia) around Nanoose Bay, disputed
nuclear-sub testing site near Vancouver.
Hiti Tau Health Study
This has now been released by the World Council of Churches, and states that health checks
on the 10-15,000 people who worked at Moruroa during the French nuclear weapons testing
programme were inadequate; 91% of the workers questioned during the study expressed no confidence in the health system available to them; and that 10% of the work
force was under 18 when recruited (of these, 60% were under the age of 16 when first
employed at Moruroa).
This year's South Pacific Forum was heavily criticised in the communique from the
NGO Parallel Forum which condemned the official communique for not addressing the
right to self-determination and independence for colonised peoples of the Pacific;
for overriding Pacific peoples' concern re climate change; for not pressing for an end to
the transshipment of nuclear waste through the region; and for not opposing the ten
year extension of permits for the Johnstoll Atoll Chemical Agents Disposal System.
The NGO communique also expressed sadness at the Australian government's response
to the Stolen Generation report and their support for the Wik 10-point plan which
will extinguish native title to land.
During a visit to the Cook Islands around the time of the SPF, the British Foreign
Office Minister for State announced that Britain will ratify the Treaty of Rarotonga.
A
Free East Timor Coalition
was launched following the national hui of East Timor solidarity activists in mid-September.
They will be focussing on working to end NZ military links with Indonesia, changing the NZ government's attitude to East Timor, highlighting
human rights abuses and the exploitation of East Timor's natural resources by foreigners.
The coalition will be supporting the International Day of Action Against Nike (see August PMA Newsletter
).
National days of action are planned for 12 November (6th anniversary of the Dili Massacre)
and 7 December (22nd anniversary of the Indonesian invasion). For more details contact
your local East Timor group or write to Free East Timor Coalition, PO Box 68-419, Auckland.
This is on the increase, with a new International Institute for Strategic Studies report
saying the arms trade ended its seven year decline in 1995 when sales grew by 13%.
In 1996 the three top arms suppliers (US, Britain and France) increased their sales;
the biggest importer of military hardware was Saudi Arabia ($US 9 billion), Egypt ($2.3
billion) with Japan, Britain, China, South Korea and Kuwait all spending between
$1 and $2 billion.
The worldwide arms trade was $39.9 billion in 1996 ($36.9 in 1995). According to 'World
Military Expenditures and Arms transfers 1996' global military expenditure in 1995
was $864 billion.
The US sold $7.3 billion worth of arms to poor countries in 1996; but in a new study
on US 'offsets' (concessions granted to foreign governments when purchasing defence
items) 86% of offsets demanded and received on new defence contracts went to ....
Europe ! The average amount of offset was 104.3% of the value of the contract.
Campaign against Landmines
Well, there we were all set to congratulate the Campaign on their achievements at
the Oslo conference then word came through that the International Campaign and Jody
Williams have been awarded this year's Nobel peace Prize - so congratulations TWICE
!
As you will no doubt have heard by now, the text of the treaty to ban anti-personnel
landmines was agreed (by most) at the Oslo conference and the treaty will be open
for signature in Ottawa from 2 - 4 December this year.
Following the announcement that Russia will support the global ban (although it is
still not clear whether they will actually sign the treaty), the US, South Korea,
India, Pakistan and India provide the main opposition to it, with Australia and Japan
undecided. The US government says they will not sign until they have an alternative
'defensive' weapons system.
Right Livelihood Awards
Congratulations to Dr Jinzaburo Tagaki (Citizen's Nuclear Information Centre, Japan)
and Mycle Schnieder (World Information Service on Energy, France) who were jointly
awarded the 1997 RLA for their work in opposing plutonium utilisation programmes.
This award is frequently referred to as 'The Environmental Noble' or "Alternative Nobel'.
Absolutely no congratulations to the governments of these three countries who are
messing about playing silly games in the Gulf, as per the PMA Action Alert earlier
this week.
We have been following the situation there with particular interest over the past
few months since the US government began issuing statements about Iran's 'nuclear
threat', announced their alarm about reports that Russia and China were helping
Iran build long-range nuclear missiles, and more recently about Iranian construction of a long-range
missile capable of carrying chemical warheads. These statements have an uncanny resemblance
to those made about Iraq by the US government in their build-up to the Gulf war.
Then a few weeks ago, Iranian warplanes bombed Iranian rebel bases inside Iraq; Iraq
responded by putting warplanes up into the 'no-fly' zone; the US threatened Iraq
with "potent air and naval force" if the no-fly zone violations continued; Iran started
naval exercises in the Gulf; the US moved the Nimitz and its supporting battlegroup
into the Gulf; and on 13 October a statement came from Washington that the deployment
of the Nimitz et al was aimed at Iraq and not Iran !
This last statement was most intriguing, as it acts to confirm our suspicions that
indeed the US government may be plotting something against Iran.
Anyway - that's the situation, if you would like to do your own 'preemptive strike',
please feel free to contact Josiah Beeman, US Ambassador, US Embassy, 29 Fitzherbert Tce, Thorndon, Wellington; tel (04) 472 2068; fax (04) 471 2380.
And while you're in touch with him, perhaps you could also mention your displeasure
and disgust over the continued sanctions against Iraq - Quaker Peace and Service
have recently sent us a copy of their letter to NZ MPs on this, and it quotes the
International Commission of Enquiry on Economic Sanctions 1996 report as saying more than 1,500,000
people including over 750,000 children under five years of age have died in Iraq
as a direct result of the sanctions.
Furthermore, these sanctions are very clearly deliberate in their intent - they are
renewed by the UN Security Council every 60 days.
In one of those bizarre little coincidences, the Dominion
of 30-09-97 had a page 2 article full of good cheer regarding the visit of Douglas
Hurd (Gulf warmongerer extraordinnaire) to Wellington, and a wee snippet in the inside
pages about the deaths from the UN sanctions on Iraq - and guess what ? no link between the two items !
We have a number of papers relating to Iran's military capabilities, the effects of
the sanction on the people of Iraq, the use of depleted uranium ammunition in the
Gulf War and the effects of Gulf War Syndrome on 'allied' troops, contact PMA for
more details.
Briefing paper ...
With the November PMA Newsletter
there will be a briefing paper on what you can do to progress nuclear weapons abolition;
this will also contain recent information on new nuclear and laser weapons development;
and an update on NZ local authorities who have signed the A2000 Local Authorities Resolution.
Bumped from the last two PMA newsletters because of more urgent local and regional
news, here now is our summary. At the July Madrid NATO summit it was agreed that
talks would begin in September and October of this year to make sure the three new
first-wave expansion nations (Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland) are willing to commit
themselves in full to NATO membership - but what does this mean ?
Well, even before the summit the arms dealers were in there, the three governments
having already committed themselves to increasing their defence procurements over
the next five years (NATO membership commits governments to spending at least 3%
of GDP on defence). Since the summit a number of 'defence acquisitions' seminars have been held
for officials from the three countries - these are not necessarily sponsored by other
NATO members, one of the largest was arranged and paid for by Lockheed Martin, the
defence contractors who are bidding to sell over 100 F-16 warplanes to central Europe
! Contracts for new equipment are being signed with increasing frequency, and deals
between foreign and local arms manufacturers are proliferating at an alarming rate.
So on the one hand those who want to be in NATO are practically bankrupting themselves
to get there, but what of the costs to existing members ?
Pres. Clinton himself has put the cost of NATO expansion, just to US taxpayers, over
the next 15 years at $200 million each year, although the Congressional Budget Office
puts it at $1.3 billion per annum. Independent analysts have said the overall costs
for existing NATO members could be up to $120 billion - most of this being spent on
new military hardware.
And what of the non-NATO countries who are desperate to get into the alliance ? Well,
we have received several articles on Romania, wannabe for the second wave of NATO
expansion to be announced in April 1999, and their military reduction and reorganisation along NATO lines has begun, as has a purchasing spree for NATO-compatible equipment
and technology. In addition, their former state-owned arms manufacturing companies
have been restructured readied for privatisation.
Well - what do you think about this ? Waste of money or what !
Latin America arms sales bonanza ?
And our other held over summary from previous newsletters is that on the US government's
removal of the ban on high-tech weapons to Latin America in August. At the same time,
they proposed to designate Argentina a 'non-NATO ally' ( a category previously reserved for very few countries such as Israel, Jordan and S. Korea - those considered
US allies in actively hostile regions).
Argentina responded by opposing the lifting of the high-tech arms embargo, they do
not have the money to spend on such things - and do not want their military officers
becoming restless through envy if neighbouring countries upgrade their armed forces.
Chile and Brazil were upset by Argentina's new designation, as they see themselves as
close friends of the US. Goodness - its like reading a description of a kindy class's
interpersonal relations don't you think ?
In the meantime, US defence manufacturers were overjoyed at the prospect of an arms
sales bonanza - but alas for them, to date they appear to be foiled by the reluctance
of Latin American governments to dramatically increase their arms spending ! Nevertheless arms sales to the region (as elsewhere around the world) are ongoing - a report
received in August pointed out that Chile's proposed $US 1 billion purchase of war
planes is equivalent to a sixth of their annual social services, health and education
expenditure, and that in a region wracked by poverty ANY arms sales (whether high tech
or not) are likely to contribute to instability because of the drain on social expenditure.
Wellington peace people
There are still big gaps in the roster for Peace Forum, the Wellington Access Radio
programme produced by peace persons and groups.
Programme makers are required for the fortnightly blocks
from mid November.
Remember - if there are no programme makers, the programme will have to be shut down.
Please phone Mike at PMA (Monday afternoons or Friday mornings) as soon as possible
to book your dates!
The $US 3.4 billion mission to investigate Saturn began today with the launch of the
Cassini space probe despite massive international protest and attempts to stop it
in court. The protests focussed on the 32 killograms (thank you Don for your metric
conversion) of plutonium on board.
Although the launch went without mishap, the danger from Cassini is not over as it
will return in August 1999 to bounce off Earth's atmosphere on its way to Saturn.
Jenny Munroe
the Aboriginal woman who is the regional NFIP representative will be travelling the
country probably during November. For more information contact Suzanne Menzies-Culling,
PO Box 1375, Dunedin; tel (03) 477 33 95; fax (03) 474 0736; <corso@earthlight.co.nz>
Local Listings
Tamaki Makaurau / Auckland
23 October - Media Peace Awards,
contact Foundation for Peace Studies for details, (09) 373 2379.
1 November
- 9-30am to 4pm,
Forum on Third World Debt
at Ellen Melville Centre, cnr Freyburg Place and High Street, organised by Auckland
Debt Crisis Network, contact Sue Grayson, Trade Aid (09) 488 0341.
Resources
Note - we are getting a little behind on our resources listings because we have so
many ! An attempt will be made to remedy this next month ...
PADET Scholarships
- for MA or PhD students researching topics which promote international peace, disarmament
or arms control, grants up to $10,500, closing date
31 October.
Contact PADET, Trusts and Fellowship Office, PO Box 10-345, Wellington; tel (04) 495
9323; fax (04) 495 7225.
Petition for the return of Telecom to Public Ownership
and the very handy and informative CAFCA Fact Sheet No 4 about Telecom, get yours
from SPOT (Society for Publicly Owned Telecommunications), Box 2258, Christchurch.
Appeal of the Nobel Peace Laureates
asking that the UN General Assembly declare 2000-2010 the Decade for a Culture of
Non-Violence, that 2000 be declared the Year for Education in Non-violence, and that
non-violence be taught at every level in all societies - they are calling for signers
to their appeal, copies from PMA.
Anti-nuclear messages on audio cassette
- we have been given copies of each of these tapes which were made in the 1980s,
the tapes may be dated but their messages are not !
Perfectly Clear - essential facts of the Nuclear Age
(Dr Helen Caldicott); A Prescription for Survival
(Informed Democracy Group); And you thought civil defence was boring ... the myth and morality of civil defence
(Dr Jack Geiger).
These tapes were donated to us by a member of Physicians for Social Responsibility
(the US branch of IPPNW), please contact PMA if you would like any.
Sojourners / interns wanted !
Malu 'Aina Centre for Non-violent Education and Action, 10 miles south of Hilo, Hawaii,
is a small scale organic farming based community committed to peace, justice, simple
living and preserving the environment.
Short and long term volunteer internships for adults are available - contact Jim Albertini,
Malu 'Aina, PO Box AB 'Ola'a, Hawaii 96760. Tel + 1 808 966 7622.
Link to earlier PMA newsletters.
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