Lockheed Canadian Census Objector on trial.
Ontario man, Saskatchewan woman face jail time in census protest
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/s ... otest.html
Sunday, July 6, 2008 | The Canadian Press
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Sent: Thursday, December 04, 2008 7:45 PM
Subject: [coc-chaps-l] Lockheed Canadian Census Objector on trial.
Dear Friends
Please check out this new youtube video “Lockheed Canadian Census Objector on trial” and pass it along.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEe5WuN0Hsc
Lockheed Canadian Census Objector on trial.
Background
The corporatist agenda of privatizing public services means that more and more of the data that was originally handled by various levels of government are now being handled by corporations. When the 2006 Canadian Census was contracted out to the worlds largest military contractor, Lockheed Martin (an American multinational that is subject to the US Patriot Act), Saskatchewan resident Sandra Finley objected and refused to fill out her Census form. She has been charged under the Statistics Act with failure to comply with the census. If she is found guilty she faces a maximum $500 fine and 3 months in jail. She is trying to get in touch with the 60 other people who have been charged. Sandra can be reached by phone at (306) 373-8078 or by email at
sabest1@sasktel.net for more information visit
www.vivelecanada.com
Please pass this video link along
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEe5WuN0Hsc
Sandra is featured in my soon to be released documentary “You me and the SPP – Trading Democracy for Corporate Rule”.
cheers
Paul Manly
paul@manlymedia.com
======================================
----- Original Message -----
From: "Sandra Finley" <sabest1@sasktel.net>
Sent: Monday, December 08, 2008 11:11 PM
Subject: Census Lockheed Martin Trial: Canada signs international treaty to ban cluster bombs
CONTENTS
(1) I WILL USE CANADA'S SIGNATURE ON THE TREATY, IN MY TRIAL!
(2) PROGRESS! CANADA NO LONGER LISTED AS PRODUCER OF CLUSTER BOMBS.
(3) WHO DO I THANK FOR CANADA'S SIGNATURE ON THE UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS (CCM)?
(4) COUNTRIES THAT BAN INVESTMENT IN MANUFACTURERS OF CLUSTER MUNITIONS FOR ETHICAL REASONS. IF THEY CAN DO IT, WHY CAN'T WE?
(5) BANK GROUPS INVEST HEAVILY IN THE ARMS INDUSTRY. LEVERAGE POWER AND LACK OF SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY A THREAT TO THE WORLD.
(6) CANADA PENSION PLAN INVESTMENT in MANUFACTURERS OF CLUSTER BOMBS
(7) CANADIAN BANKS IN CLUSTER BOMB MANUFACTURERS
(8) STUMBLING BLOCK FOR BRITAIN'S SIGNATURE ON CCM: US MILITARY KEEPS STOCKPILE OF CLUSTER BOMBS IN BRITAIN.
(9) MINES ACTION CANADA (MAC) REPORT ON THE TREATY
(10) CANWEST NEWS REPORT ON THE TREATY BANNING CLUSTER BOMBS, DEC 3, 2008
(11) TEXT OF THE UN CONVENTION (TREATY)
(12) COPY OF JULY 24 EMAIL RE CLUSTER BOMBS (FOR NEWCOMERS)
===============
(1) I WILL USE CANADA'S SIGNATURE ON THE TREATY, IN MY TRIAL!
Thanks to those who picked up on the connection between:
- Lockheed Martin, manufacturer of cluster bombs
- Canada contracts-out Canadian census work to Lockheed Martin Corporation
- Canada signs onto the treaty to ban cluster bombs
- my trial on January 7-8th for failure to comply with the census because of Lockheed Martin's role in it.
I will put Canada's signature on the treaty to ban cluster bombs to good use in the trial!
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"
Canada joins cluster bomb treaty, U.S. absent
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/
20081203/cluster_bomb_081203/20081203?hub=TopStories
Updated Wed. Dec. 3 2008 11:04 AM ET CTV.ca News Staff
Canada has signed onto an international treaty to ban cluster bombs, though the U.S. and Russia have declined to join the effort.
Canada became a signatory to the Convention on Cluster Munitions on Wednesday when Jillian Stirk, Canada's ambassador to Norway, signed the document on behalf of Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon. ..."
Kathleen writes:
" .. it will be highly controversial for the government to be supporting the production of cluster bombs on the one hand via utilization of a company that produces them, while on the other hand going against cluster bombs within international circles."
Lawyer for the trial, Howard Rubin, says yes - get a copy of the treaty - which I found on the web (#11 below).
==========================
(2) PROGRESS! CANADA NO LONGER LISTED AS PRODUCER OF CLUSTER BOMBS.
On July 24th I sent out an email, "Lockheed Martin, manufacturer of cluster bombs. Canada, producer of cluster bombs."
Canada is now signed onto this UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS (CCM) which requires changes.
The web information has been changed: - Canada is a "Party to CCM"
NOTE THE UPDATES:
1. Canada is no longer listed as a producer of cluster bombs Source:
Cluster Munition Information Chart
http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/ ... 1.2008.pdf
AND
2. We are now listed as a country that is in the process of destroying its stockpile of cluster bombs.
http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/ ... _material/
munitionChart061507.pdf
Hallelujah!
But we still have catch-up to do with the more advanced countries in the world - - we still invest in the manufacturers of cluster bombs. We still give Lockheed Martin census and other contracts.
Challenge the banking and financial institutions, and the government, including CPP. That's how we will become a "leading world" country with some morality and integrity. (See #5 and #6 below)
========================
(3) WHO DO I THANK FOR CANADA'S SIGNATURE ON THE UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS (CCM)?
A. MAC
I sent a congratulatory and thank-you note to: Mines Action Canada (MAC) "... a coalition of Canadian non-governmental organizations, is an international leader working to eliminate the serious humanitarian,
environmental and development consequences of landmines and other explosive remnants of war (ERW)."
Executive Director:
Paul Hannon, e-mail:
info@minesactioncanada.org
---------
B. FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTER, LAWRENCE CANNON
Later I will write to him:
- express support.
- point out the contradiction of government contracts that support Lockheed Martin, manufacturer of cluster bombs.
- tell him that "the government cannot afford double standards by opposing the use of cluster munitions, while our own government funds (CPP) invest in cluster munition production".
- "the government cannot morally allow investments to be made by its resident financial institutions that are in total opposition to its principles or policies", as expressed by the signing of the UN Convention on
Cluster Munitions.
- "government efforts to fight the misery connected to the use of cluster munitions should include efforts to dry up the capital flows towards cluster munition production and trade."
==================
(4) COUNTRIES THAT BAN INVESTMENT IN MANUFACTURERS OF CLUSTER MUNITIONS FOR ETHICAL REASONS. IF THEY CAN DO IT, WHY CAN'T WE?
- Norway, through the Government's "Ethical Investing" which has been discussed many times in this network. There are excellent statements about why they will not invest in manufacturers of cluster munitions. Read them by clicking on the link below.
- Belgium, through the prolonged actions of Netverk Vlaanderen. The Belgian Senate passed a law proposal in 2007:
http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/wp/ ... nderen.pdf (This is an excellent paper, well worth reading.)
We really need to address the question of WHY Canada isn't a leader on these issues.
=====================
(5) BANK GROUPS INVEST HEAVILY IN THE ARMS INDUSTRY. LEVERAGE POWER AND
LACK OF SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY A THREAT TO THE WORLD.
From the web link:
"Although 98% of cluster munition victims are civilians, producers don't have any problems attracting capital from financial markets... concepts like corporate social responsibility and socially responsible investment seem to have little impact on investment decisions. ...
"1.2 ... a big majority of banking groups and other financial institutions (FIs) are blindly investing in any profit-gaining activity and are totally neglecting - and even ignoring - the impact of their decisions on human lives. ... This combination of a huge leverage power and a lack of social responsibility is a dangerous cocktail posing a serious threat to the sustainable development of our planet.
More and more ... are recognizing the power of FIs working behind the screens of companies and projects. Civil society is increasingly questioning the financial sector's accountability and responsibility. The Collevecchio Declaration on Financial Institutions and Sustainability, is a strong call by civil society organizations on financial institutions to embrace a commitment to sustainability, "do no harm", responsibility, accountability and transparency." ...
"1.2 Fostering cluster munition production: an ethical minefield. Several reports and studies have confirmed and documented the general knowledge that bank groups are investing heavily in the arms industry. With growing military budgets around the world, and especially the so called "war on terror" since the end of 2001, the arms industry has remained or become an interesting profit making industry for investors. ... Moreover the defence industry is known for its low sustainability standards, tendency
towards corruption and lack of transparency."
(Lockheed Martin is listed as a manufacturer of cluster munitions, which its website confirms.)
(6) CANADA PENSION PLAN INVESTMENT in MANUFACTURERS OF CLUSTER BOMBS
http://www.cppib.ca/Results/Financial_H ... quity.html
At March 31, 2008 CPP owned:
Lockheed Martin 345,000 shares valued then at $35,000,000.00
Raytheon 551,000 shares valued at $37,000,000.00
Textron 211,000 shares $12,000,000.00
EADS 101,000 shares then worth $2,000,000.00
Through CPP alone, Canadians (some of that money is mine) held $86,000,000.00 of investments in the manufacturers of cluster munitions. If other countries can lead the way, why can't we at least follow "best
practices"?
The CPP Investment Board's email address is:
csr@cppib.ca
=============================================
(7) CANADIAN BANKS IN CLUSTER BOMB MANUFACTURERS
Continuing with information from the website:
"... What follows are some examples of commercial banking services to six cluster munition producers ...
(I picked out all the "Canada" entries from the various list of banks that provided capital in 2005:)
Bank of Nova Scotia (Canada) $US 70 million ...
Bank of Nova Scotia, (Canada) $US 45 million, ...
Bank of Montreal (Canada) $US 45 million, ...
Bank of Nova Scotia, (Canada) $US 45 million,...
Royal Bank of Canada(Canada) $US 45 million
=================
(8) STUMBLING BLOCK FOR BRITAIN'S SIGNATURE ON CCM: US MILITARY KEEPS
STOCKPILE OF CLUSTER BOMBS IN BRITAIN.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7423714.stm
" ... One stumbling block for the treaty could be the stockpile of cluster munitions the US military keeps at bases on British soil. It will be very difficult for the US to engage in operations with countries who have banned this weapon and continue to use them
The British representative in Dublin, John Duncan, said the UK would work with Washington to find a solution to the issue.
But in a statement, the Pentagon stood firm, saying: "While the United States shares the humanitarian concerns of those in Dublin, cluster munitions have demonstrated military utility, and their elimination from US stockpiles would put the lives of our soldiers and those of our coalition partners at risk."
Some campaigners do believe countries like the US will change, however. They cite the landmine treaty of 1997 that was never signed by the US, Israel, Russia or China, yet those nations have not used landmines since it came into effect.
Simon Conway, from the Cluster Munitions Coalition, said there would now be "massive" pressure on the US.
"We think now that all of America's key allies have just renounced the weapon it will be very difficult for the US to engage in operations with countries who have banned this weapon and continue to use them," he said.
Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Ed Davey said the prime minister must make clear whether he would continue to allow the US to store its own cluster munitions on British territory.
"If he is serious about ending the scourge of these weapons, he must bring this abuse of the 'special relationship' to an end," Mr Davey said.
=================
(9) MINES ACTION CANADA REPORT ON THE TREATY
(NOTE BY SANDRA): the UN Convention (treaty) must now be ratified by the parliaments of at least 30 countries in order to come into effect. That is the usual process.)
Mines Action Canada (MAC), a coalition of Canadian non-governmental organizations, is an international leader working to eliminate the serious humanitarian, environmental and development consequences of landmines and other explosive remnants of war (ERW).
http://www.minesactioncanada.org/home/i ... ews&ID=363
03-Dec-2008 - Summary
Today governments from around the world are signing the most significant disarmament and humanitarian treaty of the decade, banning the use, production, transfer and stockpiling of cluster munitions.
Details
Canada signs historic international treaty banning deadly cluster munitions
New treaty also obligates governments to provide victim assistance and to clear contaminated land
Oslo, Dec 3rd, 2008
Eleven years ago today the world came to Ottawa to ban landmines. Today, Canada took another step towards protecting civilians by signing another historic treaty in Norway - the Convention on Cluster Munitions. "The Convention on Cluster Munitions protects innocent civilians from another indiscriminate weapon," said Paul Hannon, Executive Director of Mines Action Canada, Canada's civil society campaign that has been working to ban cluster bombs since 2001. "Canadians are justifiably proud of the leadership we have shown on landmines and we should be equally happy that Canada is one of the first countries in the world to sign the new cluster bomb treaty.
Today governments from around the world are signing the most significant disarmament and humanitarian treaty of the decade, banning the use, production, transfer and stockpiling of cluster munitions, and obligating them to provide victim assistance and to clear contaminated land. Signatories of the Convention on Cluster Munitions include many of the world's producers, stockpilers and past users, as well as some of the most seriously affected states. Close to fifty foreign, defense and government ministers from around the world are signing the treaty, demonstrating the high level of political commitment to urgently rid the world of cluster munitions.
"This treaty shows what can be achieved when states and civil society act together," said Co-Chair of the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) Grethe Østern of Norwegian People's Aid. "This is a victory because the treaty outlines clear obligations for states to help survivors, clear the land and destroy stockpiles so that the weapon can never be used again."
Like chemical, biological, and antipersonnel landmine conventions before, this treaty bans an entire category of weapons. For over 40 years cluster bombs have killed and injured civilians during and after conflict.
Unexploded cluster munitions continue to kill and injure for days, months, even decades after conflict. Tens of thousands of civilians worldwide have been killed or injured by the weapon. On average, a quarter of all cluster bomb victims are children. The treaty will help ensure that survivors, including their families and communities, receive concrete and measurable victim assistance, including physical and psycho -social needs, equality, rights and national action plans.
CMC Spokesperson Branislav Kapetanovic said, "The development of this treaty has meant a lot to me and has given me a reason to live. Being able to fight against something that brought a lot of suffering into my life and left me without arms and legs, left me without hope". Kapetanovic was injured in
November 2000 while clearing NATO cluster submunitions in Serbia. "For us here, this is not the end of our road: we still have to make sure the Treaty is implemented and monitored, and that funding is available to those in need," he added.
The Convention on Cluster Munitions sets the highest standard to date in international law for assistance to victims and their communities. It obliges nations to destroy all stockpiles within eight years and to clear contaminated land within ten. States must also provide detailed annual transparency reports on progress towards meeting their legal obligations.
"Countries have finally realized that today's wars cannot be fought or won with cold war weapons - the sooner they are destroyed, the better," said Thomas Nash, CMC Coordinator. "As of today, millions of these indiscriminate weapons will be destroyed and the world will be a safer place," he added. A number of countries have already started destroying their stockpiles.
Eighteen out of 26 NATO countries are signing the treaty, including the Canada, UK, France and Germany, as well as most African and Latin American countries, and some of the most contaminated nations, including Laos and Lebanon. After Oslo, the treaty will remain open for signature at the UN in
New York. For the treaty to enter into force it must be ratified by 30 countries.
"Like the Ottawa Treaty banning landmines, this treaty will stigmatize the use of the weapon by all countries, even if they have not yet signed the treaty, Nations such as the United States, Russia, and Israel will risk severe international condemnation if they ever use cluster munitions again," said CMC Co-Chair Steve Goose, Director of the Arms division at Human Rights Watch. "This is a time to celebrate, but the work doesn't stop here. It is time for countries to turn these binding words on paper into a reality on the ground," he concluded.
Even after the signing ceremony is over, regular citizens can still sign the People's Treaty to pledge their support and get involved in movement to turn the treaty's goals into a reality. Sign today!
=======================
(10) CANWEST NEWS REPORT ON THE TREATY BANNING CLUSTER BOMBS, DEC 3, 2008
(the convention must now be ratified by the parliaments of at least 30 countries in order to come into effect.)
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world ... id=1026584
Canada signs treaty banning cluster bombs - Steven Edwards, Canwest News Service
Published: Wednesday, December 03, 2008
UNITED NATIONS - Canada on Wednesday became part of the first global treaty banning cluster bombs, joining more than 100 countries at a signing ceremony in Oslo.
Announcing at the last minute it would join the group was Afghanistan, which had earlier been seen as bowing to U.S. pressure to refrain.
"This convention is a significant achievement. Over time, it will save the lives of many thousands of people around the world and will help to end the use of a weapon that has devastating effects on civilians," Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon said in Ottawa.
The Convention on Cluster Munitions, which prohibits the use, development, production, stockpiling and transfer of cluster weapons, is the first international treaty to ban an entire category of conventional arms.
But absent from the ceremony were the top cluster-bomb users, among them the United States, Russia, China and Israel.
Cannon pledged that Canada would work to have the convention accepted universally.
"Canada looks forward to working closely with like-minded states, UN agencies, the International Committee of the Red Cross and civil society organizations to fully implement the convention, rid the world of cluster munitions, and as far as possible repair the shattered lives of people who have suffered because of them," he said.
Cluster munitions typically contain dozens to hundreds of small, explosive sub-munitions. They have been used in more than 30 countries and territories, and have a devastating impact on civilians, who account for 98 per cent of all recorded casualties. Children are particularly vulnerable, and many are killed or injured as they pick up the bomblets out of curiosity.
"The signing of this convention by so many states is evidence that the suffering of victims and affected countries has not gone unnoticed," Jakob Kellenberger, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said in a statement.
With Afghanistan's decision to sign, the number of countries inking the treaty Wednesday was 108.
"I have received the authorization to sign the treaty," Afghanistan's ambassador to Oslo, Jawad Ludin, said to applause from country representatives.
Afghanistan was the target of tens of thousands of cluster bombs dropped by the United States in 2001 and 2002 as the U.S.-led invasion to topple the Taliban unfolded.
Insiders have said Afghanistan had been an early supporter of the treaty before backtracking under pressure from Washington.
The turnaround in the Afghan position came after lobbyists persisted with pleas to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, whose decision, Ludin said, was a "tribute to victims."
Some former users are already convinced that there are alternatives to having cluster bombs in their arsenals.
Britain, the world's third-largest user of cluster munitions in the past decade, is working "night and day" to destroy its stock of 30 million bombs, said Thomas Nash of the Cluster Munitions Coalition, an umbrella group that comprises some 300 non-governmental organizations.
He added that France, Germany and Norway had also already begun destroying their cluster munition stocks.
Signing the document for Canada was Ambassador Jillian Stirk. With the Norwegian government having played a central role in hammering out the convention, the ceremony took place at Oslo's City Hall.
Before it can go into effect, the convention must be ratified by the parliaments of at least 30 countries, something Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere asked countries to quickly do.
© Canwest News Service 2008
=================
(11) TEXT OF THE CONVENTION (TREATY)
Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) is at both of these web addresses:
http://www.clusterconvention.org/pages/pages_v/
vb_resourcedocs.html
http://untreaty.un.org/English/Opening_ ... nglish.pdf
For "Cluster munitions: What the UN is saying" go to:
http://www.mineaction.org/overview.asp?o=1324
================
(12) COPY OF JULY 24 EMAIL RE CLUSTER BOMBS
Lockheed Martin, manufacturer of cluster bombs. Canada, producer of cluster bombs July 24, 2008
CONTENTS
(1) COMMENTS
(2) WHAT, AND HOW BAD ARE CLUSTER BOMBS?
(3) CANADA, PRODUCER AND STOCK-PILER OF CLUSTER BOMBS (UPDATE DECEMBER 3,
2008: NO LONGER THE CASE)
(4) BELGIUM BANNED THE PRODUCTION OF CLUSTER BOMBS AND PROHIBITS INVESTMENT IN CORPORATIONS THAT MANUFACTURE THEM
(5) NORWEGIAN GOVERNMENT PENSION FUND DIVESTED FROM LOCKHEED MARTIN
(6) NEW ZEALAND "Taking Action Against Cluster Bomb Manufacturers"
(7) INTERNATIONAL TREATY TO BAN CLUSTER MUNITIONS, AND INVESTMENT IN THE
MANUFACTURERS OF CLUSTER BOMBS
a. NEW BOMB CLEAN-UP TREATY BEGINS, BBC NEWS, GENEVA 2006 (BACKGROUND)
b. DISCUSSIONS IN LIMA, PERU, 2007 (BACKGROUND)
c. MEETINGS CONTINUE, GENEVA, JULY 2008
d. PRESS RELEASE: U.S. OUT OF STEP WITH ALLIES WITH HOLLOW "NEW" CLUSTER BOMB POLICY: UNRESTRICTED USE FOR ANOTHER DECADE
e. WHERE IS CANADA IN THE INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS?
(8) BUSH ADMINISTRATION, LARGEST MILITARY BUILDUP, MAJOR BENEFICIARY IS
MILITARY CONTRACTORS.
(9) GOVERNMENT (CITIZEN) INVESTMENT IN LOCKHEED MARTIN UNDOES THE SOCIAL
JUSTICE AND PEACE WORK OF CANADIAN CHURCHES OVERSEAS
(10) LETTER RE LOCKHEED'S MANUFACTURE OF CLUSTER BOMBS SENT TO DALHOUSIE
UNIVERSITY
==============
(1) COMMENTS
Lockheed Martin is a manufacturer of cluster bombs. Internationally there are continuing efforts and successes in the banning of cluster bombs.
The 2008 United Nations Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) is currently in progress in Geneva. The treaty on cluster bombs is in negotiation. "A month after 111 nations including major US allies agreed to ban cluster bombs, the United States says it will continue to use its huge
stockpile for another decade."
"(2007) Belgium has not only banned the production of cluster bombs, but also adopted a law in March that bans banks and investment funds operating in that country from investing in companies that make these munitions. All countries should follow Belgium's lead ... Cutting off the flow of money to
manufacturers of cluster munitions would discourage production ..."
In Canada, cutting off the flow of money might mean cutting Lockheed Martin off from Government contracts? Forget about the banks - we, the people of Canada help finance a manufacturer of cluster bombs!
A group named "Net Werk" in Belgium is behind the action that led to the refusal of Belgiums to have anything to do with the financing of cluster bomb manufacturers.
In this network we periodically refer to the ethical investing of Norway's pension funds, more than $300 billion from North Sea oil royalties. The Fund has divested from Lockheed Martin.
When you understand the infiltration of Lockheed Martin into Canada, it is no surprise to see Canada on the list of countries that produce and stock-pile cluster bombs. (UPDATE: DEC 2008 Canada is no longer listed as a producer of cluster bombs and it is in the process of destroying its stockpile in accordance with the UN Convention on Cluster Munitions which it signed.) There are people in Canada working hard to reclaim our identity of peace-builders in the world. I am greatly pleased that our network of people can add our weight to help them.
Email (3 of X) was a letter to Dalhousie University to convince Dalhousie to rescind the $two million dollar contract with Lockheed Martin. The specific information that Lockheed is a manufacturer of cluster bombs may aid their decision. I will send this additional material to them.
It is always easier and face-saving to prevent the Lockheed funding of universities from happening in the first place. In a pre-emptive move, please contact people you know who have a connection to a University in Canada. Alert them to the possibility that Lockheed Martin may already be knocking on the doors of their University. Talk about it. Spread the word. Stop it before it's a done-deal, as in the Dalhousie case.
The contact information for the universities will be sent to everyone. Our combined letters will be sufficient to keep Lockheed Martin out of Canadian universities. The campaign will help create more awareness of the increasing role of Canada in the killing wars.
" The problem lies not in the nature of man but in the nature of power. ... The state imagines it is impotent without a military because it cannot conceive of power without force. ... " (from "Nonviolence: Twenty-five lessons from the History of a Dangerous Idea" by Mark Kurlansky, 2006.)
Some people may prefer to start communicating with church and other groups, rather than the universities. Government funding of a corporation that makes cluster bombs is an affront to the work of the Mennonite Central Committee, the Social Justice and Peace initiatives of various other churches, the great "development" work being done by various organizations, Amnesty International, Project Ploughshares, Doctors, Engineers Without Borders, ... the list is long.
We dig into one pocket to help fund constructive initiatives in other countries. Meanwhile the Government dips into our other pocket to take money to give to Lockheed Martin whose work completely destroys the good work of volunteers and under-paid contributors to international justice.
"Violence does not resolve. It always leads to more violence." (Kurlansky) The war in Iraq clearly demonstrates that "People who go to war start to resemble their enemy".
There are intelligent and creative, effective alternatives to the killing ways. We are part of the alternative way.
Cheers!
Sandra
=========================
(2) WHAT, AND HOW BAD ARE CLUSTER BOMBS?
"Cluster bombs are dropped in a canister that splits open in mid-air, scattering hundreds of soda-can-size bomblets over wide areas. The bombs can be either air-dropped or ground-launched.
Critics say cluster munitions are difficult to target accurately, and between five and 30 percent of the bomblets do not explode on impact, remaining in or on the ground and posing a risk to civilians, sometimes for years to come. According to Handicap International, 400 million people live in affected areas where they are at risk from unexploded cluster bomblets."
(From
http://www.humanrights-geneva.info/
article.php3?id_article=1705 )
98% of cluster munitions victims are civilians. (from
http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/wp/ ... s/2008/07/
explosive-investments_financial-insts-and-clusters-netverk-vlaanderen.pdf )
"Using cluster munitions is a serious breach of International Humanitarian Law as it is impossible to distinguish between civilian and military targets, and causes disproportionate long-term civilian harm."
Unexploded, they are the same as the land mines that Princess Diana is famous for working to eliminate.
Regarding international stock-piles, from
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6140530 :
"One billion of them are in the United States alone."
====================
(3) CANADA, PRODUCER AND STOCK-PILER OF CLUSTER BOMBS (UPDATE DECEMBER
2008: THE FOLLOWING NO LONGER APPLIES)
I was surprised to see Canada on 2 different lists of producers of cluster bombs:
a. The June 2007 information on
http://hrw.org/campaigns/clusters/chart/index.htm "A DIRTY DOZEN CLUSTER
MUNITIONS" lists Canada under "Countries that Produce Cluster Munitions (34)".
Canada is also listed under "Countries that Stockpile Cluster Munitions (75)".
("Countries Observing a Domestic Prohibition, or a Moratorium, or Supporting a Moratorium are" (June 2007): Belgium, Holy See, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway.)
b. From
http://www.humanrights-geneva.info/arti ... ticle=1705
regarding international treaties,
"At least 30 additional governments will sign the Oslo agreement in Lima ... Some of these new adherents, like Argentina, Britain, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, produce cluster bombs."
===============
(4) BELGIUM BANNED THE PRODUCTION OF CLUSTER BOMBS AND PROHIBITS INVESTMENT IN CORPORATIONS THAT MANUFACTURE THEM
There is very good information on the website of the group behind Belgium's principled stand:
http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/wp/ ... s/2008/07/
explosive-investments_financial-insts-and-clusters-netverk-vlaanderen.pdf
================
(5) NORWEGIAN GOVERNMENT PENSION FUND DIVESTED FROM LOCKHEED MARTIN
Dr. Gor Nystuen from Norway participated in a panel organized in New Zealand, for the purpose of bringing that country on-side with legislation to stop the funding of corporations that manufacture cluster bombs. Dr. Nystuen's biography explains the Norwegian situation:
http://www.stopclusterbombs.org.nz/2008 ... facturers/
"Dr. Gro Nystuen chairs the Council on Ethics for the Norwegian Government Pension Fund. This governmental pension fund has amassed a fortune of more than $300 billion over the last decade from oil revenue (Norway is the world's third largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia and Russia). Dr. Nysteun chairs the fund's Council on Ethics, established in 2004 to advance an ambitious ethical code. She has helped establish ethical guidelines and disinvestment policies that are used to screen Fund investments. The criteria for exclusion of companies (corruption, environment, human rights, and manufacturing of certain weapons) has seen the Fund divest from manufacturers of antipersonnel mines, cluster bombs and nuclear weapons or related components (including General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, Boeing and
Lockheed Martin). Dr. Gro Nystuen is an Associate Professor at the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights at the University of Oslo. She has been in the Norwegian foreign service since 1991 and played a key role in helping Norway to secure the 1997 treaty prohibiting antipersonnel mines."
===================
(6) NEW ZEALAND "Taking Action Against Cluster Bomb Manufacturers"
Information at:
http://www.stopclusterbombs.org.nz/
2008/02/11/public-talks-cluster-bomb-manufacturers/
The website has a list of links to groups from other countries who are working on the same issue.
===================
(7) INTERNATIONAL TREATY TO BAN CLUSTER MUNITIONS, AND INVESTMENT IN THE
MANUFACTURERS OF CLUSTER BOMBS
(UN Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW))
May 2007: " The government officials meeting in Lima this week are following up on a February agreement reached by 47 countries in Oslo, Norway to finish drafting a global treaty next year aimed at eradicating cluster munitions."
a. NEW BOMB CLEAN-UP TREATY BEGINS, BBC NEWS, GENEVA 2006 (BACKGROUND)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6140530.stm
Sunday, 12 November 2006, 01:25 GMT
New bomb clean-up treaty begins By Imogen Foulkes BBC News, Geneva
The use of cluster bombs in Lebanon focused world attention A new international law is coming into force requiring countries to clear up unexploded bombs and mines or pay teams of de-miners to do it.
The treaty on explosive remnants of war covers ordnance such as land mines and cluster bombs.
At the same time, in Geneva, a UN arms review conference is under way amid growing pressure on member states to discuss a ban on cluster bombs.
Aid agencies say such bombs should be banned, not just cleaned up.
'Cold War remnant'
There are thought to be billions of cluster bombs stockpiled around the world.
One billion of them are in the United States alone.
However, the US is one of the key nations, along with China and Russia who are not keen to discuss the issue. Cluster bombs have been around for decades, used in wars from Vietnam to Kosovo.
"You can't achieve your military or strategic aims if you kill large numbers of civilians in the process "
(INSERT: to me, you don't have to be too smart to understand the last statement.)
(full text is on the website.)
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b. DISCUSSIONS IN LIMA, PERU, 2007 (BACKGROUND)
http://www.humanrights-geneva.info/arti ... ticle=1705
Lima: Taking Aim at Those Who Finance Cluster Bombs
24 May 07 - A future international treaty to ban cluster munitions should prohibit financial institutions from investing in companies that manufacture the weapons, Thomas Nash, coordinator of the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC), told IPS in the Peruvian capital.
Ángel Páez/IPS, Lima - Nash said the draft treaty being discussed Wednesday through Friday in Lima, Peru refers specifically to a ban on financing for cluster munitions manufacturers.
"Belgium has not only banned the production of cluster bombs, but also adopted a law in March that bans banks and investment funds operating in that country from investing in companies that make these munitions. All countries should follow Belgium's lead," said Nash in a civil society forum held Tuesday in Lima, ahead of the intergovernmental conference that opened Wednesday.
Cutting off the flow of money to manufacturers of cluster munitions would without a doubt discourage production, said Nash, who added that the international banking community should listen to the world's clamour.
The government officials meeting in Lima this week are following up on a February agreement reached by 47 countries in Oslo, Norway to finish drafting a global treaty next year aimed at eradicating cluster munitions.
At least 30 additional governments will sign the Oslo agreement in Lima, Nash told IPS. Some of these new adherents, like Argentina, Britain, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, produce cluster bombs. Another manufacturer, Brazil, excused itself from participating in the conference.
Cluster bombs are dropped in a canister that splits open in mid-air, scattering hundreds of soda-can-size bomblets over wide areas. The bombs can be either air-dropped or ground-launched.
Critics say cluster munitions are difficult to target accurately, and between five and 30 percent of the bomblets do not explode on impact, remaining in or on the ground and posing a risk to civilians, sometimes for years to come According to Handicap International, 400 million people live in affected areas where they are at risk from unexploded cluster bomblets.
The six biggest producers of cluster bombs - Lockheed Martin, EADS, Thales, GenCorp, Textron and Raytheon - received 12.6 billion dollars in financing from 68 financial institutions between 2004 and 2007, according to the report "Explosive Investments: Financial Institutions and Cluster Munitions" by Netwerk Vlaanderen, a Belgian organisation that monitors arms trade funding and promotes sustainable investment.
The U.S.-based Textron, whose CBU-105 bombs were used by the U.S. army in Iraq, received a 1.25 billion dollar credit facility in 2005, arranged by Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase, which provided 120 million dollars each. A total of 19 banks - including Bank of America, Britain's Barclays, Germany's Deutsche Bank and Switzerland's UBS - are now taking part in the credit arrangement.
In March 2003, U.S. forces dropped cluster bombs in the Iraqi region of Hilla, south of Baghdad, killing at least 33 civilians and injuring 109, according to a report by the New York-based Human Rights Watch.
And although the Vietnam war ended more than 30 years ago, cluster bombs continue to cause severe damages to the civilian population in that southeast Asian country.
The CMC reports that 34 countries continue to produce cluster munitions, another 25 have used them in armed conflicts, and 75 have stockpiles that pose a threat to humanity.
Handicap International activist Anne Villeneuve said that 98 percent of victims of cluster munitions are civilians, the great majority of whom are poor, and many of whom are children.
Although Handicap International has compiled information on 13,308 confirmed casualties from cluster submunitions, it estimates that the total number of deaths from these weapons ranges between 55,000 and 100,000.
U.S. activist Jody Williams, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997 for leading the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, which concluded that year with the signing of a global treaty, was in Lima to deliver a message of support from herself and another five Nobel laureates: Guatemalan indigenous activist Rigoberta Menchú, Iranian lawyer and human rights activist Shirin Ebadi, Northern Irish peace activists Betty Williams and Mairead Corrigan, and Wangari Maathai, an environmental and political activist from Kenya.
The Nobel Women's Initiative statement says that "Arms control and disarmament are not esoteric issues that only a few 'experts' are capable of handling - generally in negotiations behind closed doors. Any discussion related to weapons must not be based solely on military considerations, but must include the humanitarian perspective as well."
Cluster bombs "have become synonymous with civilian casualties," the Nobel Peace Prize-winners stated.
Williams said cluster bombs are an even bigger problem than land mines, because their effect is more lethal, and argued that institutions that finance the producers are as responsible as the manufacturers themselves for the fatal consequences of the weapons.
"While so many of the world's arms cause so much human misery, cluster munitions deserve to be singled out as an especially pernicious weapon of ill repute," Williams said.
She added that the United States alone has millions of stockpiled cluster munitions.
Since 1999, the areas where the largest numbers of cluster bombs have been used are Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo and Lebanon, and in every case, the large majority of victims have been civilians, said Villeneuve.
The Ottawa Treaty or Mine Ban Treaty should have brought a de facto cut-off of investment in factories producing land mines, but that does not seem to be happening, because there are banks that invest in the manufacturers, even if they come from countries that have banned land mines, said Villeneuve.
That is why the cluster munitions treaty must explicitly prohibit investment in companies that manufacture these weapons, she asserted.
Nash said "we have achieved a world practically free of land mines; now we are trying to clean the world of cluster bombs. And that is not an impossible dream." (END/2007)
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c. MEETINGS CONTINUE, GENEVA, JULY 2008
EXCERPT from
http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/news/?id=429
July 08, 2008
NOTE: CCW = United Nations "Convention on Conventional Weapons"
IHL = "International Humanitarian Law"
" ... Both the morning and afternoon sessions lasted less than two hours each and there was some confusion on the continually changing programme of work.
The news of the day was the "new" US policy on cluster munitions leaked via an AP story late on Monday night. The policy (do nothing except export existing cluster munitions until 2018 and then adopt a 1% dangerous duds failure rate for cluster munitions) is unlikely to assist in pushing work forward in the CCW given that India, Pakistan, Russia, Brazil and others have explicitly ruled out a technology based approach. A scheduled lunchtime side event by US cluster munition producer Textron will not help this
dynamic. The CMC press release on the US policy was circulated yesterday.
Overall it is becoming more and more difficult to see a meaningful way ahead for the CCW's work on cluster munitions. The instinct for Canada, France, Germany and others appears to be that something in the CCW is better than nothing. But a new Protocol that does nothing to address the humanitarian
concern and that risks undermining existing rules of IHL, competing with the high standard set by the CCM and providing a convenient alternative for states that are wavering about signing in Oslo would clearly be worse than nothing. While there are several weeks of discussions and much positioning to come in the CCW this year, looking ahead to the outcome in November there are three scenarios that might allow compatibility with the Oslo Process:
1) An end to discussions on a new protocol on cluster munitions with perhaps a commitment to renew focus on this in the implementation of Protocol V;
2) A roll over of the current mandate to continue discussions next year on a new instrument on cluster munitions, while the CCM is busy entering into force;
3) Agreement in November on a brief protocol that says very little, but what
it does say is consistent with the CCM and so does not conflict with it.
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d. PRESS RELEASE: U.S. OUT OF STEP WITH ALLIES WITH HOLLOW "NEW" CLUSTER BOMB POLICY: UNRESTRICTED USE FOR ANOTHER DECADE
EXCERPT from
http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/news/?id=429
(Geneva, July 8, 2008) - A month after 111 nations including major US allies agreed to ban cluster bombs, the United States says it will continue to use its huge stockpile for another decade. According to the new policy memorandum signed by Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, the US will also seek to ship cluster bombs to other countries, despite US law prohibiting transfers. After 2018, the US will still use cluster munitions with a claimed failure rate of less than 1 percent, despite wide recognition that a
failure rate approach will not prevent unacceptable harm to civilians. The policy puts the US squarely at odds with the 111 nations-including nearly all major US allies-that agreed to a new international treaty in May that comprehensively bans the use, production, trade and stockpiling of cluster munitions, no matter what the failure rate. The United States has been the leading known user, producer, stockpiler, and exporter of cluster bombs.
"Washington's cluster bomb policy is too little, too late," said Steve Goose, director of the arms division at Human Rights Watch, and co-chair of the Cluster Munition Coalition. "Most key US allies have already rejected cluster bombs because innocent civilians are killed and maimed, not only when the weapons are used but also months and years after that. Knowing this, how in good conscience can the US wait 10 years to accept a lesser standard?"
The US policy will allow unfettered use of the nearly 1 billion submunitions now in US stockpiles for the next decade, almost all of which are known to have very high failure rates and to be highly inaccurate, as shown in Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo, and in southeast Asia. Even the future policy is flawed with the percentage failure rate approach having been discredited after evidence from the 2006 conflict in Lebanon and rejected by states adopting the global ban last May.
"Even in ten years time, this policy will not be sufficient to protect civilians," said Grethe Ostern of Norwegian People's Aid, co-chair of the CMC. "There are no safe cluster bombs. The failure rate determined under testing conditions will have little relationship to the real failure rate in combat. And even then, the new US policy will not address the indiscriminate, wide area effect of cluster munitions during attacks."
In addition to allowing continued use, the US would seek to transfer cluster munitions around the world, even though current law prohibits it. "Shockingly, the new policy states the US will seek to ship cluster
munitions with high failure rates to other countries, despite the fact that Congress passed and President Bush signed a law last year banning such trade," said Goose.
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e. WHERE IS CANADA IN THE NEGOTIATIONS?
UPDATE, DECEMBER 3, 2008: CANADA SIGNED THE TREATY to ban cluster munitions.
Pushing hard for an international ban on cluster bombs? I don't know. But it is something we should find out. If our Government is not aggressively supporting the positions of Belgium and Norway, etc. it is our
responsibility to see that they are. If they are, we should be extending our support to the officials. If anyone knows the situation, please send it in. It looks as though the meetings resume in November.
===========================
(8) BUSH ADMINISTRATION, LARGEST MILITARY BUILDUP, MAJOR BENEFICIARY IS
MILITARY CONTRACTORS. NUMBERS.
http://www.worldpolicy.org/projects/arm ... 32307.html
CONTRACTS SOAR ON STRENGTH OF RECORD MILITARY SPENDING
March 2007
The Bush administration has presided over one of the largest military buildups in the history of the United States, and the biggest beneficiaries of this spending boom have been major military contractors.
Counting the costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the Department of Energy's work on nuclear weapons and naval reactors, proposed military spending for FY 2008 is $647 billion. After adjusting for inflation, this represents the highest level of military spending since World War II - higher than the peak of the Reagan buildup, higher than spending during Vietnam, and higher than the top year of the Korean conflict. Military spending has more than doubled since President Bush took office in January 2001.
This growth in overall military spending has been accompanied by comparable growth in prime contracts awarded to military firms like Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Boeing. Pentagon contracts are up from $144 billion in FY2001 to over $294 billion in FY 2006, an increase of 103%.
Measured in dollar terms, Lockheed Martin was by far the biggest beneficiary of the increase in Pentagon contracts. Between FY2005 and FY2006, Pentagon contracts to this Maryland-based company totaled over $26 billion, a $7.1 billion increase over a one-year period. Other contractors gaining $1 billion or more between FY2005 and FY2006 included Northrop Grumman ($3.1 billion), Boeing ($1.9 billion) and Raytheon ($1.0 billion). Lesser known firms like the American Body Armor and Equipment Company, the Kuwaiti Petroleum Corporation, and Tetra Tech have seen their contracts jump five- or ten-fold since 2001, in large part due to contracts linked to the Iraq war.
Stock prices are another way to measure the degree to which weapons contractors are benefitting from war increases. According to an analysis done by the War Resisters League, Lockheed Martin's stock price increased 116% since March 2003. Boeing, General Dynamics, Halliburton and L-3 Communications are among the contractors who saw their stock values jump more than 100%. During the same period, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 54%, meaning that many weapons contractors enjoyed double the average increase.
=================
(9) GOVERNMENT (CITIZEN) INVESTMENT IN LOCKHEED MARTIN UNDOES THE SOCIAL
JUSTICE AND PEACE WORK OF CANADIAN CHURCHES AND ORGNAIZATIONS OVERSEAS
Discussed under COMMENTARY. Please help see that information gets to people who are involved in these organizations.
=========================
(10) LETTER RE LOCKHEED'S MANUFACTURE OF CLUSTER BOMBS SENT TO DALHOUSIE
UNIVERSITY
TO: DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATION
SENT: Thursday July 24th, 2008
EMAIL ADDRESS: (
andrea.power@dal.ca)
CC: Dalhousie University Faculty Assoc
DFA@dal.ca
CC: Dalhousie Student Union
dsu@dal.ca
TO: Dalhousie University
- The Senate
- Board of Governors
- President Dr. Tom Travis
FROM: Sandra Finley
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Canada S7N 0L1
306-373-8078
sabest1@sasktel.net
Dear Members of the Dalhousie Governing Body,
In follow-up to my request of July 14th that you re-consider the decision to accept funding from Lockheed Martin Corporation:
The attached information documents:
- that Lockheed Martin is a manufacturer of cluster bombs.
- that cluster bombs contravene International Humanitarian Law.
It is persuasive argument against investing in, or taking money from Lockheed Martin.
Thank-you for consideration of my request.
Best wishes,
Sandra Finley
====================
Email from:
Sandra Finley
Saskatoon SK S7N 0L1
306-373-8078
sabest1@sasktel.net