CRIMES
AND CORRUPTIONS OF THE NEW WORLD ORDER NEWS
Friday, February 2, 2007
CITIZENS’ HEARING ON THE LEGALITY OF U.S. ACTIONS IN IRAQ:
The Case of Lt. Ehren Watada
JANUARY 20-21, 2007
Tacoma, Washington, USA
In an unprecedented two-day Citizens' Hearing held over January
20-21, more than 600 citizens joined a distinguished tribunal
panel in listening to testimony about the legality of the US invasion
of Iraq. The Citizens' Hearing was convened to present evidence
that Lt. Ehren Watada would have presented in his February 5 court
martial on the question that the military ruled barred from entry
on Jan. 16 - the question of the Iraq War's legality. Lt. Watada
has repeatedly asserted that because the Iraq War is illegal,
it is his duty to refuse orders to deploy. He is the Army's first
commissioned officer to take such a stand.
Panel Chair David Krieger asserted: "If Lt. Watada cannot
get a full hearing about the war's legality in a military trial,
then his case should at least be presented in the court of public
opinion. This Citizens' Hearing was about giving Lt. Watada's
position equal time."
Testifiers included experts in military policy, international
law and war crimes:
* Daniel Ellsberg Military analyst who released the Pentagon Papers
in the Vietnam War;
* Denis Halliday Former UN Assistant Secretary-General, coordinated
Iraq humanitarian aid;
* Richard Falk Professor Emeritus of International Law at Princeton
University;
* Antonia Juhasz Policy-analyst and author on U.S. economic policies
in Iraq;
* John Burroughs Lawyers’ Committee on Nuclear Policy Executive
Director;
* Benjamin G. Davis Assoc. Prof. of Law, University of Toledo;
expert on law of war;
* Francis Boyle Professor of international law at Univ. of Illinois
(video).
* Marjorie Cohn National Lawyers' Guild President; Thomas Jefferson
law school (video)
Other testifiers were military veterans, and others directly
affected by the Iraq War:
* Ann Wright Retired Army Colonel and State Department official;
* Darrell Anderson Army 1st Armored Division in Baghdad &
Najaf; awarded Purple Heart;
* Harvey Tharp Former U.S. Navy Lieutenant and JAG stationed in
Iraq;
* Geoffrey Millard 8 years in Army National Guard; awarded 13
medals;
* Dennis Kyne 15 years as Army medic & drill sergeant; trained
in NBC warfare;
* Chanan Suarez-Diaz Former Navy hospital corpsman; Purple Heart
and valor commendation;
* Stacy Bannerman Military Families Speak Out; author of "When
the War Came Home"
* Eman Khammas Iraqi human rights advocate (video).
The format of the Citizens’ Hearing (convened at The Evergreen
State College Tacoma campus) resembled that of a congressional
hearing. A panel of citizens heard the testimony, examined witnesses,
and will issue a fact-finding report. The Panel focused on the
legality of the war, whether the invasion of Iraq constituted
a "crime against peace,” whether the military occupation
of Iraq constitutes a "crime against humanity," and
whether individual soldiers have an obligation or duty to refuse
unlawful orders that may lead to “war crimes.”
The 12-member Citizens’ Hearing Panel includes veterans
of World War II, Korea, and Vietnam, as well as more recent veterans.
It will include a military family member, Gold Star family member,
and high school student (representing youth of military age).
The Panel will also include a government leader, religious leader,
labor union member, and health care worker. Half of the Panel
members are military veterans.
Many of those who testified, most of whom would have been called
to testify at the court martial if the judge had allowed that
evidence, agreed that Lt. Ehren Watada had not only the right
to refuse to deploy to Iraq in an illegal war, but had a duty
to do so. Whether violations of the Nuremberg Principles or the
US Constitution, some testifiers asserted that Lt. Watada should
be recognized for his courage rather than undergoing a Court Martial.
Panelist Rich Moniak from Juneau, Alaska, whose son served in
Iraq and Afghanistan, said during the deliberation: "The
testimony presented to me highlighted how this war has failed
the Iraqi people and placed our soldiers at risk of being accessories
to war crimes."
Law professors Benjamin G. Davis and Richard Falk agreed that
there are clear legal grounds on which the war is illegal. Falk,
citing the sections of the US Army Field Manual, emphasized that
international law is applicable to the behavior of US soldiers
in a times of war and that soldiers have the duty to refuse unlawful
commands. Davis sharply criticized the decision of the military
judge to not hear Watada's full defense, stating that Americans
have a right to have their defense heard.
The most compelling testimony came from former members of the
US military, including five veterans of Iraq. According to Ann
Wright, a former Army Colonel and US diplomat who served three
and a half decades for the US government, Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld
and Powell created the preconditions that led to torture. She
added: "We must
ensure that members of the US military are not put in the position
of being ordered to carry out crimes against humanity."
Darrell Anderson, who received a Purple Heart for his service
in Iraq, talked about a situation he was involved in when orders
were issued to "shoot everyone" regardless of whether
they were civilians, including children. He stated that they used,
what he called, "excessive force." He said: "I
realize it was my duty as a soldier to refuse this illegal war."
According to Chanan Suarez-Diaz, who also received a Purple Heart
for his service in Iraq, the psyched up emotions among the troops
resulted in US soldiers taking "trophies" of brain matter
from Iraqis they killed and putting such in their refrigerators
on base.
Immediately following the closing statements, the panel retired
to discuss the testimony, consulting the US Army Field Manual,
the Nuremberg Principles, and Article Six of the U.S. Constitution.
They discussed the testimony until well into the night. Panelist
Staughton Lynd, an attorney who holds a PhD in history from Columbia
University, said: "The overpowering testimony from Iraq veterans
highlighted the conditions that soldiers on the ground are facing."
Russell W. McNutt, a veteran of three wars: World War II, Korea,
and Vietnam, stated: "I was exposed to a lot of knowledge.
The soldiers who served in Iraq that we heard from were facing
the dirty end of war. In urban warfare there are no definite boundaries,
in different instances the enemy can be in front of you or behind
your back. There is a lot of tension about who is a civilian and
who is an insurgent. Under those circumstances, instantaneous
decisions must be made in responding to threats. Time to exercise
discretion is limited, but every effort should be made to ensure
innocent bystanders are not injured through the use of deadly
force."
Tribunal organizer Zoltan Grossman commented: "It is the
command structure, rather than individual soldiers, that puts
enlisted personnel in the position where they feel they have to
commit war crimes to survive. The command structure is ultimately
responsible for war crimes or crimes against humanity. For example,
testimony indicated that the dehumanization of Arabs through the
use of racial slurs comes from a systematic training process,
not only from
individual soldiers' prejudices or fears."
Elizabeth Falzone, whose cousin was killed while serving in Iraq,
reflected: "The Citizens' Hearing provided a real venue for
citizens to hear from soldiers who are returning from Iraq. Hearing
from them and more from family members is especially important
with the "surge", and the repeat deployments that we're
seeing."
The Citizens' Hearing and the distinguished panel will release
the full report prior to Lt. Watada's court martial, including
the panel's final statement and excerpts from the testimony. Interviews
with panelists or testifiers can be arranged through Cindy Sousa
at 206-734-5040 or cindy@sdmcc.org.
There are now video and audio clips on the web site:
http://www.wartribunal.org/testimony.htm, and more will be available.
Information about Lt. Ehren Watada's case, his February 5th Court
Martial and the mobilization leading up to it, is at http://www.thankyoult.org
TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE CITIZENS’ HEARING
TO DONATE ONLINE: The Church Council of Greater Seattle is the
501(c)3 fiscal agent for the Citizens' Hearing. To donate online,
go to the Church Council of Greater Seattle: http://www.churchcouncilseattle.org
Go to ‘give’ then click on “Donate Now Through
Network for Good” button to reach the secure site. Then
choose “Designate a Fund” and put “Citizens’
Hearing.”
TO DONATE BY MAIL: Checks can be made payable to CCGS, but be
sure to put “CITIZENS’ HEARING” in the subject
line. The CCGS will receive and disburse the funds (which meet
IRS criteria as a tax-deductible charitable contribution). Checks
should be mailed to: The Church Council of Greater Seattle, Attn.:
Citizens’ Hearing, 4 Nickerson, Suite 300, Seattle WA 98109.
CONTACTS:
Media Requests:
Cindy Sousa cindy@sdmcc.org
Panel Editorial Staff:
Ellen Finklestein ehf5@yahoo.com
Elizabeth Falzone
Estella Villarreal
Zoltan Grossman grossmaz@evergreen.edu
Rob Crawford crawford@u.washington.edu
Larry Mosqueda lmosqueda@comcast.net
Audio/Visual and Web Design:
activ8media@yahoo.com
"The best way to protect the lives of courageous young people
who serve in the military is to avoid war-making itself. One cannot
kill an idea with a gun, but only with a better idea. If people
believe that law is better than war, they must do all they can
to enhance the power of law and stop glorifying war."
--Nuremberg Trials prosecutor Benjamin Ferencz
"The Nuremberg judgment, encoded into international law,
is sharp and clear. Aggression is the 'supreme international crime,'
differing from others in that it encompasses all the evil that
follows; all the evil. The US-UK invasion of Iraq is a textbook
example of aggression, as defined by US Justice Robert Jackson
in opening the Tribunal, also encoded into international law.
Justice Jackson's final words were also sharp and clear. We are
handing those convicted at Nuremberg a "poisoned chalice,"
and if we sip from it, we must be judged by the same principles,
or else the proceedings are no more than farce. One prime responsibility
of an aggressor is to hold the perpetrators accountable. If state
power is unwilling to meet this responsibility, it falls to others
to do so: to the citizens of the country carrying out the crimes,
more than any others."
--Professor Noam Chomsky
Email
