A UN nuclear watchdog report suggests Iran could be developing a nuclear bomb, apparently confirming long-held suspicions in the West. But Tehran denies the claims, again insisting that its atomic intentions are peaceful. Michel Chossudovsky, who’s from an independent Canadian policy research group, believes that what Iran says hardly matters, because the U.S. is planning for war…
On September 13, 2009, Dr. Graeme MacQueen, a retired professor of religious studies from McMaster University, presented a speech entitled 9/11 Truth: the Challenge to the Peace Movement, at the conference, “We Demand Transparency! For Peace, Truth, and a New Economics.”
An ever increasing number of U.S. troops are fighting for peace in Afghanistan. But an investigative journalist claims to have revealed the shocking truth about surprise night raids by American forces and secret prisons where detainees are routinely tortured. In an exclusive interview to RT, Anand Gopal says Obama’s mission in Afghanistan is not much different from Bush’s in Iraq.
The Cost of War examines the longer term legacy of Israel’s war on Gaza.
By following characters associated with buildings that were targeted in the war, the film explores the humanitarian and economic situation in Gaza and the impact of the war on human development.
For example, how has the destruction of universities and schools impacted education? And what about hospitals, clinics, electricity grids, sewage works?
Al Jazeera reports that the streets of Kabul have been flooded with protesters, angry at the number of civilian deaths at the hands of foreign forces in the country.
The protests were triggered by an ISAF air raid, that killed ten Afghans, including schoolchildren, in Kunar Province, close to the Pakistani border.
Meanwhile, according to the New York Times, a second episode of civilian casualties within a week is under investigation by the Afghan government and NATO officials after reports that seven civilians were killed in Helmand Province in a NATO missile strike.
Earlier this week, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan put civilian deaths in the Afghan war at 2,038 for the first 10 months of 2009, up from 1,838 for the same period of 2008 — an increase of 10.8 percent.
For a more intimate and moving account of the civilian slaughter than you will typically find in the mainstream media, visit the Afghan Victim Memorial Project.
I don’t normally recommend a book before I have finished reading it, but I will this time. Sandy Tolan’s award winning book, The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew and the Heart of the Middle East, is a delight. It is the true story of the intimate relationship that developed between two families — one Palestinian and one Israeli — and the house that both lived in, one before and the other after the 1948 expulsion of the Palestinians and founding of the state of Israel.
The Lemon Tree, which grew out of a radio documentary Tolan produced in 1998, succeeds on many levels in illuminating our understanding of the political and human dimensions of the decades-long conflict between Palestinians and Jews.
Part of the reason I’m willing to endorse this book before finishing it is that I had the pleasure of hearing and videographing the author when he spoke in Winnipeg last week. He came to Winnipeg to participate in Restorative Justice Week by telling the story of The Lemon Tree in the context of restorative justice.
Rather than report on what I learned about the stony path to peace and justice in the Middle East, I invite you to watch the video and form your own conclusions, one of which, I hope, will be to buy, beg or borrow the book.
Malalai Joya visited Winnipeg on November 16 and 17 as part of her 2009 cross-country tour to convince Canadians to press for the withdrawal of their troops from Afghanistan.
This feisty woman packed the house at the University of Winnipeg and spoke with passion about the oppression of her people under the combined weight of the Taliban, Hamid Karzai’s warlord drugocracy, and the NATO occupation.
Her message was one not heard in this country. Loosely paraphrased, it is: “Go home! You are making our lives harder!” It is a lesson we must all take to heart.
Malalai Joya was hosted locally by Peace Alliance Winnipeg, with support from the following organizations:
The Uniter (Mouseland Press Speaker Series)
Public Service Alliance of Canada (Prairie Region)
University of Manitoba Students Union
Project Peacemakers
Global College Student Advisory Council
Institute for Womens and Gender Studies, University of Winnipeg
Winnipeg Labour Council
Global Justice Committee CUPE Manitoba
Grassroots Women Manitoba
I shot some video for those who couldn’t make it. It features her speech at Convocation Hall at the University of Winnipeg. The total running time is just under 1 hour 16 minutes.
Malalai Joya speaking at Convocation Hall, Univeristy of Winnipeg, Nov. 16, 2009. Photo: Glenn Michalchuk
Malalai Joya spoke to a pack house of in Winnipeg last night at the University of Winnipeg. Three hundred people jammed into Convocation Hall to hear the Afghan MP’s passionate denunciation of the occupation of her country by NATO forces. Her contempt for the Taliban, the Karzai government and the warlords who back it was equally fierce.
We’ll post video of the event in the near future.
In the meantime, here is a short clip of from an interview recorded today in which Malalai calls upon Canadian military families to demand an end to Canadian military intervention in her country.
Malalai Joya Tour Update from the Canadian Peace Alliance
Malalai Joya spoke to packed halls in Victoria (300 people), Vancouver (1000) and Winnipeg (300) and is now on her way east for events in Toronto, York University, Halifax, and Montreal. The tour will culminate in Ottawa where she will address a forum of MP’s about why we need to end the war and bring the troops home.
Also, on November 25th at 2 pm Malalai will be making a special appearance to address the delegates at the Ontario Federation of Labour Convention in Toronto.
Look for Malalai on Canada AM Wednesday morning at 8:40 am and if you are in Toronto you can hear her at 2:30 on CFRB am 1010
Her book has also sold well at all events. You can order books online at the Simon and Schuster website.
