October 27 reports and photos Under investigation for 'search
& avoid' Dear Canada: Let U.S. war resisters stay!
"Preliminary" victory for Lt. Ehren Watada!
Federal judge bars Army retrial of officer who refused Iraq War By Jeff Paterson, Courage to Resist. November 11, 2007 Civilian federal Judge Benjamin Settle blocked the Army’s plans for a second court-martial of prominent Iraq War military resister First Lieutenant Ehren Watada. Judge Settle’s preliminary ruling last Thursday found that a retrial would violate Lt. Watada’s Fifth Amendment protections against being tried for the same crime twice—known as double jeopardy. [Ruling by Judge Settle (PDF). November 8, 2007] Lt. Watada became the first officer to publicly refuse to deploy to Iraq in June 2006. He was charged with “missing troop movement” and “conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman,” and faced up to six and a half years in prison. His case has remained undecided since military Judge Lieutenant Colonel John Head declared a mistrial in Lt. Watada’s February 2007 court martial, over the objection of the defense. No court martial can now take place unless Judge Settle reverses himself, or the military successfully appeals to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, or the U.S. Supreme Court—all of which are unlikely. In Thursday’s ruling, Judge Settle detailed numerous problems with the military’s handling of the first court martial. Lt. Watada’s Seattle-based civilian attorney Ken Kagan outlined the following points contained in the 33-page ruling:
"This is an enormous victory, but it is not yet over," noted Kagen. Underscoring this statement, the Army Office of the Staff Judge Advocate has since announced they plan to file additional briefs before Judge Settle issues a final ruling. "We look forward to the opportunity to further explain to the District Court judge the full extent of the protections and safeguards that are afforded to a military accused.”
Oct. 27 anti-war protest reports and photos
In San Francisco, California, Courage to Resist organizers (photo below) marched with Veterans for Peace, the Watada Support Committee, and many other military-related organizations calling for an immediate end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq. After the march down Market Street to Dolores Park, volunteers collected hundreds of signatures for our “Dear Canada: Let U.S. war resisters stay!” initiative. We also helped construct a walk-through “military experience” with the help of Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), American Friends Service Committee, Military Families Speak Out, and counselors of the GI Rights Hotline. The interactive theater installation featured recruiters (including Iraq War resister Pablo Paredes) out front, introduction to boot camp, and the real costs of war. Iraq War objector Marine L/Cpl Stephen Funk parked the IVAW tank nearby.
James did 6 years of active duty before going AWOL during Easter of 2007. He said that he could no longer morally be a part of the destruction of Iraq. He has been actively speaking out as a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War and Courage to Resist and is a fugitive from the military because of his AWOL status. Standing with James on stage were Green Beret Bob Smith (3 combat tours in Viet Nam), Viet Nam combat veteran Pat Dooley (1st Cav), Vietnam Combat Medic Dave Collins (1st ID), Iraq War vet Justin Cliburn of Lawton, Texas, Iraq War vet Amanda Fontenot, retired Air Force vet and gubernatorial candidate Vinny Mendosa, and infantry vet Ward Reilly who was a Viet Nam era war resister. (Report from New Orleans Voice for Peace).
More Courage to Resist photos from Oct. 27
Under investigation for speaking of "search & avoid"
Update November 3, 2007: The Army has begun a very official “unofficial” investigation of out-spoken Iraq veteran Eli Wright, an active duty soldier at Fort Drum, New York. Apparently the story below prompted right-wing bloggers to press the military to take action against Eli—for either the actions described, or simply talking about them. The military might take action to keep “search and avoid” missions from again becoming an “open secret”—as during the Vietnam War. We’ll keep you posted on developments, including possible action alerts if needed. Ill-Equipped Soldiers Opt for 'Search and
Avoid' Iraq war veterans now stationed at a base here say that morale among US soldiers in the country is so poor, many are simply parking their Humvees and pretending to be on patrol, a practice dubbed "search and avoid" missions.... "We'd go to the end of our patrol route and set up on top of a bridge and use it as an over-watch position," Eli Wright, also an active duty soldier with the 10th Mountain Division, told IPS. "We would just sit with our binoculars and observe rather than sweep. We'd call in radio checks every hour and say we were doing sweeps." Wright added, "It was a common tactic, a lot of people did that. We'd just hang out, listen to music, smoke cigarettes, and pretend." The 26-year-old medic complained that his unit did not have any armored Humvees during his time in Iraq, where he was stationed in Ramadi, capital of the volatile Anbar province. "We put sandbags on the floors of our vehicles, which had canvas doors," said Wright, who was in Iraq from September 2003 until September 2004. "By the end of our tour, we were bolting any metal we could find to our Humvees. Everyone was doing this, and we didn't get armored Humvees in country until after we left."
"Dear Canada: Let U.S. war resisters stay!"
Please sign the appeal online "I am writing from the United States to ask you to make a provision for sanctuary for the scores of U.S. military servicemembers currently in Canada, most of whom have traveled to your country in order to resist fighting in the Iraq War. Please let them stay in Canada..." Courage to Resist volunteers will send this letter on your behalf to three key Canadian officials--Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Diane Finley, and Stéphane Dion, Liberal Party--via international first class mail. In collaboration with War Resisters Support Campaign (Canada), this effort comes at a critical juncture in the international campaign for asylum for U.S. war resisters in Canada. After you've signed the appeal, join the campaign to support our U.S. war resisters in Canada by visiting the campaign resources page. Download, print, copy and distribute the "Campaign Action Leaflet" (PDF), the legal-sized petition (PDF), and the single signature letter (PDF) among other tools. |
Never the less, this week’s ruling is a major
victory for Lt. Watada and all war resisters. In San Francisco’s
Chinatown, Asian-Pacific Islanders Resist and the Watada Support
Committee called for Lt. Watada’s immediate release. Courage to
Resist (photo right) joined San Francisco Poet Laureates Jack Hirschman
and Janice Mirikitani, former S.F. criminal prosecutor David Chiu, and
Reverend Norman Fong at a press conference turned celebration.
In
New Orleans, Louisiana, state-native 
In
Chicago, Illinois, Joan Davis of Vietnam Veterans Against
the War (photo right) read a statement on behalf of Courage to Resist at a
rally of thousands:
