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Welcome tojhrs
second installment
ofRights in
Review, our annual
peer-reviewed
academic journal:
through scholarship
addressing rights
awareness and
improving peace
and security, jhrlooks to provide a
forum for
dialogue and the
exchange of
ideas from a variety
of perspectives
regarding the
pressing human
rights and social
justice issues of our
day.
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JOURNAL MISSION STATEMENTjhr is Canadas largest international media development organization.
Our goal - to make everyone in the world fully aware of his and her rights - is as
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increasing rights awareness, improving peace and security, and strengthening the
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discourse is our commitment to a comparative and interdisciplinary understanding
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 2010
Blogging for Human Rights
Nicole Bergen 6United Students for Fair Trade
Leah Wong; Taylor Dickie 9 Human Rights For All: The Helsinki Accords and the Fall of Communism
Kate Bruce-Lockheart 13Examining the Theme of Disregard for Afghan Civilian Life by Foreign Forces
Sima Atri 17A Case Study of Radio Journalism in Ghana: The Newsroom at Kapital Radio
David Kumagai, Ghana Intern 2009 26Bad Medicine: A Look Into Ghanas Fake and Counterfeit Drug Problems
Mary MacLennan, Ghana Intern 2009 29
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Creating rights awareness is the first and most
necessary step to ending rights abuses.
IntroductionIn 1962, J.C.R. Licklider described a theoretical
concept of a galactic network, able to connect
computer users worldwide and facilitate the sharing
of data and programs (Leiner et al., 2009). Today,
the impact of such a network -- the Internet -- has
indeed reached every part of the globe, providing
infinite possibilities for new types of communication
exchanges. One such possibility, web logs, emerged
in the late 1990s. Web logs, or blogs, provide a
medium for expression, education, entertainment,
and social interaction. The act of blogging
permeates nearly every social class, race and age,
covering an array of topics limited only to the
boundaries of the human imagination.
The world of blogs -- the blogosphere -- is becoming
increasingly more accessible on a global scale due to
the expanded availability of the internet and the
development of user-friendly blog software. In
2009, about 1.7 billion people around the world used
the internet (Miniwatts Marketing Group [MMG],
2009). Between the years of 2000-2009, internet use
grew by over 1640% in the Middle East, 1390% in
Africa and 890% in Latin America/Caribbean.
Worldwide, Asia contributes the highest proportionof internet users (43%), followed by Europe (24%)
and North America (15%) (MMG, 2009). Blog-
creation software programs, such as LiveJournal,
Blogger, and Word Press, have simplified the
process of establishing and maintaining a blog;
content delivery tools, such as Really Simple
Syndication (RSS) has enabled the rampant
circulation of blog content (Hbert & Zalot, 2010).
It has been estimated that one new blog is born each
second, and 1.2 million blog entries are posted each
day, resulting in the blogosphere doubling in size
every six months (Sifry, 2006).
During situations of human rights violations --
violence, oppression, discrimination, genocide,
exploitation, etc -- the blogging community contains
unique potential to generate authentic awareness and
progressive social movements. A contemporary
take-on the 17th century coffeehouse, the
blogosphere can (and does) serve as an incubator for
political, intellectual and cultural thought. In his
book The Blogging Revolution, Loewenstein
described blogging as an alternative to the top-down
approach of corporate media, offering an outlet for
uncensored context, criticism and
cynicism (Loewenstein, 2008, pp. 4). Loewenstein
(2008) documented personal encounters withunderground blog creators and maintainers
(bloggers) in places like Egypt, rural China, Cuba
and Iran, pointing to the power of blogging
anonymity to give voice to those living in repressive
situations.
Recognizing certain limitations of this new-age
think tank, the blogging community holds potential
to serve as an important catalyst for the promotion
of human rights on a global scale. This paper will
explore two (of many) characteristics of the
blogosphere that belie its capacity to promote human
rights: anonymity and power and trust dynamics.
The strengths and limitations of blogging as a form
of advocacy will be highlighted, aiming to prompt a
wider dialogue about the use of online
communications to advance human rights.
Anonymity
By its very design, the digital world confers a sense
of anonymity. Paradoxically, the immensity of the
blogging community can dissociate bloggers from
their immediate, offline reality while, at the same
time, serve as a space to depict an unabashedly
honest portrayal of their life. Unlike the highlypersonal nature of traditional mainstream media
(such as television, print journalism and radio),
those who engage in online communication may opt
not to provide visual or verbal depictions of
themselves (or their true selves). In the
blogosphere, false or distorted identities or remarks
can be readily created and conveyed with no
ownership over ones words. The online community
has a looser -- and more ambiguously defined --
sense of legal accountability than the offline world
(Carroll & Frank, 2007).
The ramifications of such a masked medium arecomplex. The opportunity for expository and
emancipatory blogging exists alongside the potential
for vulgar and defamation. Ethio-Zagol (2007)
addressed the value of anonymous blogs in the
Ethiopian blogosphere. In 2006, amidst conditions
of a strictly censored press, the practice of blogging
became a channel through which to expose human
rights violations on a global scale. In a country
where journalists are routinely imprisoned and
tortured under accusations of treason or inciting
BloggingForHumanRightsNicoleBergen
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genocide, the act of blogging is not
without risk (Ethio-Zagol, 2007). In the
blogosphere, these risks may be
lightened due to the difficulty of tracing
an unidentified informant, or the lack of
government resources to actively
regulate or pursue bloggers (Carroll &
Frank, 2007). The
justification for
undertaking this risk maybe balanced by the
potential for quick,
widely-spread
propagation of
information. In Ethiopia,
the power of blogging has been
successful at relentlessly chipped away
at the governments unchecked power
to the point that the government has
attempted to block political blogs (Ethio-
Zagol, 2007, pp. 62). (Note: the authors
blog The State of Ethiopia was active
throughout 2006 and 2007, with onlyeight posts in early 2008. Readers have
questioned the disappearance of Ethio-
Zagol from the blogosphere. This blog
can be accessed at http://
seminawork.blogspot.com.)
It is not difficult to find offensive or
defamatory blog remarks in the
blogosphere. Penrod (2007) described
the severe and negative impact that
preteen and teen-aged cyberbullies
caused in schools. These perpetrators,
often times undetected by authorities,
may not fit the description of the play-
ground bully, but are frequently least-
expected, seemingly well-adjusted
students. The author identified three
categories of cyberbullies: vengeful
angels (who use the power of anonymity
to defend those who have been
wronged), meangirls (who are bored
and create rumours for entertainment)
andpower-hungrynerds (often male
students, who attempt revenge on
traditional bullies) (Penrod, 2007).Doostdar (2004) characterized the type
of language used in Iranian bloggers
posts and comments. Shorter,
provocative comments were found to be
more impactful and effective at
capturing attention than longer, balanced
passages. In general, the type of
language used in the blogosphere was
more reckless and harsher than
traditional journalism media (Doostdar,
2004).
While the concept of anonymity may
give voice to oppressed populations and
spread awareness about human rights
issues, it simultaneously establishes a
stage for uncensored expression.
Power and Trust Dynamics
Lazarsfeld and Katz, 20th century
sociologists, proposed that information
is disseminated through opinion leaders,
who are responsible for shaping
messages and informing larger groups
(Rosenberry & Vicker, 2009). Theblogosphere, with its own distinct social
norms and practices, provides an
opportunity for participants to acquire
such an opinion leader status. The
increasing popularity of blogs and ease
of entry into the blogosphere position
this online community as widely
inclusive, at least to those with
reasonable access to the internet and
those who possess necessary computer
literacy skills. Due to the anonymous
potential of blogging, participants often
enter the blogging world with similarlyconstructed opportunities to attain
positions of power. (These opportunities
are inevitably dependant on a number of
other factors, such as the ability to write
engaging prose, time dedicated to
blogging activities, on- and off-line
social connections, etc.) The creation
and expression of ones online identity
is, for the unknown blogger, a
fundamental criterion upon which trust
is based and authority is built. An
exploration of the power and trustdynamics of the blogosphere necessitates
consideration of both bloggers and blog
readers (followers) -- as well as their
online interactions.
Bloggers might frame this discussion as
a process of acquiring authority, a
hallmark of popularity and influence.
Marlow (n.d.) assessed the strength of
blog connectedness to determine means
of gaining authority in the blogosphere.
Four types of links within the blogging
network were identified: blogrolls (a list
of blogs that the author regularly reads),
permalinks (reference points to specific
points of a blog), comments (follower
responses to blog posts) and trackbacks
(an automatic referencing system from
one blog to another). A blogs
popularity was characterized by
public affiliations, whereas itsinfluence was determined by its
frequency of citation. In a rich-
get-richer manner, established
blogs tended to be more
connected through blogrolls, bu
not necessarily other types of links. The
author concluded that authority as
measured by popularity cannot be
interpreted as authority of
influence (Marlow, n.d. pp. 7). Thus, a
bloggers potential to earn a sense of
authority may not be reliant on its
lifespan; a sense of authority is earnedthrough recognition within the
blogosphere.
The degree of trust that followers bestow
in bloggers may reveal telling
characteristics of online power-
relationships. The process of extending
and gaining trust in the blogosphere is
obscure, and unique from other types of
situations. At an interpersonal level,
thick trust is established through
constant validation and confirmation by
dense networks of contacts (Putnam,
2000). In business settings, deep trust
is built through successful ventures and
gradually acquired mutual dependency
(Lewis, 1999). Online, an equalitarian
atmosphere motivates a type of thin or
drive-by trust, where participation is
valued, and ideal characteristics of
contacts may waive contradiction
(Radin, 2006). Online personas are often
assumed to possess traits that are
similar-to-self (Radin, 2006).
Consequently, Blanchard & Horan posit:since it is assumed that little
information comes through the persons
social networks about other group
members (especially geographically
dispersed communities of interest),
highly active members of virtual
communities may be more trusting of
other group members than is observed in
face-to-face communities (as cited in
Duringsituationsofhumanrightsviolations --
violence, oppression, discrimination, genocide,exploitation, etc -- thebloggingcommunity
containsuniquepotentialtogenerateauthentic
awarenessandprogressivesocialmovements.
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Radin, 2006 pp. 594). Thus, trust and power may be shared
more freely online.
The consequences of power-dynamics on human rights
blogging may foster an increased sense of awareness and
departure from traditional sources of power. In the United
States, six corporations control the vast majority of mainstream
media-- a stark contrast to the millions of independent blogs
around the world (Lowenstein, 2008). These millions of blogs
serve as outlets for narratives, advocacy, expression and
enlightenment. Unlike traditional media, the blogosphereremains largely un-colonized by corporate interests; rather, it
disperses power to voices worldwide.
Conclusion
Amidst inherent limitations, blogging for human rights holds
potential as a means of advocacy. The anonymous and vast
nature of the blogosphere creates a responsive environment,
with limited tangible consequences for violators of
(subjectively-perceived) conduct. The norms governing trust
and power are obscured in the blogosphere, allowing
connections to reach deeper, uncensored levels.
Acknowledging the shortcomings inherent in the practice of
blogging and critically addressing its foundational elementswill strengthen the discourse around this emerging
communication form. As a call to action, I encourage you to
engage in regions of the blogosphere that expose human rights
issues.
Raising awareness of human rights is paramount to ceasing
rights abuses-- and the blogosphere may indeed be an effective
tool for this task.
WORKS CITED
Carroll, B. & Frank, B. (2007). Blogs without borders:
International legal jurisdiction issues facing bloggers. In M.
Tremayne (Ed.), Blogging, citizenship, and the future of media
(pp.205-224). New York: Routledge.
Doostdar, A. (2004). The vulgar spirit of blogging: on
language, culture, and power in Persian Weblogestan.
American Anthropologist, 106 (4), 651-662.
Ethio-Zagol. (2007). The hazards of dissent.Index on
censorship 2007, 36, 59-63.
Hebert, S. & Zalot, L. (2010). Entering the blogosphere:
Professional and ethical considerations for dietitians (Report
prepared for NC 8205, professor Judy Paisley).Ryerson
University.
Leiner, B.M., Cerf, V.G., Clark, D.D., Kahn, R.E., Kleinrock,
L., Lynch, D.C., Postel, J., Roberts, L.G. & Wolff, S. (2009).
A brief history of the Internet. Computer Communication
Review, 39(5), 22-31.
Lewis, J.D. (1999). Trusted partners: How companies build
mutual relationships and win together. New York: Simon &
Schuster.
Loewenstein, A. (2008). The blogging revolution. Carlton:
Melbourne University Press.
Marlow, C. (n.d.).Audience,structure and authority in the
weblog community. MIT Media Laboratory. Retrieved from
http://alumni.media.mit.edu/~cameron/cv/pubs/04-01.html
Miniwatts Marketing Group [MMG]. (2009).Internet usage
statistics: The Internet big picture, world Internet user andpopulation stats. Retrieved from http://
www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm
Penrod, D. (2007). Using blogs to enhance literacy: The next
powerful step in 21st-century learning. Lanham: Rowman &
Littlefield Education.
Putnam, R.D. (2000). Bowling alone: Americas declining
social capital. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Radin, P. (2006). To me, its my life: Medical
communication, trust, and activism in cyberspace. Social
Science and Medicine, 62, 591-601.
Rosenberry, J. & Vicker, L.A. (2009). Applied mass
communication theory: A guide for media practitioners.
Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Sifry, D. (2006). State of the blogosphere, April 2006 Part 1:
On blogosphere growth. Retrieved from http://www.sifry.com/
alerts/archives/000432.html
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What is fair trade?
There is a continuous growth in the availability of
fair trade products. Since the mid-1990s attention
related to the movement has grown, as consumers
choose to make both an ethical and moral choice to
support fair trade products. Fair trade is an
alternative to cheap products made at the cost of the
labourer those forced into poverty, as they have no
choice but to work for an unlivable wage. This
agreement, made between producers and consumers,
provides producers with fairer compensation for a
product. When a product bares a fair trade label, it
is a guarantee the producer received a minimumprice for that product. The goal of fair trade is the
promise of sustainable livelihoods for people in
developing nations. The terms set by fair trade
ensure producers receive a better price for the goods
and services they provide. With the exploitation of
workers in the global south, fair trade aims to
provide them with the means to create and maintain
their own livelihood. The fair trade movement not
only provides the producer with fairer prices, but
also acts to educate consumers in the north about the
negative consequences of conventional trade.
HistoryIn 2001, Oxfam received a grant from the Ford
Foundation to promote ethical consumer choice in
the United States. Under the CHANGE initiative,
Oxfam works to train university students in the US
to become actively involved in their social justice
mission. It is based on the importance of educating
the next generation of leaders that will garner social
change. Some of the initial participants in the
CHANGE program decided to go back to their own
campuses and organize Fair Trade groups. United
Students for Fair Trade officially started in March
2003, during Oxfam student coffee organizer
training held in Seattle. The students involved
discussed the possibility for a student version of
NGO coalitions around fair trade. In total 71
students from 47 campuses were present at either the
Seattle or New Orleans training sessions that year.
Since the creation of USFT, the organization has
sent delegations to several countries. For example,
in 2005, they sent a Womens Delegation to Chiapas,
Mexico to explore community development through
womens empowerment in indigenous communities.
Vision
United Students for Fair Trade is a collective of
students and youth working to promote policies of
fair trade, while collaborating with cooperative
communities. The organization aims to create a
global environment based on human relationships,
transparency, democracy, equitable access, and
shared access. Using principles of popular
education a participatory style of learning, which
builds on the experiences of the group the
organization raises awareness while working to
develop leadership skills of students and youth. It is
an organization based on the consolidation ofstudent Fair Trade organizations in the United
States. The goal of USFT is to empower students,
by giving them the opportunities to work together
and promote their common goals in regards to fair
trade. The actions of the USFT are guided by ten
values: fair trade, anti-oppression, listening to
understand, guidance by local knowledge, awareness
of context, diversity, mutual exchange, making
connections, sustainability, and celebration. These
values are all related to the idea of fair trade, and the
impacts other movements have on the promotion of
free trade.
Governance
The UFST is a large organization, as it is comprised
of over 150 affiliate groups. Additionally, there are
also eight regional coordinators and nine national
coordinators, all democratically elected to make up
the Coordinating Committee. Those on the
Coordinating Committee have a 16-month term;
elections are held each spring, but the previous
committee is responsible for supervising the
transition period in the implementation of a new
committee. Members of affiliate groups elect the
committee, following the self-nomination of those
interested in committee positions. The Coordinating
Committee is the decision making body of the
USFT. The Committee must reach a consensus
before passing a motion. During these votes, any
member of the group may be present, and comment,
though only individuals on the Coordinating
Committee may vote.
An important aspect of the USFT is their belief in
non-hierarchical structures. The stress on
maintaining a democratic organization is reflected in
UnitedStudentsforFairTrade:ACaseStudyLeahWong; TaylorDickie
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their horizontal leadership structure. The
UFST believes maintaining a non-
hierarchical structure will develop a
higher number of student leaders. As a
result, when a member leaves the group,
a common occurrence in student groups
as members graduate, there is still a
strong foundational structure to ensure
the continuation of the group.
Staff / Volunteers
The majority of members of the USFT
are from affiliate groups on campuses
around the United States. As members of
student groups, they are volunteers.
Members of the Coordinating Committee
volunteer to run for the positions, and are
elected democratically by affiliate
members. While the organization is
largely made up of volunteers, they also
hire a full-time National Coordinator.
This person works in connection with
both the Coordinating Committee andacts as a liaison with affiliate
organizations, including NGOs and
business allies.
Aims
There are three main goals outlined in the
2005-2008 USFT Strategic Action Plan:
to cultivate student
empowerment; to participate
in the empowerment process
by educating people in the
Global South of their humanrights, and shaping a global
economy based on principles
of equity, justice and integrity; and to
improve organizational structure and
effectiveness. The USFT uses the idea of
popular education to empower students
and youth by providing them with the
information to run their own Fair Trade
organizations on a local level.
Activities
United Students for Fair Trade run skill-
building conferences in attempts toincrease leadership skills of their
members. They act as a resource group
for their members and other student
affiliates, so that local groups have the
resources necessary to promote
principles of Fair Trade on their own
campuses. In the three-year Strategic
Action Plan, UFST created a set of
principles and campaigns that affiliate
groups can use to promote Fair Trade on
their own campuses. Based on the
democratic structure of the organization
as a whole, the affiliate groups have the
freedom to promote both these
campaigns, as well as their own
initiatives that fit within the values and
goals of the USFT.
The USFT has used principles about Fair
Trade to create a Domestic Fair TradeProgram that allows student groups to
support the rights of domestic farmers to
develop a more just agricultural system
nationally. Another program developed
in the 2005-2008 Strategic Action Plan is
called Empowerment Bananas. The aim
of this program is to raise awareness
about the history of banana trade, as well
as the recent economic pressures on
producers of bananas. Empowerment
bananas are fair trade; the goal of the
program is to ensure producers receive a
fair wage for their product. Anothercampaign drawn from this Plan is the
Fair Trade Full Monty Campaign. This
campaign tries to ensure students have
access to fair trade products around their
campuses. It expands on the success of
getting schools to serve Fair Trade coffee
around campus.
In 2007, USFT created a new program to
start affiliate groups in high schools, and
added two high school students to the
Coordinating Committee. The aim of the
program was to expand the base of the
USFT from university students to youth
in general. This supports the democratic
nature of the group, as it allows youth
that are not going to attend university to
get involved in the organization.
Additionally, having a high schoolprogram creates stronger ties with
communities as high school students,
unlike many university students, still live
with their parents. This expands the
knowledge of not only the youth, but of
their parents and their community as a
whole.
The main events held by the USFT are
convergences, either on a national or a
regional level. In 2008, a national
convergence was held in Seattle,
allowing players in the fair trade
movement to meet and share ideas.
Workshops are held during the event,
promoting discussion between
participants about the fair trade
movement. The USFT value of anti-
oppression is an important part of
convergences; the organization wants tochallenge oppression at a global level,
while ensuring their own organization
remains anti-oppressive.
Reaction to Globalization
The relationship between the fair trade
movement and globalization are
inimitable; holding both direct and
indirect links. The USFT's relentless
fight to promote fair trade policies and
relegate the fiscally and socially
oppressive tendencies of capitalism in
favour of hierarchic nations such as theUnited States have catapulted the fair
trade motion into the social movement
stratosphere. The rise of modern
capitalism saw the privatization of
property and the reappropriation of the
product- the commodification of every
facet of global culture merely accelerated
the spread of globalization. The
power of globalization is held in
the hands of the dominant nations,
and works in favour of such. Free
trade agreements such as NAFTAforced developing nations to meet
inequitable demands, which
impeded the welfare of the country. As a
response to this exploitation, fair trade
movements such as United Students for
Fair Trade were created to promote
equity in terms of trading products
marked as commodities by the
predominant nations.
Influence of Globalization
Despite its indirect efforts to limit it as
with almost any facet of global culture -globalization has had an impact on the
USFT. While the negative implications o
globalization over the fair trade
movement are seemingly limitless, the
USFT refuses to allow the power of
globalization to control their actions. The
effects of globalization upon movements
like USFT are palpable, the direct
correlations unparalleled. Those who
benefit from globalization largely the
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western world- seek the cheapest and fastest way to attain such
commodities, and when small- scale manufacturers can no
longer meet these demands due to price or mass, they move
onto the next subordinate nation at which they can indirectly
exploit. This hinders fair trade movements and often acts as a
blockade to widespread exposure as they cannot produce on
such a mass level and cannot offer the lowest prices.
Yet due to the widespread manifestation of capitalist
consumerism and globalization, technological advances haveallowed for organizations such as United Students for Fair
Trade to increase their notoriety and become fixtures in the fair
trade movement. The Internet has increased communication
between members of the movement and has garnered vast
media attention, shedding light on the importance of
establishing fair trade policies for vendors and eliminating the
oppressive relationship between capitalist hegemony and
indigenous commodity producers.
Universal Fair Trade Movement
United Students for Fair Trade may have established itself as
one of the core social movements involving students today, but
it is only a fraction of a much larger movement. USFTstemmed as an auxiliary group from Oxfam, and has since
situated itself at the centre of the fair trade debate. The fair
trade movement, for its vast significance, is lead by not one
supreme organization, but a plethora of groups. While they
differ based on location, objective and demand, they all serve
the same purpose: to educate and implement fair trade policies
and to impede the disproportionate trade agreements between
developed and developing nations. Organizations such as
Fairtrade Labelling Organizations (FLO) and the Fairtrade
Federation target global poverty and creating a sustainable
model for a fair trade economy which would allot labourers in
indigenous nations such as Jamaica equal rights and equal pay
where exports include Bauxite, rum, sugar coffee, bananas and
clothing made from sweatshops. These organizations also place
focus on the intrinsic effects of imperialism and colonialism
upon these nations, as they have succeeded in maintaining a
hierarchical relationship, which thus allowed them to impose
inequitable tariffs and undemocratic trade agreements upon the
impoverished nations.
The movement is also broken into smaller, more specified
organizations based on location and proximity. TransFair USA
is the most recognizable group advocating fair trade in North
America. A non- profit organization, it is one of the twenty
members of the FLO and the only third- party certifier. Itseponymous black and white label, drawing discrete parallels to
the symbol of yin and yang can be seen on many products sold
in North America. This label, notifies the consumer that the
product is certified fair trade and been produced in an equitable
and environmentally sustainable way.
Use of Technology
As with most social movements today, technology has played a
crucial role in garnering widespread support and media
attention. The development of the Internet paved the way for a
new means of communication for members and supporters of
social movements and granted a great amount of accessibility
to these movements. Because the organization is comprised of
over 150 subsidiary organizations across North American
campuses, the Internet is a key tool in maintaining clear goals
and asserting their solidarity. USFT makes significant use of
the Internet, through the creation of highly informative web
site, which provides information on the organization and how
to get involved. The website is inordinately interactive,
providing frequent updates to the status of USFT. The USFThas also sought the assistance of popular websites such as
Facebook, a social networking tool that allows members to
become fans of the organization and share information with
their friends about the movement. As with any student-
governed group, membership is fluid as students graduate. To
regulate this, a Coordinating Committee was introduced to
ensure order and clarity. The Coordinating Committee consists
of 17 members eight regional and nine national- who serve
16-month terms. Elections are held each spring, and occur
online due to the widespread location of members. The
elections are done through an online ballot system, which
allows current members of the committee to select from a list
of nominees submitted by members of the 150 affiliateorganizations. The members are then chosen on an instant-
runoff selection system.
Role in Social Movements
Social movements are, by definition, a loosely organized but
sustained campaign in support of a social goal and although
size varies they are all essentially collective (Encyclopedia
Britannica 312). Though the role and the magnitude of the
social movement has evolved with time, the central premise
has remained the same: to challenge the oppressive nature of a
hegemonic regime. Whether the regime be cultural, racial,
economic or political, the aim has always been to implement
change and equality. The United Students for Fair Trade is no
exception to such, as it has revolutionized student movements
and played a critical role in propelling the fair trade argument
into the mainstream media. Structurally, social movements are
much like political revolutions. The masses feel subjugated by
the elite ruling class. Charles Tilly argues social movements as
having three major properties: campaigns, repertoire and
WUNC displays. Campaigns, he says, are a sustained
collaborative effort making collective claims on target
authorities; repertoire, combination of specific forms of public
action such as pamphleteering, coalitions and demonstrations
and finally participants concerted public representation of
Worthiness, Unity, Numbers and Commitments (Tilly 84).Although the USFT and the fair trade movement seem to have
only just begun, they fit the true paradigm of social movement.
USFT, though seemingly small in comparison to other
organizations, continues to grow in membership and support
due to their unwavering solidarity and sense of unity.
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WORKS CITED
Bantjes, Rod. Social Movements in a Global Context:
Canadian Perspectives. Toronto, Ontario: Canadian Scholars
Press, 2007. Print.
USFT Strategic Action Plan. United Students for Fair Trade,
2005.
" Fair Trade Federation." Fair Trade Federation . Web. 19
Nov. 2009. .
"Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO)."
Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO). Web.
21 Nov. 2009. .
Murray, Douglas, Laura Raynolds, and John Wilkinson.Fair
Trade: The Challenges of Transforming Globalization. New
York: Routledge, 2007. Print.
Oxfam America. "CHANGE Initiative Oxfam America."
Oxfam America. Web. 18 Nov. 2009. .
Tilly, Charles. Social Movements, 1768-2004. Boulder:
Paradigm Publishers, 2004. Print.
"TransFair USA Certification Process." TransFair USA. Web.
19 Nov. 2009. .
"United Students for Fair Trade Page - Facebook." Facebook.
Web. 22 Nov. 2009. .
"United Students for Fair Trade." United Students for Fair
Trade. Web. 21 Nov. 2009. .
Black Coffee. Dir. Irene Lilienheim Angelico. Narr. Helen
King. National Film Board of Canada, 2005. DVD.
Life And Debt. Dir. Stephanie Black. Narr, Stephanie Black.
New Yorker Video, 2001. DVD.
The New Encyclopedia Britannica, 2007 Edition. New York:
Encyclopedia Britannica, Incorporated, 2007. Print.
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http://www.usft.org/http://www.usft.org/http://www.facebook.com/#/group.php?gid=2205066635&ref=search&sid=733670493.1810749017..1http://www.facebook.com/#/group.php?gid=2205066635&ref=search&sid=733670493.1810749017..1http://www.facebook.com/#/group.php?gid=2205066635&ref=search&sid=733670493.1810749017..1http://www.facebook.com/#/group.php?gid=2205066635&ref=search&sid=733670493.1810749017..1http://www.transfairusa.org/http://www.transfairusa.org/http://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatyoucando/take-action/student-action/changehttp://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatyoucando/take-action/student-action/changehttp://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatyoucando/take-action/student-action/changehttp://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatyoucando/take-action/student-action/changehttp://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatyoucando/take-action/student-action/changehttp://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatyoucando/take-action/student-action/changehttp://www.fairtrade.net/http://www.fairtrade.net/http://www.fairtradefederation.org/http://www.fairtradefederation.org/8/9/2019 Rights in Review 2010
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HumanRightsforAll:TheHelsinkiAccordsandtheFallofCommunismKateBruce-Lockheart
How can one be against human rights nowadays?
Its the same to be against motherhood.
George Arbotov, 1983
The Conference on Security and Cooperation in
Europe was, in the mind of Kremlin leader Leonid
Brezhnev, a long awaited trophy in the game of
Cold War relations. For years, Brezhnev and his
Soviet colleagues had pressed for formal Western
recognition of the political divisions of Europe
entrenched since WWII. Essentially, the Kremlin
wanted their sovereignty in Eastern Europe to be
enshrined by agreements in the international
community. At the time, these concerns dominated
Soviet interests at the conference. Although
Brezhnev got what he came for, the echoes of
Helsinki would reverberate throughout the Soviet
Union for years to come. Historians see Helsinki
not only as the zenith of dtente, but also as a
critical fracture in Moscows authority, one that was
to end up legitimizing opposition to Soviet
oppression. As Tony Judt explains, Hoist by the
petard of their own cynicism, Leonid Brezhnev and
his colleagues had inadvertently opened a breach in
their own defenses. Against all expectation, it wasto prove mortal. 1 Ultimately, the acceptance of
international human rights norms embedded in the
Helsinki Accords was to send shockwaves through
the Soviet system, hastening its fall from power.
In July of 1973, thirty-five countries came together
in Helsinki, Finland to discuss European borders
and the improvement of East-West relations. 2 The
West had finally agreed to such hold the conference
after years of avoidance of the issue of the post-war
European frontiers. 3 This change of heart can
partially be attributed to moves by West German
Chancellor Willy Brandt to achieve functional
relations with East Germany in his strategy of
Ostpolitik. 4 In a broader sense, the conference
represented the overall move towards dtente being
pursued by US President Richard Nixon and his
Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, with new
President Gerald Ford picking up the reins. 5 The
conference went beyond the two superpowers to
include nations such as Canada, Austria, YugoslaviaFrance, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Italy and all
the states of the Eastern Bloc accept Albania. Thus i
was a truly international conference, fortifying the
final accords by nature of their widespread
acceptance amongst powerful nations. The Final
Act, agreed upon by all the signatories in August o
1975, was grouped into three baskets or
categories. 6 The first contained agreements for
guiding relations between states, including respect
for human rights (Principle VII) and measures
meant to promote military transparency. 7 Basket II
encompassed a wide range of accords concerning
cooperation in matters of economics, science, theenvironment, technology, labor and tourism. 8 The
final basket which along with Principle VII was to
cause tremendous grief for the USSR concerned
humanitarian cooperation in issues such as the freer
movement of people and freedom of information. 9
While the Final Act was composed of these three
groupings, the USSR was predominantly interested
in Principle I and VI of the first basket. These two
points represented the culmination of a process that
Kremlin leaders had sought since Yalta: the
recognition of Soviet sovereignty in Eastern Europe
The accords stated that all states would respect
each others sovereign equality, respect the right
of territorial integrity and refrain from any
intervention in internal or external affairs falling
within domestic jurisdiction. 10 Brezhnev was
overjoyed with his spoils, which he felt would
surely immortalize him in annals of history. He
gleefully anticipated the publicity he would gain
when the Soviet public learned of the final
settlement of the postwar boundaries for which they
had sacrificed so much. 11 The West, it seemed,
had received a paltry compensation for the
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1 Tony Judt,Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945, (New York: Penguin Group, 2005) 503.2 ibid., 501.3 ibid., 501.4 ibid., 501.5 ibid., 501.6 Origin of the Helsinki Accords. Commission on Security & Cooperation in Europe, United States Helsinki Commission. http://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCE7 ibid.8 ibid.9 ibid.10 Tony Judt,Postwar, 501.11 Gaddis, John Lewis. The Cold War: A NewHistory, (New York: Penguin Group, 2005), 90.
http://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCE8/9/2019 Rights in Review 2010
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fortification of the Iron Curtain. 12
Besides from assurance of economic,
social and cultural cooperation and
dtente with the Soviet Union, little else
had been achieved. 13 American
President Gerald Ford was heavily
criticized over the conference outcomes.
Former CIA Director Robert Gates even
speculated that it might have cost him his
presidency: Ford paid a terrible pricefor going perhaps reelection itself. 14
Brezhnev swelled with pride while Ford
faced biting critics. The Helsinki Accords
seemed to have been more final for
Ford than anyone, while thrusting
Brezhnev into diplomatic supremacy. Yet
the same agreements that afforded the
USSR their most sought after victory
would also contribute to its demise.
The human rights component of the
Final Act proved to be the Achilles heel
of the USSR. During the conference,Brezhnev had paid them little heed,
assuming they were nothing more than
political window dressing. 15 In case
Brezhnev did have any lingering fears
over these agreements, Soviet Foreign
Minister Andrei Gromyko was quick to
assuage any doubts. Gromyko assured
Brezhnev of the triviality of the
principles regarding human rights,
claiming: We are masters in our own
house. 16 Despite his dismissive
attitude towards the human rights
component of the accords, Brezhnev had
committed his government to a host of
agreements incompatible with Moscows
style of rule. These included the freedom
of thought, conscience, religion; equality
of all races, sexes, languages and
religions; and the promotion of civil,
political, economic and cultural rights
and freedoms. 17 As historian John
Lewis Gaddis explains, Helsinki
became, in short, a legal and moral trap.
18 However, Brezhnev lacked the
foresight to understand the implications
of his actions. He was not alone. No
politician, from Kissinger to Gromyko,
could fully comprehend impact of their
agreement: Very few of the signatoriesof the Helsinki Accords foresaw the
challenge that such a soft issue as
human rights would eventually present to
the Cold War order. 19
By signing the Helsinki Accords, the
Kremlin had effectively legitimized
opposition to the regime. 20 The effects
of this were both profound and
unexpected. In the words of prominent
Soviet dissident Natan Sharansky: What
had been viewed derisively by many
Soviet observers as an insignificantSoviet concession to respect human
rights turned out to be one of the most
fateful decisions of the Cold War. 21
Soviet intellectuals, dissidents and
reformers were now given a solid
foundation on which to criticize the
abuses of Soviet power. Just as Brezhnev
was elated with Principles I and VI of the
accords, the dissidents felt their case for
reform had been practically gift-wrapped.
Brezhnev had handed his critics a
standard, based on universal principles of
justice, rooted in international law,
independent of Marxist-Leninist
ideology, against which they could
evaluate the behavior of his and other
communist regimes. 22
The dissident movement in the Soviet
Union swelled in both ranks and
legitimacy. Opposition to the regime had
gone beyond the realm of a limited elite:
thousands of individuals who lacked
the prominence of Solzhenitsyn and
Sakharov began to stand with them in
holding the USSR and its satellite states
accountable for human rights abuses. 23
The accords represented a manifesto ofthe dissident and liberal movement. 24
Eastern Europe became fertile ground for
Helsinki groups and grassroots activity
25 It was no coincidence that the first of
these groups formed in Moscow. 26 The
city gained the ironic paradox of being
the epicenter of both Communist
authority and human rights activism. The
Moscow activists the Public Group to
Promote Observance of the Helsinki
Accords - disseminated documentation
of human rights abuses by the Soviet
government throughout the USSR andthe international community. 27 Their
claims were broadcasted in Russia over
BBC, Voice of America and Radio
Liberty, reaching citizens throughout the
Eastern Bloc. 28 The calls for human
rights were rapidly gaining strength.
Moscow was dumfounded, finding itself
totally blindsided by the human rights
monster it had so inadvertently released.
To compound Moscows concern,
support for the implementation of
Helsinki norms was growing worldwide.
In the United States, a special committee
made up of Congressmen, Senators and
members of the Ford Administration was
set up to monitor compliance with the
Helsinki Accords. 29 They began to hold
hearings on Capitol Hill, often drawing
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2010
12 ibid., 502.13 ibid., 502.14 Thomas, Daniel C. The Helsinki Effect: International Norms, Human Rights, and the Demise of Communism (Princeton: Princeton Universtiy Press, 2001),257.15 Tony Judt.,Postwar, 502.16 John Lewis Gaddis, The Cold War: A New History, 188.17 Tony Judt.,Postwar, 502.18 John Lewis Gaddis, The Cold War: A New History, 190.19 Odd Arne Westad, Reviewing the Cold War: approaches, interpretations and theories, (London: Frank Cass & Co, 2000), 355.20 ibid., 191.21Natan Sharansky, The Case For Democracy, (Green Forest: Balfour Books, 2005), 132.22John Lewis Gaddis, The Cold War: A New History, 190.23 ibid., 190.24 ibid., 190.25 ibid., 191.26 ibid., 191.27 Natan Sharansky, The Case for Democracy, 130.28 ibid., 130.29 ibid., 130.
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on documents of the Moscow Helsinki
group. 30 In the election campaign, of
1975 presidential candidate Jimmy
Carter put respect for human rights at the
top of his priorities. 31 In a breach of
protocol, Carter even went as far as
answering a letter from prominent
dissident Andrei Sakharov, confirming
his commitment to honor the Helsinki
Accords. 32 These encouraging signsfrom the US only fueled the growing fire
that was now raging in Soviet society,
and elevated the legitimacy of the
dissidents demands for human rights.
The growing calls for human rights in the
USSR were crippling Moscows hold on
authority. A number of potent forces were
running rampant throughout Soviet
society, emanating from the promises of
the Final Act. In the political sphere,
leaders views on the methods of
Communist rule were beginning to shift.For many, reform was the only way
forward. As political analyst Daniel C.
Thomas argues, the pressure from the
public was taking its toll: The
expansion of civil society under the
banner of human rights, the corrosive
effect of dissent on the legitimacy and
self-confidence of the party-state, and
Western governments insistence on
linking diplomatic relations to
implementation of human rights norms
convinced a growing number of
Communist elites of the necessity of
political (rather than economic) reform.
33 Politicians, such as Mikhail
Gorbachev, began pursing a new way
forward. This path of reform would
prove both precarious and, ultimately,
fatal to the Communist system.
While the collapse of the Soviet Union
was a multi-faceted and complex
process, stemming from a host of
political, economic and social factors, the
Helsinki Accords played a critical role in
the undoing of Communist power. The
Accords established human rights as a
fundamental norm of the international
community and East-West relations. 34
These new norms, originally dismissed
by skeptics, created an environment
toxic to Soviet hegemony. 35 As human
rights became embedded in the tapestryof international relations, the Kremlins
power grew fragile. Both historians and
political scientists have stated
unequivocally the importance of the
Helsinki Accords in the collapse of
communism: the salience of
international human rights norms and the
mobilization of domestic and
transnational human rights movements
were critical to the demise of Communist
rule in eastern Europe and the Soviet
Union. 36
A telling example of the impact of the
Helsinki Accords on the collapse of
communism can be seen in the exodus of
East Germans from the German
Democratic Republic. In the fall of
1989, hundreds of thousands of East
German citizens were fleeing their
country and pouring into Hungary. 37On
September 10th, Hungary legalized this
emigration and opened the borders with
Austria, thereby allowing East Germans
passageway into the non-Communist
west. 38 The government in East Berlin
was, not surprisingly, furious. However,
the Hungarian government brushed aside
their complaints, stating their obligations
under the Helsinki Accords as
justification for their actions. 39 The
process, set in motion back in 1973, was
coming back to haunt the Soviet Union,
releasing a Pandoras Box of forces
that created irreparable fissures in the
Eastern Bloc.
One of the most important legacies of the
Helsinki Accords is the peaceful path
they created for the collapse of
communism. The bloodlessness of
communisms fall can largely be
attributed to the atmosphere in the
international community brought about
by a stronger commitment to human
rights. As Daniel C. Thomas argues: Neither the structural contradictions of
the party-state and centralized planning
nor generational changes in the Soviet
leadership would have brought about the
largely peaceful and rights-protective
political transitions of 1989 without the
changes in international norms and state-
society relations connected to the
Helsinki Final Act. 40 Although the
collapse was tumultuous and chaotic, the
Helsinki Accords had ensured it was
peaceful.
International covenants remain a
powerful force in world affairs. The 1948
Convention on the Prevention and
Punishment of the Crime of Genocide
was one such agreement that had a
significant impact on the international
community. 41 Like the Helsinki
Accords did with human rights, the
Convention bound signatories to
preventing and punishing genocide.
However, the most important potential
contracting nation the United States
refused to sign. Rather than ignoring the
inconvenient details of the Convention,
as the Soviet officials did with Helsinki,
the US government heaped criticism on
the document. American opposition
stemmed from a long-standing enmity
towards any infringement on US
sovereignty by the international
community. 42 Many senators worried
that ratifying the pact would invite both
foreign and domestic criticism over the
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2010
30 ibid., 13031 ibid., 13132 ibid., 13133 Daniel C. Thomas, The Helsinki Effect: International Norms, Human Rights, and the Demise of Communism , 221.34 ibid., 22135 ibid., 25536 ibid., 25537 Tony Judt,Postwar, 612.38 Daniel C. Thomas, The Helsinki Effect: International Norms, Human Rights, and the Demise of Communism, 249.39 ibid., 24940 ibid., 25541 Samatha Power,A Problem from Hell: American and the Age of Genocide , New York: Harper Perennial, 2007.57.
42 ibid., 69
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2010 American treatment of aboriginals and other marginalized
groups: It was hard to see how it was in the U.S. interest to
make a states treatment of its own citizens the legitimate
object of international scrutiny. 43 There was serious
concern that perhaps the US would be brought to trial in the
International Criminal Court. 44 While US President Ronald
Reagan did eventually ratify the Convention in 1988, it had
taken forty years for the US to come to terms with the
agreement. 45 In those forty years, the benefits of signing the
convention simply could not weigh up to the political costs.
With the Helsinki Accords, the opposite had been true.
Brezhnev and his colleagues had firmly believed that they
would gain nothing but praise and power. Yet the third
basket of agreements that the Kremlin officials had chosen
to ignore had ended up being the chink in their armor. As the
chains of communism were broken, the triumph of the
Helsinki Accords echoed around the world. Despite a long
reign of revolution, purges, oppression and violence, human
WORKS CITED
Origin of the Helsinki Accords. Commission on Security
& Cooperation in Europe, United States Helsinki
Commission. http://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?
FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCE
Gaddis, John Lewis. The Cold War: A New History. New
York: Penguin Books, 2005.
Judt, Tony.Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945. New
York: Penguin Books, 2005.
Power, Samantha.A Problem From Hel: America and the
Age of Genocidel. New York: Harper Perennial, 2007.
Thomas, Daniel C. The Helsinki Effect: International Norms,
Human Rights, and the Demise of Communism. Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 2001.
Roberts, Steven V. Reagan Signs Bill Ratifying UN
Genocide Pact.New York Times,November 5th 1988,
Opinion section, New York edition. http://
www.nytimes.com/1988/11/05/opinion/reagan-signs-bill-
ratifying-un-genocide-pact.html
Sharansky, Natan. The Case For Democracy. Green Forest:
Balfour Books, 2005.
Westad, Odd Arne.Reviewing the Cold War: approaches,
integrations, and theory. New York: Routledge, 2000.
43 ibid., 6944 ibid., 6845 Steven V. Roberts, . Reagan Signs Bill Ratifying UN Genocide Pact,New York Times, November 5th 1988, Opinion section, New York edition.
http://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/05/opinion/reagan-signs-bill-ratifying-un-genocide-pact.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/05/opinion/reagan-signs-bill-ratifying-un-genocide-pact.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/05/opinion/reagan-signs-bill-ratifying-un-genocide-pact.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/05/opinion/reagan-signs-bill-ratifying-un-genocide-pact.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/05/opinion/reagan-signs-bill-ratifying-un-genocide-pact.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/05/opinion/reagan-signs-bill-ratifying-un-genocide-pact.htmlhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCEhttp://www.csce.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutHelsinkiProcess.OSCE8/9/2019 Rights in Review 2010
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Part 1 - Canadas Implication in DetaineeTortureIn November 2009, Richard Colvin, a past Canadianofficial in Afghanistan, renewed attention on thetopic of Canadas possible involvement in prisonertorture in the failing state.2
Colvin was in Afghanistan from 2006 to 2007,serving 17 months as second in command. Duringhis testimony to the Canadian parliament inNovember, he stated that he warned the governmentthen and again now about the occurrence of torturein Afghanistan. Colvin reported that all Canadian-captured prisoners were subjected to torture, such aselectric shocks and beatings, early in the mission.
The first warnings of mistreatment arose in 2006,however MacKay's predecessor, Gordon O'Connor,gave blithe assurances that the Red Cross was on topof things. Yet in Kandahar, the army was pointedlyignoring Red Cross phone calls, Colvin testified.3
Colvin said that in May 2006 he and others beganinforming Ottawa through written reports and verbalbriefings to senior officials in both the foreignaffairs department and the Canadian Forces "aboutthe grave deficiencies in our detainee practices andgrave consequences." At first, Colvin was ignored.By April 2007, he was told to be quiet and wouldlater be called the whistle-blower who effectivelyended the chance that Canada would fight past 2011.
Colvin and other Afghan officials say that the harmhas been done to innocent Afghans, our war effort,and Canada's credibility in demanding that othercountries respect human rights and the rule of law.Colvin states that Canada took more prisoners thanother Allied countries: 6 times Britain and 20 timesthe Netherlands.Canada also didnt keep track ofprisoners whereabouts and didnt have exactnumbers.
Colvin gave dire warnings that prisoners were beingtortured with electricity, extreme temperatures,knives, open flames, and even sexually abused.
In 2006, the Globe and Mailpublished agovernment-censored report.4 The government hadinitially denied the existence of the document andwhen the Globe and Mailgot access to it, it wascensored.The censored passages included theassertions that extrajudicial executions,disappearances, torture and detention without trialare all too common and that the overall humanrights situation in Afghanistan deteriorated in 2006.The ease with which Globe and MailcorrespondentGraeme Smith was able to obtain firsthand evidenceof the abuse proves both the salience of torture andthe disinterest of the Canadian government inlearning the truth. Smith interviewed 30 prisonerscaptured in Kandahar province who reported thatthey were beaten, whipped, starved, frozen, choked
ExaminingtheThemeofDisregardforAfghanCivilianLifebyForeignForcesSimaAtri
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This research report responds to a number of questions surrounding the treatment of Afghan civilians byISAF forces in Afghanistan. Although it begins with a broad mandate, it focuses in on three important sub-topics: Canadas specific implication, civilian deaths caused by ISAF strategies, and counter-insurgency inAfghanistan.
1.1 Canadas Implication in Detainee Torture1.2 Kunduz Air Strike1.3 Uruzgan Air Strike1.4 2008 Wedding Bombing1.5 Special Operation Night Raids1.6 Drone Warfare1.7 Contradictions and Consequences of ISAF Strategies
Conclusion The State of Civilians in Afghanistan
1 Aaron Wherry. Colvins testimony to parliament, Macleans.ca. http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-within-the-limits-imposed-by-my-professional-obligations/2 See No Evil on Afghan Torture, Toronto Star. http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-torture3 Lee Parsons. Report Confirms Canadas Complicity in Afghan State Torture, Global Research. http://www.globalresearch.ca /index.php?context=va&aid=5501
http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-torturehttp://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-http://www.globalresearch.ca/http://www.globalresearch.ca/http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-torturehttp://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-torturehttp://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-torturehttp://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-torturehttp://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/19/i-will-do-my-best-to-shed-light-8/9/2019 Rights in Review 2010
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during interrogation after havingbeen handed over to the NDS,Afghanistans intelligence police, bytheir Canadian Armed Forces captors.The NDS operates under almostimpenetrable secrecy.
The Afghan rights agency (AIHRC)documented 400 cases of torture
across Afghanistan.5 They uncovered47 cases of abuse in Kandahar,Canadas main operations province.They stated that iron rods, electricshocks, and beatings constituted thepreferred method of torture and thatthese were usually done to extractconfessions. "Torture and other cruel,inhuman or degrading treatment arecommon in the majority of lawenforcement institutions, and at least98.5 per cent of interviewed victimshad been tortured," said thecommission's April 2009 study. The
independent study, which trackedabuse claims between 2001 and early2008, shows most of the allegations 243 were leveled in 2006 and 2007.The Afghan commission report said14 per cent of the torture casesinvolved Afghanistan's notoriousintelligence service, the NationalDirectorate of Security.
The Canadian government shouldcarry out a full public inquiry into thealleged torture of detainees, saysHuman Rights Watch (HRW). 6
Canada has signed the ConventionAgainst Torture (1987). In thisconvention it is obligated to prevent,investigate, prosecute, and punishnationals that are complicit orparticipate in acts of torture.Independent human rights groupshave also legitimized Colvinsallegations, having raised concernsabout torture by Afghan securityforces for years.
Recently, claims of rendition haveemerged in the media as it has beendiscovered that Canadas spy agencyinterrogated captured Taliban.Officials claim that CSIS had beenquestioning detainees since 2006,according to censored witnesstranscripts filed with the MilitaryPolice Complaints Commission.7
CSIS would conduct a kind of pre-interview before rendition toauthorities implicated in torture. Themilitary only has 96 hours aftercapture so it is possible that they weresending innocent civilians to befurther questioned and potentiallytortured by Afghan authorities. Prime-minister Harper continues to giveCSIS blanket support.8
Knowingly transferring detaineeswhere there is a risk of torture is aviolation of the 3rd Geneva
Convention. The US StateDepartment, Amnesty Internationaland Human Rights Watch cite cases oftorture in Afghan jails. Despite theclarity of accounts, Harper continuesto deny claims, delay the release ofdocuments, and defame messengers.
Governments Discrediting ofColvins AllegationsThe conservative government hasbeen trying to discredit RichardColvins testimony.9 The governmenthas called his claim unsubstantiated
and simply not credible. DefenseMinister Peter MacKay, who has ledthe charge to discredit Colvin'sallegations, said he doesn't knowwhether the Foreign AffairsDepartment has looked at the prisonerinterviews cited in independentHuman Rights Reports.10
A former European Union diplomat,Michael Semple, a Harvard Carr
Center expert who spent years inAfghanistan with Colvin is mystifiedat Ottawa's insistence that there is no"first-hand" evidence of torture. Inaddition, NDP foreign affairs criticPaul Dewar said there is a mountainof evidence in reports from otheragencies, including the U.S.government. "It's Minister MacKay'sword against the facts reported by the
AIHRC, Amnesty International andeven the U.S. State Department," hesaid. The speaker of the House, PeterMilliken, recently called for therelease of documents to the House.
Significance for Canada inAfghanistanAlthough there have been no claimsthat Canadian soldiers committedtorture, they had knowledge of it. Ifthis is accurate, Canadians haveengaged in war crimes, not onlyindividually, but also as a matter of
policy.11 The torture allegations havealready inflicted grave damage on thearmy's campaign to win the "heartsand minds" of increasingly alienatedAfghans.12
Part 2 - Kunduz Air StrikeOn September 4th, 2009, the Talibanhijacked two trucks carrying NATOfuel supplies traveling from Tajikistanto the German NATO-base in KunduzWhen one of the tankers got stuck inthe river near the base, the Talibancalled to villagers to come and get
free fuel. Many villagers were stillawake past midnight because of awedding party and Ramadancelebrations. Kunduz is a poor areaand the word about free fuel quicklyspread to three villages in the area.Over 500 villagers came to the truckby foot and tractor. These were bothpoor civilians and fighters alikecoming to siphon free fuel. Thepresence of the tankers raised
4 Murray Brewster. Evidence of Afghan torture mounts, Toronto Star. http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/ 729402--evidence-of-afghan-torture-mounts5 Human Rights Watch calls for investigation, Human Rights Watch. http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/11/27/canadaafghanistan- investigate-canadian-responsibility-detainee-abuse.6 Aaron Wherry. CSIS in Afghanistan, Macleans.ca. http://www2.macleans.ca/2010/03/07/csis-in-afghanistan/ .7 Mike Blanchfield. Canuck spies grilling Afghan detainees prompts fresh calls for inquiry, Canadian Press. http://ca.news.yahoo.com /s/capress/100308/national/afghan_cda_documents .8 Murray Brewster. Evidence of Afghan torture mounts, Toronto Star. http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanm ission/article/729402--evidence-of-afghan-torture-mounts.9 Murray Brewster. Afghan Prisoner Transfers halted more than once, general says, Toronto Star. http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/arti cle/729311--afghan-prison-transfers-halted-more-than-once-general-says10 Lee Parsons. Report Confirms Canadas Complicity in Afghan State Torture, Global Research. http://www.globalresearch.ca /index.php?context=va&aid=5501.11 See No Evil on Afghan Torture, Toronto Star, http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afg han-torture.
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://www2.macleans.ca/2010/03/07/csis-in-afghanistan/http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/11/27/canadaafghanistan-http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-http://www.globalresearch.ca/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://www2.macleans.ca/2010/03/07/csis-in-afghanistan/http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/11/27/canadaafghanistan-http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-http://www.globalresearch.ca/http://www.globalresearch.ca/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://ca.news.yahoo.com/http://ca.news.yahoo.com/http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/728335---see-no-evil-on-afghan-http://www.globalresearch.ca/http://www.globalresearch.ca/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://ca.news.yahoo.com/http://ca.news.yahoo.com/http://www2.macleans.ca/2010/03/07/csis-in-afghanistan/http://www2.macleans.ca/2010/03/07/csis-in-afghanistan/http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/11/27/canadaafghanistan-http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/11/27/canadaafghanistan-http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/afghanmission/article/8/9/2019 Rights in Review 2010
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2010 suspicion at the German base, and after hearing from one
witness that no civilians were near the tankers, they calledfor an air strike. At 2:30 am, US F-15 fighter jets droppedtwo 500 pound bombs on the truck stuck in the river. Thiscreated a fireball that incinerated everything surrounding thetruck, killing over 100 people.13 The final leaked Germanreport states 147 dead including over 40 civilian deaths.Claims are contentious because many were obliterated by theflames.
The German base is 6 km away from the river. Colonel Kleinfeared the hijackers would use the trucks to carry out asuicide attack against the nearby military base and thereforedeemed this a serious danger. Colonel Klein received agrainy live video transmitted from the US fighter jet showingblack dots around the hijacked fuel truck (this video hassince been leaked to the public14). The German intelligenceoffice also received a call from a single unnamed Afghaninformant insisting that all individuals at the site were in factinsurgents. This claim was taken to be the truth, leading tothe decision for the air strike. No NATO member visited thesite of the air strike till a day later.
NATO rules of war: NATO rules state that forces cannot
bomb residential buildings based on a sole source ofinformation. Troops must first establish a pattern of life toensure no civilians are in the target area before they bomb.Air strikes are also only allowed if troops feel they will beoverrun by the enemy and in active fights outside of apopulated area.
BILD (a news agency inGermany) has exclusiveaccess to the 42-documentreport that contradicts manyof the German authoritiesclaims. Notably, videofootage from the event proves that it would have been
impossible for Colonel Klein to confirm the informantsinformation (that all individuals near the fuel lorries wereterrorists). The report leaked to the public determined thatthe German Col. Klein acted inappropriately in ordering theattack, overstepped his authority, and poorly evaluated thesituation.15
NATOs Secret Report on the Air strikesThe 73 page secret report, headed by Canadian DuffSullivan, has 500 pages of attachments including many ofthe interviews with individuals such as Colonel Klein and theAmerican pilots that dropped the two bombs on the tankersand Afghan citizens.16
The Report concludes that the mission on the night ofSeptember 4th was the result of a combination of ineptnessand deliberate misinformation, without which the air strike
would not have occurred. This is clearly in contradictionwith many of the statements by German officials. Theactions were deemed inconsistent with ISAF procedures anddirectives. It is further noted that the intelligence provided byHUMINT (human intelligence) did not identify a specificthreat to the camp, the mandatory condition for an air strike.17 Klein also made a decision that should not have beenmade on his own, without the permission of individuals inhigher positions of command.
First of all, Colonel Klein deliberately misinformed theAmerican pilots by calling the situation an imminent threatAlthough there was no contact between Germans and theenemy, Klein said the troops were in contact. He told thepilots that those pax (people) are an imminent threat.Although this information is not apparent from videosreleased, Klein argued that the insurgents were trying to tapthe gasoline from the trucks, and when they were finished,they would regroup and have intelligence information aboutcurrent operations [and then probably attack] CampKunduz. NATO could only find information saying that theTaliban planned to take the trucks to a nearby village, butwhen they got stuck in the river, decided to strip the vehiclesinstead.
Secondly, the American pilots continuously attempted toavoid the air strike. They first asked to fly low in order toshow military force and act as a deterrent. The pilots werehesitant because they could not see an imminent threat. As
the pilots could not disobey theColonels orders they had tofollow through with the strike.When they asked whether theyshould target the trucks or thepeople, the German air controllersaid the people. The pilots werealso told to keep headquarters out
of the situation, as they were urged to treat the trucks as
time sensitive targets.
Finally, the report documents an interview with Klein. In it,he argues that he asked 7 times that night if there werecivilians on the scene, and was told no every time. However,to be safe, he decided to call for only 2 500-pound bombsinstead of 6 bombs. In his interview, Klein admits that heused false information to obtain American air support. Kleinstates that he intended to destroy both the fuel tankers andthe insurgents at the site.
Part 3 - Uruzgan Air StrikeUnrelated to the Marjah offensive came the greatest loss ofcivilian life since the Kunduz air strike in September. On
February 21st, 2010, a NATO air strike hit a suspectedinsurgent convoy in the Uruzgan province killing 27 andinjuring 14 civilians. NATO soldiers thought the convoy of
12 Stephen Farrell. NATO Strike Magnifies Divide on Afghan War, NewYork Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/05/world/asia/ 05afghan.html.13 At 1:49 the bombs hit the trucks, The BILD. http://www.bild.de/BILD/video/clip/english/2009/11/26/kunduz.html .14 John Goetz. Kunduz Affair Report puts German Defense Minister Under Pressure, SPEIGEL. http://www.spiegel.de/international/ germany/0,1518,672468,00.html.15 John Goetz. Kunduz Affair Report puts German Defense Minister Under Pressure, SPEIGEL. http://www.spiegel.de/international/ germany/0,1518,672468,00.html.16 Imminent threat must be present in order to call an air strike: Tony Paterson. German Colonel Breached Procedure, Belfast Telegraph. http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan- strike-14487704.html.
Wehaveshotanamazingnumberof
people, buttomyknowledge, nonehasever
proventobeathreat.
GeneralMcChrystal
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.spiegel.de/international/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/05/world/asia/http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/german-colonel-breached-procedure-by-ordering-the-disastrous-afghan-http://www.spiegel.de/international/http://www.spiegel.de/international/http://www.spiegel.de/international/http://www.spiegel.de/international/http://www.bild.de/BILD/video/clip/english/2009/11/26/kunduz.htmlhttp://www.bild.de/BILD/video/clip/english/2009/11/26/kunduz.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/05/world/asia/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/05/world/asia/8/9/2019 Rights in Review 2010
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to attack Afghan and foreign military bases. However afterthe attack, everyone in the convoy was confirmed to becivilian, although they were traveling through Talibancontrolled territory. Among the dead included four womenand one child.
The latest air strike has had a significant impact throughoutthe country. Analysts have argued that air strikesbreedresentment amongst Afghans, and civilian casualties explain
the Talibans increased support. In the wake of the incident,all CFSOCC-A forces were ordered to stand down for 48hours in order to reread the tactical directives and the rules ofengagement.18 The Karzai government has called the airstrike unjustified and a major obstacle to counter-insurgency efforts. The cabinet has also called on NATO toclosely coordinate and exercise maximum care beforeconducting any military operation so that any possiblemistakes that can result in harming civilians can be avoided.General McChrystal has called for a full investigation intothe bombings.19 He also apologized on national Afghantelevision. He said:
We are extremely saddened by the tragic loss of innocent
lives. I have made it clear to our forces that we are here toprotect the Afghan people, and inadvertently killing or
injuring civilians undermines their trust and confidence inour mission. I pledge to strengthen our efforts to regain your
trust to build a brighter future for all Afghans. Mostimportantly, I express my deepest, heartfelt condolences to
the victims and their families. We all share in their grief andwill keep them in our thoughts and prayers.20
His apology was translated into Dari and Pashto and can befound online.21
An ArmyTimes article22 revealed a more detailed account ofthe air strike, emphasizing that miscommunication may
have led to civilian deaths. The air strike was called in bySpecial Forces A-Team (Operational Detachment Alpha3124), although they did not have eyes on their target. OnFebruary 21st, the A-team was clearing a bazaar in the townof Khod. The team leader received a call that a Predatorunmanned aerial vehicle flying overhead had spotted aconvoy of vehicles heading towards Khod. The Predatorpilot, flying the air craft remotely, said he had positivelyidentified weapons in the convoy. Team-A did not have thedevice that allows one to see the Predator footage it real timeso he took the Predator on his word. A scout weapons teamof two OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopters arrived tomonitor and possibly attack the convoy, but amiscommunication occurred and they both assumed they had
seen weapons when neither had seen them.
After a lengthy delay, the A-team lead
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