Transcripts For WHUT Democracy Now 20130129 : vimarsana.com

WHUT Democracy Now January 29, 2013

Openly criticize the Israeli Occupation of the west bank and gaza. Then a teacher uprising in seattle. [indiscernible] this movement to replace the map with something and accurately measures. Earlier this month, teachers at garfield high in seattle unanimously voted to stop administering a widely used standardized tests. Now the Seattle School district is warning teachers could face a 10day suspensions without pay if they refuse to give the test. We will go to seattle for the latest. All of that and more coming up. This is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. President of and is expected to express his support for a sweeping blueprint for Immigration Reform backed by a Bipartisan Group of senators. The senate plan includes a path to citizenship for the estimated 11 million undocumented people in the u. S. , but also demands tougher border enforcement and a system for tracking those who overstay visas. Some have condemned the plans exclusion of lgbt couples from the right to sponsor a foreign born partner so they can obtain residency. Democratic senator Chuck Schumer of new york and arizona is republican senator john mccain announced this in a proposal on monday. We still have a long way to go, but this bipartisan blueprint is a major breakthrough. It is our hope that these principles can be turned into legislation by march and have a marked up by chairman leahys committee with the goal of passage of the senate by late spring or summer. We have been too content for too long to allow individuals to know our lawn, serving our food, clean our homes, and even watch our children while not affording them any of the benefits that make our country so great. I think everyone agrees that it is not beneficial for our country to have these people here hidden in the shadows. President obama will outline his ideas for Immigration Reform today during a speech in las vegas. While obama is said to differ on several issues, Administration Officials said todays speech will focus instead on rallying public support for reform. On monday, immigrants in their advocates in new york city described the devastating impact of current u. S. Immigration policies and announced a nationwide mobilization in support of Immigration Reform. Speaking at judson memorial church, david chong talked about his family. Though we are one family, my brother is a u. S. Citizen. My parents and i are undocumented. Each day we live with the fear that one of us could be taken away at any time. Luckily, i have been granted deferred action and the authorization to work legally in the u. S. , however, this is only a temporary reprieve of two years. I hope is to state the other as a family without fear and worry and that is for president obama and congress to act and pass comprehensive Immigration Reform for 2013. President obama continues to publicly Lobby Congress for passage of his bid to reform the nations gun laws. On monday, obama and Vice President biden hosted the Police Chiefs of three communities that have seen Mass Shootings in the past year oak creek, wisconsin. R rock, colorado. Most recently, newtown, connecticut. The only way we can do everything that needs to be done is with cooperation of congress. That means passing serious laws that restrict the access and availability of assault weapons and magazine clips that are not necessary for hunters and sportsmen and those who are responsible gun owners. Law enforcement officials do this every single day, and if they can come to some basic consensus in terms of steps we need to take, congress is going to be paying attention to them. U. S. Military is reportedly preparing a new base in northwest africa from which to fly its fleet of drones. According to the new york times, the initial plan is to use the drone base for surveillance flights targeting islamist militants, but that could turn into missile strikes later on. If approved, the base would likely be built in niger. It borders mali where the u. S. Is currently aiding a frenchled military operation in the countrys north. On monday, french and malian troops retook control of the key malian historical site of timbuktu from islamist fighters. The fleeing militants set several buildings on fire, including a Library Holding priceless historical manuscripts. Taureg fighters in northern mali say they have taken control of the city of kidal and seven other towns from the islamist rebels. Egypts army chief is warning ongoing political turmoil amid mass protests against president Mohammed Morsi could cause the Egyptian State to collapse. In general issued the warning tuesday after residents in towns of the suez canal openly defied a curfew imposed on the morsi government, flocking to the streets to call for the exit of morsi as military troops watched on. At least two men died in clashes in port assayed, adding to dozens of others killed in recent days. Protests erupted outside the second anniversary of the egyptian revolution that ousted president mubarak. In port said, the unrest was killed by death sentences handed down saturday for 21 City Residents accused of playing key role in a deadly soccer riot last year. The United Nations to be forced to scale back food aid due to lack of international funding. On monday, the director of the in humanitarian operation said relief workers have already cut the nutritional count the food rations and half in the past two months. Speaking after a trip to syria, he warned the country is seeing widespread devastation. But it is really shocking the scale of the devastation and the cost and amount of time it will take to recover already, not to speak of course about the fact this is going on in an unrelenting way. The days of Living Conditions for people not in syria across the board are just quite appalling. What strikes you most is when you go to the hospitals and you see how sick people are having to cope in medical facilities that are just so seriously under resort. An internal document reveals the Obama Administration is shuttering the office of the special envoy in charge of closing guantanamo. The special envoy is being reassigned and will not be replaced according to a report in the new york times. President obama about four years ago to close guantanamo, the latest move indicates he is continuing to table that promise. A government report any losses from the Treasury Department approved huge paydays for executives at bailed out corporations despite rules limiting their compensation while on the taxpayer dole. The special Inspector General for the troubled as a relief program, or tar, says the treasury granted all 18 requests it received last year to hike pay for executives at American International group, aig, General Motors and ally financial. 14 of those requests were for at least 100,000 while the largest was for 1 million. The three firms collectively received some 250 billion in government bailouts. The special Inspector General for tart said a large section of the Mississippi River has been closed off after the crash of a barge set off a major oil spill. The barge was carrying 80,000 gallons of crude when it crashed into a road bridge in the mississippi town of vicksburg. The spill has forced the delays of some 300 barges trying to pass through the mississippi, a vital waterway for u. S. Goods. In brazil, four people of been detained for questioning in connection with the massive fire that killed over 231 people at a nightclub in santa maria. The blaze was set off by the pyrotechnics of a band performing on stage. The death toll was likely higher because the club only had one exit. The venues owners and to members of the band are in custody. Thousands of mourners gathered at a vigil for the fire victims monday night. I believe it is not just me but everyone in this world who has a heart has been affected by this fire. Anyone his family, who has a friend are removed. I have nothing else say. In other news from brazil, a leader of the countrys Landless Peasant Movement has been killed in a targeted shooting. Cicero guedes was shot dead in Rio De Janeiro state while bicycling to his home. He was killed not far from a sugar plant that he had helped occupy along with other landless workers this past november. His murder is the latest in a spate of killings of brazilian land rights activists in recent years. In a statement, the Group Christian aid said computer hackers with the cyber activist Group Anonymous say theyd have infiltrated the justice departments website in retaliation for the prosecution of aaron swartz. The Internet Freedom advocate who took his own life earlier this month. Aaron swartz was weeks before a trial date for downloading millions of articles provided by the Nonprofit Research service jstor and facing 35 years in prison. On saturday, anonymous said it had breached the justice departments firewall and planned to release Government Data in response to its treatment of aaron swartz. Those are some of the headlines. This is democracy now , democracynow. Org, the war and h aaromate. T. Welcome to all our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. For our first segment we turn to israel and the occupied territories where Israeli Forces have begun the year with a spate of killings of unarmed palestinian civilians. So far this month five unarmed civilians have been shot dead by israeli troops. The latest in a was a 21year old Palestinian Woman who was killed when Israeli Forces opened fire at a west bank school. The witness said she was standing with a group of companions when they came under fire. Two Israeli Soldiers traveling in a white car pointed their weapons, shooting indiscriminately at a college where the women were standing at the entrance. There was another man inside. They shot repeople and a large number of soldiers arrived. On monday, the Israeli Human Rights Group that some put out a report saying Israeli Forces had been extensively and systematically violating their own rules of engagement when suppressing protests in the west bank. According to jesselyn, since 2005, at least 48 palestinians have been killed by live ammunition fired at people throwing stones. Six more were killed by rubber coated bullets fired at dangerously close range, and two were killed by teargas canisters to rectify the protesters. This is a but some spokesperson. This report exposes the full list weapons used by the Israeli Security forces in the west bank regarding palestinian demonstrations. Stun grenades, weapons that are meant to be nonlethal if used properly and according to regulations were providing the military regulations that restrict the use of these different elements and we show how these regulations are often vary widely flouted by soldiers. That was the Israeli Human Rights Group btselem. We turn to an explosive documentary film of these really occupation of palestinians in the west bank and gaza. One subject of the film says a different subject says words ofare not the israel the peace activists or even of soldiers who have refused to serve in the occupied territories. They are the words of the former heads of the shin bet, israels secret service and the Agency Responsible for the countrys internal security. In the gatekeepers by israeli filmmaker dror moreh, the six former shin bet chiefs are brought together to speak out for the first time ever. In separate interviews they detail their methods against Palestinian Militants and civilians in the occupied territories, including targeted killings, torture, recruiting informants, and suppression of mass protests during the two intifadas. But in doing so they also criticize the occupation they were assigned with defending and warned successive israeli governments have endanger their countrys future by refusing to make peace. In this clip, yuval diskin, who headed the shin bet from 2005 to 2011, shares the doubts hes carried with him about the targeted killings of Palestinian Militants. That was yuval diskin, one of former six shin bet chief interviewed in the gatekeepers. Joining a list of nominees that also includes another film about the Israeli Occupation, five broken cameras, the gatekeepers is release unlimited theaters published in a limited theaters on friday. We dror moreh welcome you. You have interviewed all six surviving former shin bet head, equivalent to the heads of the fbi. The combination of fbi and cia. Added to pull this off . Why did they talk to you . I think they were ready. Timing is the most important thing. I think when i came to them with the idea of doing the movie, they felt it was long due needed and had to speak because theyre worried about the state of israel, worried about where israel is headed if they continue to maintain this occupation. For them it was a kind of non issue to come and speak in the movie. In this clip, former shin bet chief avi dichter discusses an israeli bombing of a home in gaza in july 22 2002. The attack killed Salah Shehadeh and 14 innocent civilians, including his wife and daughter and a family of seven living next door. Dozens were also wounded. The attack occurred just as Salah Shehadeh was reportedly preparing to sign on to a ceasefire halting attacks on israelis not in the occupied territories. Hear, dror moreh, the director, confronts him about the civilian deaths. Former shin bet chief. Talk about his response. I have to say i feel a little uncomfortable in the way you present the things here because you betray the things that the israelis are brittle, aggressive all the time with the palestinians are like doves. There is a reason why shin bet is there. The fact of the matter is, you cannot say in a way to treat israel as aggressive and the palestinians are innocent bystanders always been killed. It is not the case at all. This is misleading. Ithink theres something field while the in this film, it is the whole situation is different shades of gray. There is no total aggressive person there or aggressive entity towards a very innocent and not a violent entity and the other side it is both doing the worst they can. I think i can relate to what was said once from our foreign former minister said the palestinians have never missed an opportunity to miss an opportunity. I can say that on both sides. Neither side has missed an opportunity to miss an opportunity. That is all whole role of the gatekeepers. They have basically said, enough. It is not doing anywhere but it is only tactic without strategy. To show that in a way that only benefits both sides. If you portray only one side as the brittle, aggressive force in the other as the innocent, you are doing wrong to the truth on the ground. I have to say this is something which my movie tried to do very, very strongly to betray the situation as it is. The palestinians are doing terrorist attacks. That are right to do something they want to create their own country, their own homeland, and they oppose the aggressive occupation. We certainly are not here to debate the history with you, but we are trying to betray your film and it has powerful statements that should be highlighted. We become a preoccupation force similar to the germans in world war ii. We up become cruel to ourselves as well, the man to the occupied occupation using the excuse of the war against terrorists. That is in your movie. It is very powerful. I am not saying it is not in the move may movie. What i felt was when you portray that as the palestinians are people that are sitting there and not doing anything, it is not the reality on the ground. By that you have to show both sides. I think we knew do that, you portray only one side. I said that before. You have to be balanced. This is something i do not see some much here. Could you respond to both of these points . One, this powerful statement that shalom says, the former head, comparing themselves to the nazis . Look, i have to say the sentence that shalom said, when i was doing the interview, it felt like a physical blow to my stomach when he said back. I have to say shalom, when you see the film, you know what happened when you order the execution of two terrorists captured alive. We will talk about that after the break. Youre talking about the executioner that blew up the bus. No, there were tried to kidnap people on the bus. He ordered them to be executed without a trial. Look, i think the occupation is bad for israel and i think those people who came to speak in the movie from shin bet came because they feel the occupation of the palestinian and the last 45 years is something that is not good for the state of israel and should be stopped. I think when shalom spoke about what you just mentioned, he spoke about the ramification of the occupation on the israeli population, about what is becoming inside internally of the people. I totally agree. But the way, shalom was a young kid in vienna in the 1930s. Did not know he was a jew. He was forced to go to school after a christian not see was almost beat to death by his classmates. He felt firsthand what it felt like to be a jew under a racist regime. He compares the is reoccupation to the germans. That

© 2025 Vimarsana