Roots Action & War Is a Crime & Code Pink et al. – 2011-02-13 23:05:22
http://rootsaction.org
Join Us in National Action on Monday to Thank and Encourage Spain to Prosecute Bush Officials
WHAT: 

 Delivery of Petition and Valentine’s Day Flowers to Spanish Embassy

WHEN: 

 11:30 a.m.

WHERE: 

 2375 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC

CONTACT: 

 Gael Murphy, gael@codepinkalert.org
OR


11:00 am, 150 East 58th Street, New York
Bernadette Evangelist, sleet15@nyc.rr.com

11:30 am, 1405 Sutter St, San Francisco
Susan Harman, susanharman@gmail.com

11:00 am, 5055 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 860, Los Angeles,
Sharon Tipton, sharonktipton@gmail.com

11:45 am, 180 N Michigan Avenue, Suite 1500, Chicago
Jay Becker, futurenotwritten@yahoo.com

1:00 pm, 31 St. James Avenue, Suite 905, Boston
Sue Serpa, neimpeach@gmail.com 

11:30 am, 2655 Le Jeune R, Suite 203, Miami
Sandy Davies, peacetopower@aol.com
If you’ve wanted to be part of a powerful effort to bring Bush-era officials to justice for their crimes, now is your chance. We’ve joined a national effort to reach out to the people of Spain, whose courts are considering prosecuting six of Bush’s lawyers under international law. Our campaign includes an open letter and ads in prominent Spanish newspapers and billboards.

Even though the Obama administration has been working hard behind the scenes to stop this, our friends at the Center for Constitutional Rights have already submitted proof to the Spanish courts that our government is not taking action under international law and treaties.
Now is our chance — we can keep the wheels of justice turning by doing people-to-people diplomacy now.

Here’s what else you do: Read and sign the letter to the Spanish people at http://rootsaction.org


WarIsACrime.org’s name is behind it. The letter will go to the Spanish Embassy and consulates across the country on Monday — Valentine’s Day. We’ll also bring Spanish officials flowers and invite the media.
You can join us in these events. Get details at http://rootsaction.org


But we can’t stop there. We’ve designed a billboard and newspaper advertisement that says in Spanish, “Please do what the U.S. won’t. Prosecute torturers.” We are raising money to place ads and billboards around Madrid where the country’s leaders will see that there are Americans who want the case to continue.


To the People of Spain

From the People of the United States of America


We are writing to thank you and to ask for your support as your courts consider cases to bring American officials to justice for the crime of torture. A Spanish judge, acting under international law, will soon decide whether to investigate US officials’ roles in authorizing torture. We hope you agree that such cases must go forward, despite pressure from the Obama administration to drop them.


The organizations signing this letter represent hundreds of thousands in the American public who believe the US government must be held to the same rule of law as other countries. We are profoundly disappointed that our own government refuses to prosecute former officials, despite open admissions and government documents showing that they approved torture.


It will take a public show of support for the case to withstand pressures from Washington.
WikiLeaks cables show the extremes to which U.S. officials have gone to thwart any attempt by Spain or other countries to uphold justice. We applaud the courage shown by Spanish officials who insist on giving priority to the rule of law.


Despite earlier assertions by President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder that waterboarding is torture, former President George W. Bush publicly stated three times last year that he authorized waterboarding and added proudly that he would do it again. In a TV interview aired on November 8, Bush said he considered waterboarding legal “because the lawyer said it was legal.”
Waterboarding and other forms of torture were banned by the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, ratified by the United States in 1994.


If international law is to serve any useful purpose, other countries must condemn violations “by any other nations, including those which sit here now in judgment,” in the words of the chief prosecutor at Nuremberg.


We sincerely hope that the citizens of Spain and its judiciary will dispel the notion that any country is above the law.


Signed,

High Road for Human Rights,
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns,
National Accountability Action Network,
National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance,
Pax Christi USA,
Progressive Democrats of America,
Psychologists for Social Responsibility,
Robert Jackson Steering Committee,
RootsAction.org,
September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows,
Tackling Torture at the Top Committee of Women Against Military Madness,
Veterans for Peace,
War Criminals Watch,
WarIsACrime.org,
WeThePeopleNow.org,
World Can’t Wait.


Along with:

Amnesty International USA,
Bill of Rights Defense Committee,
Council for the National Interest,
Democrats.com,
Fellowship on Reconciliation,
United for Peace and Justice,
Velvet Revolution,
Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity,
War Resisters League,
Witness Against Torture,
Code Pink Women for Peace,
Voters for Peace,
We need to raise $30k to make this happen, so please consider a generous donation toward bringing the message directly to the Spanish people. Read and sign the letter at http://rootsaction.org
