Pakistan is the new Burma

NEWS: Green Party in England & Wales


GREENS CONDEMN MUSHARRAF'S ACTIONS


The Green Party today criticised the actions of General Musahrraf in Pakistan, calling on the UK government to do all that they can to restore democracy.


Green Party Principal Speaker Dr Derek Wall said:


"Pakistan is in danger of becoming the new Burma. Musharraf has long been supported by Britain and America even though he came to power in a military coup.


"The present crackdown is not about fighting terrorism but about a politician fighting for political survival by suspending the judiciary.


"It seems clear that General Musharraf was acting to pre-empt a judgment by the Supreme Court on whether his re-election last month was legal.


"Surrounding the Supreme Court with troops, arresting public figures committed to democracy like Imran Khan, repressing the media - Musharraf's actions are outrageous.


"Pakistani TV news channels, which have huge audiences, are being prevented from broadcasting. It's thought that more than 1500 people have been arrested in the last 48 hours.


"The UK must bring to bear any and every diplomatic power at our disposal to ensure a return to democratic rule."




ENDS






Green Party Press Office
020 7561 0282
http://www.greenparty.org.uk


Published and promoted by Jim Killock for the Green Party, both at
1a Waterlow Road, London N19 5NJ.

Who needs Leaders?

Every time there is a leadership election for the Lib Dems, the Green party gains members. Let's keep the traffic flowing in the right direction rather than having high profile and divisive contests for a figure built up and then knocked down by the media.

Disobedience not "followership" is a Green virtue. This is a point well made by radicals in other parties. Donnachadh McCarthy, environmental journalist and former deputy chair of the Lib Dems has argued:



"Over 600,000 people have died in Iraq because the Labour party has a unified leadership system that allowed their leader, almost single-handedly to drag the UK into an illegal war. My experience as Deputy Chair of the Liberal Democrats was that a single leadership allows big business to bypass the democratic structures of the party, thus no matter who we vote for, they are always in power. The Greens alone currently have a leadership system that prevents this. It is crucial they retain it for the sake of the wider body politic."


Leaders provide an easy target for manipulation by the corporations and often manipulate members to make their parties less radical, evoking short-term electoral gain. Votes for principles ultimately are a gamble that sacrifices both ethics and success.

More here

Vote against one Ring

The ballot papers are out. Replace Principal speakers with leaders, no gain in my opinion lots of pain, just read this in response to Lib Dem contest.

Fact 1. Menzies Campbell is younger than Cliff Richard.

I am incensed and depressed by how long the political parties spend faffing about trying to choose leaders, and by the petty factors that end up deciding the matter. There is far more to Menzies Campbell than his age, but it's not even, really, about his age: it's about what he looks like, isn't it? I don't think he looks too bad given that he had chemo four years back, but the British media do not agree. Fortunate for the people of the Ukraine that they weren't so dismayed by the looks of Viktor Yushchenko! In the UK we don't seem to be so grateful for democracy; we'd rather treat it as a sort of a game, like the X-Factor. The departure of Menzies Campbell has been the last straw for me and personality politics, and I am no longer supporting the Green Yes campaign, which argued for a single unifying leader for the British Green Party. In all honesty, I think we're achieving more with several spokespersons. Generates a sense of common purpose if you ask me.

From

Yet more on RESPECT split

Two meetings have taken place between us and the SWP Central Committee, in the presence of an independent chair respected by both sides. The independent chair confirmed to both groups that there was agreement that the relationship had come to an end, and that what we were discussing were proposals for an amicable resolution of any outstanding organisational questions. Just days later, the SWP backed the split in the Respect group on Tower Hamlets council and walked out of further negotiations.



had this from a Green Left/Green Party member posted on the pretty sparky and interesting GL list...so some one is sending out invites to RESPECT RENEWED on old mailing lists...still balances the RESPECT unrenewed statement I blogged earlier...I have obviously taken off the name of the person...

I have not been a member of Respect for over 2 years, but certain elements appear to have acquired an old email list. I received the following today, definitely signs that it is the beginning of the end:



-------- Original Message --------
Subject: A call to renew Respect from Linda Smith, Salma Yaqoob and 17 other members of the Respect National Council
Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2007 20:22:31 GMT
From: info@therespectparty.org
To:


Dear Respect Member/Supporter,



Please find below two documents:

(1) Renewing Respect, from Linda Smith and Salma Yaqoob

(2) An invitation to the Respect Renewal Conference called by Linda Smith, Salma Yaqoob and 17 other National Council members

====================================================================

(1) Renewing Respect



The following statement has been issued by Linda Smith, National Chair of Respect, and Salma Yaqoob, National Vice-Chair of Respect.



"Respect was founded to bring together people from divergent political backgrounds in a common struggle for peace, equality and justice.



"It is now clear, however, that there is a fundamental and irretrievable breakdown in trust and relations between the SWP leadership and other parts of Respect.



"There can be no confidence in the legitimacy of the forthcoming Respect conference. The entire democratic process in Respect has been corrupted. If the conference goes ahead it will do no more than confirm that the SWP leadership is hijacking Respect for its own factional purposes. We will not be attending it.



"This breakdown in relations has occurred because the SWP leadership arrogantly refuses to countenance any situation in which they are not dominant and do not exercise control. They are determined to put the interests of the SWP above that of Respect.



"The sectarianism and 'control freak' methods of the SWP have led us to a situation where Respect is irretrievably split. The SWP leadership has supported the breakaway of four councillors from the Respect group in Tower Hamlets, who then went into coalition talks with the Liberal Democrats.



"We have no intention of giving up the struggle for a pluralistic, democratic and broad left wing movement. We will therefore be holding a Respect Renewal conference to discuss the future for progressive politics in Britain today. We are confident that this conference will attract a broad range of support from those who are interested in discussing how we can work together in pursuit of common objectives.



"This renewal conference will take place in London on Saturday 17 November, and we urge as many people as possible to attend it.



"Respect, in its current form, cannot continue. But it is in the interests of all us, including those in the wider left and anti-war movements, that this division is carried out in the most amicable manner possible - one that resolves any legal or organisational questions through negotiation.



"Two meetings have taken place between us and the SWP Central Committee, in the presence of an independent chair respected by both sides. The independent chair confirmed to both groups that there was agreement that the relationship had come to an end, and that what we were discussing were proposals for an amicable resolution of any outstanding organisational questions. Just days later, the SWP backed the split in the Respect group on Tower Hamlets council and walked out of further negotiations.



"We remain committed to finding a negotiated solution to these issues. And we understand that the independent person is willing to continue their efforts to bring the two sides together. We urge the SWP to seek to resolve outstanding legal and organisational questions through further negotiations, in the hope that these matters will not have to be resolved elsewhere."



====================================================================



(2) An invitation to the Respect Renewal Conference called by Linda Smith, Salma Yaqoob and 17 other National Council members


"We are inviting you to attend the Respect Renewal conference.


It will take place on Saturday 17 November, at the Bishopsgate Institute in London, from 11am to 5pm.


Speakers include George Galloway MP, Linda Smith, Cllr Salma Yaqoob, Ken Loach. There will be plenty of time for debate.


It will be an opportunity for all Respect members and others who want to continue the process of building a vibrant, radical, left alternative to New Labour to come together and discuss how to do this following the recent debilitating divisions that have split Respect.


It will be an opportunity to reflect on the mistaken methods and lack of political vision that have led to the split in Respect and to learn lessons on how to work together and with others in the future.


We remain committed to the radical policies which have been the cornerstone of Respect since its inception. Our organisational model is based on plurality, democracy and transparency.


For us, the acronym RESPECT � Respect, Equality, Socialism, Peace, Environment, Community and Trade Unions � remains as valid today as it did at our launch in 2004.


We want to build Respect but we also want to work together with all others who share a vision of a better, more equitable society, to create a broader, united party to represent the interests of all working-class people.


We want to reach out to all those in the anti-war movement who still need a voice for peace and against imperialism.


We want to reach out to all those concerned about climate change and the destruction of the environment.


We want to reach out to all those in the trade unions who feel betrayed by New Labour under Brown as under Blair.


We want to reach out to all those in the black, Asian and other minority ethnic communities who suffer racism and Islamophobia.


We want to reach out to all those who want to fight against discrimination, whether or the grounds of religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability or age.


We want to reach out to the dispossessed, the asylum seeker, the migrant worker and to all who defend them.


If you want to reach out with us, come along and join in our discussion."


The Respect Renewal conference is called by the following Respect National Council members:


Linda Smith National Chair,

Salma Yaqoob National Vice-Chair,

Mobeen Azhar,

Ayesha Bajwa,

Victoria Brittain,

Rita Carter,

Ger Francis,

George Galloway MP,

Jerry Hicks,

John Lister,

Ken Loach,

Abdul Khalik,

Abdurahman Jafar,

Abjol Miah,

Bernie Parkes,

Yvonne Ridley,

Clive Searle,

Alan Thornett,

Nick Wrack.


If you would like to attend to our conference, or would like to know more about us, please get in touch.


e-mail: respectrenewal@gmail.com


www.respectrenewal.org


Tel. nos: Ghada 07958 450 867; Rob 07507 600 561; Kevin 07930 532 952


If you have been sent this email in error, or you no longer want to be on our mailing list, please reply to this email and put the word "unsubscribe" in the subject line.


--
Respect Renewal
http://www.respectrenewal.org

Green Left constituting

Those of us who like William Morris and EP Thompson and are well aware that Karl Marx was quite keen on ecology are beginning to punch above our weight...here is the draft Green Left constitution, comments welcome and hopefully useful to other ecosocialist fractions around the globe.



DRAFT GL CONSTITUTION
1. The Green Left (hereinafter GL), is a group open to members of the Green Party of England & Wales , (hereinafter GPEW), who share its aims outlined in the Ecosocialist Manifesto, Paris 2001.

2 AIMS
The aims of GL shall be to develop and advocate eco-socialist and anti-capitalist policies within GPEW and the Green movement, Trades Unions and the labour movement nationally, internationally, locally and regionally.

It shall do this by putting forward policy and campaign proposals to GPEW, the general public, the Green movement, Trades Unions and the labour movement nationally, internationally, locally and regionally.
It shall campaign on behalf of its aims by participating in Trades Union and other political and cultural events and by drafting and distributing appropriate publicity materials.

GL shall encourage Trades Unions, individuals and other appropriate and ethical organisations to give financial and other support to GPEW and shall encourage Trades Unions (at Branch, local regional or national level) to affiliate to GPEW. The actual mechanics of affiliation shall be dealt with by the Trades Union Liaison sub-committee of GPEX.


3 MEMBERSHIP
Membership of GL shall be open to any current members of GPEW. who share the aims and objectives of GL The usual method of joining will be payment of a subscription as agreed by he GL steering committee.

4 COMMITTEE
The GL Steering Committee shall comprise Co-conveners, Secretary, Membership Secretary and Treasurer, TU Liaison Officer. Other Committee posts may be created by the Committee as necessary subject to ratification by a meeting of GL.

The Committee shall normally be elected at the AGM.

5 MEETINGS
The Annual general Meeting (AGM) of GL shall normally take place annually and be open to all GL members

Ordinary meetings of GL shall be open to all GL members

Extra Ordinary General Meetings can be called by petition of 25% of GL members or 10 GL members (whichever is the larger). EGMs can consider and enact motions to re-elect the Committee.

Steering Committee meetings shall take place if necessary between other meetings; usually they shall be open to all GL members

Where possible an Ordinary meeting of GL shall be held at GPEW National Conference, this may be additional to the normal schedule of Ordinary meetings of GL.


6 DECISIONS
Decisions at GL meetings shall be by majority vote where necessary. Contentious or tied issues may be decided by a poll of all GL members

Committee members may take decisions or communicate on behalf of GL between Ordinary meetings of GL on matters that arise during these times, their decisions and communications shall be subject to ratification by a meeting of GL.


7 FUNDS
GL shall raise funds on its own behalf or for GPEW for campaigns in line with GL aims.

GL shall open a bank account to keep its funds which shall be spent in pursuance of its aims. (IT MAY BE NECESSARY TO INSERT PARA FROM BANK RE AUTHORISED SIGNATORIES HERE)


8 LOCAL GROUPINGS
GL shall encourage the formation of local GL groups and or GL groups based on membership of a particular Trade Union or workplace

9 The GL constitution maybe changed at an AGM or an EGM.

Respect office lock out

Well it gets more dramatic...investigation by Dr Wall using the internet and five minutes of his time, suggests that the pro Socialist Workers Party RESPECT has seized the website and the rest of RESPECT have the office, the locks have been changed so SWP Respect activists like John Rees cannot get in.

I have been locked out of Green Party Executive meetings but that was because some one had forgotten the keys...would not happen if we had a leader!

RESPECT does not look as if political realignment will come out of this, more like political conflict and disillusionment. Reminds one of the conflict around Arthur Scargill's short live Socialist Labour Party (ok it still exists just), actually the SLP story is far worse than the RESPECT saga:

THE principle on which we have resigned from the Socialist Labour Party is that of its undemocratic running. It came to light at the beginning of the party conference in December 1997 that one delegate held a card with 3000 votes, that is twice as many votes as the rest of the voting delegates added together. Voting delegates from constituencies had between 10 and 20 votes each. This delegate represented the North-West, Cheshire and Cumbria Miners Association (NWCCMA) which has affiliated to the SLP.

Now there are three points of view on this. Our view and that of a large number of delegates at the conference is that these votes were deliberately used by Arthur Scargill to rig the conference in his favour, that is to ensure that he got a two-thirds majority for his constitution, and that his appointees for the national executive committee all got elected. These are the actions of a bureaucrat, not a democrat.

here


Here is what RESPECT SWP say, I am obviously not endorsing this, I am in another political party and while I know one or two good people in the SWP and enjoyed John Rees book on dialectics, I don't think they are grassroots democratic bunch.

Locks changed on Respect office
03/11/2007
Respect has been locked out of its head office.

Overnight the locks were changed on the Respect national office. This action excludes most National Officers, the national office staff and the majority of Respect members who support them from their own organisation's headquarters.

In recent days Respect branches all around the country have overwhelmingly voted in favour of the Respect conference going ahead. This coup is obviously meant to prevent democratic debate continuing in Respect and to rob the membership of their own organisation.

The immediate effect of this action is to prevent Respect from intervening effectively in today's NHS demonstration.

The Respect coalition nationally pays over half the rent, rates and bills of the office which is shared with the constituency party.

We call on all Respect members to demand Linda Smith, the chair of Respect, and George Galloway reverse this disastrous course of action.

Please protest to gallowayg@parliament.uk, lindablackpool@hotmail.com

Please send a copy of your protest to office@respectcoalition.org


Yours in solidarity,

John Rees, National Secretary
Elaine Graham Leigh, National Treasurer
Councillor Oli Rahman, Tower Hamlets
Councillor Michael Lavelette, Preston

Banned books, beautiful books, etc

Pluto Press has been attacked by a pro-Israel lobby group, Stand With Us (SWU), which has described it as publishing ‘anti-American and anti-Israeli propaganda’. In particular, SWU has targeted a new book by Bard College professor Joel Kovel, Overcoming Zionism: Creating a Single Democratic State in Israel/Palestine, which it claims is ‘a polemic against Israel’ and ‘laced with contempt for Judaism’.

Pluto Press is distributed in the US by the University of Michigan Press (UMP), and SWU has claimed that Kovel’s book, and much of Pluto’s list, is of no scholarly merit and therefore unsuitable for distribution by an academic press. SWU and numerous supporters have been pressurising the university to cease its relationship with Pluto, and for a brief period UMP suspended distribution of Overcoming Zionism. UMP is currently re-examining its relationship with Pluto in the wake of SWU’s attack.


I have been getting through a mountain of book's including the Diane Raby book 'Democracy and Revolution', Joel's other recent book 'Overcoming Zionism' (subject to banning moves by those who dislike criticism of Zionism!), novels have included 'Kafka on the beach' from Murakami (which I have yet to finish but is very good, sublime and nasty horror by turns) and I have also started 'The Master_and_Margarita' which is really good fun so far, Mikhail Bulgakov was the only author to have written to Stalin to complain about censorship and been given an apology by phone and a job offer rather than the normal ice pick treatment, bullet to the brain or holiday down a salt mine!

A mountain of books is possible on an avalance of train journeys...and I pretty religiously watch no TV other than a bit ch4 simpsons, the odd News Night and DW when it is on screen...so more time for film, books, blogs, criticising Joshka Fischer, etc.

The strain of lets not think about ideas what the public needs is personalities line of 'green politics' continues to cause me dismay, come on people the planet is in crisis, we do need to be thinking a bit more deeply about strategy/change/tactics for survival. It isn't all about looking good in Permaculture weekly

Political parties do seem to involve a bit of strife, at least I am not in RESPECT it sounds like 100% stress at present, I get the impression that he has divided into two with a Renewal RESPECT here and an SWP RESPECT here.

Oh that's too much wittering...will post on 'Cool it' the Lomborg book on climate change, which is important to look at, another day.

here is more about Overcoming Zionism from Dave Castle at Pluto, yes Joel is my friend and so is Dave but read and think about this!:

Radical scholarship

Pluto vehemently refutes the accusations made by Stand With Us. Pluto publishes from within many traditions of radical scholarship – Marxist, anarchist, feminist, green, and others – which, while often marginalised within the academy, represent vital, critical strands of academic debate. Although their loss might satisfy some on the political right, it would certainly narrow the terms of academic discourse, and weaken intellectual endeavour as a whole. Many prestigious scholars have published with Pluto; Joel Kovel himself is a widely respected radical thinker, author of a classic text of eco-Marxism, The Enemy of Nature, and editor-in-chief of the eminent journal Capitalism, Nature, Socialism.

Overcoming Zionism itself is certainly partisan in the sense that it argues that the present Zionist Israeli state is illegitimate and should be replaced by a new, secular democratic state for both Israeli Jews and Palestinians. Kovel argues his case through a well-documented critique of the history of Zionism and the modern Israeli state.

Of course, many will disagree with Kovel’s argument. The question is, is it unscholarly? Kovel argues forcefully for a particular point, and takes a stance in a political conflict – should this be out of bounds for academic writing? The fact is that many academic texts argue unreservedly for certain principles – the benefits of the free market (in economics), or for flexible working practices (in management) or for international law based on principles of human rights (in law). But within today’s political climate, these principles are so widely accepted as to be uncontentious. Kovel’s sin is to argue for something that is not only unpopular, but regarded by many as beyond acceptable discourse.
Pro-Israel lobby

The reason that Kovel’s argument is so controversial is not for any scholarly reason – the reason is purely political. The pro-Israel lobby is an extremely powerful force in US politics – highly organised, very well funded, with influence in the heart of government – and through persuasion, chastisement and not a little bullying, the lobby has managed to establish in many people’s minds that criticism of Israel and Zionism is no less than anti-semitism. That is to say that criticism of the actions of a state and a political ideology is equivalent to an attack and denigration of a whole people.

It is a dangerous line of argument, because if extended to any state and people it would mean that criticism of any state other than one’s own should be considered a racist attack. Indeed, in the case of Israel, being Jewish does not seem to give you any more right to be critical of the state that claims to be your homeland, as Kovel himself has found out.

The controversy surrounding Overcoming Zionism is only one example of what happens when an academic crosses the line of acceptable discourse set by the Israeli lobby. Campus Watch, another lobby organisation, is in the business of identifying scholars who are critical of Israel and attempting to discredit them. It is widely accepted that Norman Finkelstein, author of The Holocaust Industry, lost his permanent position at De Paul University as a result of pressure from the lobby. There is currently a similar dispute over tenure for Nadia Abu El-Haj, an anthropologist at Barnard College, Columbia University, who has written a book about how archaeology is deployed to support political ends – specifically, to demonstrate the veracity of Israel’s supposed origins in a biblical past, a claim at the heart of Zionism.
Open discussion

Israel is at the heart of today’s conflicts in the Middle East. Israel’s treatment of Palestinians enrages fellow Muslims across the world, and incites animosity towards both Israel and its main sponsor, the US. If it is not possible to discuss Israel freely within the US, how can the US come to develop a considered and just policy in the Middle East?

In the face of the controversy surrounding Overcoming Zionism, a group of scholars, campaigners and lawyers have established the Committee for Open Discussion of Zionism, which aims to defend the principle of free speech on debate over Israel. The committee asks for your support - you can find them at www.codz.org

Finally, for all that is currently being said about the book, both in favour and against, it is clear that few people engaging in this debate have actually read it. I would encourage you to do so, and make up your own mind on what constitutes racism, propaganda and reasoned critique.

David Castle is a commissioning editor with Pluto Press
Footnote

Update (24 October 2007): The University of Michigan Press announced that it would continue its distribution contract with Pluto Press.

A statement said the board unanimously agreed to maintain its contract under existing terms.