Friday, July 07, 2006

IFJ: Attacks on Whistleblowers and Investigative Journalism

IFJ: Attacks on Whistleblowers and Investigative Journalism
http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=4027&Language=EN

IFJ: ATTACKS ON WHISTLEBLOWERS AND INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM

PLEASE DON'T HAVE ANY ILLUSIONS CONCERNING THIS MATTER, IT IS ABSOLUTELY EVERYWHERE THE SAME: ''Journalists in the Netherlands have had had their communications tapped by security services and in Germany spies were planted in media to stop leaks to the press.''


IFJ RAISES ALARM OVER WESTERN ATTACKS ON WHISTLEBLOWERS AND INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM

The International Federation of Journalists said today it is alarmed by mounting attacks on media and whistleblowers by Western governments trying to hide potentially illegal or damaging actions and statements.

“It is unacceptable to see countries like the United States, Great Britain, and Denmark trying to intimidate and stifle independent journalism,” said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary, “while others, like Germany and the Netherlands, are caught out snooping on media and tapping the telephones of journalists.”

The IFJ says that a global crackdown on investigative journalism led by countries that are supposed to be models of democracy is repressive and is depriving people of their basic rights – “most importantly the right of citizens to know what their government is doing.”

There have been numerous attacks on media in the US and Europe in recent months, with governments often defending their actions in the name of protecting public safety or “fighting the war on terrorism.”

The latest case involves the New York Times which has faced a barrage of heavy criticism from President George Bush and other Republican officials and pundits for its detailed expose of US security services monitoring hundreds of thousands of international bank transactions. Some Republican lawmakers say criminal charges should be brought against the reporters who broke the story.

In the UK, it was revealed at the weekend that the government is planning a new crackdown to strengthen official secrecy laws to prevent whistleblowers from revealing information about government policy. Officials with access to sensitive information will no longer be able to claim they act in the public interest by exposing wrongdoing or unlawful acts by the government.

The government has been embarrassed by a spate of leaks revealing concerns about the legality of the US-led invasion of Iraq, including concerns allegedly expressed by Tony Blair about American tactics and revelations to media of a classified memo containing comments President Bush made about bombing broadcaster al-Jazeera. The government has prohibited other media from reporting on the memo.

And in Denmark Michael Bjerre and Jesper Larsen of the daily newspaper Berlingske Tidende, a Danish daily, face two years in prison at their trial later this year in an unprecedented trial because they reported in 2004 that before joining the Iraq invasion, the Danish government was told by military intelligence there was no firm evidence of banned weapons in Iraq. They are charged with "publishing information illegally obtained by a third party" under the Criminal Code.

THE DANISH WHISTLEBLOWER, A FORMER INTELLIGENCE OFFICER, WAS CONVICTED AND JAILED FOR FOUR MONTHS LAST YEAR.

These actions, coupled with the news that journalists in the Netherlands have had had their communications tapped by security services and that in Germany spies were planted in media to stop leaks to the press, are raising concerns that there is a concerted effort across the Western world to try to stifle voices of dissent within government and to prevent journalists from exposing wrongdoing.

“When governments bully their journalists, censor the media and persecute whistleblowers, they seriously damage the watchdog role of journalism,” said White. “In turbulent times we need more informed, professional and accurate reporting about the work of government, not gags and intimidation.”

The IFJ believes that the credibility of western governments as torch-bearers for democracy and press freedom is being seriously undermined by these latest actions.

“The United States and Europe need to lead by example,” said White. “The enemies of press freedom and open government are the only winners when journalists are put under pressure in this way.”

[andend] - Story Url.: http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=4027&Language=EN

For further information contact the IFJ: +32 2 235 2200

The IFJ represents over 500,000 journalists in more than 100 countries.

RELATED:

The Netherlands & 'silencing journalists/researchers, 300 mtrs from where this is written - Url.: http://tinyurl.com/882ro

Google & Yahoo - like most Web search machines - are owned by the group that advocates profitable wars - An example of censorship on Internet - Url.: http://www.freedom4um.com/cgi-bin/readart.cgi?ArtNum=18546

Fwd. by:

http://forpressfound.blogspot.com/
Editor: Henk Ruyssenaars
http://tinyurl.com/amn3q
The Netherlands
fpf@chello.nl

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London Bombers: Secret services had arrested them earlier and knew them.

''The members of the network that carried out last week's attacks in London had been arrested earlier last year, (2004) and were and are known to British authorities." said French minister of Interior, the head of the secret services and police, Nicholas Sarkozy in Brussels. The claim drove Charles Clarke, the UK Home Secretary into an obvious fury.

by Henk Ruyssenaars

FPF - Europe - July 7th 2006 - Today many mourn the victims of the terror on this first anniversary of the London bombings, in which - according to the official explanation - four suicide bombers targeted the city's transportation system, and killed 52 people. However, there is very much evidence that it was an act of Blair's state terror - a false flag operation by the secret services. One of the facts which - like many 'links' - has disappeared as snow for the sun, was the declaration by the French minister of Interior, the head of the secret services and police, Nicholas Sarkozy immediately after the bombings: ''The British 'authorities' had arrested them earlier,'' Sarkozy said: They knew them."

The US information bureau REUTERS - probably by mistake - put on the wire that the French minister clearly had said the following, reporting it like this from the European Union's headquarters in Brussels:

''Some bomb suspects had been arrested - Sarkozy

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Some of the suspected suicide bombers who attacked London last week had been arrested in 2004 but freed in a bid to catch a wider network, French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy said on Wednesday. "It seems that part of this team had been subject to partial arrest ... in Spring 2004," Sarkozy told a news conference." - Url.: http://tinyurl.com/9hf2h - Reuters 2005. [ ]

In the 7/7 stories the FPF published was the following, quote: ''Basis for the present European Union quarrel is the claim made by French minister Sarkozy 'that the members of the network that carried out last week's attacks in London had been arrested earlier last year, and were and are known to British authorities'. Minister Sarkozy also said: "that affiliates of the four suicide bombers may have been detained, or otherwise be known to British authorities.'' [ ]

The fact that the London bombers most likely have been duped and misused as 'patsies' implied that this was another case of British state terror to boost the images of Bush and Blair, and - among much other - silence the 'G8-fraud' protesters. - Url.: http://tinyurl.com/9h84v

The US/UK damage controllers in charge of the cover up immediately went on 'Alert Red', but it had already been on the wires. "French officials later insisted that Mr. Sarkozy had been speaking on the basis of information gathered by French security services and not any conversation with Mr. Clarke. British officials have admitted it is possible some people close to last week's bombers might have figured in earlier counter-terrorism operations, but not as central figures.''

''One possibility is that Mr. Sarkozy was referring to an international operation conducted last year that led to the arrests of terrorists in several countries, including Britain. Intelligence sources say 'Operation Crevice' may have thwarted an attack on London last spring, the period to which Mr. Sarkozy was referring'' - the correspondents of the Scotsman in Brussels wrote.

ENGLAND IS GETTING MORE TOTALITARIAN THAN EVER

England, at that time in 2005 'at the helm of the European Union' for the next six months, immediately used the US 'Patriot Act' as a blueprint for more control: the UK is getting more totalitarian then any normal human being can imagine. According to the Scotsman's reporters at that time in Brussels at the EU meeting, the French minister's claim drove Charles Clarke, the Home Secretary, into an obvious fury.

But, what a British minister without any parliamentarian control can do to people in the nearby future, if this fascist law presented below indeed is passed, is unbelievable. Even for a country that doesn't even have a written constitution. This really makes scared serfs of the populace, or still worse slaves: Serfs differ from slaves in that serfs are not property themselves and cannot be sold apart from the land which they work. Slaves can be used, sold or just thrown away. This proposed aberration is a 'law' straight out of the handbook of Machiavelli: too bad to be true.

NEVER IN OUR LIFETIME HAS ANY GOVERNMENT DARED - OR DESIRED - TO INTRODUCE SUCH SHAMEFUL ANTI-DEMOCRATIC LEGISLATION

Campaign philosophy endorsed by academics, doctors and judges (U.S. & U.K.).

Britain is one of the founding democracies of the world. It is of the greatest importance that awareness about this disgraceful proposed legislation is raised not only amongst the British people, but also our close kin and allies, Americans, Australians, New Zealanders, Canadians, Indians and Europeans.

HERE IS SOME TRULY ALARMING INFORMATION

If passed, the "Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill" (LRRB) grants authority to any minister who so wishes, to amend, replace, or repeal existing legislation without involving parliament, and without restraint but for the Human Rights Act and the bill itself. This law renders parliament and the legislation governing the legal system, effectively redundant.

SPECIFICALLY, THE MINISTER IS EMPOWERED BY THE ACT TO INFLICT INCARCERATION IMMEDIATELY ON ANYONE WHO INCURS HIS OR HER DISPLEASURE.

The citizen who becomes the unfortunate focus of the minister's ire is denied the protection of the Habeas Corpus Act (which at present disallows arbitrary imprisonment by government; and obliges government to bring people before a public trial).

Further, under the LRRB, the citizen who is the object of a minister's malintentions is denied the protection of the Trial by Jury (in which ordinary citizen-jurors may nullify unjust prosecutions by finding the Not Guilty Verdict, in order to protect their fellow citizens from arbitrary government).

What is more, to further the purposes of the minister, whatever they may be, this lawless authority to threaten and punish can be delegated to the minister's appointees (such as policemen, magistrates or local officials).

The Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill is being installed by being tacked on behind the smokescreen of very popular legislation to save businesses time and money, which they are at present required to expend on complicated
bureaucratic returns and procedures ("red tape") which this administration has
progressively introduced since 1997.

The following quotations come from articles in the more respectable newspapers:

"... A NIGHTMARE PLOT" -- THE TIMES

"...TRULY HOW DEMOCRACY IS EXTINGUISHED" -- THE GUARDIAN

"... ALMOST UNFETTERED POWER" -- THE DAILY MAIL

Predictably, there are politicians of all parties who see themselves aggrandised by this immoral legislation and opposition to it is not being effectively organised in parliament.

The naïve people in charge of the Confederation of British Industry (who have been tempted into purblind advocation of support for the bill) would be well advised to learn from the examples of history and from an understanding of human nature: human beings are fallible. Without exception, whenever these powers are misappropriated by politicians, they come to be abused.

The first people to suffer after the installation of such a totalitarian régime are those whose independent entrepreneurial character is resentfully envisaged by the minister (commissar or gauleiter) as requiring to be brought under his control. Once the real object of the legislation has been achieved (i.e. an authoritarian state), the "red tape" is inexorably reinstated.

It is by such abuse of authority that the persecution of dissidents, intellectuals, academics, writers and journalists commences, and before long, expect the disappearance of political rivals. If you think this is far-fetched, then ask yourself, if the powers would never be used in this way, why would our politicians conspire to take such powers to themselves in the first place...

It was precisely to counteract arbitrary (i.e. corrupt; tyrannical) government that the protections of Magna Carta, The Great Charter of English Liberties installed "the law of the land" (i.e. common law), the constitutional criteria of democracy "in perpetuity" and "for ever." (See Preamble & Article 63.) Magna Carta was formed and passed by a legislature of Barons and received Royal Assent in 1215, becoming a written statute of government law, subsequently
ratified explicitly a further thirty-five times. Since 1688 (and earlier), monarchs ratify Magna Carta when they swear at coronation to uphold the "statutes of parliament." This includes Head of State Queen Elizabeth II. Magna Carta remains enforceable. Magna Carta's strictures have been the foundation of compassionate democratic civilisation through the tribulations of a long varied history. Instead of cherishing and upholding them, our government now intends their destruction. These democratic protections are as follows:

(i) the right of the Juror to judge on the justice of the law in finding the
Verdict in Trial by Jury (i.e. Jury Nullification);
(ii) the citizen's right to a Trial by a Jury of one's peers (i.e. equals,
not trial by government or its employees);
(iii) freedom from arbitrary arrest;
(iv) freedom from arbitrary detention (later known as Habeas Corpus);
(v) equality before the law.

For further information, read the five FCDAE-FIJA Campaign webpages starting on:
www.democracydefined.org/fcdaefijacampaign.htm

The Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill empowers ministers to deny citizens all of the above legal protections. This is the National Socialist (NAZI), Stalinist, Soviet, fascist and communist system of oppression by which primitive tyranny thrives; massive injustices are routinely enforced on innocent people; and citizens are intentionally put into permanent fear and servitude. Let us all do what we can to thwart this bill, protect the impartiality of police and prevent their becoming the ferocious servants of capricious oppressors.

Neither in Britain nor in the United States have legislatures ever been invested by the People with authority to remove the right of the accused to a Trial by Jury for any charge or offence whatever, however serious or trivial, nor to impair the powers, to change the oaths, or abridge the jurisdiction of jurors.

Now, the government has rejected proposed amendments that would have limited the power of the bill to merely the cutting of business red tape, and it is being rushed through very quickly. With only two days in which to debate it, the
bill completed Report Stage and Third Reading and may go all the way without being stopped unless the most vehement opposition is rapidly brought to bear.

The consequences of such a bill would be devastating, far-reaching, and set a precedent for similar governmental moves permanently to remove the Trial by Jury and Habeas Corpus elsewhere. It is due to general ignorance about this bill and its duplicitous method of acquiring the enactment of antidemocratic population-controls that there has been relatively little discussion or concern amongst the U.K. population at large. Please help us raise people's consciousness on this issue. Ultimately, the liberty of all of us is at stake.

For more info about the LRRB and the efforts of the Save Parliament Campaign, visit - Url.: http://www.saveparliament.org.uk/

----- End forwarded message -----

FPF 7/7 related:

* Reconstruction: What really happened on 7/7? - Url.: http://www.rinf.com/news/july-05/18a.html

* BBC: Exercise for 1000 people - exactly on the same date, time and places of the 7/7 bombings - Url.:
http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/july2005/090705bombingexercises.htm

* France closes borders: Minister: UK bombers earlier arrested - Url.:
http://www.apfn.net/Messageboard/07-19-05/discussion.cgi.128.html

* STRONGLY TO FASCISM RELATED LINKS - Url.: http://tinyurl.com/gkgrb

* FALSE FLAG 9/11 - NO LEGAL BASE FOR NATO FIGHTING US WARS - Url.: http://tinyurl.com/zqzkc

* FPF-COPYRIGHT NOTICE - In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107 - any copyrighted work in this message is distributed by the Foreign Press Foundation under fair use, without profit or payment, to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the information. Url.: http://liimirror.warwick.ac.uk/uscode/17/107.html

FOREIGN PRESS FOUNDATION
http://forpressfound.blogspot.com/
Editor: Henk Ruyssenaars
http://tinyurl.com/amn3q
The Netherlands
fpf@chello.nl

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