<nettime> toward a global view of civil rights and academic freedom

[coco fusco <animas999@yahoo.com>]

BEHOLD RECENT NEWS OF OTHER INTELLECTUALS, ARTISTS AND
ACTIVISTS WHOSE CIVIL RIGHTS ARE SYSTEMATICALLY
VIOLATED IN THE US AND ELSEWHERE.IN THE HOPES THAT
SOME HERE MIGHT CONSIDER ADOPTING A BROADER, GLOBAL
APPROACH TO DEFENDING CIVIL RIGHTS AND EVEN INSTITUTE
A PERMANENT MECHANISMS FOR MONITORING AND RESPONDING
TO THE EXCESSES OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGAINST ALL
CULTURAL INTERVENTIONISTS, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THEY
ARE CALL THEMSELVES TACTICAL MEDIA PRACTIONERS OR ARE
PART OF THE ALT.NET CADRE.

CF


local activist visited by FBI in relation to DNC
protests
** Emergency Release From Boston **
Please Forward Everywhere.

Harassment of DNC Protesters Escalates
Written by Boston ABC

Despite the Boston Police Department’s stated
commitment to protect
people’s First Amendment rights during the DNC, the
BPD has, in
conjunction with other law enforcement officers in New
York City, started
a campaign of preemptive action that could chill
protest participants'
lawful speech activities during the Democratic
National Convention (DNC).

The NYPD/FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force started an
intimidation campaign
against New York activists to prevent them from
speaking out against the
DNC. On Thursday, July 8, two officers visited the
home of a New York
City activist (referred to as “Tim” hereafter). They
said that they
acquired his name from the Boston Police Department,
which has compiled a
list of “troublemakers” who are coming to Boston. The
officers said they
plan to visit the homes of all so-called
“troublemakers.”

At 7 p.m. the officers arrived at Tim’s parents’
house, where Tim resides
during the summer. Tim was not home, but his parents
talked to the
officers. The officers had already done extensive
surveillance on Tim,
which included examining his medical and academic
records, in addition to
Tim’s previous history with the police. The officers
said they are
expecting a large band of organized anarchists to come
to Boston and
destroy it, and proceeded to tell Tim’s father that it
was inadvisable for
Tim to:

- engage in political activity in Boston
- work with a named, “known anarchist organizer” in
Boston,
- work with the Bl(A)ck Tea Society (The BTS is a
non-violent group that
has been organizing for the DNC for the past year.
Planned events include
those of protest and celebration, including a free
outdoor festival with
music, games and entertainment. For more information
about the Bl(A)ck Tea
Society, go to www.blackteasociety.org.),
- come to Boston to observe the DNC or get arrested
during the DNC.


One of the officers left his business card:

Richard W. Ockovic
NYPD/FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force
26 Federal Plaza
New York, NY
646-696-2113
646-773-8116 (cell)

This type of intimidation and targeting of activists
is illegal,
unacceptable,
and unfounded. Local organizers have seen a surge in
efforts by police
to create fear in the public and in organizers,
demonizing political
activists, creating an us-them dynamic and
preemptively harassing
activists so as to have a chilling effect on First
Amendment rights. Both
the Boston ABC and the National Lawyers Guild are
appalled by the Boston
Police Department’s lack of commitment to its claims
of protecting free
speech.

People who are visited by law enforcement officers are
advised to take
down the officers’ names and badge numbers and
otherwise not talk to them
or let them in your homes – tell them they can contact
your attorney (you
do not have to give them the name of your attorney).
Contact the National
Lawyers Guild in Boston if you are visited by officers
or if you have
questions regarding your rights (NLG Boston office:
617-227- 7335 or
nlgmass@igc.org). Please also contact the Boston
Anarchist Black Cross,
which is doing support work for protesters during the
DNC.

About the Boston Anarchist Black Cross (ABC): The
Boston Anarchist Black
Cross is a prison abolition/prisoner support group
affiliated with the
Anarchist Black Cross Network
(www.anarchistblackcross.org). We support
those on the inside as well as working on issues of
community defense. Boston ABC is helping support
protesters arrested
during the DNC. For more information, go to
http://www.baamboston.org/abc/
or contact ABCboston-DNC04@baamboston.org.


----------------------------------------------
email contact: nodnc04@hush.com
----------------------------------------------
on the web: http://blackteasociety.org
----------------------------------------------
email announcement list:
http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/dnc2004
----------------------------------------------
donate to the convergence:
http://blackteasociety.org/donate.php
----------------------------------------------





Iran Drops Death Penalty for Professor Guilty of
Blasphemy

June 29, 2004
 By NAZILA FATHI 


TEHRAN, June 28 - Iran's hard-line judiciary backed
off
from the death sentence issued against a history
professor,
his lawyer said Monday. The sentencing of Hashem
Aghajari
had sparked days of protests in 2002. 

Mr. Aghajari was convicted of blasphemy after he said
in a
speech that Muslims were not "monkeys" to follow
blindly
the teachings of clerics. Although that charge,
carrying
the death penalty, was dropped earlier this month, he
may
still face up to five years in prison for "insulting
religious values," said his lawyer, Saleh Nikbakht.
Mr.
Aghajari has been in jail since 2002. 

The head of the Supreme Court, Ayatollah Mohammad
Mohammadi
Gilani, said last week that Mr. Aghajari could be
freed on
bail. But the court ruled Monday that he must remain
in
jail for another month. 

Mr. Aghajari, a reformist politician who lost a leg
while
serving in the 1980-88 war with Iraq, had said he
would not
appeal his death sentence. But in keeping with Iranian
law,
the verdict was sent to the Supreme Court, which
ordered a
review. 

"He had said that he would not appear in court today
because it was behind closed doors," said his wife,
Zahra
Behnoodi, the ILNA news agency reported. "The only
reason
he went to court today was to show his good
intention." 

Mr. Nikbakht said Mr. Aghajari did not accept the
charge of
insulting religious values that was brought against
him on
Monday. "I am a Shiite Muslim and do not accept any of
the
charges leveled against me," Mr. Nikbakht quoted his
client
as saying. 

Two other dissidents appeared at the court on Monday.
Emadedin Baghi, a reformist journalist, was tried for
insulting senior officials. Fatimeh Haghighatjoo, an
outspoken former member of Parliament, was charged
with
spreading lies. 

The European Union and Human Rights Watch denounced
Iran
this month for human rights violations, including
infringements of the rights of political prisoners. 

But Mr. Nikbakht said Monday that dismissing the
blasphemy
charge against Mr. Aghajari was evidence that
international
pressure had forced Iran's judiciary to show greater
lenience. 

"I do not think the judiciary will seek charges that
carry
death sentences anymore," he said. "Anyone who was
visiting
Iran brought up Mr. Aghajari's case with Iranian
officials.
This had huge effect." 

U.N. Visits Suspected Nuclear Site 

MOSCOW, June 28
(Reuters) - United Nations nuclear inspectors on
Monday
visited the Lavizan site in Tehran, where Washington
suspects that Iran carried out secret atomic weapons
activities, said Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the
International Atomic Energy Agency. 

In a telephone interview, Dr. ElBaradei said: "We went
there today and we took environmental samples.
Tomorrow we
will also visit places in the country to look at
relevant
equipment." 

Recent satellite photos showed Iran had removed all
the
buildings and much of the topsoil at Lavizan, which is
near
a military installation. The United States said this
suggested that Iran was conducting activities there
linked
to what it said was a secret atom bomb program. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/29/international/middleeast/29iran.html?ex=1089702817&ei=1&en=37827520fa7b7b41







		
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