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society news
WORLD TRIBUNAL ON IRAQ. A series of citizens' tribunals on Iraq, modeled on Bertrand Russell's Vietnam War Crimes Tribunal, are occurring in cities around the world now and in the coming year. One of them, which took place this April in Brussels, was in fact called 'The BRussells Tribunal' in honor of Russell's inspiration for this form of public forum. The idea for the Iraq tribunals seems to have occurred spontaneously in a number of places around the globe, but the specific details for them were worked out in June 2003, at a conference of the European Network for Peace and Human Rights that was sponsored by the Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation. Tony Simpson of the BRPF attended both the Brussel's tribunal and another BRPF conference of the European Network held in Brussels later that month. Here is his report of the two conferences:
April proved to be a fine month to visit Brussels, twice. The sun shone, and people gathered outdoors in the parks and the squares. Meanwhile, far away in Iraq, the siege of Falluja was claiming hundreds of lives, and in Baghdad the horrors of Abu Ghraib prison were already well known to General Taguba, the Red Cross, and Ambassador Bremer, even if President Bush, Secretary Rumsfeld, and Prime Minister Blair were trying to look the other way. But what was really happening in Iraq?
My first journey to Belgium was to attend the BRussells Tribunal. The organisers had deliberately wished to invoke the tradition of earlier Russell Tribunals - hence the pun. The organisers, and in particular, Lieven de Cauter, himself an independent philosopher, seemed keenly aware of a responsibility to "prevent the crime of silence" with respect to Iraq, as Russell had been with Vietnam a generation before.
The subtitle of their Tribunal was 'A hearing on the Project for the New American Century'. It proved remarkably faithful to its purpose in probing the activities of that neo-conservative think-tank. Jim Lobe and Tom Barry, for the defence, manifested an encyclopaedic knowledge of the public statements and backdoor connections of this highly influential lobby. Hans von Sponeck, who along with Tribunal Commissioner Denis Halliday resigned his UN post in Iraq in protest at the severe sanctions regime to which the country was subjected, provided candid testimony of the long gestation of the wars on Iraq, and the involvement of the United States in arming the country during its war with Iran in the 1980s. François Houtart presided gently over the proceedings and the Tribunal Commission, whose judgment can be found on the web (www.brusselstribunal.org). One Commissioner, the Egyptian feminist writer Nawal El Saadawi, recalled her visit to Russell at his home in Wales long ago, in 1960.
One revelation of the Tribunal concerned what is really happening in Iraq. Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar, an Iraqi scientist and writer, testified that, contrary to claims, there is no appreciable reconstruction to benefit the civilian population. In fact, when Iraqi engineers offered to help restore the electricity, water and telephone services, their offer was turned down flat. Instead, workers are brought in from abroad, mainly disappearing inside the stockades and garrisons of the occupying armies. Living conditions are desperate. Meanwhile, the killing at Falluja was claiming hundreds of lives. Opposition to the occupation was spreading throughout Iraqi society. Such well-informed Iraqi testimony to the Tribunal threw a sharp light on the true state of Iraq, and in so doing contributed to the wider process of the World Tribunal on Iraq, of which the Brussels hearing was one of a series of scheduled international sessions, destined to conclude in Istanbul in 2005.
By the time I returned to Brussels at the end of April for the conference of the European Network for Peace and Human Rights, the death toll in Falluja was reckoned at more than 600. Stark video evidence of the slaughter taking place there had reached us just in time. Al Jazeera television had promptly responded to a request from the Russell Foundation for film of the siege of Falluja to show at the Network's conference in the European Parliament in Brussels. This was a truly shocking documentary which troubled all those who saw it. Opposition to the war is clearly gathering strength, and we're bound to wonder how long its perpetrators can continue in their chosen course. Tony Simpson, Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation, www.russfound.org 28.05.04
Further information about the World Tribunals on Iraq can be found at the following websites: www.worldtribunal.org www.worldtribunal-nyc.org and www.brusselstribunal.oro
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THE ORDEAL OF DR. SHAIKH. Past issues of the BRS Quarterly have reported on the ordeal of Dr. Yunis Shaikh, who was tried, convicted, and jailed for blasphemy in Pakistan, and members of the BRS have written letters in protest of his treatment. Dr. Shaikh's ordeal finally seems to be at an end. Phil Ebersole gives us this report.
Dr. Yunis Shaikh, a humanist who was under sentence of death in Pakistan on charges of blasphemy, has been freed by an appeals court. He had been imprisoned, mostly in solitary confinement, for three years. Appeals for his release were made by humanist groups and publications all over the world, including the Bertrand Russell Society Quarterly.
Dr. Shaikh, a medical lecturer, was a controversial figure in Pakistan, partly because of his advocacy of a peace settlement with India. He was arrested in October, 2000, and accused of stating in class, in response to a student's question, that Mohammed could not logically have been a Muslim prior to his receiving his revelation from God, nor could Mohammed's parents, who died before he received his revelation.
The complaint was lodged by leaders of an organization called the Committee for the Protection of the Prophethood, an organization of fundamentalist Muslims who harass and attack Muslims they believe to be unorthodox. None of his accusers were present in the classroom when Dr. Shaikh allegedly made his remarks. The threat of violence at his trial was so great that the court's last two sittings were held in camera in the premises of the Adiala Jail where Dr. Shaikh was being held.
Dr. Shaikh was convicted and, on Aug. 18, 2001, sentenced to death. He appealed to Pakistan's High Court, the second highest court below the country's Supreme Court, and was tried in July, 2002. No decision was made because the judges could not agree. A new trial was held and Dr. Shaikh was acquitted on November 21, 2003.
This decision did not invalidate Pakistan's blasphemy laws. Rather the court found there was no proof that Dr. Shaikh said what he was alleged to have said. Dr. Shaikh said his accusers were simply lying.
Dr. Shaikh was released from jail in secret. He was offered, but refused, a police bodyguard. He went into hiding for several weeks, meeting with family and friends and participating incognito in a discussion of human rights. His release was not generally known until early this year. He is now living in Europe.
His case is not an isolated one. More than 100 other Pakistanis are currently in prison on blasphemy charges and in jeopardy of the death penalty. They include not only humanists, but Christians, members of minority Muslim sects, and members of other religions, as well as victims of personal vendettas. This must have a chilling effect on any honest discussion of political or religious issues.
Bertrand Russell devoted much effort to interceding on behalf of prisoners of conscience. BRSQ subscribers who wrote letters on behalf of Dr. Shaikh were acting in the best Russellian tradition. More information about Dr. Shaikh may be found at www.iheu.org
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OBITUARY. Long time west coast member of the BRS, Shohig Sherry Garine Terzian died in Los Angeles on July 12, 2002, at the age of 86. Born in 1915 in Constantinople of Armenian parents, she came to the United States with her parents at age six and grew up in New York City. As a student at Radcliffe College, she wrote her senior thesis on 'George Santayana and the Genteel Tradition', corresponded with Santayana, compiled the bibliography for The Philosophy of George Santayana - volume two of Paul Schilpp's Library of Living Philosophers - and revised the bibliography for a subsequent edition of the work. A medical librarian by profession, Ms. Terzian contributed articles to the Bertrand Russell Society Quarterly, The Santayana Society Bulletin, the Armenian Ararat Quarterly, and numerous letters to the Los Angeles Times.
BRS MEMBERSHIP REPORT. Here are the current membership figures for the BRS. As of June 5th, there were 115 members who had paid for 2004, with another 30 (honorary members, life members, and freebees) in the database who also get the BRS Quarterly. As well, there are 37 members who paid for 2003 who haven't yet paid for 2004. Here is how these figures compare with BRS membership at this time last year.
Year
Paid for the year:
Honorary, Life, or Freebees:
Paid for previous year
but not present year:
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2003
97
28
48
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2004
116
30
37
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Dennis Darland, Treasurer, BRS
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CALL FOR PAPERS. The Bertrand Russell Society will be holding sessions at the American Philosophical Association again in the coming year. The deadline for submitting abstracts of talks for the Eastern Division meeting is already past, but anyone interested in giving a talk on any aspect of Russell's philosophy or related issues at either the Central meeting of the APA (to be held in Chicago April 27-30, 2005 at the Palmer House) or the Pacific meeting (to be held in San Francisco March 23-27, 2005, at the St. Francis Hotel in Union Square) should submit an abstract to Rosalind Carey at rcarey@lehman.cuny.edu no later than November 1, 2004.
We hope everyone will plan on attending these sessions in the coming year, but west coast members of the BRS are especially encouraged to attend the Pacific meeting in San Francisco. We will have a regional meeting of the BRS there, with lunch or dinner after the talks and meeting. The west coast session promises to be a real jamboree, so mark your calendars and be sure to attend.
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NEW BRSQ WEBSITE ADDRESS. The BRS Quarterly has a new web address. It is:
http://www.lehman.edu/deanhum/philosophy/BRSQ
so please delete your old bookmarks for this site and bookmark the new page. And visit it often, as the content is constantly being updated
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