RR massacre in Paraguay / CIA director grows his own / Tragedy at BIO 2005

1.RR Massacre in Paraguay
2.CIA dirctor grows his own
3.Tragedy at BIO 2005 - A tough time to be fair

COMMENT

Rumours that the political and corporate elite wouldn't dream of eating the kind of stuff that they're keen to provide to the rest of the world, will only be fueled by news that the director of the Central Intelligence Agency likes to "grow natural" food for his table. (item 2)

Former directors of the CIA have, of course, been more than willing to intervene in countries where US-linked agricultural interests were thought to be at risk (turning them into literal "banana republics") -- most notoriously, in arranging the violent overthrow of the democratic government of Guatemala on behalf of United Fruit, a company later owned by George Bush Snr -- Dubya's father.

Don't hold your breath though for any kind of action on the extremely disturbing reports coming out of Paraguay (latest - item 1) that seem to be part of the pattern of land grab, ecological destruction and social disaster that's accompanying the RR soya push in Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil.

The final item is an excellent editorial -- "Tragedy at BIO 2005 - A tough time to be fair" -- dealing with the aftermath of the death of a police officer outside the Biotech Industry Organisation annual convention in Philadelphia last week.

As well as the likes of BIO and AgBioView leaping to exploit the tragedy, Philadelphia's District Attorney got in on the act.

The Philadelphia Enquirer comments critically on the District Attorney coming down heavily on demonstrators who, at worst, may have been involved in throwing some water and a minor scuffle in the vicinity. As the editorial notes, "The painful loss of a good officer in such circumstances... is quite different from someone else causing his death."

The newspaper also notes the District Attorney's record of hyping up such cases and how badly this has played in the courts, concluding, "the best way to honor [the policeman's] memory would be by dealing fairly with protesters who, to their credit, were quick to offer their condolences." (item 3)
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1.RR Massacre in Paraguay
from Lilian Joensen in Argentina:

RRsoya in Caaguazu, Paraguay, [is] once again behind a new masacre in Paraguay. I translate herewith the message sent by the National Coordinator for rural and indigenous women's organization in Paraguay.
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MASACRE IN VAQUERIA DEPARTMENTO OF CAAGUAZU PARAGUAY
COORDINADORA NACIONAL DE ORGANIZACIONES DE MUJERES
TRABAJADORAS RURALES E INDÃƒ*GENAS
-CONAMURI-
Yegros NÃ‚º 1041 c/ Tte. FariÃƒ±a AsunciÃƒ3n - Paraguay.
Tel.: 0595- 21- 490 203 - Correo ElectrÃƒ3nico: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

THE NATIONAL COORDINATOR FOR RURAL AND INDIGENOUS

WOMEN IN PARAGUAY REPUDIATES AND CONDEMNS THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT OF NICANOR DUARTE FRUTOS FOR THE MASACRES THAT TOOK PLACE 24 JUNE 2005 EN THE LEGALIZED SETTLEMENT OF TEKO JOYA DE VAQUERIA DEPARTMENT IN GAAGUAZU, PARAGUAY

ANGEL CRISTALDO [AND] LUIS TORRES WERE KILLED, OTHERS SERIOUSLY WOUNDED, APROXIMATELY 30 PEOPLE WERE IMPRISONED, 54 HOUSES WERE BURNED AND THE FOPE (SPECIAL OPERATIONAL FORCES) WERE THERE TO DEFEND SOYA LATIFUNDISTS.

STOP IMPUNITY

JUSTICE TO ALL PARAGUAYANS
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2.10 Questions for Porter Goss
By TIMOTHY J. BURGER
TIME magazine, Jun. 22, 2005 [excerpt only]
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/printout/0,8816,1074112,00.html

YOU'RE INTO ORGANIC GARDENING. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN? Mrs. Goss got a little horrified after she started reading the labels on some of the processed foods. We have a farm that [uses] no pesticides, no hormones, no additives--just compost and hard work. And we grow natural.
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3.Tragedy at BIO 2005 - A tough time to be fair
Editorial
Philadelphia Inquirer, Jun. 24, 2005

The fatal heart attack suffered by Philadelphia Police Officer Paris Williams during a scuffle with protesters Tuesday was tragic. But that shouldn't be another excuse for District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham to fire a salvo at Americans' constitutional right to assemble.

Abraham can be relied upon to never miss such an opportunity. Her message - intentional or not - seems to be that the city where America's key freedoms took shape doesn't really believe in that First Amendment stuff.

Let's be clear: Any protester who scuffles with police deserves to be arrested. (That's often their aim.) But Abraham's judgment in lodging felony assault charges against a Canadian man, as well as conspiracy and other lesser charges against four more protesters at the BIO 2005 convention, will be tested by the courts.

Her track record isn't great. When the district attorney took just as tough a line with protesters at earlier events - notably, the 2000 Republican National Convention, and more recently at a small, anti-gay demonstration - the courts knocked down the charges time and again.

A pattern of overcharging protesters who step over the line may be crowd-pleasing. But it gives the city a black eye as a place that squelches dissent.

What's also disturbing about the BIO 2005 case is the rhetoric. While Williams collapsed and died from a preexisting heart condition in the midst of a minor scuffle with demonstrators in Center City, Abraham all but declared the protesters caused his heart attack.

Water was thrown on an officer, an arrest was made, and, said Abraham, "the resulting punching, shoving and pushing... caused Officer Williams to suffer his cardiac event."

Make no mistake, Paris Williams died in the line of duty. But his job, far from just sitting behind a desk, could be physically demanding. Just as firefighters suffer fatal heart attacks in a burning building, so did Officer Williams succumb in the normal course of doing his job. The painful loss of a good officer in such circumstances, however, is quite different from someone else causing his death.

Williams was assigned to the police Civil Affairs Unit, whose mission is to keep the peace at protests, picket lines, and large gatherings.

Though Williams' death is a loss to his family and the Police Department, the best way to honor his memory would be by dealing fairly with protesters who, to their credit, were quick to offer their condolences.