JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2005

January 1st, 2005

The new year begins with the overwhelming tragedy of the earthquake in the Indian Ocean and its aftermath of death and destruction on a scale never seen before. The devastation over such a huge area makes one weep.

EDITORIAL The new year begins with the overwhelming tragedy of the earthquake in the Indian Ocean and its aftermath of death and destruction on a scale never seen before. The devastation over such a huge area makes one weep. The international community will need to be more generous than ever; it must not be said that we cannot afford whatever is needed. It is a question of priorities. We cannot allow the quest for peace to be lost in all this. And there can be no peace without justice. This is the reason for all our work. Justice & Peace is still seen as an optional extra for so many Christians and is rarely the subject of preaching at Mass. The justification is there in Scripture. The prophets cried it aloud: “Integrity will bring peace, justice will give everlasting security.” [Is.32:17] “This is what Yaweh asks of you; only this, to act justly, to love tenderly and to walk humbly with your God.” [Mic.6:8] And Jesus began his public life by reading to the people in the synagogue: “The Spirit of God is upon me. God sent me to proclaim the Good News to the poor, to break the yoke of injustice and to set the down-trodden free.” [Lk.4:18] What are the injustices in our society? Do we ever try to do something about these injustices? As for peace, as Pax Christi point out, we have a choice: • Can we live without resorting to evil and violence? • Is the response to terrorism a war on terrorism? • When our freedoms are threatened is the right answer to curtail human rights? Chris Dove Note: the views expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily coincide with those of the Commission. Peace Sunday When the Bishop of Assisi once spoke to St Francis about his life, so rich in deprivation, and his lack of possessions, he replied: “My Lord, if we wanted to have possessions we would also need to have arms for our defence. But that is where the quarrels and fights come from that so often impede love for God and neighbour. That is why we do not want to possess temporal things in this world.” Source: PRE. “Overcome evil with good ” This is Pope John Paul II’s World Peace Message for 2005. To put it into practice, can we agree on this: • We will not hate; • We will not seek to get even; • We will not act violently against whole peoples because of the action of a few; • We will love our enemies and do good to those who hate us? These questions touch all aspects of our lives, our relationships with friends, family and colleagues. They will also challenge our political choices and what we do about such issues as the arms trade, nuclear weapons, and the so-called war on terror. In our home and church communities we need to recall and celebrate experiences of peacemaking, actions where good overcomes evil. They give us hope and encouragement in our own peacemaking initiatives. Source: Pax Christi

Ancient liberties The law lords’ recent judgement against the catch-all 2001 Anti-Terrorism Act declared that detaining people indefinitely on suspicion alone contravened democratic rights and international obligations. Lord Hoffman concluded that the act itself was a greater threat to the nation than terrorism, and called into question “the very existence of an ancient liberty of which this country has until now been very proud: freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention.” Some earlier memorable dicta: “No freeman shall be taken or imprisoned…. except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land..” Magna Carta 1215

“No freeman shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions or outlawed or exiled or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgement of his equals or by the law of the land.” Habeas Corpus Act 1679

“Where the law ends tyranny begins.” John Locke 1690

“Be you never so high, the law is above you.” Sir Thomas Fuller 1732

“A right of every Englishman is that of applying to the Courts of Justice for redress of injuries.” William Blackstone 1765

“Every court of criminal justice must have the power of correcting the greatest and most dangerous of all abuses of the forms of law – that of the protracted imprisonment of the accused, untried, perhaps not intended ever to be tried, nay, it may be, not informed of the nature of the charge against him, or the name of the accuser.” David Hume 1797

“The Attorney General… has no prerogative to suspend or dispense with the laws of England.” Lord Denning 1979

“A government above the law is a menace to be defeated” Lord Scarman 1992 Source: The Independent 15.12.04

What happened last year? • The wealth of the super-rich has doubled since Tony Blair came to power, according to the Office for National Statistics. Nearly 600,000 individuals in the top 1% of the UK wealth league owned assets worth £355bn in 1996. By 2002 that had increased to £797bn. Part of the gain was due to rising national prosperity, but the top 1% also increased their share of the national wealth from 20% to 23% in the first six years of the Labour government. Meanwhile the wealth of the poorest 50% of the population shrank from 10% in 1986, to 7% in 1996 and 5% in 2002.

• A Home Office scheme to prevent Roma people flying here from the Czech Republic amounted to “inherent and systematic racism” – the words used By the law lords.

• The Home Office decided that rejected asylum seekers who cannot return home immediately will be expected to take up unpaid community work in return for basic accommodation and their other meagre benefits. Anyone failing to do so will have support withdrawn. Source: Guardian Weekly 17-23 Dec.

• Ten years ago, in Rwanda, 800,000 people died in 100 days as the international community looked on. Today, as a consequence of the genocide there are 260,000 orphans in Rwanda, of whom 65,000 are HIV positive, and every year 40,000children are born to HIV-infected mothers. Of the 100,000 Rwandans who need HIV treatment, only 4,000 are currently receiving anti-retro viral medicines. There are only 274 doctors to serve a population of eight million in Rwanda. Source: Jubilee Action Barbara Hungin Chair 01642 784398 Sr Mary Walmsley CJ Secretary 01904 464917 Nan Saeki Treasurer 01904 783621 Chris Dove Editor 01947 825043 email: dove.whitby@ukgateway.net or 22 Blackburns Yard Whitby YO22 4DS website:www.ayton.info/middlesbroughjp

Commission contacts

An Appeal

I am sorry to have to ask for money, but bringing out the Newsletter is a major cost for the Commission. It is supplied free but paper and printing costs have increased and so has postage for those who have it posted to them. If you find it of value, perhaps you would consider sending a donation to the Treasurer: Nan Saeki 55 Moorgate York YO24 4HP. It would be very much appreciated.

We must not forget

Following The Lancet report in November, Medact issued a report on the Enduring effects of war on health in Iraq 2004. This states that since the 2003 coalition invasion, 100,000 Iraqi deaths have arisen from violence, mainly air strikes. Many thousands of conflict-related injuries were also sustained. Infant mortality has risen because of lack of access to skilled help as well as violence. It goes on so say that Iraq already had a high child and adult mortality and there is a recurrence of previously well-controlled communicable diseases. One in four people still depend on food aid and there are more children underweight or chronically malnourished than in 2000.

Voices in the Wilderness and Justice not Vengeance continue to produce excellent briefings on the war in Iraq. Following the US assault on Fallujah, the situation was described by The Independent as, “a picture of utter destruction, with concrete houses flattened, mosques in ruin, telegraph poles down, power and phone lines hanging slack and rubble and human remains littering the empty street.” There has been a haunting silence on the part of MPs and Church leaders. One of the few voices of dissent came from Bishop Patrick O’Donoghue of Lancaster Diocese. His appeal to stop the carnage, issued in November is on the Middle East page of the Pax Christi website. Source: Pax Christi

Counting the dead

“We still do not know how many civilians have been killed since the start of the second Iraq war. But we should know. The “rules of war” – the Geneva Conventions and other treaties – state that all military operations must be carried out with “proportionate use of force,” avoiding civilian casualties wherever possible. Without keeping a full record of all civilian deaths and injuries, it is impossible to assess whether the multinational forces in Iraq are meeting this responsibility and protecting the right to life wherever possible. British forces should take the lead and put in place measures for monitoring all civilian casualties in Iraq. The responsibility lies with coalition governments.” Kate Allen. Director, Amnesty International UK Source: Letter to The Independent

Making Peace with a hug

[Helen Douglas has been working for two years with Quaker Peace & Service in South Africa. At the end of her stay she sent this rather sad email.]

“The hardest part of working here has been meeting children who have been raped or abused by family members, or orphaned. There is just nowhere for them to go. Pointless going to social services or child protection units. Heartbreaking, and desperate. These are the situations that made me determined to set up a Trust and begin to build a Safe House in the area, both of which I have done. The Trustees have told me I must come back when the house is opened – but we’ve got some serious fundraising to do first, and there’ve been other difficulties. Pride does indeed come before falling, and I was proud of having forged friendships with a wide variety of people in the community, and linked up a Board of Trustees comprising a white Magistrate and white attorney, and black representatives from banks, NGO’s, education, social welfare and health fields. Unfortunately one of the key community members – and my closest friend here – believes the two white members make it an “ALL white” committee, and she has attempted to undermine the whole process. An outsider never can understand the impact of Apartheid’s history on this country. My friend insists, “ALL white South Africans are bullies and just using us for personal gain.” I’ve tried hard to reason with her, to point out that the Trustees are not permitted to earn a cent, that they are giving freely of their professional expertise and time, that it isn’t possible to generalise, to tar everyone with the same brush. She persists. I become frustrated with her. Exasperated. I want to shake her into realising the danger of prejudice. But at the end of the day, I did not live through Apartheid. I was not forced to eat off a tin plate while “Madam” supped from a china dish. My child was not made to kip down on a mat in the outhouse while his white counterparts slept in feathered bliss. We are standing together in my pantry having this contretemps. I have just handed her a tin plate (which I prefer) and she has explained its significance. I take back the plate, appalled at my own insensitivity and ignorance, and give her the only china one. I apologise – not for the tin plate, but for having thought I could change a lifetime of humiliation with mere reasoned argument. We hug each other. But I still wonder exactly who is perpetuating the racist attitudes in this backwater, and I despair.” Helen

Commission Meetings in 2005

22 Jan York. English Martyrs “Peace & Disarmament Gathering” Pax Christi. FoR. Quaker Peace & Service 19 Mar Hull. St Stephens In House Speakers from J&P Commission. 21 May Middlesbrough. St Francis of Assisi AGM & “Make Poverty History” CAFOD Campaign Lesley Ann Knights 16 July Filey. Mercy Convent Day of Reflection. 17 Sept Middlesbrough. St Francis of Assisi Medical Foundation for Victims of Torture. 19 Nov York. Students from All Saints School Commission meetings are open to everyone and usually begin at 10 for 10.30, finishing by about 1pm.

Blessed are the Peacemakers

Blessed are you peacemakers, who say no to war as a means of peace. Blessed are you peacemakers, who are committed to disarm weapons of mass destruction. Blessed are you peacemakers, who wage peace at heroic personal cost. Blessed are you peacemakers, who challenge and confront judges, courts, and prisons. Blessed are the peacemakers, who help those who are hurting. Blessed are the peacemakers, who befriend perfect strangers. Blessed are the peacemakers, for acting justly, loving tenderly and walking humbly with God and all people of goodwill. Blessed are the peacemakers, who welcome, encourage and inspire. Blessed are the peacemakers, who offer hope and healing. Blessed are the peacemakers, who care and comfort. Blessed are the peacemakers, who help find answers. Blessed are the peacemakers, who provide stability not insanity. Blessed are the peacemakers, who help restore faith and love. Blessed are the peacemakers, who delight in creation, art and creativity. Blessed are the peacemakers, who see good in others. Blessed are the peacemakers, who never give up. Blessed are the peacemakers, who give and give and give. Fr Paul Milanowski, [Paul from Grand Rapids, Michigan, has been a peace activist for many years.]

For Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

God our Father, may Christ’s disciples have the grace through your Holy Spirit, to discover that the most profound joy within your Church, lies in our coming together in one and the same faith and love, in order to prepare resolutely for the day when we may share in a common eucharist. AMEN Jean Tillard OP