November/December 2004

November 1st, 2004

Barbara took the opportunity of a meeting with the Prime Minister to raise her concerns about the way those who come seeking a safe refuge are treated.

EDITORIAL Barbara took the opportunity of a meeting with the Prime Minister to raise her concerns about the way those who come seeking a safe refuge are treated. Please write to Tony Blair as she suggests. According to Panorama, the sugar industry financed the research for the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation that concluded that unlimited consumption of sugar is good for us. Food scientists have a loyalty to their employers, but does that mean they should distort their science? And where were they when it was decided to feed the remains of cows to cows – widely believed to have been the source of the devastating BSE outbreak? Fr Sean McDonagh’s powerful piece in The Tablet gives another view on the genetic engineering of food. These problems are not just for the scientists but are of concern to farmers and growers and, as Anthea points out, to ordinary shoppers. The British section of Pax Christi is to send journalist Paul Donovan to be part of a monitoring team in Florida for the US election. He will work with Pax Christi USA who say “from our perspective, this election will have a global impact and as such must be accountable to a global constituency.” To support this project you can send a donation to Pax Christi whose address is below. January 16 is Peace Sunday 2005. Please remind your parish of the need to support the work of Pax Christi, the official Catholic peace organisation of the church in this country. John Paul II’s Peace Message for 2005 is: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Have a blessed and peaceful Christmas! Chris Dove

Note: the views expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily coincide with those of the Commission.

Question Time I was one of 120 people invited to a question and answer session with Tony Blair in a local Teesside pub. The meeting focused on creating safer communities; with particular reference to resources for young people, creative community projects and the working of anti social behaviour orders. This gave me the opportunity to challenge the Prime Minister on aspects of his government’s asylum policy which seems to many of us to be giving the wrong messages to residents in our local communities. As we heard at the Hearing in May many of those seeking asylum here on Teesside are experiencing hostility and abuse from local people who are only too ready to believe the negative images created by politicians and the media. There is a ‘climate of disbelief’ within the Home Office which appears to work against the genuine asylum seeker. The language we hear from politicians is all about meeting targets for sending people home, and about reducing asylum claims. We hear almost nothing about their very real contribution to our society and how welcoming people from other cultures is an enriching experience. I asked the Prime Minister to give a lead in changing these damaging messages and to recognise that his government could play a much bigger role in facilitating community integration by acknowledging strengths and positives. In true political style he did not answer my question but chose to stress the necessity of ‘tightening up the system so that we are getting the actual number of asylum seekers down to a level of true asylum claims.’ However, he did go on to say ‘It is important we continue to abide by our obligations to support people who have fled persecution and the threat of death’. I pointed out that many genuine asylum seekers do not get the right decision – but he was keener to re-iterate that many people believed he should do more to crack down on asylum abuses. Fortunately a local radio station contacted me the following day so I was able to make similar points in a live interview on their breakfast programme. This has given me added impetus to ask people once more to write to Tony Blair expressing serious concern about the number of genuine claims that are refused and encouraging a more positive message from his government. Letters can make a significant impact. I hope you will consider doing this. Barbara We’ll reap what we sow The US Embassy to the Holy See, in cooperation with the Vatican’s Academy of Science hosted a seminar in Rome under the title “Feeding a Hungry World: The Moral Imperative of Bio-technology”. The flyer promoting the event begins with the UN statistic that one person dies from hunger and malnutrition every six seconds and 1.5 billion people live in poverty. Then it claims that there is an obligation to promote genetically engineered (GE) crops in order to banish hunger and starvation. Sean McDonagh argues that the main causes of hunger, as the World Food Summit in Rome in November 1996 acknowledged, are economic and social. People are hungry because they do not have enough money to buy food. He continues: “At the moment the bulk of the GE corn and soya harvest is fed to animals, not people. If we opt for getting our protein from animals and not plants it will mean an even more inequitable world with increasing malnutrition.” He argues that many countries, as they become richer, are adopting the Western meat-rich diet. In 1960, Mexico fed only 5% of its grain harvest to animals; by 2004 that figure had climbed to 45%. In Egypt, similarly, the figures are 3% increasing to 31% and China – home to one-sixth of the world’s population – has gone from 8% to 26%. In all of these countries poor people could use this grain to stave off malnutrition, but unfortunately they cannot afford to buy grain. So growing GE grain to feed animals is, in fact contributing to world hunger and not solving it. “America would like people to believe that behind Washington’s advocacy of GE food is the altruistic desire to feed the world. But GE crops will give enormous control to a handful of Northern agribusiness companies. Support for GE crops also means supporting the patenting of living organisms – seeds and animals. Patenting life is a fundamental attack on the understanding of life as a gift from God. That is why it is strange to find the Vatican helping to promote it.” Source: The Tablet 18 September

Thoughts about Food When Chris told me that the title of Andy’s talk on November 20th, is to be ‘Food for Thought’, I began thinking about food myself. I soon realised that I do

think about it a lot, when I’m cooking and when I’m eating. But the time I have to think hardest about food is when I’m shopping, and beset by all sorts of caveats. As I go round the supermarket shelves, I have to think as follows: Is it fairly traded? Is it healthy? Will it make us obese? Can we afford it? Does Chris like it? Do I like it? This is a lot to cope with as one’s brain cells decrease in number. And in addition I feel bound to study labels, looking out for the dreaded Es, nasty sodium monosodium glutomate and other horrors. I have to make difficult decisions about the advisablity of organic foodstuffs not to mention GM. But probably the most brain-taxing challenge [with regard to food] is the question of healthy eating. I remember about thirty five years ago our youngest son expressed a yearning for sliced white bread. When we said No, and explained why, he asked plaintively, “What on earth is the point of eating healthily at your age? And here we are in our seventies, still trying to obey our government, or someone-who-knows-what’s-good-for-us, by eating five portions of fruit and vegetables daily. Chris and I share an apple and then a banana and I find myself worrying in case they only count as half a portion each. Then, realising this is all getting too complicated and a bit silly, I wonder if we wouldn’t be wiser to settle for a simple diet of bread and ch—but no, we can’t, because cheese is fat and BAD for us! When I was researching my family history I discovered that some of my ancestors were cotton weavers who lived through the Lancashire cotton famine. They survived on nothing but oats, as porridge or oatcakes, with a bit of cabbage, potato or milk occasionally if they were lucky. They seem to have been strong and healthy, and lived to a good old age. In our old age, I think it’s best, just sometimes, simply to eat the food we enjoy: a pork pie for Chris, a cream cake for me. Anthea Dove

UN probes sugar industry claims The UN Food & Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has said it plans to reconvene their research committee after Panorama revealed documents which show that the World Sugar Research Organisation (WSRO) and the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI), both funded by the sugar industry, helped pay for the Expert Consultation on Carbohydrates in Human Nutrition. The Consultation was a joint venture between the World Health Organisation and FAO and was to look impartially at key questions, including whether sugar is detrimental to human health. Since its publication the report of the consultation has been used by the sugar lobby to fight any suggestion of a link between sugar and health concerns. The Panorama programme found documents showing that WSRO, funded by the sugar industry, paid US$ 20,000, and ILSI, an American research group paid for by food companies like Coca Cola and Tate & Lyle, paid $40,000 to the organisers. ILSI also nominated the chairman. The experts didn’t know that the sugar industry was paying for them to be in Rome for the consultation. Committee member Prof Jim Mann, a nutritionist from New Zealand, said: “I believe that it would be impossible to produce an unbiased report when the source of funding came from groups with clearly vested interests, and I certainly, and my colleagues probably, would not have been prepared to be involved with such an activity had we known it had been funded by these organisations.” A further fact came to light. The experts claim they had agreed on a limit of between 55 and 75% on how much carbohydrate we should eat. But when the report came out the upper limit had gone. Prof Mann said “I think it would clearly be to the advantage of the industry not to have an upper limit, because increasingly the industry are producing food products which are reduced in fat, and one way to compensate for fat is to increase the amount of sugar. So obviously if there’s no upper limit of sugar, one can add sugar with impunity into a whole range of food products.” Source: BBC Panorama

Landmine Action Campaign In 1998, President Clinton committed the US to cease using anti-personnel landmines and join the Ottawa Treaty by 2006 provided that alternatives had been identified and fielded. In June 2001, the Bush administration decided to review the policy, and in February 2004, announced a new policy which permits the use of self-destructing mines without geographical restrictions and long-lived mines may be used until 2010. Besides the US, Poland, Finland and Latvia and the Gulf States continue to remain outside the treaty. Source: Landmine Action Autumn 2004

Nuclear disarmament The Fellowship of Reconciliation, one of the earliest peace movements, is asking people to make a commitment to write to the Prime Minister now and each month until May 2005, urging him to fulfil the promise he made at the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference in 2000, to get rid of our nuclear arsenals. At the conference, the USA, Russia, China, France and Britain all joined in “an unequivocal undertaking ….. to accomplish the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals leading to nuclear disarmament. The next NPT Review Conference is due to take place in May 2005 and so far every indication is that they have no intention of implementing that undertaking. By writing to Tony Blair each month to remind him of that promise it is possible that he might at least consider not replacing the Trident system which is said to be approaching the end of its useful life. Here is a suggestion for the wording:

Dear Prime Minister I am deeply concerned by the proliferation of nuclear weapons and dismayed by the failure of the nuclear weapon states to eliminate them as hey promised to do. May I remind you that at the 2000 NPT Review Conference the nuclear weapon states, including the UK, gave “an unequivocal undertaking ….. to accomplish the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals leading to nuclear disarmament.” Please keep that promise. Source: FoR

Peace activists for 28 years The latest issue of Justpeace, the newsletter of Pax Christi, included a piece from Marjorie and James Walsh looking back at 28 years of peacemaking. This is an extract from that: What have we learned over the years? Do not be discouraged – there will always be moments of despair or disillusionment, but we are not on our own. Do not be afraid – the person you are approaching may even come to meet you half-way; you will always have cold feet when you organise an event – but people will come! The thought of giving up has never actually entered our heads. What better thing could we be doing? We have been kept going by the inspiration of many people and by the example of those who do far more than we have ever done, or could do. Above all, by the conviction that somehow we have got to get across the idea that war is always unacceptable, and that peace is possible if enough people want it enough.”

Pax Christi – Our Values Pax Christi members live by the biblically inspired values of Peace, Reconciliation, Non-violence. These values are supported by the witness of peacemakers down the ages and the experience of the Pax Christi community. Pax Christi is rooted in Catholic Christianity but is open to all who are in sympathy with its values and work. Pax Christi, St Joseph’s, Watford Way, Hendon, London NW4 4TY email: paxchristi@gn.apc.org 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

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and a request…. This newsletter is supplied free but it costs money to produce especially 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.

(Mis)Use of English language Bureaucratic memos often stray far enough from basic English to be considered a distinct language. A wonderful example comes to us from Terry R.Little, acquisition management adviser at the Missile Defense Agency USA. In a memo last month to “All Element Program Managers,” Little wrote: “The Missile Defense Agency Director wants to capitalize on the extraordinarily hard work undertaken throughout the agency to develop and deliver Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) capabilities. Our purpose is to realize the solidarity of your hard work, reduce the distractions and facilitate the commonality in our focus, and maximize the efficient utilization of MDA resources.” “The goal is to eliminate wasted energy and encourage harmonizing individual energies towards the common vision to develop and field an integrated BMDS capable of providing a layered defense for the homeland, deployed forces, friends, and allies against ballistic missiles of all ranges in all phases of flight. “I am forming the BMDS Integration Working Group (IWG) to harmonize the separate element contracts into a coherent whole. The IWG will need to have insightful discussions, innovative coordinate actions, and a collegial environment to form and evaluate alternatives that reward integrated BMDS demonstrated capabilities.” Then, inexplicably, Little lapses into English. “To assist with the IWG’s success, I need your support,” he writes. But he says not to forget that “the timeline is very aggressive. I would like to have the harmonization path ahead. .. .” Source: Washington Post September 13, 2004 by Al Kamen

For your diary Our first Commission meeting in 2005 will be on Jan 22 at St Wilfrid’s York. It is one of a series of ” Peace and Disarmament Gatherings”set up by CAAT, Pax Christi, Quaker Peace & Social Witness and Fellowship of Reconciliation, billed as “a chance to get to know each other’s groups/experiences, strengthening local and regional networking, communication and collaboration; learning new skills for peace action and campaigning, an opportunity to feel supported and energised with a sense of worth for your peacework.”

11 September

Christians are acutely aware that we are seldom faithful to the gifts God has given us, but we hope the confession of our sins is a sign of hope in a world without hope. This means pacifists do have a response to 11 September 2001. Our response is to continue living in a manner that witnesses to our belief that the world was not changed on 11 September 2001. The world was changed during the celebration of Passover in AD 33. Stanley Hauerwas