cj#1104,rn> National Lawyers’ Guild re: Militarized Police

2000-07-13

Richard Moore

Dear rn & cj,

Congratulations to the National Lawyers' Guild for
investigating the events in Seattle with such thoroughness.
By any objective standards, their report should be a major
news story.  But it is only by means of the Internet that we
are able to learn of it.  And in any society that was even
remotely democratic, our elected representatives would have
carried out such an investigation themselves.  Instead our
governemnt, and our media, cover up what really happened,
seek to portray peaceful protestors as near-terrorists,
ignore the central issues of the WTO and globalization, and
prepare for _increased police response in future.

I've deferred my comments to the end of this posting, not 
wanting to interfere with your own reading of the report
and its recommendations.

To be continued...

rkm
============================================================================
From: •••@••.••• (Aquatarkus)
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 14:47:19 -0500 (CDT)
To: •••@••.•••, •••@••.•••
Subject: Fwd: [mil-corp] Report says Seattle police were militarized for WTO
MIME-Version: 1.0 (WebTV)

Friends Richard and Jan,

I just finished reading the attached UW file regarding
Seattle and the lengths to which the global elite has gone
to protect "theirs".

Truly illuminating, frightening and yet one more item which
will NOT be widely disseminated in the "Popular" "News"
Media.

Slainte' 
GA 

+++ 

http://community.webtv.net/aqua-tarkus/Aquatarkus


From: "Int'l Network on Disarmament and Globalization" <•••@••.•••>
To: "MIL-CORP" <•••@••.•••>
Subject: [mil-corp] Report says Seattle police were militarized for WTO
Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 08:24:42 -0700

Network members:

The National Lawyers' Guild in Seattle is raising the alarm on the
militarization of the police.

Thanks to Janet Eaton for this.

Steve

****

This report "Draft Report on the Level of Paramilitary
Response and  Loss of Democratic Rights During the Seattle
Round of the World Trade Organization Ministerial"  pays
particular attention to the thinning  lines between law
enforcement and the military and the adverse  effects this
loss of delineation is having on civil liberties..... It 
provides concrete examples of the way the WTO has subverted 
democratic institutions, and had detrimental effects on
human rights,  the environment, safety and labor laws.......
It notes that the U.S.  economy, is a wartime economy. 
Since the collapse of the Soviet  Union, much of those
resources that were devoted to the military have  been
devoted to law enforcement, with major military contractors 
building prisons and designing "less lethal weapon systems."
......  This dynamic has created an enlarged and militarized
law enforcement system. The report.. examines the way
military tactics, training and weaponry have come to
dominate law enforcement. .....The report then looks at the
aftermath that is taking place now in  Seattle and issues
recommendations !!  See following news release on the report
and find the full text of  the lengthy 60 page report with 7
chapters  at: http://www.nlg.org .

 FYI- janet 


SEATTLE NATIONAL LAWYERS GUILD RELEASES DRAFT REPORT ON WTO MINISTERIAL

CONTACT: Paul Richmond, •••@••.•••,  PO Box 95242, Seattle WA,
98145-2242

TEXT OF REPORT ONLINE AT: www.students.washington.edu/uwnlg/   
The National Lawyers' Guild website is at www.nlg.org

The Seattle Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild has just
released its report on the World Trade Organization
Ministerial.  The report examines what took place in Seattle
as an example of larger trends brought about by destructive
economic policies.  The report pays particular attention to
the thinning lines between law enforcement and the military
and the adverse effects this loss of delineation is having
on civil liberties.

The report begins with an overview of the WTO.  It provides
the historical framework of the WTO as an institution born
of the think tanks which were themselves created by the
illicit fortunes of the robber barons.  It provides concrete
examples of the way the WTO has subverted democratic
institutions, and had detrimental effects on human rights,
the environment, safety and labor laws.

Following this, the report traces the way the WTO was
brought to Seattle. It examines the lack of process that
took place - most members of the Seattle City Council seem
not to have been consulted until after the event was a done
deal.  Moreover, Seattle and King County are areas with a
history of resistance to WTO and GATT.  King County was
declared an MAI free zone months before the WTO's arrival
had been announced. Seattle was declared an MAI free zone
weeks after the WTO's selection of Seattle as it's
Ministerial site was announced.

Next comes a report of what took place on the streets of
Seattle in the weeks leading up to the Ministerial and
during the Ministerial itself.  The report utilizes
information from  its 200 legal observers, and hundreds of
witness declarations.  It also utilizes information gained
from public disclosure and from email chatlines utilized by
participating members of law enforcement, including
commanders and line members of the Seattle Police
Department. A picture is painted of confused, inexperienced
law enforcement officers armed with frighteningly powerful,
potentially lethal weaponry and little idea of what to do
with it.  Random forays seem to be launched against random
groups of demonstrators.  Thousands of people, including
bystanders, are exposed to potentially lethal chemical
agents hours before the first window is broken.  Masked
unmarked police invade the most densely populated area on
the West Coast North of San Francisco, attacking residents
and shoppers.  Those arrested are often subjected to
conditions resembling torture. Weapons are repeatedly
deployed in ways that may be potentially lethal.  Police
themselves, are often injured by their own weapons.

The official reports that have been released by law
enforcement consultants all paint pictures of a police force
that should have used more force and should have utilized it
earlier.  The NLG draft report looks at the economic and
political reasons these law enforcement administrators have
adopted this perspective.

It notes that the U.S. economy, is a wartime economy.  Since
the collapse of the Soviet Union, much of those resources
that were devoted to the military have been devoted to law
enforcement, with major military contractors building
prisons and designing "less lethal weapon systems." It looks
at the moves to classify political dissent as a type of
warfare, and to utilize recent demonstrations such as the
WTO Ministerial as examples of why more force should be
used.

It notes the way the factors that have created a shrinking
middle class, have further divided the "haves" and the
"have-nots."  The picture is one of a global village where
the majority of the world's population lives in slums and
prisons and a wealthy few ride around in armored limousines
from fortified enclave to fortified enclave.  This dynamic
has created an enlarged and militarized law enforcement
system.

The report then examines the thinning lines between the
military, who are trained to kill, and law enforcement who
are trained to preserve lives.  It examines the way military
tactics, training and weaponry have come to dominate law
enforcement.  Citing testimony of law enforcement
professionals, the report then traces the disastrous effect
this blending of the two has had on the fabric of democracy
and members of law enforcement themselves.  It examines the
disastrous way this dynamic has played out in the past and
the disastrous way this dynamic played out during the WTO
Ministerial.  Citing past work in the field, the report
shows how such trends can endanger both the fabric of
democratic society and the law enforcement officers
themselves.

Particular attention is paid to the use of "less lethal"
weaponry.   The origins of rubber bullets, flying
truncheons, CS and CN are examined.  All began as weapons
designed to put down rebellions and fight wars.  All were
gradually exported into the areas of law enforcement. 
Looking at the training materials provided by the
manufacturers themselves, the lethality of these substances
is examined in detail.

If the projectiles strike from too close a distance or
strike something other than the buttocks or thighs, it's
usually a potentially trauma inducing or lethal use of
force.

If CS, or CN is used there are to be adequate ways for those
present to escape, or it's potentially lethal especially,
for the young, the elderly and those with diseases like
AIDs.

Anytime these substances are used, reports are to be
administered on each person on whom the weapon was used,
making it far less efficient to use these weapons than to
simply arrest offenders.

Yet, repeatedly, all of these weapons were used in ways that
could have easily been lethal.  Part of the reason for this
is that given the specific parameters of these weapons use,
it is impossible to use them in situations where there a
dozen people moving around, let alone hundreds or thousands.

The report concludes by looking at the melt down that
occurred inside the ministerial itself.  There are quotes by
NGO's and delegates who found the process undemocratic, and
heavilly slanted in favor of a few multinational
corporations.

The report then looks at the aftermath that is taking place
now in Seattle and issues recommendations.  Among these
recommendations are:

Limiting the use of "less lethal" weapons to only those
situations where lethal force is being threatened.  In line
with this, we recommend following the example of the
European parliament and declaring all such weapons
inappropriate for dealing with political protest.

Examining the long terms effects of all those exposed to
chemical agents, including members of law enforcement.

Examining the effect that the militarization, including SWAT
training, waves of inexperienced new hires, and more lethal
weaponry is having on the function of the police.

Investigating the role of all federal agencies, especially
military, in the decision making processes.


___________________________________________________
International Network on Disarmament and Globalization
405-825 Granville Street, Vancouver,
 British Columbia V6Z 1K9 CANADA
tel: (604) 687-3223    fax: (604) 687-3277    
•••@••.•••  www.indg.org

To subscribe to the e-mail list, send an e-mail to
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as the first and only line in the message body.

============================================================================

...rkm, cont:

My only complaint regarding the Guild's report is the
limited scope of their recommendations.  They call, as they
should, for the 'right thing' to be done from this point on.
That is, they want all kinds of things to be investigated,
and they seek reforms of police procedures.

But surely the Guild's lawyers know they won't be granted
any of these 'right things'. Indeed, the 'reforms' actually
being planned are all in the opposite direction.  Who, then,
is the report directed to?  If it's directed to us -- the
sympathetic readers -- then what are we to do with it?  If
it's directed to policy makers, then it falls on deaf ears.
What we're left with is a 'wish list'; no effective 'recommendation' 
has been communicated to anyone even remotely likely to respond.  
 
Consider these two 'recommendations':

    Examining the effect that the militarization, including SWAT
    training, waves of inexperienced new hires, and more lethal
    weaponry is having on the function of the police.
    
    Investigating the role of all federal agencies, especially
    military, in the decision making processes.

It seems to me that the Guild has already carried out these
examinations and investigations, to a first approximation,
as evidenced by their report.  The 'effect' of
'militarization' et al is clear: it creates a situation
where police feel empowered to go on a rampage with their
high-powered weaponry, in the knowledge that their actions
will be defended, whatever they might be.

The 'role' of federal agencies is also clear: they
orchestrate the events; they are aware of the training and
attitudes of the local police; they stay in the background;
they exploit the predictable behavior of the police
beast-machine they've created; they weave media mythology
out of the events; they make plans to escalate in future.

Is 'more investigation' what is most needed here?  Who is it
that is going to change their mind, if only they knew even
more about all this?

If you add up what the Guild has reported, plus what we all
know from standard news sources, a bigger picture can be
drawn...
    
    (1)  The US Government, and its agencies, are clearly in
    close and effective alliance with the WTO and with the forces
    of globalization generally.
    
    (2) The government is not the least interested in
    reconsidering this basic agenda.  Its reponse to protests is
    entirely in terms of how best to suppress them.
    
    (3) The Seattle police have been officially commended for their
    behavior and escalated responses can be expected in future. 
    The media has created a new category of 'dangerously violent
    situation', and has conditioned us to expect decisive police
    action in such cases.
    
    (4) In sum, the US government is engaged in a systematic
    project of ramming down our throats the WTO and the
    corporate globalist regime, by any means necessary --
    including specifically the use of artful propaganda and
    arbitrary police-state tactics.

I suggest we must begin thinking of what we can _do with the
information we already have.

---

For those who nonetheless want still more information
about how the U.S. is rapidly turning into a police state, I
recommend "Covert Action Quarterly", although some readers
may be able to recommend books or magazines more directly
attuned to that topic.  I've also got an article online,
"The Police State Conspiracy: An Indictment", which was
published in New Dawn back in 1998.

rkm
http://cyberjournal.org



============================================================================
Richard K Moore
Wexford, Ireland
Citizens for a Democratic Renaissance 
email: •••@••.••• 
CDR website: http://cyberjournal.org
cyberjournal archive: http://members.xoom.com/centrexnews/
book in progress: http://cyberjournal.org/cdr/gri.html

                A community will evolve only when
                the people control their means of communication.
                        -- Frantz Fanon

Permission for non-commercial republishing hereby granted - BUT 
include and observe all restrictions, copyrights, credits,
and notices - including this one.
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