Features

The U.S. governmental system sets forth rights of all peoples under U.S. jurisdiction (described in previous columns in 11 sections), and duties of the U.S. Administration (starting in this column.) 

These duties are described in the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights and Amendments, and are also part of the common law and the law of nations. The Administration uses the common law and law of nations in its reports on violations of law by other nations (see section 15 below). The U.S. has a commitment to enforce this law within the U.S. and in all of the actions of the U.S. government. 

The Government’s Duty To Count the Votes Accurately & Report to the People Honestly 

The most obvious duty of the federal government is to see that the votes in federal elections are counted honestly. This count permits the Electoral College to decide who won the power to run the administrative branch of the federal government, and the U.S. military.  

12. Congress and the People Challenge Administration Words and Actions 

The sharp questions about the Florida and other election results led to anger at the Administration in many communities, particularly African American and low income. The Congressional Black Caucus took the unprecedented step of asking the United Nations to send observers to monitor the 2004 election. (The U.N. only has the power to grant such requests when a national government makes the request.) 

Immediately after the allegations of lying about the election returns, the Administration made statements about weapons of mass destruction requiring U.S. invasion of Iraq. The U.S. Constitution article II is full of duties of the President to report to Congress and to the people. The U.N. Charter sets forth similar duties by the heads of state. 

Report 12.2 

Wilson Stated Administration Used Information Known To Be False: Joseph Wilson (Joseph C. Wilson, “What I Didn’t Find in Africa,” New York Times, July 6, 2003.) 

Report 12.3 

Investigation of Administration Leak of CIA Agent’s Identity: Valerie Plame (Terence Hunt, “Bush Consults Lawyer in CIA Leak Case,” Guardian, June 3, 2004.) 

Report 12.4 

9/11 Widow Files RICO Lawsuit Against Bush: Ellen Mariani (Ellen Mariani, “911 Victim Ellen Mariani Open Letter To The POTUS,” Scoop New Zealand News, Nov. 27, 2003.) 

Report 12.6 

Waxman Report Exposes Administration’s Misleading Statements: Henry Waxman (Committee On Government Reform —Minority Staff Special Investigations Division, “Iraq on the Record: The Bush Administration’s Public Statements on Iraq,” a.k.a “Waxman Report,” U.S. House of Representatives, March 16, 2004.) 

Report 12.7 

U.S. Office of Strategic Influence Proposed to Issue Lies (“The Office of Strategic Influence is Gone, But Are Its Programs Still In Place?” Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, Nov. 2002.) 

The Government’s Duty To Obey the Constitution and Law of Nations 

The U.S. Constitution, Article I, Sec. 8, cl. 10, specifically gives Congress, not the President, the power “to define and punish ... Offenses against the Law of Nations,” thus recognizing that the U.S. is bound by this law. 22 former U.S. Ambassadors, four retired Generals, Admirals, and Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff issued a statement against Bush's re-election on June 16, 2004, because his first term was such a “complete and terrible disaster.” 

13. Not To Send Military For Regime Change In Afghanistan Or Haiti 

As a member of the U.N., the U.S. is committed not to use “threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state,...” and to “settle ... international disputes by peaceful means,...” (U.N. Charter Arts. 2.4 and 2.3) 

Report 13.1 

U.S. May Have Directly Killed 3,400 Afghans, Indirectly Killed 20,000 (Jonathan Steele, “Forgotten Victims,” Guardian UK, May 20, 2002.) 

Report 13.2 

U.S. Bombing Killed Children in Afghanistan (“U.S. Bombing Kills Afghan Children,” BBCNews.com, December 7, 2003.) 

Report 13.3 

Bush Charged with Orchestrating Removal of President Aristide in Haiti (“Aristide: U.S. Forced me to Leave,” BBC News, March 2, 2004.) 

14. Not To Send Troops for Invasion of Iraq 

The U.S. Constitution does not mention going to “war against poverty” or “war against drugs” or “war against terrorism.” Bush did not ask Congress for a declaration of war against Iraq with clearly stated goals and a plan to return power to the Iraqi people after the U.S. invasion. 

Report 14.1 

U.S. Troops Open Fire, Kill Baghdad Protesters 

(Fred Abrahams, “As U.S. Kills Two Iraqi Demonstrators In Baghdad, Human Rights Watch Demands Full Investigation Of U.S. Killings In Falluja,” Democracy Now!, June 18, 2003.) 

Report 14.2  

After Iraq Invasion, U.S. Troops Killed Thousands of Civilians (Human Rights Watch, “Off Target: The Conduct of the War and Civilian Casualties in Iraq,” Dec. 2003.)  

Report 14.3 

Over 12,000 U.S. Casualties from Iraq Invasion (Mike Lee, “Casualty Ward: U.S. Medical Center Handles Thousands of Trauma Cases From Iraq War,” ABC News, Aug. 8, 2004.) 

Report 14.4 

U.S. Appointed Ex-CIA Operative Head of Iraq After He Allegedly Murdered Six: Iyad Allawi (Paul McGeough, “Allawi Shot Prisoners in Cold Blood: Witnesses,” Sydney Morning Herald, July 17, 2004.) 

15. Not To Support Abusive Regimes or Violations of World Court Opinions 

The U.S. Department of State is required to make a report to Congress and the people every year on the human rights record of every nation so that federal funds cannot be allocated to abusive governments without an express waiver request from the President agreed to by Congress (Human Rights and Security Assistance Act). Administration requests for military, and civilian, aid to Israel and Egypt totally ignore the human rights report by DOS. 

Report 15.1 

U.S. Government Provides Aid to Abusive Regimes in Violation of Federal Law (“Country Reports on Human Rights Practices—Sudan,” U.S. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Feb. 25, 2004.)  

Report 15.2 

U.S. Supports Israel’s Rejection of the World Court Opinion (Aluf Benn, “ICJ: West Bank Fence Is Illegal, Israel Must Tear It Down,” Haaretz, July 9, 2004.) 

Report 15.3 

U.S. Intervention in Colombia Poisons People and the Environment (Kristine Herwig, “The Environment, Plan Colombia, and U.S. Aid,” Macalester Environmental Review, Sept. 25, 2002.) 

To be continued... 

Berkeley resident Ann Fagan Ginger is a lawyer, teacher, activist and the author of 24 books. She won a civil liberties case in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1959. She is the founder and executive director of the Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute, a Berkeley-based center for human rights and peace law. 

Contents excerpted from Challenging U.S. Human Rights Violations Since 9/11, edited by Ann Fagan Ginger (© 2004 Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute; Prometheus Books 2005) 

Readers can go to http://mcli.org for a complete listing of reports and sources, with web links. 

n