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Welcome to the
Progressive Students Political Action Club
at Murry Bergtraum High School
Where democracy is put into action through student
engagement with the great issues of the day.
Urgent Action for Tsunami Relief Efforts
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Anti-War Poster created by student PSPac member: Pavlo
ACTION ALERT * UNITED FOR PEACE AND
JUSTICE http://www.unitedforpeace.org | 212-868-5545
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IN THE WAKE OF THE TSUNAMI:
** Demand increased U.S. aid
** Demand immediate debt cancellation
** Donate to grassroots relief efforts (details below)
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The damage wrought by the December 26 tsunami is so epic and heartbreaking in
its scope that words can hardly convey the sense of loss and grief we feel.
United for Peace and Justice joins with people all around the world in mourning
the devastation, and in seeking ways to help the survivors.
We do so with an acute awareness of the role that global inequality and
widespread poverty plays in intensifying “natural” disasters, and of the
repressive conditions that defined ordinary life for many in the region –
particularly in the hardest hit area, the Indonesian province of Aceh -- even
before the tsunami hit. We are recommending several action steps intended not
just to respond to this immediate crisis but to promote lasting social justice
in the region.
INCREASE U.S. AID. Contact your Congressional representatives to demand that the
U.S. government dramatically increase its aid to the affected countries. After
considerable pressure, the Bush Administration has upped its pledge of support
to $350 million – but that figure is still insultingly small, less than the
amount that is wasted every two days on the disastrous and unnecessary war in
Iraq. Find contact information for your representatives at http://www.house.gov/
and http://www.senate.gov/
CANCEL THE DEBT. Like much of the Global South, the countries most affected by
the tsunami have been crippled for years by staggering debt. Indonesia alone
pays more than $7 billion each year in debt service to the International
Monetary Fund and World Bank – a figure that dwarfs the total aid pledged so far
to the entire region. UFPJ strongly supports the call by Jubilee South (http://www.jubileesouth.org)
and groups all around the world in calling for the unconditional cancellation of
all the debt owed by countries hit by the tsunami. Support this demand by
joining Jubilee USA Network in sending a letter to President Bush and Treasury
Secretary Snow calling for immediate debt relief. Click here:
http://www.jubileeusa.org/jubilee.cgi?path=/take_action&page=tsunamiletter.html
SUPPORT GRASSROOTS RELIEF EFFORTS. Private giving is not a substitute for
government aid or debt cancellation. That said, there are many grassroots
nongovernmental organizations in the region that are not only doing key relief
work but are also empowering local communities and providing a crucial
counterweight to the often corrupt and brutal governments of the most affected
countries. Below are several groups that we especially encourage you to support:
East Timor Action Network
http://www.etan.org/action/action2/23alert.htm
The East Timor Action Network is collecting contributions from people in the
United States who want to give direct aid to local grassroots and humanitarian
organizations in Aceh, the remote and war-torn Indonesian province that has been
most devastated by the tsunami. Direct donations to grassroots organizations in
Aceh circumvent the inevitable siphoning off of resources - both monetary and
material - to the Indonesian government and military, which has a long and
brutal record of human rights violations in Aceh. Big international NGOs will be
obliged to work through the Indonesian government, while donations via the ETAN
relief fund will go towards developing local capacity and will help sustain
groups that have been doing important humanitarian and social justice work for
years.
Via Campesina
http://www.viacampesina.org/art_english.php3?id_article=500
Via Campesina is global alliance of peasant, family farmer, farm worker,
indigenous and landless peoples organizations, and other rural movements; they
have numerous active member organizations in the region affected by the tsunami.
The relief philosophy of Via Campesina is that local communities – particularly,
in this case, fisherfolk and peasant organizations -- should participate
actively and be the key actors in the reconstruction process. By donating to Via
Campesina’s relief fund, you can help those in need at this time in ways that
help build self-sufficiency, grassroots organization, and people’s power for the
future.
American Friends Service Committee
http://www.afsc.org/give/asia-relief.htm
The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), a member group of United for
Peace and Justice, is mounting an important relief effort in hard-hit Aceh. AFSC
has had a presence and contacts in Indonesia for more than 35 years, through its
peace-building efforts and international conferences and seminars, and is
working to offer pragmatic, immediate help that builds longer-term recovery so
that communities can rebuild long after the media attention and compassionate
responses for aid have diminished. AFSC’s longstanding expertise in relief work,
peace-building, and grassroots empowerment make it especially well-suited to
provide effective support to communities in Aceh.
MADRE
http://www.madre.org/programs/appeal/tsunami.html
The human rights group MADRE, which is a member group of United for Peace and
Justice, has partnered with a Sri Lankan women’s organization, INFORM, to help
establish and equip emergency health centers in areas affected by the tsunami.
Through these centers, survivors will receive the emergency medical attention
and clean drinking water they so desperately require and displaced women and
families will receive crucial trauma counseling, which will help them cope with
the deaths of their children and other loved ones, gradually heal from their
trauma, and begin t orebuild.
Faculty Sponsors: John Elfrank-Dana and Ted Auerbach.