-Caveat Lector- ------- Forwarded Message Follows ------- ---- The Progressive Response 9 July 1999 Vol. 3, No. 24 Editor: Martha Honey Compiled by: Tim McGivern and Erik Leaver ----------------------------------------------------------------- --------- ---- The Progressive Response (PR) is a weekly service of Foreign Policy in Focus (FPIF), a joint project of the Interhemispheric Resource Center and the Institute for Policy Studies. We encourage written responses to the opinions expressed in PR. ----------------------------------------------------------------- --------- ---- Table of Contents I. Updates and out-Takes *** THE PINOCHET CASE: AN END TO IMPUNITY? *** by Sarah Anderson *** U.S. DEMOCRATIZATION ASSISTANCE *** by Elizabeth Cohn II. Comments *** THE VANITY AND LAZINESS OF REPORTERS *** *** GRATITUDE *** *** WAS IT WORTH IT? *** ----------------------------------------------------------------- --------- ---- I. Updates and Out-Takes *** THE PINOCHET CASE: AN END TO IMPUNITY? *** by Sarah Anderson On October 16, 1998, the world was stunned to learn of the arrest in London of Augusto Pinochet, the former Chilean dictator who had become an international symbol of ironclad impunity. After numerous failed legal battles, Pinochet remained in British custody as of June 1999, facing possible extradition to Spain, where a judge has indicted him for "crimes against humanity." Even if the Spanish authorities fail to put Pinochet on trial, their efforts must be appreciated as a historic struggle, not only against Pinochet, but in the broader fight for international human rights. Here are a few of the most important implications of the case: 1. Globalization of Human Rights This is the first case in which a national government is charging a former head of state with crimes against humanity. A 1985 Spanish law enables foreigners to be tried in Spain for "crimes against humanity" even though the crimes were committed outside the country. Under this type of "universal jurisdiction" perpetrators of crimes against humanity, including genocide, terrorism, and torture, are considered "enemies of all." One stipulation in the Spanish law is that the case must not have been prosecuted in any other country. The Pinochet case meets this condition because the former dictator granted himself immunity from prosecution in Chile. 2. Broader Definition of Genocide The Spanish judges in charge of the case against Pinochet are attempting to broaden the definition of "genocide" by arguing that Pinochet is guilty of this crime for slaughtering more than 3,000 people--not because of their race or ethnicity but because of their politics. All of the victims were labeled "subversives." 3. Bad Dreams for Dictators The case has unleashed numerous attempts to hold other dictators accountable for their crimes. For example, in France, the courts are considering "Pinocheting" former Haitian ruler Jean Claude Duvalier. Laurent Kabila from the Congo sent an advance team to Brussels to get it in writing that he would not be "Pinocheted" upon his arrival in that country. Only time will tell if Pinochet's fate will make future leaders think twice before committing these types of atrocities. 4. Revealing the Need for U.S. Truth and Reconciliation The U.S. government has failed to take a strong position on the Pinochet case. Although Spanish authorities requested in 1997 that the U.S. government submit materials from its files related to Pinochet, it wasn't until June 30 (just last week) that the U.S. government released the first installment of newly declassified documents related to human rights abuses in Chile from 1973-1978. The release was in response to a February 1, 1999 "tasker" from the National Security Council requesting review and declassification of relevant documents from the CIA, National Archives, and the Departments of Defense, State, and Justice. The release consists of over 5,800 documents, including approximately 5,000 from the Department of State, 490 from the CIA, 200 from the National Archives, 100 from the FBI, and 60 from the Department of Defense. Although the Clinton Administration is to be applauded for taking action, there are strong reasons for concern about CIA compliance. As noted, only 500 documents in this installment were from the CIA. Based on what is already known about relations between the CIA and the Pinochet regime, there are sure to be thousands more in the Agency's files. Unfortunately, the NSC tasker contains language that gives the Agency a loophole by requesting the review of only those documents that are subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. This allows the CIA to exempt many of its "operational files" from even being searched. At the request of the Justice Department (DOJ), the government withheld key documents related to the 1976 murders by Pinochet's agents of Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) colleagues Orlando Letelier and Ronni Karpen Moffitt. The DOJ claimed that this was necessary so as not to jeopardize what they claim is an "ongoing investigation." If true, this means that the U.S. government may actually be considering re-opening the Letelier-Moffitt case, charging Pinochet himself with conspiracy to murder. The U.S. should be pressed to demonstrate their seriousness by providing more information on the status of this investigation and a timetable for progress. Because of the overwhelming number of documents released, a thorough analysis must be made at this time. According to National Security Archive analyst Peter Kornbluh, who has spent the most time reviewing the documents, there are a number of interesting cables from the State Department and CIA detailing atrocities carried out by the Pinochet dictatorship, some new details related to the murders of Charles Horman and Frank Teruggi, and some interesting information on disagreements within the U.S. government on how to deal with Pinochet. In the next few days, Kornbluh will be posting more details of his analysis on the following web site: http://www.seas.gwu.edu/nsarchive/. All the documents are available for viewing at the National Archives facility in College Park, MD. By July 15, all the released government documents will be posted on the State Department web site: http://foia.state.gov. Sarah Anderson is a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies. Portions of this article were taken from "Pinochet Watch," an ezine with news and action alerts on an as-needed basis over the next year as we continue to mobilize support for strong U.S. action in support of the Spanish case against Pinochet and for the re-opening in the U.S. of the Letelier-Moffitt murder case, focusing on Pinochet. To subscribe, write to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- *** U.S. DEMOCRATIZATION ASSISTANCE *** by Elizabeth Cohn The Clinton administration, even more than its predecessors, has emphasized that free markets and a strong private sector are integral to democracy. Indeed, the Clinton administration was the first to use the term "market democracies." However, this definitional linkage of free market policies with political democracy is often more theoretical than real. Economic globalization, privatization, and free trade tend to widen the gap between rich and poor, and this can exacerbate crime, corruption, and instability, thus undermining efforts to build democratic institutions. As a result, U.S. democracy programs may have a negative impact on a country's political democratization processes. Historically the U.S. has had a very ethnocentric concept of democracy that focuses almost exclusively on elections-even if these elections occur in highly volatile and controlled conditions, as in El Salvador in the 1980s or Cambodia in the 1990s. The U.S. employs a limited definition of democracy, modeled on the American form of government: free and fair elections, the protections guaranteed by the American Bill of Rights, and competition among institutions in civil society. In Tanzania, Kenya, and several African countries for instance, the push for multiparty elections has often fanned domestic tensions through the rapid proliferation of ethnically, regionally, or religiously based political parties. In recent years policymakers have correctly begun to recognize that multiparty elections are necessary but not sufficient for creating a democracy. Indeed, democratically elected governments may rule in an undemocratic manner, and this reality has led some observers to caution that there may be a proliferation of "illiberal democracies," such as in Peru, Romania, Bangladesh, and Ghana. The democracy buzz words today are "strengthening civil society," which independent analysts have described as supporting a free press and free speech, the right of NGOs and labor to organize, an independent judiciary, and a civilian-controlled military. The need to strengthen civil society--although not necessarily all these components--has now been officially embraced by the Agency for International Development (AID), but it is usually narrowly construed as building societies that embrace U.S. values and U.S.-style democracy. In 1995, President Clinton called democracy promotion "one of the central pillars of the United States' security strategy." But democracy needs to be promoted for its own sake, not simply as an instrument to further U.S. security or economic interests. The U.S. can play a positive yet limited role in supporting democratic processes in other countries, but only if democracy assistance is delinked from furthering U.S. security and economic interests. One way to accomplish this is for U.S. democracy assistance to be channeled through multilateral and regional organizations. The U.S. government needs to recognize that democracy can take many forms, and the U.S. political model should not be imposed on other countries. Democracy could follow a social democratic model, as advanced by Social Democratic parties in Europe, where social and economic rights are regarded more seriously than they are in the United States. In this model the government plays a stronger role in protecting people from the excesses of the market and in ensuring a more equitable distribution of resources. Indeed, any definition of democracy must include a lessening of inequalities, since, in the long run, such inequalities undermine democracy and can lead to a return to authoritarian government. Policymakers should recognize that when the U.S. engages in "strengthening civil society" it acts to further its interests, and that the furthering of these U.S. interests is not necessarily in the best interests of democratic development in the target country. If the U.S. government is truly interested in promoting democracy, then it must be willing to accept leaders and institutions supported by the country's own residents--even if they are not favored by the United States. U.S. democracy programs should be directed away from the new emphasis on strengthening civil society and instead should be limited to technical support for elections and campaigns, judiciaries, and other governmental institutions. When possible, the U.S. should use international and regional organizations, such as the United Nations and the Organization of American States, for its democracy assistance. These international organizations are better placed to address the democratization processes in other countries without promoting a U.S. security or free trade agenda. Isolationism should not be a policy alternative. In an interdependent world, the U.S. government is rightly concerned about the political and economic processes in other countries. But U.S. policymakers must realize that emphasizing free markets and privatization above all else destroys democracy's long-term prospects. AID can play a positive role in democracy building by addressing socioeconomic problems in poor countries and thus create a strong base for democratization. Or AID can support human rights and reconciliation, as it did with its $1.75 million funding of Guatemala's Historical Clarification Commission in 1997 and 1998. However, AID should not be drawn into advancing short-term U.S. policy interests. The U.S. needs to recognize that building stable democratic institutions takes time, as witnessed by America's own experience. Democracy programs should be geared toward supporting democratic reforms--such as an independent and well-trained judiciary, a civilian-controlled military, and a multiparty electoral processes--over the long haul, recognizing that, in the short run, these efforts may cause political unrest. Elizabeth Cohn is the Director of the International and Intercultural Studies Major at Goucher College. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- II. Comments *** THE VANITY AND LAZINESS OF REPORTERS *** On Edward Herman's and Jeff Cohen's articles on the media's culpability in pushing the bombing of Yugoslavia: With all due respect to Mr. Herman and Mr. Cohen (as members of the media) I can't help but feel that most American reporters are not only complicit with the military on war matters but that they are not equipped with the tools to decipher foreign politics, events, intrigues. Namely I'm referring to what seems a pervasive lack of knowledge, acute logic, or a sense of history among the media. I'd blame a lot of this on the Communications schools most reporters graduate from. At many schools, students take a passing glance at history or literature courses. More often they're involved with pre-professional communications courses in marketing and such, or in mock reporting for college newspapers. In other words, they spend 4 years primping for the camera instead of acquiring knowledge. I make this sweeping assumption based on my own knowledge of the top flight communications schools at Syracuse and Boston University (I'm a grad of BU's school of Comm in 1990). At both schools, students receive an education remarkably devoid of any substance, and beyond freshman requirements they hardly step foot in any liberal arts course. Rest assured these students go on to dominate American news media, especially in television. ( I can count many among my fellow graduates). At BU there were even classes on war reporting which included an internship by which BU students traveled to Afghanistan and taught the rebels propaganda methods. Our Dean was a former spy from East Germany and a cold warrior. None of my peers protested (neither did I) at what was such an obvious abrogation of the university's mission. We didn't know any better. That's the most damning statement I can make. Last month I attended the commencement for students of Loyola U (or College) in Maryland. Andrea Mitchell was the guest speaker and she chose to give a speech on Kosovo. Her understanding of the events there not only reinforced my own perception of reporters but also astounded most in the audience because of its utter silliness. I can't help but think Americans are secretly bothered by the inanity in most of what they read. I think our insistence on vanity (looking good in front of the camera) or else ego (self-righteous indignation in print) has seriously corrupted time-honored values for the media such as fairness, openness, and a devotion to truth. More than for merely being complicit with the military, I fault our reporters for sheer vanity and laziness. Dimitri Anastasopoulos -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- *** GRATITUDE *** Dear Progressive Response: I think you're doing a great job and I particularly like the section containing the various comments from readers at the end of the articles on previous topics. My only complaint is not having enough time to read all of your mailings! But I guess that's my problem. Bob O'Brien, Calif. Commission on Aging Sacramento, Calif. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- *** WAS IT WORTH IT? *** In Response To Letters, vol.3 no.23: One thing we can certainly depend on happening is the further balkanization of Yugoslavia, which I am sure will happen quite rapidly. There will be a peeling away of Montenegro, Sandjak, and Voivodina. In the two latter cases, there will be some issue of "human rights." Sandjak is critical to linking Kosovo with Bosnia and Croatia. Voivodina--the breadbasket and source of mineral wealth in Northern Serbia (Yugoslavia) is vital to commerce ( it is on the Danube) and links with Hungary etc. To say, "was it worth it?" assumes that the stated official purpose behind the attack was genuine--that the ends were correct but the means may not have been worth it. [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- The Progressive Response aims to provide timely analysis and opinion about U.S. foreign policy issues. The content does not necessarily reflect the institutional positions of either the Interhemispheric Resource Center or the Institute for Policy Studies. We're working to make the Progressive Response informative and useful, so let us know how we're doing, via email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please put "Progressive Response" in the subject line. 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