http://www.granma.cu/ingles/2007/septiembre/lun24/Former-assistant-to-Colin-Powell-denounces-injustices-committe-against-the-Cuban-Five.html
Former assistant to Colin Powell denounces injustices committed against the Cuban Five BY JEAN-GUY ALLARD - Granma International staff writer - DEEPLY disgusted by the many injustices surrounding the case of the Cuban Five, Lawrence Wilkerson, former chief of staff to General Colin Powell, has published an open letter in which he not only denounces the situation of the Five, but calls for public demonstrations in support of the five anti-terrorists locked up by Bush's government. Wilkerson, a retired U.S. Army colonel and assistant to former Secretary of State Powell, said he based his courageous stance on the Five largely on his extensive knowledge of the George W. Bush administration. Wilkerson said that he became convinced that defending the Five was a just cause after attending a Sept. 12 lecture by defense attorney Leonard Weinglass at Howard University Law School. "I was stunned by what counselor Weinglass revealed," Wilkerson commented. The former colonel was a right-hand man to Powell for most of 16 years, including while Powell was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and while he was Secretary of State. His other posts include serving as director and deputy director of the U.S. Marine Corps War College at Quantico, Virginia. After recounting in detail the facts and arguments laid out by Weinglass, Wilkerson commented that on how the case "sort of takes the cake: to punish with life sentences men who came here to determine how and when their country was going to be attacked by people breaking U.S. law. "These men were unarmed, not intent on any physical damage to the United States, and were motivated to protect their fellow citizens from invasion and repeated attacks by Cuban-Americans living in Florida. "And we have to ask also, just how is it that we have become a safe haven for alleged terrorists? How is it that we-the United States of America-may rate a place on our own list of states that sponsor terrorism? "If the facts are as counselor Weinglass reported, this case is truly the bottom of the pit. I had great trouble believing it, but I had nothing with which to refute Mr. Weinglass' superbly delivered presentation. But more than that was my four years inside the Bush Administration. You see, I know the depths to which our government is capable of sinking. Torture. Lies. False intelligence. Tyranny. "Is the continued failure to resolve fairly this case against the Cuban Five, even though it began in the second Clinton administration, really so unbelievable when cast against the characters of the current administration?" he asked. Wilkerson concluded his letter by inviting readers to talk about the case with congress members. "This is a travesty," he said, noting that "America has many disastrous actions chalked up to its discredit at the moment... The retired colonel has harshly criticized U.S. policy since leaving the White House in January 2005. In an interview with the New York Times, he commented that the decision to speak openly about Bush's policies during his first mandate were "slow in coming," but encouraged by revelations about Abu Ghraib. The former advisor to Powell described George W. Bush as an "amateur" managing an administration that is murky, stupid and with a tendency toward disaster, both internally and externally. Translated by Granma International . [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Post message: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] List owner : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
