Agent Orange
Vietnamese plaintiffs, alleging that Agent Orange caused birth defects among millions of individuals after the Vietnam conflict, are suing the manufacturers of the chemical.
[T]he chemical companies say no such link has been proved.
The defendants - which include Dow Chemical and the Monsanto Corporation - also argue that the US government is responsible for how the chemical was used, not the manufacturers.
They maintain that US courts cannot punish corporations for carrying out the orders of a president exercising his powers as commander in chief.
These companies have already paid out millions to settle lawsuits with veterans whose health was allegedly affected by the substance. A victory for the plaintiffs would show 1) that the harm to civilians in a conflict is given equal weight as that to combatants; and 2) that the actions of private companies during wartime carries consequences.
We've already seen banks dole out millions for
laundering a dictator's money and
storing Nazi gold. Corporations have been attacked for using slave labor in pre-Civil War America and during WWII. Could reparations for the creation of weapons harmful to civilian populations be far behind?
There are certainly difficulties with this argument (and I'm sure I'll get many posts disagreeing with my premise). The consequences of holding weapons manufacturers responsible for the ramifications of the use of their products could lead to an end to the industry altogether. If companies were liable every time they created a bomb, certain segments of our economy would collapse. Additionally, holding a company liable for following a command of a President seems devoid of the mens rea normally associated with these cases (the naked profiteering of the Nazi cases, for example, in which the bank's directors knew that the gold was coming from Jews in concentration camps). And, in some ways, these cases substitute the cub for the lion -- the President can't be sued for the decision to go to war and use these weapons, so plaintiffs settle for the next best thing.
But would holding companies liable for the effects their weapons have on civilian populations be such a bad thing? A few million dollars here or there really does little to a large company's bottom line. I doubt a large chemical manufacturer will go out of business solely because of a lawsuit. Essentially, it could be viewed as the cost of doing business. Companies reap monetary benefits from creating these chemicals, knowing that later, they may have to redistribute some of those profits. They could pay for the privilege to cause the harm.
Also, if companies knew the liability they may face from the use of the weapons on civilian populations, they may be hesitant to create such chemicals (or bombs. or biological agents) in the first place.
I have very little sympathy for the "we were just following orders" argument. Any company that profits by the creation of weapons does not do so because it was ordered to by its President. Corporations follow a set of rules that are driven by simple economics. It was profitable to make Agent Orange during the Vietnam War, so these companies made it. Forcing the company to pay for the harm that resulted while they made money from their government contracts does not seem a terribly high price to pay.
I'd be interested to know what other people think about this incredibly complex issue. Thoughts?
The Numbers Game
The widely-cited number of 70,000 dead in Darfur is clearly wrong, but no one is quite sure what the actual number is. 300,000? Less? More?
The only major study of deaths in Darfur so far has been conducted by the UN's World Health Organisation which estimated that as many as 70,000 people had died of disease and malnutrition caused by the conflict between March and October 2004.
So the number doesn't count those individuals killed in the violent strikes by the Janjaweed. But there are many countries and international organizations who have a stake in seeing the number remain "low." The Sudan, for one. The African Union. The UN. As long as the number does not reach the proportions of "genocide" (which, suprisingly, the U.S. has already acknowledged has occured in Darfur), there is little obligation on the part of the international community. With the larger numbers, the hundreds of thousands, the international outcry may be a little louder, on the level of a Rwanda, and may require a response.
But does it matter? 70,000 or 300,000 -- what, truly, is the difference? Why are we not outraged by this, by the fact that our governments are doing nothing and watching it happen? The tsunami caused an outpouring of generosity from the American people; the slaughter of innocents on this scale should at least cause us to ask our leaders why more is not being done.
Please write a letter, send an e-mail, call your Congressman. Send a message to the U.S. and the U.N. that we will not let this happen. Never again.
Silent Vigil for Peace
A small gesture in support of peace:
For 2 1/2 years, a silent vigil for peace has taken place each week on the West Lawn of the US Capitol. Started by Quakers, this vigil is not a protest, nor a march, but a non-partisan, ecumenical silent vigil, under the simple banner, "Seek Peace and Pursue It", a quote from Psalms 34.
March 19th is the day before the two-year anniversary of the start to the war in Iraq. The peace activists are hoping to fill the lawn at noon with individuals engaged in a moment of silence. I'll be there. Please join us if you can.
To My Lost Friend
Walter Poirier was last seen in Bolivia four years ago this week. He disappeared while working for the Peace Corps in the Zongo Valley.
I'd like to dedicate this posting to my beautiful, fearless friend, who would patiently teach me how to play golf one minute and steal lawn ornaments from his neighbor's yards the next. As one of his friends said, "The only person I know who could be your worst enemy and your best friend in the same day."
Walter's pranks were legendary. But I will always remember him for the small kindnesses he showed, like the time he intentionally bowled gutter balls so his friend would not have the worst score on the lane. I'm certain it was that unselfish core that led him to the Peace Corps. He gave his life in the service of something greater than himself and, for that, I thank him.
But it's still hard for me to believe he's gone. Here's what I wrote in a column four years ago, after finding out he was missing. It holds true today.
It is impossible that anything horrible happened to Walter.
I firmly believe he is on an adventure still, wandering around in the mountains of Bolivia, taking the time to watch a sunset or enjoythe scent of the forest. Maybe he lost track of time or found a nice mountainside village where he wanted to hang out for a while.
A few days from now, he'll wander out of the woods, look around and say "What's the big deal?"
Walter Poirier would not be gone so easily.
Thailand's Hard Line
Following the brutal oppression of demonstrations by the minority Muslim population, a bomb went off in Thailand yesterday, killing six people. It was the latest in a surge of violence in the south that has killed more than 500 people.
Here's Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's response:
He told reporters he would use military muscle and economic sanctions to punish villages that were sympathetic to Islamic separatists.
Some 1,580 southern villages have been surveyed for their co-operation with the government, and categorised as red, yellow or green, depending on the degree of violence found there.
...
"If the money sanctions do not work, I will send soldiers to lay siege to the red zone villages and put more pressure on them," he added.
And so the cycle of violence begins again. More bombings, followed by a violent military response, cannot be far behind.
Maybe if the Muslim protest had ended peacefully, instead of with nearly 80 people suffocated as they were transported away from the scene, the separatists would not have continued to resort to terrorist violence. Or maybe it would have happened regardless.
But if the government had given the oppressed minority the opportunity to protest peacefully, to have their voices heard and receive government attention without bombings, there is a small chance they could have stopped the cycle before it began.
Nobel Prize
Nominees for the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize have been leaked, with Oxfam and Save the Children topping the list. Bono makes an appearance, as does the Pope.
It's interesting that in this time when civilians and soldiers are losing their lives in Iraq, when genocide has been declared in Darfur (and yet people continue to die), that the peace prize may go to those who cared for victims of a tsunami. Perhaps humanity can better respond to nature's ravages than to our man-made disasters.
Any suggestions for nominees for the Nobel?
The Peace Project
Welcome to The Peace Project.
We are students at Georgetown University Law Center, devoted to the irresistible and difficult notion that peace is possible. Some may think us naive; some may disagree with our premise. But we hope others out there will see what we have come to accept – that war is not inevitable, that talking about peace is not embarrassing, that our world could be a vastly different place if we opened our eyes to the possibility of peace.
Our goals for this blog are threefold. First, we hope to bring to light the struggles of individuals and groups who are dedicated to peace – those who protest, those who speak out, those who ask questions and receive no answers. Bringing together news of these groups will help anyone who asks for peace to remember they are not toiling in obscurity.
Second, we want to serve as a connection portal for individuals all over the world who feel like they are the only ones fighting for peace. Linking groups and individuals together – some grassroots peace organizing – can only make our movement stronger.
Third, we want to use our experiences as students in Georgetown’s Peacemaking class to stimulate discussions about these topics. Based on our readings and our class discussions, we hope to place world issues within the context of peace.
This is our small mark on the world, our shout into the void of futility. Thank you for reading.
