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Enews - November 10, 2006

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom November E-News, your monthly news update from WILPF-US Section. We hope you find it informative and it will spur you to take action. We encourage all readers to get involved!

In this edition:

"Don't Spy on Us (Again)

This past summer, WILPF joined numerous peace and justice organizations based in the Philadelphia region to file a Freedom of Information Request (FOIA) to see if our government has been spying on us. This action was prompted by revelations that the Thomas Merton Center in Pittsburgh had been spied on by the FBI and "Homeland Security." It has been four months since our filing, and no response.

Read more for details and what our next steps will be!

See the Civil Liberties page on wilpf.org

This article is also published in the Fall 2006 edition of Peace and Freedom, available to all WILPF members.

UN Conference on Disarmament

Our UN Office in New York spent October tracking the Annual UN Conference on Disarmament. "Reaching Critical Will," our UN project, covered it all and gives you extensive coverage of all action (and inaction) that the United Nations is taking to work for world peace. Read their excellent coverage here.
 

Take Action Now!
The US must hold Israel accountable for civilian deaths in Gaza!

On November 8, Israeli Occupation Forces killed 18 Palestinians in Beit Hanoun, 13 of whom were women and children.

WILPF protests Israel's indiscriminate attacks on civilians. We urge the The US Government to hold Israel accountable. The complicity of the US in supplying Israel with arms and condoning their military occupation of the Gaza  Strip is supporting Israel's destruction of the lives and welfare of the Palestinian people. Despite the August 2005 withdrawal of Israeli troops, Israeli attacks have killed 247 people in Gaza between 28 June and 27 October, 63% were civilians and more than a third of those civilians were children.

Over 3 billion dollars of U.S. aid is given to Israel annually, most of which is in the form of wpons. The US Arms Export Control Act forbids the use of U.S. Weapons against civilians. The Foreign Assistance Act bans all US assistance to countries which engage in a systematic pattern of human rights violations.

For more information on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, visit www.wilpf.org

 1. Call, email, fax the White House:
White House comment line: 202-456-1111
Email: comments@whitehouse.gov
FAX: 202-456-2461

2. Call or email the State Department: Phone: 202-647-5291 Website: http://contact-us.state.gov Demand that the U.S. be accountable for its violations of the US Arms Export Control Act and Foreign Assistance Act and urge that military aid to Israel be cut off.

3. Write Letters to the Editor. You can do this from the WILPF website at http://wilpf.org/letter-editor/

4. Join sister activists in protests in front of federal buildings, Israeli consulates, and Israeli embassies.

November Post Card Action

Close the School of the Americas! Every month, WILPF calls on all its members to write postcards to their elected representatives on proposed legislation that promotes our efforts for peace and justice. For the month of November, we ask you to write in support of legislation to once and forever, closed the School of the Americas. Read here for more information about the legislation and how to get involved with our postcard campaign.

Give Peace for the Holidays:

Thinking of what to give this year for holidays coming up? WILPF has a special End-of-year offer! Click here to find out more.

Save the Dates!! WILPF International Congress in Bolivia

WILPF's next International Triennial Congress will be held in Santa Cruz, Bolivia from July 21-27, 2007. For information and registration detail, please visit: www.wilpf.int.ch

If you are interested in being an official WILPF voting delegate, please email jdodd@wilpf.org to get an application. All WILPF members are welcome to attend.

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