[WCUSP] Fw: Tidbits & Readers' Response

[Libby or Mort Frank]

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From: <moderator at PORTSIDE.ORG>
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Sent: Saturday, March 08, 2008 9:30 PM
Subject: Tidbits & Readers' Response

> (5)
> 
> Tampa Bay Coalition for Justice and Peace
> March 3, 2008
> 
> Dr. Al-Arian Begins Hunger Strike
> 
> ALEXANDRIA, VA
> 
> On Monday, March 3, 2008, Dr. Sami Al-Arian began a
> hunger strike for justice to protest continued
> government harassment. Earlier in the day, Dr. Al-Arian
> was informed that he would be called to testify before
> a third grand jury in Virginia, only weeks before his
> scheduled release date. Under his plea agreement, Dr.
> Al-Arian should have been released last April at the
> latest. However, because he has not testified, his
> sentence was suspended as he served one year on civil
> contempt. Dr. Al-Arian's current release date is April
> 7, but it will likely be pushed back indefinitely when
> he is called before a grand jury sometime in the coming
> weeks.
> 
> Dr. Al-Arian's attorneys argue that forcing him to
> testify is a clear violation of the plea agreement he
> reached with the government in the spring of 2006.
> Further, Dr. Al-Arian has been advised that the grand
> jury subpoena is a ploy by Assistant U.S. Attorney
> Gordon Kromberg to ensnare him in a perjury trap, as he
> has done to at least one another Muslim defendant.
> 
> The idea that Dr. Al-Arian could avoid a perjury charge
> by simply testifying truthfully is "naive," his
> attorney Jonathan Turley told the Tampa Tribune. "If
> the government wants to charge your client with
> perjury, it is almost certain to be able to do so by
> asking enough questions over the course of the
> proceeding."
> 
> This is the third hunger strike undertaken by Dr. Al-
> Arian, who is diabetic, during his five year
> incarceration. After his arrest on February 20, 2003,
> he went on a 140-day liquid only hunger strike to
> protest the government's political persecution. During
> that time, he was hospitalized and lost 45 pounds. On
> January 22, 2007, Dr. Al-Arian was held in civil
> contempt for not testifying before a grand jury. He
> went on a 60-day water-only hunger strike in which he
> lost 55 pounds, was hospitalized and confined to a
> wheelchair.
> 
> "The mistreatment of Dr. Al-Arian is part of the
> overall oppression of the Palestinian people. This is
> cruel punishment," said Agha Saeed, chair of the
> American Muslim Taskforce on Civil Rights and Elections
> (AMT). "The government is playing a cat and mouse game
> with him. They did not decide to do this until the last
> minute, just as he's about to be released. This amounts
> to psychological torture."
> 
> With only one month remaining until Dr. Al-Arian's
> scheduled release, the government is threatening to
> keep him imprisoned for many years, through its
> continuous abuse of the grand jury system. Furthermore,
> as Dr. Al-Arian embarks on yet another hunger strike,
> the government must either release him as promised or
> be responsible for his life.
> 
> Take Action
> 
> Please write to the following individuals to ask for an
> immediate end to Dr. Al-Arian's suffering:
> 
> 1- Honorable Judge Gerald Lee U.S. District Court for
> the Eastern District of Virginia 401 Courthouse Square,
> Alexandria, VA 22314
> 
> 2- Attorney General Michael Mukasey Department of
> Justice U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania
> Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20530-0001 Fax Number: (202)
> 307-6777 BY E-MAIL: E-mails to the Department of
> Justice, including the Attorney General, may be sent to
> AskDOJ at usdoj. gov.
> 
> 3- The Honorable John Conyers, Jr 2426 Rayburn Building
> Washington, DC 20515 (202) 225-5126 (202) 225-0072 Fax
> John.Conyers@ mail.house.gov
> 
> 4- Senator Patrick Leahy 433 Russell Senate Office
> Building United States Senate Washington, DC 20510
> (299029)224- 4242 senator_leahy@ leahy.senate. gov
> 
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