Archives: Endorsements

The world’s greatest whistleblower is stuck in the Russian winter, facing solitary confinement, ridicule, and life in prison if US agents grab him. But this week, we could help get him to safety.

Edward Snowden exposed the mind-boggling and illegal level of surveillance the US government is conducting on, well, all of us. His welcome in Russia runs out soon, and he’s got nowhere to go. But Brazilian President Dilma is angry at US surveillance and experts say she might brave massive US pressure to consider asylum for Snowden!

This is about much more than one man. If Snowden’s act of truth-telling leads to crippling punishment, it sends the wrong signal to abusive governments and whistleblowers everywhere. If 1 million of us take action now, we can send President Dilma the largest citizen-supported asylum bid in history — click below to safeguard Snowden and defend democracy everywhere:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/send_snowden_home_loc/?bYxgfdb&v=34286

Time is running out on Snowden’s one-year visa. Sharks are circling to drag him back to the US where he is unlikely to face a fair trial, but Brazil’s president Dilma hates mega spy program PRISM, has cancelled a state visit to the US over the issue, and is working to safeguard her people from spying. If she’s to support Snowden, Dilma needs to know she can withstand tough US pressure.

Opponents of giving Snowden asylum say he broke the law and put global security at risk. Some even call him a traitor, and say letting him get away with it could open the floodgates for others. But while Snowden did break the law — he did so to reveal a massive system of illegal global spying on an industrial scale. Snowden’s heroic action can make the world a better and safer place for everyone.

And Snowden isn’t just any whistleblower; his revelations have already changed the world for the better. Germany and Brazil have moved to reform privacy protections for citizens. The issue has been addressed openly in the United Nations, and a US court has ruled some forms of NSA spying are illegal. This week US President Obama is going to change the spy practices of the NSA, in reaction to Snowden’s leaks!

President Dilma needs our support to stand up to US pressure. Let’s show her that the world’s people will stand with Brazil if Brazil stands for bravery. Join the world’s biggest asylum request ever, for Snowden:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/send_snowden_home_loc/?bYxgfdb&v=34286

With more than 30 million members around the world — including 6 million in Brazil — together we have already been key to protecting our internet from government gag laws. Now we can support the man who has sacrificed so much to protect us from a massive international spy scandal.

Dear YB Menteri Perdagangan Antarabangsa & Perindustrian,

As Malaysian citizens and medical and health professionals who are concerned about the potential adverse effects of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) on medical and public health practice, and on patient care, we wish to congratulate the Malaysian Government for insisting that tobacco control efforts of national authorities should be excluded from the purview and binding obligations of the TPPA currently being negotiated.  These are not alarmist fears on the part of negotiating parties and the populations they represent.

The Government of Uruguay for instance was sued by Philip Morris when Uruguayan health authorities tried to implement more stringent tobacco control measures requiring that 80 per cent of a cigarette packet surface display images warning of the risks of smoking.  Meanwhile in Australia, the Tobacco Plain Packaging Act (2011) was similarly challenged by the Hong Kong subsidiary of Philip Morris under the provisions of a 1993 (bilateral) agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of Hong Kong which was crafted “for the promotion and protection of investments”.

We further urge the Malaysian Government to stand firm against intellectual property provisions in the TPPA which might jeopardize the affordable and equitable access to essential (lifesaving) medicines which we seek to safeguard.

In particular, we are opposed to ever-greening provisions which allow for re-patenting of medicines for an incidental new use of an existing medicine, or for a new form for its dispensing, for extensions of monopoly patent duration (from 20 to 25 yrs), and for innovator demands for data exclusivity which violate the social compromise (‘social contract’) underlying monopoly patent protection and are furthermore highly unethical (denial of demonstrated efficacious treatment to study controls as part of superfluous, duplicative testing).

As it is, Malaysia is already burdened with some of the highest medicine prices in the region (for instance, a tenfold market price for the HIV drug lopinavir-ritonavir when compared to countries in the same per capita income category), due to delayed entry and registration of generics:

Equally alarming is the revelation from recently leaked documents that the US Trade Representative is in the forefront of efforts to extend patent claims beyond medical and surgical devices to medical and surgical methods (procedures).

Indeed, the reasonable stance in TPPA negotiations would be to exclude (carve out) from the purview of the TPPA writ health-related matters such as tobacco control and intellectual property provisions which go beyond existing WTO-TRIPS compliance, so as to retain national regulatory discretion over this policy space to safeguard the public interest.

In fostering a business friendly environment to capture the benefits of a vibrant, trade-dependent economy, we should also pay heed to its distributional consequences and not impose burdensome sacrifices on the vulnerable and the marginalized.

A rising tide does not necessarily lift all boats.  Yachts perhaps, but skiffs may not cope well with the turbulence of an increasingly deregulated world, not to mention the boatless who may be simply inundated with little to expect from shrinking social safety nets.

Signatories:

Professor Adeeba Kamarulzaman (Professor of Infectious Diseases & Dean of Medicine, Universiti Malaya)

Dr Chan Chee Khoon (Pakar Perunding, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya)

Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj (Chest Physician, Member of Parliament – Sungai Siput)

Fifa Rahman (Health Law specialist, Policy Manager, Malaysian AIDS Council)

Dr Surendran Thuraisingham (Consultant Cardiologist, Sunway Medical Centre)

Dr David KL Quek (Consultant Cardiologist, Council member, Malaysian Physicians for Social Responsibility)

Lim Ching Wei (Hon Secretary, Breast Cancer Welfare Association Malaysia)

Dr Lai Suat Yan (Senior Lecturer-Gender Studies, Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences, Universiti Malaya)

Professor Azad Hassan Abdul Razak (Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya)

Dr Ang Kim Teng (Malaysian Mental Health Association)

International Movement for a Just World (JUST)

Dr Tan Maw Pin (Associate Professor,Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya)

Dr Phua Kai Lit (Associate Professor, School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia)

Dr Pang Yong Kek (Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine,Universiti Malaya)

Dr Yap Tuan Gee (Pharmacologist)

Dr  Lee Boon Chye (Cardiologist, Member of Parliament – Gopeng)

.

For more information, and to sign on to this petition, please contact:

Chan Chee Khoon

Center for Population Health

Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya

cheekhoon@ummc.edu.my

03-79674777

Nithiah Thangiah

Center for Population Health

Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya

nithiah@ummc.edu.my

03-79677513

Please feel free to circulate this petition to others who may be interested in endorsing it.  Thank you.

AN APPEAL TO JUST MEMBERS.

HELPING THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES

We are all painfully aware of the death and destruction caused by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines over the weekend. It was one of the worst natural disasters in recent years. More than 10,000 people may have died; more than a million have been rendered homeless. Millions are in dire need of water, electricity and food.

As in the past, JUST is appealing to its members to donate generously to victims of the disaster. Citizens in many different parts of the world are already reaching out to help their fellow human beings in the Philippines. Malaysian members of JUST can always send their donations to organisations mentioned in newspapers such as the New Straits Times and the Star.

LET US EXTEND OUR HAND TO OUR SISTERS AND BROTHERS IN THE PHILIPPINES.

In solidarity,
Chandra Muzaffar.
Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.
12 November 2013.

The Peace People, 224 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 6GE, Northern Ireland

Phone: 0044 (0) 28 9066 346   Email: info@peacepeople.com    www.peacepeople.com

Press release     26th August 2013

Mairead Maguire, Nobel peace laureate, today appealed to the Rt. Hon. William Hague, British Foreign Minister, and M. Laurent Fabius, French Foreign Minister, to stop calling for military action against Syria which, she said, will only lead the Middle East into even more violence and bloodshed for its people.

Maguire said:

Arming rebels and authorizing military action by USA/NATO forces will not solve the problem facing Syria, but indeed could lead to the death of thousands of Syrians, the breaking-up of Syria, and it falling under the control of violent fundamentalist jihadist forces. It will mean the further fleeing of Syrians into surrounding countries which will themselves  become destabilised. The entire Middle East will become unstable and violence will spiral out of control.

Contrary to some foreign governments current policies of arming the rebels and pushing for military intervention, the people of Syria are calling out for peace and reconciliation and a political solution to the crisis, which continues to be enflamed by outside forces with thousands of foreign fighters funded and supported by outside countries for their own political ends.

Having visited Syria in May, 2013, after leading a 16 person delegation I returned convinced that the civil community, with groups such as Mussalaha, who are working on the ground building peace and reconciliation, can solve their own problems if their plea for outsiders to remain out of the conflict is honoured by the international community.

During our visit we met with all sections of the community, most of whom are sick of violence and death and want peace and reconciliation and a political solution. We met with the Syrian Prime Minister and 7 other government ministers, and we were assured that the Government did not use sarin gas on its own people, and they invited the UN to send in inspectors to see what was happening.

Currently there is an International Commission of Inquiry on Chemical Weapons in Damascus staying at Four Seasons Hotel, which is less than ten minutes from the areas where the chemical weapons were allegedly used. The western media, particularly vocal being the British and French Foreign Ministers, are accusing President Assad of using chemical weapons on his own people but have no proof of this accusation, rather some things point to rebels as the ones who used such weapons.

The question must be asked,  what would it benefit Assad to use sarin gas in the vicinity of visiting international UN inspectors and in his own environment and neighbourhood where it would affect his soldiers, etc., personally, I do not believe the latest accusations against the Assad government using sarin gas,  and in order that the world can hear the truth, I would appeal to the International Commission of Inquiry to go into the areas in question immediately and report as quickly as possible.  In the meantime I appeal to the Foreign Ministers of Britain and France to encourage, as the Syrian people wish, dialogue and negotiation as a way forward.   We all remember the fear, panic and lies spun by the British and American governments, and others that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, and it was not true.   Let us learn the lesson of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya where so many millions have been killed in invasions and war, and many continue to die in violence. Violence is not the answer, let’s end this ‘war on terror’ and give nonviolence and peace a chance.

Mairead Maguire

Nobel peace laureate

www.peacepeople.com

info@peacepeople.com

peace people, 224 Lisburn road, Belfast. Bt307NW.  N. Ireland

“In view of the fact that in any future world war, nuclear weapons will certainly be employed – and that such weapons threaten the continued existence of mankind – we urge the governments of the world to realise, and to acknowledge publicly, that their purpose cannot be furthered by a world war, and we urge them, consequently, to find peaceful means for the settlement of all matters of dispute between them”

Click here to endorse the petition.

The Rohingya, a persecuted Muslim community in western Burma, are under attack, with untold numbers killed by vigilantes and security forces. Tens of thousands have now fled to neighboring Bangladesh, but the government there is blocking aid — if we act together now, we can pressure Bangladesh to reverse course and offer Ramadan relief to those in need.

International relief charities were coming to the aid of Rohingya refugees, but now the Bangladeshi government is shutting them down, saying the refugees aren’t Bangladesh’s responsibility. Without this aid, the refugees, many of them children, are at grave risk of disease and starvation. But the important Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) could push Bangladesh to reverse the aid ban and rescue the Rohingya.

Next week all 57 OIC member countries, including Bangladesh, are meeting in Saudi Arabia for an emergency summit to address the crisis. OIC Chief Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu will urge Bangladesh to show mercy and compassion towards Rohingya refugees and could offer financial backing, but he needs a strong show of public support to make Bangladesh heed his call. Sign the urgent petition now and share with everyone you know – it will be delivered directly to the OIC meetings next week when we reach 50,000 signers.

Click here to sign the petition.

Yesterday in Jerusalem, Mitt Romney made some statements that were not only wrong, but, frankly, racist and ignorant.

Romney declared that “cultural differences” were the reason the Palestinian economy is not doing as well as Israel’s, without even acknowledging the Occupation. On top of that, he managed to get his facts completely wrong, claiming the Israeli GDP is twice that of the Occupied Palestinian Territories, when in fact it is actually about ten times as high.

Please help us send a message to Mitt Romney that this kind of ignorance and racism is unacceptable.  JVP members in Boston will be delivering your signature personally to Romney Headquarters.  Let’s get enough signatures that he’ll know that his statements were not a reflection of our Jewish or American values.

Click here to sign the petition to tell Mitt Romney that his racism and ignorance in Jerusalem was unacceptable.

The biggest company in the world is days away from drilling for oil in the Arctic, a breeding ground for whales and polar bears. The US Environmental Protection Agency can stop them, but it’s up to us to demand they do and save the Arctic now.

The head of the Environmental Protection Agency Lisa Jackson, can right now withdraw Shell’s Arctic permit because the company is unable to meet air pollution controls for their ships, violating the terms of the permit. Environmental activists are raising the alarm, but unless we make it a huge global scandal, Shell will use its muscle and the Arctic will be open for the oil business.

Lisa Jackson has stood up to the energy industry before, but Shell is a Goliath that won’t be easily knocked back. We are running out of time — let’s make this decision the line in the sand that protects this great wilderness from becoming an oil field.

Click here to sign the petition.

Big banks have been caught in a massive scam to rig global interest rates, ripping off millions of people on their mortgages, student loans and more! We’d go to jail for this, but Barclays bank has only been fined, and just a fraction of their profits! Outrage is mounting — this is our chance to finally turn the tide of the banks’ reign over our democracies.

The EU finance regulator, Michel Barnier is standing up to the powerful bank lobby and championing reform that would put bankers behind bars for fraud like this. If the EU goes first, accountability could quickly spread across the globe. But the banks are lobbying hard against it, and we need a massive surge of people power to drive these reforms through.

If we can get 1 million people to stand with Barnier in the next 3 days, it will give him momentum to face down the banking lobby and push governments to bring reform. Sign the petition, and our growing numbers will be represented by adding mock bankers to a jail right in front of the EU Parliament.

Click here to sign the petition.

Please click here to sign the petition.