June 29, 2001
Dear Friend of Yugoslavia and of Truth,
We are writing because we need your help!
Former U.S. Attorney
General and human rights activist Ramsey Clark is in Belgrade With
him is IAC
West Coast coordinator
Gloria La Riva, a videographer who produced the world-renowned film, NATO
Targets.
Both had been under NATO bombs twice in 1999 to show their solidarity with
Yugoslavia.
They returned
two days ago to again show support for the struggle against the re-colonization
of Serbia.
Mr. Clark had
attempted on June 26 to fly to Belgrade to confer on former President Slobodan
Milosevic’s
defense. But the Yugoslav ambassador to the U.S., Milan Protic, refused
to grant a visa. The
delay prevented
a meeting before the kidnapping and abduction of Milosevic. Ambassador
Protic actually
defied orders
from the federal government of Yugoslavia to issue Mr. Clark a visa. Protic
was following
orders from
other masters, those running the U.S. Even after landing in Belgrade, collaborators
in Zoran
Djindjic’s police
force tried to put them back on the plane. Finally representatives of the
Foreign Ministry
were able to
get through to Mr Clark. A crime ordered by Washington took place June
28 in Belgrade,
the 612th anniversary
of the battle of Kosovo Polje, a battle that even in defeat became a national
symbol
of heroic struggle
against occupation and enslavement.
Mr. Milosevic,
who was the elected president of Yugoslavia when this heroic land resisted
78 days of
U.S./NATO bombing,
was turned over to those same NATO powers by collaborators in the current
government.
They are selling the president and the national honor to the criminals
who bombed and
sanctioned the
people of Yugoslavia. All people of honor must resist these acts.
Tens of thousands
of people gathered in Belgrade June 29 to protest this crime. They are
not necessarily
supporters of
Mr. Milosevic or his policies. But they all find it shameful that the person
who led the
defense of their
country was sold out for a handful of coins. Similar loans to other countries
in Eastern
Europe have
been Trojan horses, increasing their dependency and deepening their poverty
as their riches
are taken away.
A second “bombing
campaign” of Yugoslavia is now underway. The phony tribunal established
by the
NATO countries
at the Hague is planning months of bombardment with daily media lies and
horror
stories. Each
new tale is designed to justify NATO’s war on a sovereign country that
had no troops
outside its
own borders. Countless arrests of other patriots who dared to stand up
to NATO lie ahead.
All those who
defend Yugoslavia from aggression, all who fight for peace will lose if
Washington, Berlin
and their allies
succeed in blaming Milosevic for the war against Yugoslavia. They are desperately
trying
to use the case
against Milosevic to escape blame themselves.
The International
Action Center has taken on the vital task of organizing within the United
States itself a
movement to
protest this illegal abduction and to remind the world of the real crimes
committed by
NATO. We are
rushing a book to the printer that gives an accurate record of NATO’s bombing
and
destruction
of Yugoslavia. Regular press releases, internet work, and gathering testimony
is essential in the
days ahead.
Otherwise the lies of the warmakers will go unanswered and unopposed.
This is a critical
moment. We need your help to continue to defend Yugoslavia. Please make
a generous
donation to
assist this work. A tax deductible contribution of $50 or more can be made
out to the
People’s Rights
Fund / Truth for Yugoslavia Campaign. Credit card donations can be made
on line at
www.peoplesrightsfund.org.
At a meeting
in New York on Thursday, July 5 we will hear first hand from Mr. Clark
and see video
footage of the
mass demonstrations shot by Ms. La Riva. This meeting will also include
the participation
of leaders of
the European anti-NATO movement, uniting those on both sides of the Atlantic
who held
popular tribunals
that condemned the NATO leaders for their war crimes against Yugoslavia.
Please come to
this meeting and follow the reports on our Web site. And send your support,
send the
funds the International
Action Center needs to carry out this struggle to get out the truth about
the real war
criminals. Defend
Yugoslav sovereignty.
In solidarity,
Sara Flounders
Milos Raickovich
Pat Chin
Brian Becker
International
Action Center
National: 39
West 14th Street, #206
New York, NY
10011
(212) 633-6646
Fax: (212) 633-2889
Bay Area: 2489
Mission St., Rm. 28
San Francisco,CA
94110
(415) 821-6545
Fax: (415) 821-5782
Web page:
www.iacenter.org
Email: iacenter@iacenter.org
Ramsey Clark, Chairperson