For immediate release
Contact:
Joanne Landy, Co-Director, Campaign for Peace and Democracy
jlandy@igc.org
Tel (212)666-4001;
cell (646)207-5203
Dennis Redmond, Humanist Movement
dennisredmond@gmail.com Tel (917)658-6261
Jan Tamas, hunger striker in Prague
jan.tamas@humanisti.cz Tel in the Czech Republic: +420 776 785839
NEW YORK, N.Y., May 16, 2008 -- Czech humanists Jan Tamas and Jan Bednar began a hunger strike in Prague on Tuesday, May 13 to protest the planned US missile defense base deployment in the Czech Republic. Both have been active in the nonviolent movement against the base for nearly two years.
"We have tried almost everything, but our government has failed to listen to us. They continue to ignore the fact that more than two thirds of Czechs oppose this plan," said Jan Tamas in reference to the March 2008 polls showing 67% of Czech disagree with the planned US deployment of a missile defense radar site in the Czech Republic. "We are calling on our friends from abroad to support us in our struggle, as this is not only a local issue." Currently people in 14 cities across Europe expressed their support to the hunger strike and will join the two Czechs by going on solidarity hunger strikes in their cities. These include Paris, Turin, Athens, Rome, Budapest and others. An international on-line petition against the U.S. radar, signed by more than 80,000 people, is online at www.nonviolence.cz More news about the hunger strike can be found at this same website by clicking on the nonviolence homepage.
Jan Tamas and Jan Bednar are staying in a publicly accessible place in Prague during the hunger strike, so that people can come and support them. They have said, "We will continue our hunger strike until we receive clear indications that negotiations will be stopped, a national referendum will take place, or a real, open and democratic discussion on this issue will be allowed to take place."
The Bush administration and Czech government leaders have tried to create the impression that the agreement to install a radar military base in the Czech Republic is a done deal. Their joint communique in early April 2008 said, "This legally-binding agreement calls for the stationing of a US radar in the Czech Republic to track ballistic missiles." There is only one problem with the communique -- the Czech parliament has yet to ratify the agreement. An indication that plans to consummate the agreement are facing serious hurdles in that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice canceled her May 4 trip to Prague, where a declaration that further steps toward finalizing the agreement had been expected. It has been announced that the trip has been rescheduled for June.
A number of U.S. groups have been working to support the Czech anti-radar movement. Last month United for Peace and Justice, Peace Action NYState, Campaign for Peace & Democracy, Humanist Movement, The Center for Place, Culture, & Politics & Department of Anthropology, CUNY Graduate Center, Granny Peace Brigade, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Brooklyn for Peace and The Nation magazine co-sponsored a forum in New York City featuring Dr. Tamas. The forum was part of a "No Bases for Empire" national speaking tour.
A recent interview with Dr. Tamas is on Democracy Now and information about the hunger strike is also available at The Nation.
THE CAMPAIGN FOR PEACE AND DEMOCRACY (CPD) advocates a new, progressive and non-militaristic U.S. foreign policy -- one that encourages democratization, justice and social change. Founded in 1982, the Campaign opposed the Cold War by promoting "detente from below." It engaged Western peace activists in the defense of the rights of democratic dissidents in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, and enlisted East-bloc human rights activists against anti-democratic U.S. policies in countries like Nicaragua and Chile.
Campaign for Peace and Democracy, 2790 Broadway, #12, NY, NY 10025. Tel (212)666-4001, Cell (646)207-5203, Fax (212) 866-5847. Email: cpd@igc.org Web: www.cpdweb.org