Wednesday, January 19, 2011
7:30 to 9:00 pm
Maplewood Memorial Library
51 Baker Street, Maplewood NJ

“How to End the $800 billion War in Afghanistan”
Speaker: Matthew Hoh
The Foreign Service officer in Afghanistan who resigned in protest in 2009.
Mr. Hoh also served in Iraq as a captain in the US Marine Corps and as a Defense Department official.
He is currently director of the Afghanistan Study Group in Washington DC.
“The US should by no means abandon Afghanistan, but it is time to abandon the current strategy that is not working. Trying to pacify Afghanistan by force of arms will not work.”

Directions
Sponsored by
SOUTH MOUNTAIN PEACE ACTION
Free and open to the public.
All points of view are welcome.
Download file for PDF flyer.

A Citizens’ Proposal for Peace in Afghanistan
South Mountain Peace Action supports the following steps to improve the prospects for peace in Afghanistan and enable our troops to come home as soon as possible.
1. A Presidential Timetable for Withdrawal of US Troops
President Obama should issue a plan to carry out a timetable for the safe, orderly and expeditious redeployment of US armed forces from Afghanistan, as called for by House Resolution 5015 by Rep. James McGovern and by Senate Resolution S3197 by Senator Russ Feingold.
We urge consideration of the following steps, recommended by military and civilian experts, to improve the prospects for improved security, development and human rights, as we redeploy our troops from Afghanistan:
2. Redefine Our Mission in Afghanistan
The US should rebrand its mission in Afghanistan to carrying out the United Nations mandates which call for military and civilian assistance to help the Afghan people improve their security, rebuild their country and protect human rights, especially for women. The current emphasis on our mission as “defeating” Al Qaeda suggests a military victory, which virtually everyone, including General Petraeus, agrees is impossible.

3. Avoid Civilian Casualties and Minimize Military Casualties
The US should strengthen its policy of avoiding civilian casualties by stopping drone attacks which Colonel David Kilcullen says victimize innocents and are counterproductive and which the ACLU says are violations of US Constitution and international law. We should also prioritize military actions to minimize our military casualties as well as civilian casualties. Securing urban areas instead of attacking Taliban strongholds, is a priority suggested by Gilles Dorronsoro of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
4. Press Pakistan to End its Safe Haven and Weapons Flow to the Taliban
The US should continue to press Pakistan to eliminate the safe haven, the flow of weapons and any other form of support for the Taliban from its territory.
5. Negotiate With the Taliban but Require Acceptance of Human Rights, Especially for Women
The US should support Afghan Government efforts to negotiate with the Taliban on reconciliation and reintegration, but this should be conditioned on respect for basic human rights, especially for women, as recommended by Human Rights Watch in its July 2010 report on Afghanistan. Negotiations with the Taliban on power-sharing, as proposed by Gilles Dorronsoro, also protecting human rights, especially for women, should also be considered.
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For additional background information on the War in Afghanistan, click the following links:
Who Are the Taliban Today? Q&A with Gilles Dorronsoro
Women Today in Taliban-Controlled Areas: Human Rights Watch Report July 2010
US Casualties and Cost of the War in Afghanistan
Opinion Polls of Afghans and Americans
Letter of Resignation of Captain Matthew Hoh

US Economic Assistance to Afghanistan
US Goals in Afghanistan Are Similar to Soviets in 1980s

How the US supported the rise of extreme Islamic groups
in Afghanistan, including Al Qaeda and the Taliban
Origins of the Taliban
Taliban Violence: Murder, Mutilation and Terror
Taliban Decrees on Women and Culture in 1996.

Taliban Destruction of Buddha Monuments in 2001;
Carnage and Treachery in Afghan Civil War 1997-98
Taliban Regroups After US Invades in 2001

A Dialogue

Please print this flyer to post and distribute:
Download Full-Size Flyer
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NJ Star-Ledger’s coverage of the rally.

MEDIA ADVISORY

MoveOn is the rally sponsor. Our Newark event at the offices of Senators Booker and Menendez is one of hundreds of similar events at Congressional offices across the country.
You can sign-up with MoveOn for our event (not required) here: https://civic.moveon.org/event/events/index.html?action_id=367
After the rally. we will deliver petitions to the Senators. Sign the petition here: http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/president-obama-thank-1
Congress will vote in mid-September to approve or disapprove of the deal. Opposition groups are pushing emails and phone calls. We must make our voices heard. Please call and email Senator Booker at:
Call Senator Booker: (202) 224-3224
Email Senator Booker here:
http://www.booker.senate.gov/?p=contact
continue here:

Click for Senator Lautenberg’s statement on SMPA

Photo by Mary Gallagher
Local Residents Rally, Vigil and Petition Against US War in Syria [ Sept 2013 ]
More photos here.
Monday evening of September 9, 2013, on two-days’ notice, more than 80 local residents held a candlelight vigil in Ricalton Square calling on Congress to vote No on the authorization for US military action in Syria. The vigil was hosted by South Mountain Peace Action as one of more than 200 vigils coordinated around the country by MoveOn.org.
The SMPA petition — calling on Congress to vote No; for the President to refrain from military action and wait for the UN inspectors to complete their mission; and for the US to comply with the UN Charter — was circulated at the vigil.
Speakers urged the President to refrain from war against Syria and to return to his long-held position that war should only be waged in self-defense or if authorized by the Security Council. Others emphasized the need for the US to address domestic issues rather than intervening in another country’s civil war.
Speakers expressed the need to call and email New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez who has endorsed a military attack on Syria and Senator Jeffrey Chiesa, whose position is not known.
Speakers also expressed regret that Congressman Donald M. Payne Jr. remained “undecided” on a Syrian attack and that he failed to join 62 antiwar Democrats who sent a letter to President Obama calling for a Congressional vote and for a policy consistent with international law and in compliance with the UN Charter.
The vigil concluded with a moment of silence for those killed and injured in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

:: Article in Maplewood Patch.
:: The News-Record of Maplewood and South Orange published an article on the rally, vigil and petition:



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Download MoveOn PDF Poster for Vigil
Download MoveOn Jpeg Poster for Vigil

At the Maplewood Labor Day rally, South Mountain Peace Action launched a petition “No War on Syria” to the President, New Jersey’s senators and Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr. opposing war with Syria.
Download the Petition Here

Please download and print out the petition, circulate it and call South Mountain Peace Action chairman Paul Surovell at 973-763-9493 when you’re done or by Monday September 9th at the latest, so we can consolidate all the petitions and deliver them to the elected officials.

To volunteer for weekend petition tabling, call 973-763-9493 or email paul@beaboutpeace.com

Article on Rally in Maplewood Patch
Rally Photos by Mary Gallagher

Dan O’Flaherty addresses crowd.

Maplewood Mayor Vic De Luca addresses crowd.

CALL AND EMAIL CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT:

Tell them: “No US military action in Syria. Observe the United Nations Charter.”

Call President Obama: (202) 456-1111
Email President Obama here:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/submit-questions-and-comments
________________________
Call Senator Menendez: (202) 224-4744
Email Senator Menendez here:
http://www.menendez.senate.gov/contact/?i=DEF
________________________
Call Senator Chiesa: (202) 224-3224
Email Senator Chiesa here: http://www.chiesa.senate.gov/contact.cfm
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Call Congressman Payne: (202) 225-3436
Email Congressman Payne here: http://payne.house.gov/contact/email-me

For further information, call 973-763-9493 or email paul@beaboutpeace.com
Download PDF flyer