ANNOUNCEMENTS

• In case you missed the Media Reform Conference in Madison, Wis. in November, RealAudio and MP3 of speeches and workshops can be heard by clicking here!

THIS WEEK'S PROGRAM

• After Terrorist Bombing,
  Spanish Election Defeat
  of Bush Ally Sends Shock
  Waves Through Washington
  For story text and audio, Click here!

• Human Rights Group Charges U.S.
  is Abusing Prisoners in Afghanistan
  For story text and audio, Click here!

• Campaign to Close Down
  U.S. Army Training School
  Gears up for Legislative Battle
  For story text and audio, Click here!

• Underreported News Summary
  from Around the World
  For full summary and audio, Click here!

• RealAudio for streaming (Dialup or fast connections. Instant playback. Needs RealPlayer 7 or 8) Get RealPlayer here!
  

The world reacted in horror at the carnage inflicted in Madrid after terrorists bombed four commuter railroad trains, killing 200 people and injuring 1,500 just three days before Spain's national elections. The government of the ruling conservative Popular Party conducted an investigation into who was responsible for the bombings, and initially implicated the Basque separatist group ETA. But it quickly became clear that contrary to official statements, the evidence gathered by the government pointed toward al-Qaeda , not ETA.

The Spanish election turned on the widely held perception that the government had attempted to manipulate public opinion by falsely disconnecting the bombing from Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar's policy of backing the Bush administration's war on Iraq -- a war that 90 percent of Spain's people opposed.

The shock waves of the Socialist party victory in Spain were felt around the world and especially in Washington, where the Bush administration lost a valuable ally in their war and occupation of Iraq. The Socialists, led by Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, had pledged long before the election to withdraw Spain's 1,300 troops from Iraq if the U.N. doesn't replace Washington as the interim power in Baghdad by June 30. Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with columnist and media critic Jeff Cohen, who looks at the results of the Spanish election, the media and the lessons it may hold for other governments who lie to their people to justify war.

Jeff Cohen is the founder of the media watch group Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. Read Jeff Cohen's article, "Liars Lose: The Lessons of Regime Change in Spain," by clicking here.

Related links

• Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) at www.fair.org
• "Bush Loses an Election," editorial by the Madison Capital Times (Wisconsin), March 16, 2004
• "Madrid's Effects: The War on Terror is at Risk," editorial by the Minneapolis Star Tribune (Minnesota), March 16, 2004
• "Dear W, Your Father Knew Best," by Robert Scheer, the Los Angeles Times, March 16, 2004
• "Australian PM Admits He Could Face Same Voter Backlash as Spanish Leader," Agence France Presse, March 16, 2004
• "Madrid: UN's Credibility Critically Wounded," by Ritt Goldstein, The Asia Times, March 16, 2004
• "New Spanish P.M. Promises Iraq Withdrawal," The Guardian/UK, March 15, 2004
  Human Rights Group Charges U.S.
  is Abusing Prisoners in Afghanistan
  

  Interview with John Sifton,
  researcher with the Asia Division
  of Human Rights Watch,
  conducted Scott Harris

  Upon their release from detention on the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, several British citizens captured in Afghanistan by American forces have alleged that they were subjected to abuse and psychological torture. According to accounts published in the British press, prisoners at Guantanamo's Camp X-Ray and Camp Delta -- held without due process -- were regularly beaten, lived in cages exposed to the elements and were fed a diet of foul water and food.

  While many of these allegations have been covered in the U.S. media, receiving less attention are the conditions under which an undetermined number of prisoners are now being held by American forces in Afghanistan. An investigation conducted by Human Rights Watch concluded that the U.S. administered system of arrest and detention in Afghanistan exists outside of the rule of law. In a recently published report, Human Rights Watch charges that compelling evidence suggests that U.S. personnel have committed acts against detainees amounting to torture or cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment. Three detainees are known to have died while in American custody, two of which were classified as homicides by U.S. pathologists.

  In addition, Human Rights Watch says that the U.S. military has arbitrarily detained civilians and used excessive force during arrests of non-combatants. Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with John Sifton, a researcher with the Asia Division of Human Rights Watch, who summarizes his group's investigation into the situation in Afghanistan.

  To get more information on the Human Rights Watch report titled, "Enduring Freedom: Abuses by U.S. Forces in Afghanistan," call the group at (212) 290-4700 or visit their website at www.hrw.org

  Related links:

  • "My Hell in Camp X-Ray," by Rosa Prince and Gary Jones, The Mirror UK, March 12, 2004
  • "The Torture Files," by Ben Ehrenreich, LA Weekly, Feb. 6-12, 2004
  • "As U.S. Detains Iraqis, Families Plead for News," by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times, March 7, 2004
  • "Human Rights Group Charges U.S. is Abusing Prisoners in Afghanistan," Between The Lines Q&A, transcript of this interview
  Campaign to Close Down
  U.S. Army Training School
  Gears up for Legislative Battle
  

  Interview with Jacqueline Baker,
  legislative coordinator
  of School of the Americas Watch,
  conducted by Melinda Tuhus

  In 1990, Maryknoll priest Roy Bourgeois founded the School of the Americas Watch to coordinate a campaign to close the Pentagon's training school for Latin American military officers then called School of the Americas, based at Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga. Many of those who receive training at the school have returned to their own nations to carry out torture, rape and murder. Opponents of the SOA maintain that the school trains terrorists on U.S. soil.

  Over the years, annual fall protests at the school, which is now called the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, or WHISC, have drawn more than 10,000 people. Hundreds of activists have served prison terms for committing civil disobedience for what they call "crossing the line" at Fort Benning. In recent years, legislation has been introduced in Congress to cut off taxpayer funding for WHISC, but thus far without success.

  In late March, SOA Watch is conducting its spring Mobilization and Lobby Day, bringing hundreds of people to Washington, D.C., to lobby their members of Congress in support of a bill that would close the military school. Between The Lines' Melinda Tuhus spoke with Jacqueline Baker, legislative coordinator of SOA Watch, about the campaign to close the School of the Americas and the prospects for passage of a bill to shut it down this year.

  To get more information on the group's March mobilization, call them at (202) 234-3440 or visit their website at www.soaw.org

  This week's summary
  of under-reported news
  

  Compiled by Bob Nixon

  • In the ongoing civil war in the Congo, where over 4 million people have died, rape of women and girls is commonplace. ("Silence=Rape," The Nation, March 8, 2004)
  • Critics warn that ignoring domestic terror groups that support actions such as the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing could prove to be a fatal mistake. ("Homegrown Terrorist," In These Times, March 15, 2004)
  • Free college tuition is a radical idea whose time may have come. ("Majoring in Debt," The Progressive, January 2004)
    

  DOWNLOAD this week's half-hour program of Between The Lines by clicking on one of the links below. Needs Quicktime Player or your favorite MP3 player. Note: Make sure your browser is set for streaming or download depending on your connection speed. MP3 files available until March 30, 2004

  Note to our broadcast affiliates: We are now offering FTP access for faster, more reliable download of our broadcast quality files. Please call Anna Manzo at (203) 268-8446 ext. 2, to register for FTP logon access or send feedback to us at betweenthelines@snet.net.

  Credits:
  Senior news editor: Bob Nixon
  Program narration: Denise Manzari
  News reader: Elaine Osowski
  Segment producer: Melinda Tuhus
  Distribution: Anna Manzo, Harry Minot, Jeff Yates
  Senior Web editor/producer: Anna Manzo
  Web producer: Jeff Yates
  Newswire Editor: Hank Hoffman
  Web editor: Bill Cosentino
  Executive producer: Scott Harris
  Theme music: Mikata

Last Week's Program

Between The Lines Week Ending 3/19/04

Election 2004

"Did Bush Press For Iraq-9/11 Link?," 60 Minutes, CBS News, March 21, 2004

"Clinton: Bush Had Urgent Warnings on Al-Qaeda," The New York Times, March 20, 2004

"Ex-Advisor Says Bush Eyed Bombing of Iraq on 9/11," Reuters, March 19, 2004

"Onward Deaniacs," By Roger Hickey, TomPaine.com, March 18, 2004

"Bush Support Among Military Voters Is Eroding," Knight Ridder, March 14, 2004

American Empire/War Profiteering

"After 9/11. U.S. Policy Built On World Bases" San Francisco Chronicle, March 21, 2004

"General Sacked By Bush For Opposing Imposed Privatization," Guardian/UK, March 18, 2004

"Terror And Taboo In The Homeland," By Ira Chernus, Common dreams, March 16, 2004

"Chalmers Johnson: The Disquieted American," San Diego City Beat, March 15, 2004

"The New Pentagon Papers" Salon.com, March 10, 2004

"Postwar" Occupation of Iraq

"One Year Later Than What?" by Tom Engelhardt, TomDispatch.com, March 21, 2004

"Worldwide Protests Demand Iraq Pullout," Reuters, March 21, 2004

"New Iraq? Hooded Protest And Masked Statistics," By Robert Fisk, Independent/UK, March 20, 2004

"Welcome To The Quagmire," By Juan Cole, Salon.com, March 19, 2004

"Iraq On The Record," U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman report, March 16, 2004

"Spanish Blowback," By Jim Lobe, Antiwar.com, March 16, 2004

"Relatives Of Soldiers Killed In Iraq Protest At U.S. Base," Agence France Presse, March 15, 2004

Civil Liberties

"The Folly Of The New Guantanamo Trials," Slate, March 21, 2004

"Spain, EU And U.S.: War On Terror Or War On Liberties," By Marjorie Cohn, The Jurist, March 17, 2004

"Spy Tactics Endanger Political Dissent," by Murray Polner, Newsday/Long Island, New York, March 16, 2004

"Army Says Intelligence Officers Overstepped In Texas Inquiry," Chronicle Of Higher Education, March 15, 2004

"Bush Administration Eroding 'Threshold Rights,'" Boston Phoenix, March 5, 2004

Media And Activism

"Fake Reporter Karen Ryan: 'I Feel Like Political Roadkill,'" Campaigndesk.org, March 18, 2004