Thousands Protest in San Francisco, Call For Peace, Not War on Iraq

By Elaine Pasquini

Anti-war demonstrators converged on San Francisco in record numbers Oct. 26 to protest President George W. Bush’s proposed war against Iraq. Thousands assembled at noon in Justin Herman Plaza to march to the rally at Civic Center Plaza organized by International ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism.). With a motorcycle escort, the throng set off down Market Street, which had been cordoned off for the all-day event. Three hours later the last of the marchers finally reached the rally site—a distance of almost two miles. The crowd, which spilled out of the packed-to-capacity plaza in front of City Hall onto adjoining streets, had swelled to nearly 100,000, organizers estimated.Californians of all cultural and economic groups were represented, including students, middle-aged couples with children, punk rockers, aging hippies, affluent yuppies, and Palestinian-Americans wearing “Free Palestine” T-shirts.In addition, activists traveled from as far as Washington state, Arizona and Colorado to participate in the anti-war rally, estimated as the largest in the Bay Area since the Vietnam era.

Several marchers carried placards in memory of Sen. Paul Wellstone, who died in a plane crash Oct. 25. The Minnesota Democrat had voted against authorizing President Bush to use military action in Iraq. Blue and while balloons floated in the air in front of City Hall carrying a banner which read, “Wellstone voted Peace 4 Us.”Other banners and placards read, “Bush-Cheney-Ashcroft: Axis of Evil,” “Money for Jobs, Not War,” “Israel is an Apartheid Racist State—Not a Democracy,“ “Question the Corporate Media,” and “Impeach Senator Dianne Feinstein.” The senator from San Francisco voted for use of force in Iraq. “A Barrel of Oil is $22.00—A drop of a child’s blood is priceless,” read a sign carried by a small child.

San Francisco’s legendary street theater was well represented. One group of activists erected a makeshift jail full of “corporate prisoners,” while another group staged a simulated nuclear attack. Employees of the Cheeseboard Collective Bakery in Berkeley carried baguettes in the shape of peace symbols mounted on wooden poles.

Throughout the afternoon, an array of speakers ascended the makeshift stage to address the crowd.

“Stop this war in Iraq before it starts,” shouted 91-year-old Berkeley city councilwoman Maudelle Shirek, who was greeted by cheers when she approached the microphone wearing a red-and-white-checked keffiyeh.

Barbara Lubin of the Middle East Children’s Alliance conveyed a message from Mustafa, a 14-year-old boy she met on her recent trip to Iraq.“Tell people in America not to kill us. We want a life like children in America have,” Lubin related.

Barbara Lee, California’s Democratic congresswoman from Oakland, was joyously received when she told the audience, “Keep the heat on, my brothers and sisters, your voices are being heard.”Lee, one of nine Bay Area House of Representatives members to vote against House Joint Resolution 109 authorizing use of U.S. armed forces against Iraq, challenged the audience to “take back the White House in 2004.”

San Francisco Supervisor Mark Leno reminded the crowd that San Francisco was one of the first cities to pass an anti-war resolution. Leno initiated the non-binding resolution against war in Iraq for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, which passed 8 to 2 on Oct. 11.

Other speakers included Dolores Huerta of the United Farm Workers of America, UC Berkeley professor and KPFA radio host Hatem Bazian; Richard Becker of the International Action Center and ANSWER; Green Party gubernatorial candidate Peter Camejo; author Daniel Ellsberg; actor Michael Farrell; activist Ramie Rafeedie: San Francisco supervisor Tom Ammiano; and California State Sen. John Burton.

William S. Cole Discusses Afghanistan’s Struggle to Rebuild

Although Afghanistan is making progress toward democracy, Dr. William S. Cole told a San Francisco Commonwealth Club audience Oct. 28, the country’s stability is more important right now.

Cole, director of governance, law and civil society for the Asia Foundation, a non-profit, non-governmental organization headquartered in San Francisco, recently returned to the U.S. after spending most of last year in Afghanistan. The foundation, which previously maintained a presence in Kabul from 1954 to 1979, re-established an office there last February.

From 1988 until the mid-1990s, Cole said, Asia Foundation projects in civil society, education, and women’s programs were managed through offices across the border in Peshawar, Pakistan. The foundation provided 34 international monitors in Afghanistan to observe the Loya Jirga (grand council of tribal chiefs) delegate selection process held June 11 to 19, 2002 in Kabul.

“Although it was very disorganized,” Cole elaborated, “the democratic process generated much excitement in the country.”Despite the fact that there was no plan on how balloting would take place, “The transition from chaos to order was impressive,” he acknowledged.

Cole discussed the agreement signed in Bonn, Germany on Dec. 5, 2001, by delegates from four ruling Afghan factions. Under the terms of that agreement, he explained, an interim government headed by Hamid Karzai was installed for six months. On June 19, 2002, the Loya Jirga elected Karzai as president for a 24-month transitional period. Democratic elections are scheduled to be held in June 2004, Cole said, at which time a constitution is to be adopted.

The Asia Foundation director related the many problems facing the country, including rebuilding infrastructure, creating a military, dealing with an agricultural sector devastated by a four-year drought, and the need to jump-start the economy, while stemming the illegal heroin trade. Funds to deal with these problems are a primary concern, Cole stressed. Of the $4.5 billion pledged by the international community, he noted, only a portion had been received, and those funds went primarily to relief, not reconstruction.

Regarding the heroin trade, Cole explained that in 1998 Afghanistan produced three-quarters of the world’s heroin, most of which went to Europe.Heroin addiction has become a local problem in the region, he said, and there currently are two to three million heroin addicts in Pakistan and three million in Iran.

The overriding problem facing the government, however, Cole emphasized, is unifying the country’s ethnic groups and controlling the regional commanders, or “warlords,” who still control the areas outside of Kabul, as they have for decades. “There is still fighting among the regional commanders because of taxes and control of illegal activities, such as cross-border smuggling and the heroin trade,” he said.“There is also competition to tap into international aid.”

Hamid Karzai lacks control in the rural areas, Cole told the audience, noting that“outside of Kabul the rule of law does not exist.”

The Asia Foundation maintains only a small staff of five in Kabul, but hopes to double that number in 2003. The Asia Foundation may be reached at 465 California St., 14th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94014; phone (415) 982-4640; e-mail <info@asiafound.org>; Web site <http://www.asiafoundation.org>.

“Eternal Egypt” Celebrates Artists Night

On Nov. 5, the San Francisco Palace of Legion of Honor held its final Tuesday evening presentation in conjunction with the “Eternal Egypt” exhibition from The British Museum (see June/July 2002 Washington Report, p. 80).The weekly programs featuring music, art and lectures were known as “Ford Free Tuesdays” because of funding from the Ford Motor Company that enabled the Legion to waive the $8 general admission fee.

The final evening’s program included a lecture by Cathleen Keller, associate professor of Egyptology at the University of California at Berkeley, entitled “Royal Artists: The Painters and Sculptors of the Valley of the Kings.”

In the Rodin Gallery, the Lammam Ensemble entertained the crowd with lively Arabic music, inspiring impromptu belly dancing among the guests.Artist Patricia Christensen made animal masks for children, and the museum’s teenage staff members outfitted visitors in Egyptian costumes for souvenir photo shots.

Algerian-American artist and political cartoonist Khalil Bendib demonstrated the fine art of hand painting ceramics. Several of his ceramic creations with Middle Eastern motifs were on view at his table in one of the Legion’s side galleries.

Phil Pasquini explained his technique of reproducing ancient Egyptian artifacts, and several museumgoers participated in the hands-on experience of mold making. Schoolchildren were particularly delighted with the small Egyptian ushabtis (small funerary figurines that were buried with a person to act as a worker in the afterworld in place of the deceased) Pasquini created at his exhibition table.

Designer Amy Faust displayed her handcrafted jewelry and demonstrated a technique of incorporating beach and bottle glass in her unique gold and silver designs.

Other artists present throughout the galleries included Zahra Almufti, Frances Binnington and Kay Weber.

Egyptian-American photographer Monda Rafla answered questions in the Egyptian Education Room about her photo exhibition “Legacies of Cairo: Her Monuments and Her People.”

Henna Garden, Al-Jisser, the International Council for Women in the Arts, and Al-Masri restaurant assisted in organizing the entertainment and artist demonstrations for the Tuesday evening programs.

Elaine Pasquini is a free-lance photojournalist based in Ignacio, CA.