OPINION
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Page 4 Friday, April 15, 1988 The Michigan Daily
01
1IE Sidpgan IlUI
Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan
Students often,
re
Vol. XCVIII, No. 133
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Unsigned editorials represent a majority of the Daily's Editorial Board. All other
cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion
of the Daily.
Honduran unrest reaction to U.S. power moves;
Resisting paternaism
.AST WEEK IN Honduras, 2000 anti-
American protestors attacked the U.S.
embassy, burning cars and embassy
bildings in retaliation for the kidnap-
ping and forced extradition of a sus-
pacted Honduran drug trafficker to the
U.S. Although the mainstream press
and Attorney General Edwin Meese
wAuld have us believe the protest was
nply an act of support for the sus-'
gect, in truth it was a demonstration of
cowing resentment of American con-
over Honduran internal and foreign
Jairs-a
I a move orchestrated by U.S. offi-
ailJuan Ramon Matta Ballesteros
s seized outside his home in the
onduran capitol of Tegucigalpa by
fbnduran soldiers and plain-clothes
t.S. officials. He was then forced,
Without his passport, to board a plane
btit eventually flew to the United
$4tes. Upon landing he was arrested
Id placed in Marion Prison in Illinois.
;While this may appear to be a just
fd courageous act on the part of drug
enforcement agents, the move was in
blatant violation of Honduran laws and
the Honduran constitution. Honduras
;has no extradition treaty with the U.S.
and the Honduran constitution ex-
pressly forbids the extradition of a
Honduran citizen for crimes committed
outside their country.
This brazenly illegal act was the cata-
lyst for last week's violence, but the
storm had been brewing for several
months. Pressure from the Reagan ad-
ministration forced Honduras to break
the terms of the Arias Peace Plan by
'allowing the Nicaraguan contras to op-
erate from bases within Honduras.
Two weeks ago Reagan dispatched
Check co
T HEHOUSE WILL VOTE this month
ion a Senate resolution which heavily
)restricts the president's power to hide
covert operations from them. Disre-
garding President Ronald Reagan's
*impending veto, the Senate voted 71-
19 to require congressional notification
within 48 hours of covert operations
conducted under "rare occasions where
time is of the essence." If the operation
is undertaken in "ordinary circum-
stances," advance notification must be
tprovided.
Currently, covert actions need only
be reported to congress in a "timely"
manner which makes the notification of
covert operation similar to the War
:Powers Act.
The Senate is taking a step toward
policing the irresponsibility of the CIA,
the NSC, and the military through this
bill. In a democracy, it is imperative
that elected representatives conduct
foreign policy rather than an unelected,
elite faction. This bill would increase
congressional oversight, but will not
t place elected representatives in charge
of U.S. foreign policy.
The military and so-called intelligence
agencies have historically jumped at the
i chance to conduct and further skew
foreign policy to their own ends. This
is a self-perpetuating cycle: U.S. mon-
etary involvement with quizzlings,
puppet regimes, and right-wing armies
i creates false allies to which increase aid
can be sent and which propaganda can
be built around. For example, the con-
; ttas are used to weaken the legitimate
government of Nicaragua in the name
of fighting communism.
Covert operation is simply an eu-
phemism for low-intensity conflict
meant to overthrow legitimate govern-
ments. After Vietnam, the U.S. gov-
emient realized that there is a high po-
litical cost to overthrowing popularly-
Daily Opinion 1
) 'I
3500 U.S. troops to Honduras in a
move to intimidate Nicaragua. The
Reagan administration has been trying
unsuccessfully to draw Honduras and
Nicaragua into a war, using such tac-
tics as ferrying Honduran troops to the
border region and coercing the Hon-
duran Air Force to bomb targets inside
Nicaragua. This latest episode clearly
demonstrates the ultimate control
Washington enjoys over its client state,
and that country's utter lack of
sovereignty.
In comments about the demonstra-
tions, Meese, the illustrious chief of
law enforcement, said the protests
showed "the tremendous power of the
narcotics traffickers and what they are
apparently trying to orchestrate" (NYT
4/10/88). One of his aides actually
suggested that Matta may have paid the
demonstrators. This is ludicrous in
light of the spontaneity of the protests
and the fact that five people were
killed, including a young girl. How
much does one pay someone to sacri-
fice their life?
The Justice Department is simply ig-
noring the real causes of Honduran
unrest and is disregarding the
provisions of the Honduran
constitution. We now know Meese is
capable of ignoring constitutions in
several languages and countries.
In Central America, Honduras is
known as la puta (the whore) because
of its apparent willingness to do any-
thing for American dollars. The kid-
napping and illegal extradition of Juan
Ramon Matta proves that the world's
"oldest profession" is alive and well in
Tegucigalpa.
vert action
supported governments with U.S.
troops. Thus, the United States con-
centrated on funding covert armies.
These forces can rape, torture, murder,
and wreak economic damage on other
nations with little accountability.
The United States has a history of
covert operations including, the inva-
sion .of Grenada, the overthrow of
democratically elected. Chilean Presi-
dent Salvador Allende, and the funding.
of the South African sponsored
UNITA forces led by Jonas Savimbi.
Common to each operation is the ab-
sence of threat to national security and
the desired effect of imposing U.S.
hegemonic order under the facade of
"democracy."
This piece of legislation is clearly a
response to Reagan's Iran-Contra fi-
asco. It is only a slap on the wrist
compared to the bloodletting he de-
serves; yet, Reagan has the gall to
protest it. The White House whines
that notifying Congress is synonymous
to leaking the covert operation to the
Washington Post. On the contrary,
there is a safety hatch in the legislation
which allows him to only notify the top
party members in each chamber to pre-
vent this.
If these operations are leaked to the
press, it will only aid the nation and
perhaps save a few Third World coun-
tries from unnecessary U.S. interven-
tion. Taking into account the damaging
effects on the Third World and the be-
trayal of U.S. citizens' true interests,
covert operations should be banned.
The legislation repudiates the execu-
tive's power to choose which nations
fit acceptable standards according to its
own economic and demagogic inter-
ests. The legislation is a badly-needed
check on the president's power which
he apparently cannot handle responsi-
bly.
By David Newblatt
Today (4/13) on the diag I witnessed two
incidents that confirm for me the crisis
situation at this University over student
rights. The first involved a certain street
musician that was playing in front of a
crowd of about a 150 students. Everyone
was enjoying the sun, listening to the
music and having a great time. A campus
security officer suddenly pushed his way
through the crowd and informed him that he
would not be allowed to continue playing if
he was to accept any more money. The
musician packed away his instruments
shortly afterward and left the diag. The
second incident occurred when one of the
campus security officers intercepted a
student smoking marijuana. The officer
used his radio to call for the police to come
and deal with the student. I was so appalled
at these two happenings that I approached
the officer and asked why he was making it
a point to hassle people on the diag. H e
handed me the familiar line about "just
doing my job".
Today was a very frightening experience
for me because I saw for myself two cases
of student repression. I have been fighting
the code for three years, but never had I
truly seen the nature of what we are fight-
ing. It was a bunch of theoretical mumbo-
jumbo that we would argue over at U-
Council meetings, but I was never able to
actually experience the repression. That
changed today. I am writing this letter to
warn students and everyone that cares about
civil liberties that the repression is just be-
ginning.
A brief history may be in order here.
Students gained most of their rights in the
late '60s and early '70s when progressive
students (like Tom Hayden and SDS) de-
stroyed the doctrine of en loco parentis.
This doctrine holds that the University take
on a parental role, while the students as-
sume the role of children. Under this doc-
trine, the University rigorously controlled
the lives of students. I'm sure that many
students have heard the horror stories of
how women had to be in their dormrooms
David Newblatt is an LSA Senior and
former chair of U Council.
by 10:00 every night. Amazingly, students
were forbidden to drive automobiles on Ann
Arbor streets. En loco parentis was elimi-
nated through active protest, and students
established control of their own lives. No
longer does the University assume this role
of regulating student's non-academic lives. I
hold, however, that this situation is chang-
ing, and we are moving back in the direc-
tion of the en loco parentis doctrine.
This movement is being engineered ever
so carefully by the University
administration. It is not something that can
be easily seen, as it is well hidden within
an evolutionary process. I can, however,
point to three manifestations of this trend.
1. The Code of Non-Academic
Conduct
This is the obvious and the most threat-
ening manifestation. In order to have con-
trol over students, the administration must
achieve the ultimate power: the power over
the transcripts. In the face of expulsion,
suspension, or hold credit; a student is
powerless. The University is attempting to
expand its regulation over students to the
non-academic realm.
Of course, this power-grab is not pre-
sented to the students as such. The code
history is filled with attempts to sell the
code to students using every trick in the
book. The administration has used the
Bursley murders, sexual assault, and most
recently, racism as an excuse for a code. A
code is completely incapable of decreasing
any of the above problems. For instance,
adjudicatory mechanisms for sexual assault
exist in the legal system already. Of course
there are difficulties in the legal system that
make it cumbersome to use, but how can a
code solve this problem? The real challenge
is on the prevention side, something a code
doesn't even come close to addressing. It is
important for students to recognize that
these overtures from the administration are
power-grabs to gain control over them.
2. The Deputization of the Cam-
pus Security
The administration is desperately trying
to deputize the campus security officers.
This means that they would have a badge,
thus giving them the power to arrest people
and carry a gun. This fight has taken place
in the State Legislature as recently as last
term. Leo Heatley, the Director of Public
Safety, has continually lobbied hard for this
pressed
power. Fortunately, with the help of our
Rep. Perry Bullard, the bill has been de-
feated in committee for the time being.
If the administration were to achieve their
goal of their own deputized police force,
this would be a major power coup. This
means that they would control their own
police force that could arrest students. They
would then have the control of student's
criminal records.
3. Excessive Regulation
In general, there has been a constant trend
toward increased regulation. This can be
seen recently in the Daily in the disputes
over which protests are allowed, when, and
where. Another example is the glass that
now covers many bulletin boards, where
previously there was none. The Michigan
Union used to be open to students 24 hours
a day, now it is heavily restricted. Two
summers ago, there was an attempt to
regulate the number of diag banners to two.
Fortunately, this was rolled back by student
opposition. The list goes on and on.
These may look like trivial measures,
but they are not. With each generation of
new students the regulation accumulates.
First-year students don't realize that the
bulletin boards were once free of glass.
I am very concerned because I see these
three things materializing. I am afraid to
think of what this place will be like in five
years. Today on the diag was just a taste of
repression, nothing compared to what will
happen as the administration gains more
control. As the balance of power shifts
away from students toward administrators,
new initiatives for control will surface.
This is how the repression of en loco par-
entis will evolve at this University.
I shivered today in the face of repression.
I really came to the realization that it is
happening, and I became angry. I became
angry because students are being manipu-
lated into giving up their rights. I just ask
students to realize that this trend is taking
place. Be aware that this is actively pursued
trend toward the reinstitution of en loco
parentis. Students can stop this trend, but it
takes hard work. If we are to be successful,
we must make our voices heard. We have
much more power than we realize. This is
how we won our freedom back in the early
'70s, and it is how we must protect it in
the '80s.
Wasserman
0
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',tbi OWE~ US LOTS OF MONY/ YOUR VPHONE IELP? LINE YOU WRLAT YOU CAN DO -OF 1"E CALL 9
;~g) _
LETTERS:
CDLA view of Nicarargua wrong
To The Daily:
In response to Roberto Fri-
sancho's one-sided, unfair de-
piction of religious life in
Nicaragua, let me say first that
as a Latin American, I feel that
the Coalition for Democracy in
Latin America in no way
represents my interests.
Frisancho, by proclaiming
himself as president of the
CDLA, does not practice
democracy within his
organization. He was not
democratically elected to his
position, nor have there been
any real elections in the group.
. CDLA's version o f
"democracy" is one of moneyed
elites controlling people and
resources in the countries of
Central and South America,
remaining subservient and in
debt to the U.S. and its multi-
national corporations a n d
banks.
Frisancho's essay reflects
typical Reagan Administration
rhetoric, which paints a picture
of the Sandinistas as totalitar-
ian, Marxist, anti-Christian
ideologues, whose only aim is
to subjugate the population and
squash any form of opposition.
The usual time-worn asser-
war, which certainly has had
the greatest effect on religious
life in Nicaragua. The Contra
reign of terror has included the
murders of a Catholic priest
and an American J e w
(Benjamin Linder) in 1987, the
kidnapping of Seventh Day
Adventist missionaries, and
threats on the lives of many
clerics from different
denominations.
Frisancho, a victim of right-
wing propaganda, uses quota-
tions from Humberto Belli of
the Puebla Institute, and
Michael Novak of the Ameri-
can Enterprise Institute, orga-
nizations which recieve support
from the State Department and
the CIA, so naturally every-
thing they say about Nicaragua
is laced with anti-Sandinista
vitriol.
The assertion that there are
no Jews in Nicaragua is a lie,
in fact, as a visitor to
Nicaragua in summer of 1987,
I watched as a synagogue was
rebuilt at a location around the
corner from where I was stay-
ing.
In regards to other religious
persecution, anyone with eyes
and ears can go to Nicaragua to
repression or persecution. Even
the noted hypocritical, woman-
exploiting Jimmy Swaggart
was able to convey his mes-
sage to a massive audience in
Managua late last year.
Its about time the CDLA
recognized their mistake in not
decrying religious persecution
in El Salvador, Guatemala, and
Honduras which occurs daily,
and without much publicity
At least in Nicaragua, arch-
bishops are-not assassinated,
nor are nuns raped and murdered
by the government, paid for
with U.S. tax dollars.
-Luis A. Vazquez
April 11
Incumbents are entrenched
0
To the Daily:
I have occasionally been
criticized in the past for
speaking so rapidly that I
cannot be understood. Judging
from Kerry Birmingham's
article on the Women's Action
for Nuclear Disarmament
forum at which Lana Pollack
and myself spoke, I must have
been setting new speed records.
The article indicated that I
said I had little chance of de-
feating Pursell. In fact I was
saying that neither Lana Pol-
lack nor myself has a very
good chance of defeating
Pursell, since it has become all
but impossible to unseat in-
cumbents. I pointed to the fact
would re-enfranchise people,
and that could act as counter-
force to the money of rich
contributors. It is exactly this
sort of movement that Jesse
Jackson's campaign has helped
to build and has led to its suc-
cess here and elsewhere..
I was also surprised to read
that Senator Pollack and my-
self agreed on most issues. I
was calling explicitly for
undoing the bulk of Reagan's
military build-up for savings
on the order of 70 billion dol-
lars per year. I furthermore
called for taking back Reagan's
tax breaks to the very rich and
large corporations which could
save about the same amount.
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