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SERVILITY OF NETHERLANDS TO THE US IN THE TERRORIST LISTING OF PROF. JOSE MARIA SISON

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English translation of Dutch original

By Jos van Dijk
13 September 2011

The German Tageszeitung asked this question at the commemoration of 9/11 this weekend: who has profited the most now from the attacks in 2001? Beside the weapons and security industry, the neocons and the rightist populists, the newspaper also mentioned the despots in the world who, thanks to the “war on terror”, have used the so called fight against terrorism to suppress their opponents and reinforce their dominant position in their own countries. Unmindful of human rights or democratic rules, 9/11  provided repressive apparatus to countries such as Russia, other former Soviet states and Arab countries the chance to silence, if not entirely eliminating the opposition without having to worry about cumbersome questions from the international community.

The Philippines is one such country which has profited from the favorable climate for brutal abuse of power. In 2002 the Arroyo government requested and persuaded the American Minister for Foreign Affairs to put communist Jose Maria Sison, a Filipino exile living in the Netherlands on its terrorist list. This in turn resulted in the freezing of his bank credit balance and he was not allowed to travel anymore to any other foreign country. The decision of the US was not even a day old when the Netherlands took the initiative to put Sison also on the European terrorist list. In 2007, the Netherlands went still a step further by arresting Sison and confiscating computers and documents even from his friends. That, in turn, to the large satisfaction of the Philippine government, as shown by diplomatic dispatches recently published by Wikileaks.

Newly leaked diplomatic dispatches from the Hague and Manila show how the Netherlands has positioned itself to serve the interests of the US and the Philippine regimes.

In 2009, legal procedures for the removal of the Netherlands-based Filipino communist from the European terrorist list became successful. The European court rejected the grounds by which Sison was placed on the list, as a result of which he could not make use of his bank credit balance since 2002. Panic in The Hague. What now? The Netherlands has put Sison on the list at the request of the US. Through a diplomatic dispatch, additional information was urgently asked to persuade the court not to take Sison off the list. It feverishly sought the Dutch police force, the AIVD and the embassy in Manila for more information for building a better case. But:

“ Despite continued efforts to collect admissible evidence against him, however, these offices have not been able to provide concrete help.”

Meanwhile the support of other countries seemed to dwindle. And as Sison was to be taken off the list, chaos would ensue, the Dutch government (GONL) threatened in May 2009:

“The GONL thinks there is much at stake in the Sison case. Whereas the European courts have until now focused on procedural issues of sanctions designations, the Court of First Instance may rule on the substance of the Sison case. A negative decision would set a dangerous precedent for the entire EU sanctions regime. The GONL feels on thin ice because the original listing was in part at the USG’s request.“

Then a dispatch from Manila – from Kenney, the US ambassador – follows. She also could not offer much than just to say that the NPA (New People Army) gives the the Philippine government a lot of concern and that Sison as former leader of the communist party should also have the control of this group of rebels. But she leaves no doubt on what the US and the Philippines wanted to do: Blackmail Sison to get the rebels on their knees:

“If Sison and the NPA were to reject their past actions and pledge not to engage in such activity again, there might be some grounds for revisiting their designations, but on the contrary they refuse to agree to a ceasefire and continue to carry out kidnappings and killings.  Under the circumstances, removal of Sison’s terrorist designation is inadvisable.”

The Netherlands cannot prevail over the procedure at the European court. Walking on “thin ice” the Netherlands definitely fell through on 30 September. The European court judged that Sison had been wrongfully put on the list. To appeal against this decision, the Netherlands must acquire support of the other EU countries. That does not seem to succeed, Germany and United Kingdom would not participate anymore. Of course, the government again called on the US: “It was ultimately by your request that he be put on the list.” For this reason, again an urgent request from a Dutch civil servant of Ministry of Foreign Affairs was sent to the US for “any type of or classification related to Sison”.

How servilely can you put yourself to one’s disposal?

Nederland in dienst van de VS

Auteur Jos

13 september 2011 om 13:53

Jose Maria Sison (bron: http://www.josemariasison.eu/?cat=353)De Duitse Tageszeitung stelde bij de herdenking van 9/11 dit weekend de vraag: wie heeft er nu het meest geprofiteerd van de aanslagen in 2001? Naast de wapen- en veiligheidsindustrie, de neocons en de rechtspopulisten noemt de krant ook de despoten in de wereld die dankzij de “war on terror” in eigen land onder de noemer van terrorismebestrijding hun machtspositie konden versterken. Niet gehinderd door mensenrechten of democratische spelregels gaf 9/11 de repressie-apparaten van landen als Rusland, andere voormalige sovjetstaten en arabische landen de kans om zonder lastige vragen uit het buitenland de oppositie monddood te maken,  zo niet volledig uit te schakelen.

In het rijtje landen dat op deze manier profiteerde van het gunstige klimaat voor bruut machtsmisbruik past ook de Filippijnen. In 2002 wist de regering Arroyo de Amerikaanse minister van buitenlandse zaken te overtuigen van de noodzaak de in Nederland in ballingschap wonende communist Sison (foto) op de terroristenlijst te zetten waardoor zijn banktegoed bevroren werd en hij geen kans meer kreeg om naar het buitenland te reizen. De beslissing van de VS was nog geen dag oud toen Nederland het initiatief overnam en Sison op de Europese terroristenlijst liet plaatsen. In 2007 gaat Nederland nog een stapje verder met de arrestatie van Sison en het in beslag nemen van computers en documenten van zijn medestanders. Tot grote tevredenheid van de Filippijnse regering, zoals blijkt uit onlangs door Wikileaks gepubliceerde diplomatieke telegrammen.

Nieuwe gelekte diplomatieke telegrammen uit Den Haag en Manilla laten zien hoe dienstbaar Nederland zich in deze zaak heeft opgesteld aan de belangen van de VS en het Filippijnse regime.

In 2009 lijken juridische procedures tegen de plaatsing van deze in Nederland levende Filippijnse communist op de Europese terroristenlijst succesvol te worden. Het Europese Hof neigt er toe de gronden waarop Sison op deze lijst is geplaatst, waardoor hij sinds 2002 niet meer kan beschikken over zijn banktegoed, af te wijzen. Paniek in Den Haag. Wat nu? Nederland heeft Sison op verzoek van de VS op de lijst laten zetten. Per diplomatiek telegram wordt dringend gevraagd om aanvullende informatie om het Hof er van te overtuigen dat Sison niet van de lijst kan. De Nederlandse politie, de AIVD en de ambassade in Manilla hebben koortsachtig gezocht naar een beter onderbouwing van de zaak. Maar:

“ Despite continued efforts to collect admissible evidence against him, however, these offices have not been able to provide concrete help.”

Intussen lijkt de steun van andere landen weg te vallen. En als Sison van de lijst wordt gehaald is het hek van de dam, dreigt de Nederlandse regering (GONL) in mei 2009:

“The GONL thinks there is much at stake in the Sison case.  Whereas the European courts have until now focused on procedural issues of sanctions designations, the Court of First Instance may rule on the substance of the Sison case.  A negative decision would set a dangerous precedent for the entire EU sanctions regime.  The GONL feels on thin ice because the original listing was in part at the USG’s request.“

Dan volgt een telegram uit Manilla van ambassadeur Kenney. Zij heeft ook niet veel meer te bieden dan dat het NPA (New People’s Army) de Filippijnse regering last bezorgd en dat men aanneemt dat Sison, als voormalige leider van de Communistische Partij ook de leiding heeft over deze groep rebellen. Maar zij laat er ook geen twijfel over bestaan waar het de VS en de Filippijnen om te doen is: Sison chanteren 0m de rebellen op de knieën te krijgen:

If Sison and the NPA were to reject their past actions and pledge not to
engage in such activity again, there might be some grounds
for revisiting their designations, but on the contrary they
refuse to agree to a ceasefire and continue to carry out
kidnappings and killings.  Under the circumstances, removal
of Sison’s terrorist designation is inadvisable.

Het mag Nederland in de procedure bij het Europese Hof allemaal niet baten. Het blijft  “thin ice” en op 30 september zakt Nederland er definitief doorheen. Het Europese Hof oordeelt dat Sison ten onrechte op de lijst is gezet. Voor een beroep tegen deze beslissing moet Nederland steun verwerven bij de andere EU-landen. Dat lijkt niet te lukken, Duitsland en Engeland zien er niets meer in. Toch roept de regering opnieuw de hulp in van de VS. “Het was tenslotte jullie verzoek om hem op de lijst te zetten”. Daarom wederom een dringend verzoek van de Nederlandse ambtenaar van BuZa aan de VS voor “any type or classification related to Sison”.

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