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April 21, 2004
ZGram - Where Truth is Destiny
ZGram - Where Truth is Destiny
There is some misunderstanding even in our ranks about the
purpose of a hunger strike. Primarily, is not meant to dramatize our cause.
It is not meant to showcase my resilience. It is not meant to blackmail our
opponent. It is not even meant to force mainstream media to pay attention to
a dramatic spectacle with gruesome visuals of Ingrid starving herself to a
skeleton. All those are mere side shows. ***A politically effective hunger
strike is meant to force concessions, leading to negotiations perceived as
useful to both sides.***
This outcome was already partially achieved when I succeeded
in meeting with, and presenting our case to, my representative, Rep. William
Jenkins, in a constructive face to face meeting I had not been previously
able to arrange, despite much effort on my part and many faxes from our
supporters. I had originally set my deadline for a Freeport hunger strike
for April 19, but after a very promising meeting I finally succeeded in
arranging, I gladly abandoned both date and location for a hunger strike in
Freeport, TN and, instead, moved both time and location to Washington, D.C.
Why would I want to put myself into a hunger strike in Freeport when I
achieved what I had wanted to achieve without a hunger strike? There was no
need for it.
But that was only an initial victory. The next stage was in
sight.
With my foot in the door and having succeeded in calmly
presenting the severity as well as righteousness of our plight to Mr.
Jenkins, who listened sympathetically and must have come away from it
convinced that I didn't wear any horns, I announced to my Internet friends
as well as to my mailing list of thousands in 43 countries that I would move
the hunger strike date forward to May 1st to give myself some time to scout
out a new location and see what might be done in Washington, D.C.
This was the purpose of my trip to our capital, which I
undertook on Saturday, April 17, in the company of two supporters who had
come to visit me in Tennessee. Since one of them was flying back to Europe
out of Washington, it saved me the expenses of at least half of the trip if
I just rode along and took a rental car to get back home as soon as my
reconnaissance mission was finished.
This we did, and the report below is to give you a feel for
what our reconnaissance turned out to be, and what we have achieved, as well
as where we hope it to lead.
The 8-hour drive itself was pleasant. The weather was on our
side, and I enjoyed driving through the eastern part of the US that I had
never seen before. A few days before, another sponsor couple had offered me
logistic support and free lodging in their lovely home in Springfield,
Virginia, which I gladly accepted and greatly enjoyed. Since the next day
was a Sunday, it gave me a chance to relax and get my mind in the right
frame for what I expected to be a hostile encounter in the Canadian Embassy,
the next target of my determined political protest.
Two days before I left for Washington, I had announced that
I would come to speak with the Ambassador of Canada. Knowing our enemies'
aggravating tactic of stalling us for months and months on end before an
appointment or a court date is set, I had not asked for an appointment; I
simply announced that I would come to make sure that the ambassador
understood that I was serious, and to make sure I did not transgress against
any rules and regulations about a political protest in such a
high-visibility way.
My host, an experienced translator of governmental and
corporate documents, graciously offered to accompany me. I had also made
arrangements for a professional video-taping of my entering what my host
half-jokingly called "the belly of the beast". As we were coming
down the wide steps from the backside of the building, where we had parked
our car, I could see that the taping action was already taking place, kind
of surreptitiously. I have that video tape, and in a few days you will be
able to preview it on the Zundelsite as yet another document in our struggle
to obtain my husband's freedom.
I asked my escort, Walt, to write up for history what would
be happening next. In part, I will be quoting from his report, already filed
in a safe place in its entirety:
Walt:
"DISCLAIMER: The following are my paraphrased
reflections of our visit to the Canadian Embassy. I am quite sure that our
conversation in the foyer was recorded, and that transcriptions therefrom
may be forwarded to concerned parties in Canada:
"We arrived at the Canadian Embassy at 501 Pennsylvania
Avenue NW, Washington DC 20001 on Monday, April 19, 2004 just shortly after
10:00 a.m. The American security personnel at the embassy foyer asked Dr.
Ingrid Zündel to state the purpose of her visit, to which she responded
that she wished to discuss the plight of her husband, Ernst Zündel and his
incarceration in Canada as a political prisoner."
[Ingrid's comment: I had mentally rehearsed what I would
say, knowing I would encounter resistance. What I said, as I remember it,
is that I did not have an appointment, but that I had come to discuss the
plight of my husband, a high profile political prisoner held in illegal
custody in Canada. I not get all of that in as calmly and assertively as I
had rehearsed it in my mind, but enough to cause a startled and confused
look in response to my announcement.]
Walt:
"Ingrid stated that she had faxed the ambassador a
letter informing him of her intentions to visit him. After a minute or two
of what seemed to be perplexity and indecision on the part of the guard, he
finally summoned a Canadian Embassy official from the confines of the
embassy while another guard checked our identification cards and processed
us through electronic security.
"Upon passing through electronic security, Ingrid was
met by a Canadian embassy official to whom she stated her name, nationality
and purpose of visit. From her brief conversation with the embassy official,
it was evident that he was completely unfamiliar with the Ernst Zündel
case, so Ingrid chronologically summarized the facts of the case for his
edification. Furthermore, she expressed her grave concerns over the
implications of an international incident due to the egregious manner in
which Ernst Zündel was expelled from the United States and immediately
incarcerated in Canada."
[Ingrid's comment: I had taken along three fat folders of
testimonials and endorsements from Zundel supporters from more than 30
countries, which I intended to hand to the ambassador for his perusal, so
he would know that I came fortified. I fully expected that briefcase to be
confiscated and copied; however, that did not happen, much to my surprise.
We passed a perfunctory screening. Now Walt and I stood inside the lobby,
waiting patiently for what would happen next.]
Walt:
"The embassy official informed Ingrid that he was
uncertain as to the current whereabouts of the Canadian ambassador. He
suggested the likelihood that the ambassador might be out of town. In any
event, the official took notes and accepted reference material from Ingrid,
after which he instructed us to wait in the embassy foyer while he summoned
another official.
"After a wait of approximately a quarter of an hour,
the Consul General emerged and cordially greeted us. The Consul General
informed us that although his function at the embassy primarily concerns
international relations, he agreed to meet with us nonetheless, and added
that he was already somewhat familiar with the Zündel case. He invited us
to join him in the foyer while he listened and asked questions for
approximately thirty minutes."
[Ingrid's comment: Actually, our wait seemed to me much
longer than just 15 minutes. It seemed more like 30 to 45 minutes. At one
point, I asked Walt, as I remember it: "What do you think this means
that it takes them so long?" and he replied: "They're checking.
They're checking." We both agreed that that was a positive sign. They
could have simply told us to go away and to return another day, replete
with pre-set appointment, which would have been the coward's way out.
Instead, we were given the honor of a meeting with the Embassy's highest
functionary - the Ambassador being, more or less, the ceremonial figure
head, as I would later learn.
The Consul General, a man of slight built but very steady
eyes, gave us his card and asked courteously but, so it seemed to me, rather
coldly why we had come. I said that I had come to talk to someone in
authority. Could I please talk to him?
He motioned to a sectional in the rather elegant and
impressive foyer, and the three of us sat down. I was aware in an icy calm
within my heart, and I knew I would summarize well, finding just the right
tone to soften the guarded look in the Consul General's eyes.]
Walt:
"After briefly explaining her relationship to Ernst
Zündel and providing the Consul General with a brief chronology of events
surrounding his case. Ingrid reassured the Consul General that she and Ernst
Zündel have only the highest regard for Canada, and that they share a deep
sense of appreciation for the countless opportunities Canadian life has
accorded them."
[Ingrid's comment: Actually, what I talked about was my
regard for the Canada I once knew but NOT the country of today - the
civilized land I had entered as a young, helpless, spiritually wounded
immigrant out of a Third World country, a Canada that had put its arms
around me and given me a start in education. I spoke with passion of the
fair and decent country that I remembered fondly from my youth. The Canada
of yesterday was not, I stressed, the country of today. The Canada the
world now watched, aghast, ran roughshod over human rights. It was a
country in the hands of alien interests who cared nothing about human
rights, who were hurting the country's human rights' image by brutally
settling a private agenda. I said that I could sense that, with a new
administration struggling to ameliorate the gross abuses of the Chretién
Administration and to repair its tattered prestige, Canada might be
amenable to take a second look at what was increasingly becoming a huge
liability - the kidnapping and incarceration of a high profile pacifist
from the United States.]
Walt:
"Given the advent of Canada's new administration,
Ingrid proposed that it might now be in everyone's interest if she were to
initiate and actively pursue a quiet and meaningful dialog with U.S.
congressmen and Canadian diplomatic officials so as to avert what has now
become an internationally politicized cause célčbre over the perception of
judicial excesses, improprieties and official stonewalling. Ingrid mentioned
instances whereby the Canadian news media, Amnesty International and other
main stream venues have already started to publicly express alarm and
outrage over Canada's abuse and denial of Ernst Zündel's civil rights.
Additionally, Ingrid mentioned that she believes there is mounting evidence
indicating collusion between U.S. and Canadian authorities weeks prior to
Zündel's putative infraction for which he was deported to Canada."
[Ingrid's comment: Up to that point, the Consul General
had listened carefully but showing no emotion in his face. When I
mentioned, very briefly, that we had documented information, obtained
through the Freedom of Information Act, about illegal shenanigans
involving Canadian officials and organizations clearly involved in Ernst's
deportation, something changed in his expression. I can easily imagine,
but I'd rather not speculate on, what the Consul General must have thought
at that moment of his own nationals - or those who pass for nationals,
their loyalties elsewhere - ]
Walt:
"After Ingrid finished speaking, I mentioned to the
Consul General that neither Ernst Zündel, Ingrid, their legal staff-- not
even the magistrate adjudicating this case--have the slightest inkling of
Mr. Zündel's so-called crime or crimes for which he has been incarcerated
for the past fourteen months. The wording of Zündel's "Security
Certificate" is so inherently vague and all-sweeping, it was tantamount
to guilt by innuendo. I reminded the Consul General of the current spate of
judicial abuses here in the United States, such that the civil rights of
Americans were being systematically abrogated by the U.S. Department of
Justice on similar vaguely worded "catch-all" laws. Thanks to the
publicity and intervention of the American Civil Liberties Union and citizen
watchdog groups, these incarcerations have since been ruled as illegal, and
the victims of the U.S. justice system have been duly released."
[Ingrid's comment: Inside myself, I did not feel that this
is quite the case as yet. There might have been exceptions. But I believe
that there is far too little attention, and far too much tolerance, for
judicial abuses so rampant in and so destructive to America. I read about
them every day. Ashcoft's shock troops admit to having picked up some 500
cruelly targeted victims under false pretenses, without due process,
without any recourse to attorneys, lawful remedies etc. - when, in fact,
the number of such victims is reportedly as high as 5,000 ! Not everybody
has as high a profile as Ernst Zundel, which makes our case all the more
relevant on principle, not just for his sake, but for all who have been
unjustly imprisoned.]
Walt:
"Ingrid asserted that if Ernst Zündel had been living
in Canada for more than forty years prior to his incarceration and never
broken the law, to say nothing of ever posing a security threat to Canada,
then why would someone, presumably a high-level Canadian authority, single
out Ernst Zündel as a national threat? Indeed, if the Canadian government
would simply come forward and disclose its legal line of reasoning and/or
cold hard evidence of Mr. Zündel's putative criminal behavior, then perhaps
a proper legal defense might be established, otherwise one has to wonder and
assume the worst.
"From the standpoint of Canadian prestige as a
democratic country, it would do much to dispel growing concerns as to
whether the civil rights of Canadians are indeed being systematically eroded
by Canada's system of justice. Ingrid asked the Consul General if he were
familiar with the restrictions on conducting demonstrations in front of the
Canadian embassy, and he suggested that she consult with the Washington, DC
police."
[Ingrid's comment: My clear impression was that, at this
juncture, referring to my announced hunger strike, I hit a real nerve. I
did not stress this heavily, but I let it be known that, as a last resort,
I would go ahead with my hunger strike right outside the Embassy doors. I
stressed that I would much prefer the quiet diplomatic route. I told the
Consul General that, for example, it would be enormously helpful if he
would do two things for me: First, help facilitate a personal meeting with
the Acting Director of Immigration Enforcement, Mr. Timothy Haugh, so that
we could unravel what could pass as a bureaucratic snafu, if that's the
fig leaf U.S. government would want to use to hide its own misdeeds, and
secondly, to help facilitate a meeting with the Canadian counterpart, the
Honorable Minister of __________ Ms. Anne McClellan. I said that I
intended soon to visit the McLellan office in the company of both U.S. as
well as Canadian businessmen, media, attorneys - a fact-finding delegation
preferably led by a U.S. congressman or senator, to explore what might be
done.
At that point, the Consul General said something that is
noteworthy: "Why would a Congressman want to do that?" and I
locked eyes with him and let my own eyes speak.]
Walt:
"Inasmuch as it was Ingrid's first meeting with
officials at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC, and as everyone with
whom we spoke impressed us as genuinely concerned, helpful and engaging, it
seemed clear that a promising new door had opened. The Consul General gave
Ingrid his assurances that he would pursue the Zündel case by reviewing her
reference materials and contacting the appropriate authorities in Canada. He
also informed Ingrid that he would follow up with her as well."
That's where we left it, and I drove back that afternoon,
after having ascertained the location of the Herrington Hotel that I intend
to use in case there is no action and I need to come back for my hunger
strike protest. I have since consulted with several advisors as well as with
Ernst, and the consensus is that we ought not to jeopardize the inroads we
have made with this Embassy contact by going ahead with the hunger strike
NOW.
Instead, we should be very clear that a hunger strike is our
ultimate weapon, still in reserve and by no means abandoned. However, we are
willing to postpone such drastic action until such time when it is needed
and will have major impact. That is our strategy as of today.
I will spend all of today getting additional material ready
for the Consul General, which I will speedily FedEx to him. I will also
contact media, businessmen, and my own legal troops in a tentative strategy
to travel to Canada to meet with Minister Anne McLellan, who - since she has
inherited the mess the corrupt Chretién government has left behind,
including the botched Zundel kidnapping which turned into a sore on the
Canadian body politic - has every reason to be listening.
I hope to have much more for you tomorrow.
Stay tuned - and NO SURRENDER!
Ingrid Zundel
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Reminder:
Help free Ernst Zundel, Prisoner of Conscience. His
prison sketches - now on-line and highly popular - help pay for his defence.
Take a look - and tell a friend.
http://www.zundelsite.org/gallery/donations/index.html
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Write to Canada's Prime Minister and complain
over the unfair treatment Ernst Zündel has received.
Prime Minister Paul Martin
House of Commons
Parliament Buildings
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
Telephone: (613) 992-4211
Fax: (613) 941-6900
Email: Martin.P@parl.gc.ca |
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