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United Campus Ministry papers, 1970-1972

1971-04-14 Daily Iowan Article: ''Test Case' Ahmad: Harrisburg Six'

[photo]
Ahmad

Eqbal Ahmad, one of six alleged co-conspirators charged in a "plot" to kidnap presidential advisor Henry Kissinger, gestures at a news conference held Tuesday afternoon at Center East. Ahmad later spoke at MacBride Auditorium.
-- Photo by George Popkin

By RUARD VANDERPLOEG
Daily Iowan Reporter

   "We are the chosen people!"
   The shout was that of Dr. Eqbal Ahmad; the chosen people were the "Harrisburg Six," of which he is one.
   "We are the ones who will bring anti-war sentiment back into the consciousness of the American public," he said.
   "We are also the ones chosen by the Nixon administration to test the tolerance of the American public to repression of anti-war elements."
   Ahmad, one of the six persons indicted for the alleged plot to kidnap presidential adviser Henry Kissinger and to bomb heating ducts in Washington, D.C., spoke to a crowd of about 800 persons in MacBride Auditorium Tuesday night.
   He explained the dangers to American civil liberties portended by the government's conduct of its legal action against him, and about the need to reactivate public opinion against the war in Southeast Asia.
   Ahmad termed his upcoming trial the "domestic equivalent of the Tonkin Gulf incident." 
   "That incident was a testing point for the tolerance of the American public for the escalation of a war which would involve debts and deaths. Now your tolerance is being tested again," he said.
   "From the beginning we, as individuals and as a group, have denied absolutely the charges the government has brought against us. We are opposed in principle and in fact to acts of violence such as kidnaping and bombing," Ahmad said.
   "But we refuse to answer specifically the charges brought against us because of the irresponsible and extrajudicial behavior which surrounds the indictment."
   "As common citizens, we feel we must set a tone of civility and responsibility in discussing the indictment, a tone which is so lacking in the national leaders," Ahmad said.
   Outlining the case against the group, which includes jailed Catholic priest Philip Berrigan, Ahmad said points in their favor were the record of their integrity ("Let the government prove one occasion when we have lied to the public; let them prove one occasion since 1965 when they have told the truth about the war to the public without the truth being uncovered by someone else first," he said,) the total lack of evidence on the part of the government, and the strong support they are getting from the American people.
   Points the government thinks it has in its favor, he said,a re the conspiracy laws, which leave the burden of proof on the defense, Harrisburg, PA. -- "a Bible-belt city in which the government believes it will be hard for us to get a fair trial, but they've always had a low opinion of the American people," he said -- and the frightening power of suggestion and persuasion.

   "The Nixon administration is trying to bring out the worst in the American people," he said. "The paranoia has always been there, but he's trying to exploit it."

   Speaking on the present state of the Indochina war, Ahmad called it the "genocidial phase." He said that Nixon's solution to overcoming the anti-war sentiment of the Johnson years is to mechanize it with bombers, long range artillery and "human sniffers which record the movements of flesh and blood, animals or humans, and are plugged into a computer used to call in bombing strikes on supposed troop movements."
   During a press conference before his address, Ahmad was asking if there is a chance for a revival of anti-war sentiment. He said he had found more support in small towns and on the campuses of small colleges.

   "Where there was activity five or six years ago, there is apathy now. Those who have actively opposed the war are withdrawing due to anxiety, despair and frustration over the failure of their efforts," he said.
   "The message is that in small colleges and communities people still think the system will respond to protest."
   He said he too believed the system would respond to protest.
   "The country is skirting the edge of Facism. If Nixon is re-elected in 1972 there might not be another election in 1976," Ahmad said. "The one good thing here, though, is the wide extent of the civil liberties."

'Test Case'
Ahmad: Harrisburg Six

DAILY IOWAN, APRIL 14, 9171

Sponsored by: Association of Campus Ministers, Union Board

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[photo] Ahmad Eqbal Ahmad, one of six alleged co-conspirators charged in a "plot" to kidnap presidential advisor Henry Kissinger, gestures at a news conference held Tuesday afternoon at Center East. Ahmad later spoke at MacBride Auditorium. -- Photo by George Popkin By RUARD VANDERPLOEG Daily Iowan Reporter "We are the chosen people!" The shout was that of Dr. Eqbal Ahmad; the chosen people were the "Harrisburg Six," of which he is one. "We are the ones who will bring anti-war sentiment back into the consciousness of the American public," he said. "We are also the ones chosen by the Nixon administration to test the tolerance of the American public to repression of anti-war elements." Ahmad, one of the six persons indicted for the alleged plot to kidnap presidential adviser Henry Kissinger and to bomb heating ducts in Washington, D.C., spoke to a crowd of about 800 persons in MacBride Auditorium Tuesday night. He explained the dangers to American civil liberties portended by the government's conduct of its legal action against him, and about the need to reactivate public opinion against the war in Southeast Asia. Ahmad termed his upcoming trial the "domestic equivalent of the Tonkin Gulf incident." "That incident was a testing point for the tolerance of the American public for the escalation of a war which would involve debts and deaths. Now your tolerance is being tested again," he said. "From the beginning we, as individuals and as a group, have denied absolutely the charges the government has brought against us. We are opposed in principle and in fact to acts of violence such as kidnaping and bombing," Ahmad said. "But we refuse to answer specifically the charges brought against us because of the irresponsible and extrajudicial behavior which surrounds the indictment." "As common citizens, we feel we must set a tone of civility and responsibility in discussing the indictment, a tone which is so lacking in the national leaders," Ahmad said. Outlining the case against the group, which includes jailed Catholic priest Philip Berrigan, Ahmad said points in their favor were the record of their integrity ("Let the government prove one occasion when we have lied to the public; let them prove one occasion since 1965 when they have told the truth about the war to the public without the truth being uncovered by someone else first," he said,) the total lack of evidence on the part of the government, and the strong support they are getting from the American people. Points the government thinks it has in its favor, he said,a re the conspiracy laws, which leave the burden of proof on the defense, Harrisburg, PA. -- "a Bible-belt city in which the government believes it will be hard for us to get a fair trial, but they've always had a low opinion of the American people," he said -- and the frightening power of suggestion and persuasion. "The Nixon administration is trying to bring out the worst in the American people," he said. "The paranoia has always been there, but he's trying to exploit it." Speaking on the present state of the Indochina war, Ahmad called it the "genocidial phase." He said that Nixon's solution to overcoming the anti-war sentiment of the Johnson years is to mechanize it with bombers, long range artillery and "human sniffers which record the movements of flesh and blood, animals or humans, and are plugged into a computer used to call in bombing strikes on supposed troop movements." During a press conference before his address, Ahmad was asking if there is a chance for a revival of anti-war sentiment. He said he had found more support in small towns and on the campuses of small colleges. "Where there was activity five or six years ago, there is apathy now. Those who have actively opposed the war are withdrawing due to anxiety, despair and frustration over the failure of their efforts," he said. "The message is that in small colleges and communities people still think the system will respond to protest." He said he too believed the system would respond to protest. "The country is skirting the edge of Facism. If Nixon is re-elected in 1972 there might not be another election in 1976," Ahmad said. "The one good thing here, though, is the wide extent of the civil liberties." 'Test Case' Ahmad: Harrisburg Six DAILY IOWAN, APRIL 14, 9171 Sponsored by: Association of Campus Ministers, Union Board