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GIs Continue The StruggleBy VVAWAmnesty Trial: RICHARD BUCKLIN CONVICTED (Fort Carson, Colorado) In a decision that may have a widespread effect on the amnesty movement in the coming months, Richard Dean Buckiln, a deserter who voluntarily returned to the military custody in order to dramatize the issue of amnesty, was found guilty of AWOL and was given a harsh sentence by a court-martial. On January 8, a general court-martial sentenced Bucklin to 15 months' confinement at hard labor, total forfeitures, reduction to grade E-1, and a Bad Conduct Discharge. Bucklin will serve his time at Fort Leavenworth, where he will be among many other brothers who have resisted military repression. Bucklin had turned himself in at Carson on October 4, 1973. He realized at the time that "They are going to throw the book at me." However, he felt that it was important to present a public defense at a trial of the issues surrounding amnesty for our brothers in exile. He stated at the time of his surrender that he wanted his ordeal to "mean something, to have an effect -- to make the American people aware of the plight of all war resisters." He wanted to expose the military for what they are -- "headless giants who not only don't mind killing the peoples of foreign lands, but also don't mind destroying their own people in order to further their goals." The Army, realizing that Bucklin would make a lot of friends at the base, tossed Bucklin into isolation for the following brilliant reason: "We put him in maximum security because we felt that the Vietnam veterans in our stockade might physically harm Bucklin or kill him." It was suggested to them that there was a slight contradiction there: if Nam vets in the stockade were such fire-breathing patriots and defenders of Army integrity, what the hell were they doing in the stockade??? Bucklin was put through a farcical pre-trial hearing in which the Army made it clear that they would go to great lengths to prevent him from getting, not just a fair trial, but even a forum in which to present his defense. The Army is trying to soft-pedal the issue of returning deserters by either giving them bad discharges and quietly kicking them out, or sticking them with tough sentences to make "examples" out of them. Fort Carson has been a real leader in the latter course of action; since last fall it has refused to discharge most of the GIs who have turned themselves in there, and those who have gotten out have done so with Undesireable or other lousy grades of discharge. The last thing in the world the Army wanted was a politically conscious GI resister standing up and exposing their flabby underbelly: the thousands of men who have refused to stay in the Army and who have chosen exile rather than dishonor. Bucklin's court-martial was short and ugly. The defense tried to present a series of witnesses who could provided the people's view of the Vietnam war, which was the main reason Bucklin had gone AWOL: he had found he could not go there and fight. The judge looked at the list of witnesses that the defense wanted to present -- Jane Fonda, Dr. Benjamin Spock, and other anti-war activists -- and refused to let any of them onto the witness stand. Defense protests were ignored, and the trial ended on its second day, with Bucklin getting an unusually severe sentence for a simple case of AWOL. The Army would have liked to nail him for desertion, but couldn't prove it. Richard Bucklin will be at Leavenworth for over a year. He will be in good company: the prison is filled with men like Brother Melvin X. Smith, unjustly accused of a murder in Vietnam; Ed West, an Air Force EM who stood up against racism and got 7 years for his trouble; and literally hundreds of others. The amnesty campaign must force the government to free these men, as well as forcing it to allow our brothers in exile to return home. What's Going on Here??? Something very weird was going on at Lockbourne AFB over the holidays. With practically no warning, half the KC-135 refueling planes on the base suddenly took off for Hawaii. GIs were given temporary orders for Hawaii and were shipped out very suddenly. It's all a little scary because the KC-135 has only one purpose in life: to feed B-52s! Now they certainly did not get a sudden influx of B-52s into Hawaii. Could the jets have been ordered to Hawaii as a cover for a real trip to Guam or Thailand, where they were being readied for a resumption of bombing in Indochina? The South Vietnamese government admitted a few days ago that it was bombing National Liberation Front forces -- in direct violation of the cease-fire agreements -- "in order to head off a Communist offensive." Are the refuelers meant for Thieu and his gang? Sailor Court-Martialed for Leafletting (Okinawa, Japan) An active-duty member of the VVAW/WSO chapter in Kin ville, Okinawa, was recently sentenced to 60 days' restriction (suspended), a bust to E-1, and a $200 fine for leafleting outside the gate of Camp Hansen. John Hunter's special court-martial resulted from a new CINCPACFLT order that prohibits all Navy and Marine personnel in the Pacific from exercising their First- Amendment right to distribute literature in a foreign country, even when off-post, off-duty, and out of uniform. On the absurd grounds that such activity might constitute an involvement in Japanese politics, all personnel must ask for prior command approval before distributing literature. It is clear, however, that it is GIs' involvement in American politics that the brass is afraid of! Hunter pleaded guilty to passing out a leaflet last August that urged the immediate halt of bombing of Cambodia. He also pleaded guilty to passing out the HANSEN FREE PRESS, a local GI paper published by Okinawa VVAW/WSO. Chris Coates, Hunter's attorney, who works with the National Lawyers Guild, made six pretrial motions urging that the charges be dropped on the following grounds: That they violate Marine Corps regulation 5370.4, Department of Defense Directive 1325.6, the First Amendment, and the Fifth Amendment; That it is ambiguously worded; and that it violates recent Court of Military Appeals rulings on the wording of self-executing orders. The military judge, Maj. Glen Hampton, denied all these motions, without any explanation. It was obvious throughout the trial that Hampton, in typical military style, only wanted to get the case kicked upstairs to the appeal courts that his careers wouldn't be jeopardized by making rulings contrary to the brass' interest. Attorney Coates and other lawyers, however, feel confident about getting the conviction overturned in the federal courts. In the meantime, the new order is now being enforced by all Navy and Marine units in Japan and Okinawa. In Yokosuka, Japan, homeport of the aircraft carrier MIDWAY, two sailors were recently busted and given non-judicial punishment for distributing the VVAW/WSO paper there, FREEDOM OF THE PRESS. And in Iwakuni, Japan, home of the first Marine Air Wing, all personnel have been forbidden to distribute their paper, SEMPER FI, and several Marines have lost their security access for working on the paper. But the chapters remain strong, and all the papers will continue to come out for quite some time to come. CONTACT: People's House, PO Box 447, Koza, Okinawa, Japan. Melvin X. Smith (Fort Leavenworth, Kansas) The Army apparently is having a rough time making up its mind on what to do with Brother Melvin X. Smith, the black GI charged with murder in Vietnam in 1971. He faced a sanity board hearing on December 10 which, it had been hoped, would decide to accept the truth about Melvin's case. Smith was insane at the time of the shooting and for almost three years has fought unsuccessfully for his freedom. He has already been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, but won a retrial in September. The new sanity board hearing was part of a new-trial procedure. If the board had found in his favor, he finally would have been freed. The board had indicated to Smith's attorney that they would not turn in a verdict of insanity. On the other hand, they also had said that they would not decide Smith was sane. It was most likely that they would refuse to render a verdict at all, thus leaving the decision to prosecute up to the brass. That, naturally, would mean a new trial. It has been five weeks since the hearing, and as we go to press the Army is still being silent about Smith's fate. It is impossible to tell what's being done; the Army may be pressuring the sanity board to give a verdict of sanity, or the brass may be getting a little jumpy because of the wide attention and sympathy that Melvin's case has received. We can only keep working and hope that the protests of thousands of people against the racist attack on him is giving the Army second thoughts about their vendetta. ON the assumption, which is pretty well founded, that Smith will be facing trial in March, the Melvin X. Smith Defense Committee is trying to locate any GIs who were with Smith's unit at the time of the incident. WE NEED YOUR HELP. Anyone who was stationed with the 54th Ordnance Co., 26th General Support Group, in Quang Tri Provine, in April and May of 1971, is asked to please contact NOSCAM-Chicago, 2743 N. Wilton, Chicago, Ill. 60614, or Mrs. Doreatha Smith Slaughter, 8732 S. Winchester, Chicago, Ill. 60620, (312) 881-0710. Melvin Smith's future will depend on our finding some of these brothers. We will inform friends and supporters of any news as soon as we get it. In the meantime, we are asking that anyone who can circulate a petition demanding freedom for Melvin Smith write us. We will send out a petition immediately. MELVIN X. SMITH MUST BE FREED! News on these pages was compiled by NOSCAM, the VVAW/WSO National Office GI Project. This office coordinates active-duty chapters, new VVAW/WSO members and chapters, GI Movement news, and all other GI movement activities. Contact one of the NOSCAM offices for more information:
NOSCAM-Dayton NOSCAM-Chicago
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