Editorials
Friday, September 10, 1999Branch Davidian
probe is essentialTHE selection of former Sen. John Danforth to investigate the 1993 Branch Davidian siege in Waco, Texas, should give the inquiry sorely needed credibility. Danforth, a Missouri Republican who left the Senate in 1995 after three terms, is respected by members of both parties for his stubborn independence and reputation for integrity.The issue: Disclosure that the FBI used incendiary devices at the Branch Davidian compound has created suspicion that the government is covering up misconduct.
Danforth, 63, is an Episcopal priest; a member of the family that started Ralston Purina, he has considerable wealth. Before entering the Senate, he served as attorney general in Missouri for eight years.
Danforth hired Clarence Thomas in the Missouri attorney general's office, sponsored him for jobs in the Reagan and Bush administrations, and was his leading backer in his stormy 1991 confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court. After Thomas was confirmed, Danforth negotiated the terms of a compromise that became the Civil Rights Act of 1991.
The Waco controversy was reignited by the disclosure that the FBI, contradicting a position it took for six years, had used incendiary devices on the last day of the 51-day siege. The standoff ended with the fiery deaths of cult leader David Koresh and 80 followers.
The disclosure damaged the credibility of Attorney General Janet Reno and of the FBI, which appears to have misled Reno -- deliberately or inadvertently.
However, despite the new information, both Reno and the FBI maintain that the incendiary devices did not cause the deadly fire. They still insist it was set by the cult members.
The Branch Davidian disaster has assumed huge proportions for the paranoid ultra-right fringe of American society. It appears to have motivated the bombing of the federal office building in Oklahoma City and may have stimulated the fantasies of numerous other extremists.
For this reason, it is essential that every effort be made to get at the truth about the government's actions at Waco, and if mistakes were made, whether there was a cover-up.
Even if it turns out that the government's version of the facts holds up and the Branch Davidians did set off the fatal fire, the incident was at best a tragic miscalculation. The assault should never have been conducted. Reno and the rest of the Clinton administration should have been held to account for their blunders.
Obviously the government's culpability would be even greater if it has been lying all along about the cause of the fire. Such suspicion has been fueled by the disclosure of FBI use of incendiary devices. Danforth's assignment is to get the facts so that the nation can lay Waco to rest. It's an important job, and he seems to be the right person for it.
Religious freedom is
nonexistent in ChinaCHINA is in the midst of a crackdown on the meditation group Falun Gong and tries to break up Christian worship groups that operate independently of officially sponsored churches. Yet the government brazenly denies that any Chinese have been arrested for their religious beliefs.
A new U.S. State Department report that members of unofficial churches face harassment and detention was rejected by the Communist regime as malicious interference in China's internal affairs. The report, which examined the state of religious freedom worldwide, also cited accounts of abuses against Buddhist monks and nuns, including those in Tibet.
In a classic example of doublespeak, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said, "Nobody has been arrested or detained because of religious beliefs. If religious believers are arrested, it is not because of their religious beliefs but because they have taken part in criminal activities."
In China, "criminal activities" can include a wide range of actions that are guaranteed in democracies, such as practicing one's religion. It is forbidden to worship in groups that are not officially sponsored. China's constitution promises freedom of worship, but religious groups are required to register.
Members of unregistered Christian groups who worship in members' houses frequently report being detained or harassed. A human rights group said 31 detained members of a Protestant "house church" movement were facing trial this week in Henan province.
Chinese media reported that five members of Falun Gong, which practices traditional Chinese exercises and meditation, were arrested in Beijing this week for organizing illegal gatherings -- only the latest in a string of such arrests.
Although Falun Gong appears innocuous, it shocked the regime last April when it was able to mobilize thousands of people for a peaceful protest demonstration in Beijing. Now it is considered a security threat.
The Foreign Ministry spokes-man said, "The Falun Gong organization has all the makings of a cult...It is anti-science, anti-humanity and anti-society. It is very harmful, and has been formally opposed by the people of China, especially people from the religious community."
Such statements only confirm that China's claims of religious freedom are a travesty.
Published by Liberty Newspapers Limited PartnershipRupert E. Phillips, CEO
John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher
David Shapiro, Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor
