HEALTH CONDITIONS WORSEN IN GAZA AND WEST BANK
By Catherine Gordon

"The debate about IDF operations in the [Israeli Occupied] territories revolves around the question of whether terror can be wiped out by that means. The Palestinians as human beings simply do not exist. . . .The persecution of the Palestinian people is not a war on terror. There is a simple solution to the terrorism of suicide bombers - to leave the territories immediately and to give the Palestinians a reason to live. "

-Tanya Reinhart in Yedioth Ahronoth March 9, 2003.

"It seems that this is not a war against terrorism. This seems to be a war against the hope and future of the Palestinian people."

• The Lutheran Bishop of Jerusalem

As the world's attention turns toward the war with Iraq, the situation in the Israeli Occupied Territories steadily worsens. In February, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) reported that unless more funds were given to assist them in their work in the territories, more than a million Palestinians would be threatened by food shortages. That same population is already suffering from economic collapse, severe unemployment and malnutrition comparable to that in the Congo.

The Palestinian people are suffering from what the World Health Organization (WHO) calls the "hidden hunger" or micro-nutrient deficiencies. Peter Hansen, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, stated in a recent article that this sort of hunger is not as obvious as the protein-energy malnutrition found in African food emergencies but it is just as grave.

Both adults and children who suffer from micro-nutrient deficiencies are impaired both mentally and physically. Children who suffer from this sort of malnutrition fail to develop normally. They suffer from stunted growth, their cognition is severely impaired, usually irreversibly, and their immune systems are severely weakened.

In the fall of 2002 USAID reported on the health conditions in the Gaza Strip and West Bank. The report stated that the West Bank has disturbing rates of acute malnutrition and that Gaza now faces a humanitarian emergency. Four out of five children in each territory have inadequate iron and zinc intake, which leads to anemia. Over half the children in each territory to not get enough calories or Vitamin A in their diet and half the children have inadequate folate intake. Expecting mothers are facing the same dire situation and the malnutrition threatens the healthy development of their children.

What has caused this crisis situation in the Occupied Territories?

The USAID found a direct correlation between the humanitarian conditions in the West Bank and the curfews imposed on the Palestinian population by the Israeli Government. The lengths of the curfews imposed in specific areas correlated directly with the families who gave curfew as the main reason their amount of food intake had declined. In Gaza, because curfews are not imposed, the main reason was lack of money.

The sweeping restrictions on freedom of movement that Israel imposes in the occupied territories are the main cause of the corrosion of the Palestinian economy and the extreme increase in unemployment and poverty. The siege on Palestinian towns by the Israeli Defense forces has seriously impaired the economic life in the territories.

When Palestinians are placed under curfew they are forced to say in their homes 24 hours a day 7 days a week. The curfew is lifted only occasionally to allow for food purchases. When residents are not under curfew, they have difficulty getting to work sites that are not near their homes and have trouble moving goods from place to place.

B'Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights and the Occupied Territories, states that Israel's policy of restricting freedom of movement is a flagrant violation of human rights.

At last year's World Health Assembly, the World Health Organization expressed deep concern over the deterioration of health conditions as a result of the Israeli Military acts against the Palestinian people. The following acts were listed in their report - "firing on civilians, deliberate extrajudicial killing, which caused hundreds of deaths and tens of thousands of injuries among Palestinians, including a large number of children; imposition of siege on Palestinian areas, thus preventing medicines and food from reaching towns, villages and refugee camps; obstruction of ambulances, injuring a number of ambulance crew members; and denial of access of injured people to hospitals, thus condemning them to death." The World Health Organization also strongly condemned the Israeli army's aggression against hospitals and the use of Palestinian citizens as human shields during Israeli incursions into Palestinian areas.

What can you do?

While the situation seems hopeless, it is important to continue to try to lift the veil of silence around this situation. We must not abandon the cause of peace with justice for Israel/Palestine. While there is no legislative tool right now, advocacy is can be done in other ways. By networking, encouraging discussion, and sharing information we can help to shape the public debate. For additional resources log onto our Web site (www.pcusa.org/washington) and go to the Middle East Issue Network. You can also sign up for our Middle East email list for updates on the situation.

SUPPORT CHILD NUTRITION PROGRAMS
By Carolynn Race

In 2001, the latest year for which data is available, approximately 32.9 million people (nearly 11% of U.S. households) were food insecure, meaning they did not have adequate access to enough food for an active, healthy life. Of those, 6.18 million were children. What can we, as Presbyterians, do to help to ensure that all people - especially children - have enough nutritious food to eat to lead a healthy, active life?

Presbyterian churches are already doing a great deal to help people who are hungry. According to a survey of Presbyterian congregations released in 2001 by the Presbyterian Research Service, over 90% of congregations provided food to congregants and/or community members - through food pantries, soup kitchens, and/or food donations. In addition, the survey found that 47% of congregations provide, or cooperate in providing, day care, pre-school and before and after-school programs, many of which provide nutritious snacks and meals for children.

But Presbyterian churches and other denominations cannot solve the problem of food insecurity alone - government assistance is essential to ensure that children and adults in need have access to food assistance. The government has played a large role in supporting child nutrition programs, and federal programs, including food stamps, school lunch and breakfast programs, the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, and others have been instrumental in supporting children in need.

This year, 5 child nutrition programs, which are administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, are scheduled to be reauthorized by the U.S. Congress. They are:

The National School Lunch Program, a federally assisted meal program that was created in 1946 as a "measure of national security, to safeguard the health and well-being of the nation's children." The program, which operates in over 99,000 public and non-profit private schools and residential care institutions, provides free and reduced-price lunches for needy children. In 2001, more than 25.4 million children - each day - got their lunch through the Program.
The School Breakfast Program, which began as a pilot program in 1966 and was made permanent in 1975, provides free and reduced-priced breakfast to children. The program, which operates like the school lunch program, is located in more than 75,000 schools and institutions. In 2001, an average of 7.8 million children participated in the program each day.

The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), which was established in 1968 to provide federal funds for nutritious meals and snacks to licensed child care centers and family and group child care homes, to after-school programs for school-age children, to children in Head Start programs, and to adult day care centers serving chronically impaired adults and people over the age of 60. In fiscal year 2002, CACFP served over 2.7 million children daily, provided approximately 1.6 billion meals and snacks, and fed over 80,000 elderly persons.

The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), which began in 1968 to provide low-income children with free, nutritious meals during summer months when students have limited or no access to the school lunch program. Over 118 million meals were served through SFSP in 2002. However, less than 15% of children who participate in the National School Lunch Program also participate in the SFSP, and

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), which provides nutritious supplemental foods and nutrition services to 7.64 million low-income pregnant, postpartum, and breast-feeding women and to infants and children up to age 5. Those eligible are provided with vouchers to purchase food items, including Milk, cheese, iron-fortified cereal, eggs, carrots, peanut butter, infant formula, and tuna, at approved retail outlets.

As Congress begins its deliberations on the budget and on the future of these programs, the PC(USA) Washington Office has been working to support these programs and to encourage Congress to reauthorize these programs, provide them with additional funding to expand the programs, and simplify cost accounting and paperwork requirements for who apply to operate and/or participate in the programs.

The PC(USA) Washington Office is a member of the Food Policy Working Group, which is comprised of denominations and faith-related organizations who are concerned about hunger and poverty in the United States. This year, the Food Policy Working Group is focused on pushing for the reauthorization and expansion of these programs - in order to serve more children and families in need. The Food Policy Working Group has begun to share our concerns about these programs with key government officials. The PC(USA) has been represented in meetings with Eric Bost, the Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, Juliet McCarthy, the new Director of the Faith-Based Initiatives Office at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and with Congressional staff members who work on budget issues.

As the PC(USA) Washington Office and other denominations continue to work toward the reauthorization of these programs, get involved! See if there is more your congregation can do to provide nutritious meals and snacks for children and others who are hungry. Contact your Members of Congress (Call the Capitol switchboard at 202/224-3121) and urge them to support the reauthorization of Child Nutrition Programs, including School Lunch and School Breakfast, WIC, the Summer Food Service Program, and the Child and Adult Care Food Program. Tell your Representative and your Senators that at least 32.9 million Americans are food insecure - and that over 6 million of the food insecure are children. Ask them to support expansion of these programs to fight hunger and to support children. Questions? Contact the Washington Office at 202-543-1126.

Special thanks to the Food Policy Working Group for contributions to this article.

STOP ALLOWING JUVENILE EXECUTIONS
By Jessica Tate

The writers of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution understood the value of human rights. They rightly understood us to be an evolving species, continually learning how to live and behave with one another in this world. The Eighth Amendment to the Constitution grants us protection from cruel and unusual punishment as defined by an "evolving standard of decency." The death penalty is subject to this evolving standard. However, the United States falls short of acknowledging this standard in its current use of capital punishment to punish juvenile offenders.

In the past 12 years, the United States has executed more juvenile offenders than other nations combined. The only seven countries to execute juvenile offenders since 1990 are Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the United States. During the year 2000 only three of these actually executed a juvenile offender: the DRC, Iran, and the US. Furthermore, in 2002, the US was the only country to execute a juvenile offender.

Thirty-eight states within the US use the death penalty as ultimate punishment. Of these 38, only 22 permit execution of juvenile offenders. They are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wyoming. Fifteen of these currently have a juvenile offender on death row and only 7 have executed a juvenile since 1976. The states that allow the execution of juvenile offenders should discontinue this practice for medical, legal, and moral reasons.

New brain research completed by Harvard Medical School demonstrates that a brain is not fully developed until early adulthood, ages 18-22. The frontal and pre-frontal lobes of the brain regulate impulse control and judgment and are the last to develop. According to the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, the rate of brain maturation can be severely slowed by childhood abuse and neglect. Most juvenile offenders on death row have experienced such conditions. Given this research on brain development, society must determine whether use of our highest form of punishment is appropriate for those scientifically proven to have limited culpability.

In the 2002 Atkins v. Jones case the US Supreme Court ruled that execution of mentally retarded persons violates the Eighth Amendment evolving standard of decency. The Court cites several factors of change in its decision: opinions of various professional organizations, "diminished capacities" of mentally retarded persons, legislation enacted by states that prohibits that execution of mentally retarded persons, and a special risk of wrongful execution faced by those less able to assist counsel or to assure accurate confession. Because of the brain research showing adolescent brains are not fully functional, execution of juvenile offenders should be banned by the same reasoning.

The religious community opposes the use of the death penalty. The American Baptist Churches in the USA, the American Friends Service Committee, the American Jewish Committee, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the Episcopal Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, the Mennonite Church, the Moravian Church in America, the Presbyterian Church USA, the Unitarian Universalist Association, United Church of Christ, the United Methodist Church, and the US Catholic Conference all have policies denouncing the death penalty. In particular, the Presbyterian Church has a long history of opposition to the use of capital punishment.

The 212th General Assembly (2000) reaffirm[s] the positions of the 171st (1959), 177th (1965), and 189th (1977) General Assemblies of the United Presbyterian Church, and the 106th General Assembly (1966) of the Presbyterian Church U.S., and the 197th General Assembly (1985) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (Minutes, 1985, part I, p. 682) and declare its continuing opposition to capital punishment.
Calls for an immediate moratorium on all executions in all jurisdictions that impose capital punishment.
Directs the Stated Clerk of our General Assembly to communicate the call for an immediate moratorium and our continuing opposition to capital punishment to the President of the United States, our representatives in Congress, as well as the Governors and legislators of the thirty-eight states with persons incarcerated while awaiting execution.

In addition, the General Assembly affirms that all children are children of God who God created good. As such, the Assembly goes on, all children have a right to be children [1993 Statement - PC(USA)].

In accordance with these Presbyterian policies, as well as policies of many other faith traditions, it is clear the execution of minors is no longer acceptable under the evolving standard of decency.

The United States prides itself on being in the forefront of human rights worldwide. However, in the use of the death penalty for juvenile offenders, the US lags behind the rest of the world. The world has evolved to a new standard of decency based on medical research, legal precedent, and moral authority as presented by the religious community. The states that still allow juvenile offenders to be executed should reassess their policy.

This article is informed by information provided by the American Bar Association and the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.

ASK THE DIRECTOR
By Elenora Giddings Ivory

Why do my donations go to an office that seems to be at odds with me on almost every issue?

Anyone doing advocacy knows that there are various points of view. As we have said many times, the Washington Office speaks from General Assembly policy. Not all readers are satisfied with this answer, and we are often asked to represent alternative views.

The Web has brought more people to the Washington Office (www.pcusa.org/washington), including some who want their voice heard. We have printed a few below. We do this: 1) to show that we read these opinions, 2) to let our regular readers have the benefit of hearing them, and 3) to spark discussion.

From Kentucky: "As a conservative member of the Presbyterian church, is there at least ONE conservative member in your office that reflects my (and the majority of our church) views? Lay off the Bush administration-it is apparent your work is more anti-Bush than it is pro-Christian. Thank God for us members of the "small-conservative-congregations" in the fly over states. It is a sad day when our denomination aligns itself with ungrateful protestors, the biased UN, and the "make-a-decision-by-taking-a-poll" democrats."

From South Dakota: "This may be in the confessions, but I can tell that the vast majority of Presbyterians disagree with it*. It is also in our confessions that we are to be theologically orthodox (See the Westminster). Are you theologically orthodox or are you an adherent to theological liberalism? J.G. Machen a former New Testament professor at Princeton Seminary used to say that "it isn't that liberals aren't Christians it is that Liberalism is not Christianity." (*Referring to 9.45 of the Confession of 1967).

From Alabama: "This is not negative you stupid idiot. I'll forward this on to the Layman. What a bunch of nerds. The reason so many Christians are leaving the Presbyterian Church USA is because of the Lord's Prayer. Each week in the Presbyterian Church, Christians Pray the Lord's Prayer...."Deliver Us From Evil." Each week god answers this prayer and thousands are delivered for the evil Presbyterian Church USA."

From Virginia: "I just came upon your site yesterday and have one question and one comment. I've been a Presbyterian for about 50 years, grew up as the son of missionary parents in one of the poorest countries in the world, am a fairly well educated senior economist in the federal government, and a deacon and loyal supporter of our local church. My question is: why do my donations go to an office such as yours that seems to be at odds with me on almost every issue? In fact, the more I know about an issue, professionally, the more your information of it appears misleading if not wrong.

I acknowledge absolutely your personal right to have different opinions that I do. But the US is a democracy and we elect politicians to represent us on civil matters. To try to use the framework of the church to press partisan issues undercuts this democracy and is threat to the PCUSA and even to our country."

The opportunity to learn from the advocacy of the church on public issues is more or less appreciated depending on whether one agrees or disagrees with the position taken. Our Presbyterian tradition affirms the importance of public issues and the role of the corporate body in those public issues. The Reformed Tradition expects Christians to work vigorously for the common good in all kinds of ways, including in public policy. The Washington Office works vigorously to advocate for public policies that are in agreement with General Assembly guidelines.