| LAWRENCE, MA
- April 24 - The Massachusetts Anti-Corporate Clearinghouse (MACC) is welcoming the resignation of Raytheon CEO Daniel Burnham. The Lawrence based group recently sought the arrest of Burnham for conspiracy to commit war crimes for providing the U.S. government with weapons that he knew would be used against civilian targets in Iraq – a practice which resulted in a Raytheon HARM missile being used in an attack which resulted in the deaths of 62 civilians in a Baghdad marketplace. MACC has indicated, however, that it would be willing to stop pursuing charges against Burnham if he agrees to use his retirement to perform appropriate community service such as mopping floors and cleaning bedpans at the Al Kindi hospital in Baghdad or a Veterans Administration hospital in the U.S.
MACC expressed concern, however at Raytheon’s decision to replace Burnham with his top lieutenant, William H. Swanson. Swanson assisted Burnham in providing the U.S. government with weapons used in illegal attacks against civilian targets in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Sudan, Serbia, and Kosovo.
Sean Donahue, head of MACC’s War Crimes Investigation Unit said “Appointing William Swanson to head up a post-Daniel Burnham Raytheon is like appointing Tariq Aziz to head up a post-Saddam Hussein Iraq. Raytheon needs a leader who will help the company end its criminal enterprise of producing weapons used to kill civilians, and who will stop raising executive pay while laying off factory workers and exporting jobs.
“We don’t expect Raytheon to stop producing weapons overnight of course. While it redirects itself toward areas such as mass transit and medical technologies we will understand if Raytheon continues selling some weapons to countries like Norway, Switzerland, and South Africa that aren’t likely to use them to commit war crimes.”
Donahue, 28, of Lawrence was recently arrested on criminal trespass charges when he and two others went to Raytheon's corporate headquarters in Lexington, MA on April 14 to attempt to make a citizen's arrest of Daniel Burnham. Also arrested were Mary Kate Small, 40, of Andover, MA and George Corrette, 36, of Stoddard, NH. All three were released on their own recognizance pending trial.
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