UK Newswire Archive
It’s No Walk In The Park For Benny Morris In London
16-06-2011 06:55
An Opportunity Presents Itself
Earlier that evening, Palestinian rights campaigners sitting in a coffee shop near the LSE, spotted Benny Morris walking down Kingsway, a major street near Holborn Tube Station. This was too good an opportunity to miss; in a flash, campaigners gathered around him and took turns to put questions directly to Morris about his writings and statements on the necessity of ethnic cleansing, his call for the caging of Palestinians, and the racist overtones of his descriptions of Arabs. Morris ignored the questions and instead marched on. If he was hoping to get away with that he was mistaken. Campaigners simply followed him and continued to put questions to him loudly and asked for him to reply. This carried on for about 200 yards and created a spectacle for the public. Morris then bolted into the LSE building along with his rather confused and bewildered minders. Morris had muttered ‘right’ a couple of times and that was the sum total of his engagement; his demeanour throughout had been more like a criminal trying to hide from the spotlight rather than an academic confident of his ground and willing to take up the invite of open debate.
Rising To The Challenge
16-06-2011 00:07
Anti Cuts Conference Saturday 18th June at Colston Hall
15-06-2011 23:55
Bristol Anti Cuts Conference Saturday 18th June
BADACA Conference - FIGHTBACK BRISTOL:
ORGANISING AGAINST THE CUTS
Saturday 18 June 2011 12.00 noon - 5pm
Colston Hall, Colston Street, Bristol, BS1 5AR
IMCvol states With the 30th of June approaching quickly and Unions having now voted to go strike, now is the time to really step up Bristol's Anti Cuts campaign. The Tories appear to be in disarray with backtracks on the NHS (although lets be clear they are still wanting to privatise the NHS) and forest sell offs etc. Now is the time to intensify the pressure and get rid of this self-serving, insidious government.
BADACA states "The recent local elections showed the unpopularity of the cuts proposed by the ConDem government and the city council. This conference, organised by Bristol &District Anti-Cuts Alliance, is part of the preparations for the 30th June one-day strike called by NUT, PCS, UCU & ATL . It will also provide an opportunity to discuss the
continuing campaign against the cuts in Bristol."
Please download flyer and distribute
Sunderland Working Class Bookfair June 18th
15-06-2011 23:32
The latest Working Class Bookfair will take place in Sunderland on Saturday the 18th of june, 11-5pm, followed by early evening music from the Summer Tumblers.Books, barbecues, beer, soft drinks and good company should make for a good day out.
Taking on Tarmageddon trailer
15-06-2011 21:35
Journalist and Human rights activist Tortured
15-06-2011 17:18
Glos Guerilla Gardening meet-up
15-06-2011 16:49
I've been talking to lots of people interested in starting some form of guerilla gardening group in gloucestershire, and I'm sure there are many more of you out there...So lets get gardening!
Palestine Today 06 15 2011
15-06-2011 14:52
Full article | 1 addition | 1 comment
June 30 Strike Assembly in Oxford!
15-06-2011 14:47
Come to this meeting to plan how we can support and escalate the strikes in Oxford.Public Rally in Support of Victims of Torture, 26 June, Trafalgar Square, 2-4pm
15-06-2011 14:46
26 June is UN International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. In spite of laws to protect them, men, women, children and entire communities all around the world have to live with the consequences of torture meted out by state authorities. Torture is illegal. Join us on this day to show solidarity with victims. Also the final day of Refugee Week 2011, it should not be forgotten that many refugees have fled torture.'Greek Revolution' at the Crossroads
15-06-2011 13:36
The Truth About Libya !
15-06-2011 13:14
Free Charlie Campaign
15-06-2011 12:42
Animal campaigners are angry and disgusted with the Thai Government for allowing a restaurant on Paradise Beach in Thailand to keep a monkey and mistreat him.Mass blockade of Hinkley nuclear power station announced
15-06-2011 11:43
With Italy being the latest European country to reject nuclear power, a coalition of anti-nuclear groups in Britain has announced plans to hold a mass non-violent blockade of Hinkley Point nuclear power station on 3rd October. The plant, near Bridgwater in Somerset, is expected to be the site of the first new nuclear power station, if current plans go ahead.Plea For Peace In Parliament Square
15-06-2011 10:55
PLEA FOR PEACE IN PARLIAMENT SQUARE
PLEA FOR PEACE IN PARLIAMENT SQUARE
We urgently NEED to make peace in Parliament Square, for the sake of the people on who's behalf we are supposed to be campaigning.
There are deep rooted grievances at the Square, that should be put aside if we are to have any real chance of working effectively for peace.
Any allegations made against individuals in the Peacestrike Campaign can be dealt with, and we are willing to do so. We can defend our actions if required.
Peacestrike is working to promote peace for all people. We do not promote any acts of confrontation or abuse, aimed at anyone. We do not encourage any abuse of ANY individual, regardless who they are. We may have made mistakes. If we have faulted, then we have apologised. We are open to discussion and indeed we would like open dialogue with everyone in the Square. If there is a problem......
WE NEED TO TALK!
With the impending threat of the new POLICE REFORM AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY BILL going through Parliament right now, this would be a good time to unite in the common cause of defending the right to protest in Parliament Square for the RIGHT reasons. Surly we can do that?
BOTTOM LINE......IF WE ARE UNABLE, AS A PEACE MOVEMENT, TO SORT OUT OUR OWN HOUSE, HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO RECONCILE THE TRAGIC ISSUES OF ISRAEL AND PALESTINE, AFGHANISTAN ETC?
We are not asking people to come down to the Square and take sides or get involved in all the "negative" issues. We send out a plea for people to come down to promote peace and spread some love, in order to lift the very heavy atmosphere that hangs over the place at present. There is also quite a large group of homeless people. They are disenfranchised and distressed at times. However, they are trying to survive, and are generally in good humour, despite obvious struggles and issues. We all need support and encouragement...... It is not our place to say whether they should be at the Square or not. The point is, until they are moved on, for whatever reason, they are entitled to be there. At present, it is their home.
The peace movement is not Parliament Square, it is made up of all the campaigns, groups and individuals who speak out against oppression and injustice. We are all a part of the on-going struggle, and we are all linked in the work we collectively do. We are not separate, and we all need each others support. No one does it on their own!
We may not be able to heal the individual relationship breakdowns that has taken hold at the square, but we must not allow it to become a "NO GO ZONE" Come along and bring some peace, positive thoughts and views. Above all, don't go away disenchanted! Without effort and goodwill there is no hope for change.
WE HAVE AN INTERNATIONAL DUTY TO VICTIMS OF WAR AND OPPRESSION, TO SET OUR PERSONAL DIFFERENCES ASIDE.
This message goes out in good faith.
Yours sincerely
Maria Gallastegui
Peacestrike.org
Parliament Square
J30: Building up for the next “big one”?
15-06-2011 08:55
Analysis by a Sheffield activist of the upcoming "J30" mobilisations and what we can hope to expect as well as general observations of the state of the anti-cuts movement.
June 30th has been widely promoted as the next “date” in the escalation of resistance to the government’s continuing austerity measures. As cuts are beginning to bite across the country June 30th will see first efforts at joint-trade union action (NUT, UCU, PCS and ATL) meaning potentially thousands of workers out on strike over this day. Of course, the restrictive trade union legislation in this country means that unions cannot strike against the government’s policies per se (most of the disputes revolve around attacks on pensions), but there is nonetheless a desire amongst some of the Left and the anarchist movement to generalise this struggle beyond these unions into a more widespread fightback against the cuts. There have been some admirable initiatives in London recently, for example calling for open assemblies, to do just this. A number of Facebook groups have been set up to try and get other workers to throw a sickie on the day, the Solidarity Federation has also made materials available that publicise the actions independent of the unions as well as encouraging students to join their teachers in the walkout and the Anarchist federation is producing similar publicity (see statement here).
All good stuff. The question that is on all of our minds, however, is if June 30th is going to be a repeat, or more optimistically a step-up, from the actions taken on March 26th? On a local level, a march has been called by the Sheffield Anti-Cuts Alliance which is intended to bring together anti-cuts campaigners and trade unionists from across the region. However, unfortunately rather than call an action-orientated, planning meeting leading up to the event, the alliance has decided to host a “public” meeting with keynote speaker John Mcdonnell - not only a member of a parliamentary party that both supports and has been implementing cuts but as someone on an MPs wage hardly the most representative individual when talking about our experiences of austerity. Sheffield UK Uncut are also planning actions (although rather bizarrely have called for themed “fancy dress” as “workers”, whatever that means). For our part we hosted our own modest, assembly that will hopefully see both practical help and a bit more creative actions on the day. However, in spite of all this, one can’t help but feel we are starting to be a bit thin on the ground. Many students are currently on study leave or, in the case of University students, have left the city. The radicalism and dynamism of the recent student movement that served as such an inspiration is barely present in the city anymore. If the recent NHS demo is in anyway indicative of continuing opposition over the Summer we can expect a return to the bog-standard Sheffield protest repertoire of the same core group of assorted Trotskyists, Lefties and Greens marching from A-B. The rather unpleasant aggressive recruitment tactics of certain local Trotskyists aside, these events are desperately lacking any real engagement with the general public who typically look on with bemusement (or perhaps just boredom) at the barely audible speeches and hodge-podge of leftist banners outside town hall. There was a UK Uncut action at the end of the march which did successfully shut down an HSBC bank, and rather unsuccessfully shut down a Vodafone. These were positive actions, but the message is still overwhelmingly liberal. In the face of such a forceful attack on working class living standards cries for corporate responsibility seem abstract and disengaged from more pressing day-to-day problems of shrinking welfare, rent-hikes, pay cuts and job losses.
Of course, one could be forgiven for not feeling that inspired by J3o, especially given the wider, international backdrop (thousands of people are currently occupying public squares in Greece and Spain in opposition to cuts). Strike action is clearly symbolic and designed to cause as little disruption as possible, at least where the education sector is concerned. Universities will have stopped teaching by this time and the majority of A-level teachers have most of their students on study-leave (which also makes mobilising them even harder). Of course services will still be stopping and there is obviously a need to attend and support pickets, the point is that, considering the times when this strike could have been staged, it is a rather weak gesture. Perhaps the trade union leadership have heeded the recent warning of Vince Cable that strikes could mean further anti-union legislation? Many have already outright bowed down to the government’s reforms (GMB, for example, has started championing proposed workfare programmes). Either way it is clear that any generalisation of workplace action is going to have to come from outside the unions (not least because the majority of workers in this country are non-unionised). And this is really where the big problems lie.
On March 26th there was undeniably a gap – in tactics, mindset and political consciousness – between the highly radicalised, mostly young minority (albeit a pretty significant minority but a minority nonetheless) rampaging through Oxford Street and the very traditional procession leading to Hyde Park. Of course it’s not quite THAT clear-cut, many workers on the march expressed sympathy with what was going on in Oxford Street for example, but I think broadly we can say that this was the case. This gap concerned me then and it concerns me even more now. Bridging this gap has to be the first priority of any existing anti-cuts movement. We are very much on a short time-scale when it comes to austerity measures and there is a real possibility that many of the changes will be normalised before they really start to bite. The Left, in the face of dwindling momentum in the wake of the student movement, will happily return to it’s orthodox practices. In light of this, putting forward our message- that in order to fight the cuts we need to make this country ungovernable by mass, direct action -is more important than ever.
Before it was clear what shape the anti-austerity movement would take many anarchists had voiced their concerns about the possibility of Labour party members and other groups from the Left high-jacking anti-cuts groups, that we needed to fight for the independence and autonomy of these initiatives as they gained momentum. The expectation also being, of course, that as cuts began to bite movements would grow. Speaking from the experience of Sheffield I can definitively say that this has not been the case. Rather more worryingly what we have seen is an outright scrap from the get-go on the shape and form these anti-cuts initiatives will take between grassroots orientated activists, on the one hand, and leftists determined to maintain an iron grip on their last, dwindling hopes of maintaining working class representation, on the other. Quite frankly, the public don’t figure into it. That would imply some kind of inclusive movement to start with, a level of community engagement, dialogue etc. The reality is the same old cabal of trade unionists and leftists organising the same shrinking pool of local radicals. It’s a repeat, essentially, of the air-tight organising of the anti-Iraq war days (and we all know how well that turned out!). By-and-large the anti-cuts message isn’t even getting out of the leftist ghetto, or when communities have taken their own initiatives they are patronised or simply not listened to. In short, when it comes to actually building (let alone influencing) an anti-cuts movement, the Left is a problem.
It seems an obvious things to say, but what we are really lacking is a grassroots movement which could actually be mobilised on days like J30. Re-building the divides that years of Thatcherite/Blairite policy have reaped on working class communities may be a daunting task, but it is also an essential one. It is little surprise, in this respect, that it is in institutions that have managed to maintain reasonably stable communities, as well as a degree of radical influence, in spite of these policies, i.e. students, that we see one of the first attempts to step up against the cuts. It was not long ago, after all, that students were occupying their departments in solidarity with the pople of Gaza. In this sense the early radicalism of the student protests may have been a very false indication of the social and political terrain we are actually operating in. J30 could be a step towards rekindling the flame of Millbank (and I really hope it is!), perhaps an effort in bringing that spirit to more people, one can’t help but feel though, that the tasks ahead of us now are so much greater, and more difficult, than gearing up for another “day of action”.
http://thefargatespeaker.wordpress.com/2011/06/14/j30-building-up-for-the-next-big-one/
Atos Origin Recruitment Event Disrupted by Angry Protests
15-06-2011 08:01
Europe Activists campaign against Israeli Agrexco -Global day of action 26/11/11
15-06-2011 07:44
Agrexco is Israel's largest fresh produce exporter and European markets account for the vast majority of their sales under the brand Carmel. The Israeli government's 50% stake in the company as well as their marketing of 60-70% of the fruit and vegetables grown in illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank have made Agrexco a prime strategic target for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign.
Full article | 1 addition | 10 comments
Armed Forces Offices targeted in Oxford
15-06-2011 03:15
In the early hours of 15th June, the offices held by the Armed Forces at 35 St Giles since 1936 were targeted in an expression of independent anti-militarist direct action. Red paint, emblematic of the unneccesary deaths of innocents and servicemen and -women at home and across the world, was poured over the front door and steps in order to cause maximum inconvenience to those who make war possible while masquerading as members of the local community. This was done to impede as far as possible the continuation of business from that location.Edinburgh Uncut: Tax Dodger Picnic (12th June)
14-06-2011 23:55
Today’s Tax Dodger picnic was a great success: we managed to spend several hours protesting in Princes Street with no arrests, and we even managed to leave with all of our banners.