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UK Anti-militarism Feature Archive

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EDO MBM desperate to stop protests as resistance increases

08-08-2005 15:08

The ‘cage’ roadblock with protestors locked on

Brighton-based arms manufacturer EDO are producing electrical weapons components for the US, UK and Israeli militaries. For over a year, the Smash EDO campaign has been trying to shut them down by direct protest at their premises. Recently, EDO MBM have applied for a High Court injunction to stop all protest at their premises except at designated times. The Smash EDO campaign regards this as a direct attack on freedom of expression and calls for a week-long protest camp, starting with a peace march in Brighton [report].

Update 16 Aug: News from the peacecamp 1 | 2

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Nottingham Peace rally in response to the London bombings

05-08-2005 10:35

Nottingham Peace rally in response to the London bombings

On Saturday afternoon, scores of people gathered for a peace rally in Nottingham in response to the London bombings. The event in Market Square was arranged by the Nottingham Muslim Action Group.

Organisers said the aim of the rally was to remember the victims of the bombings and promote solidarity between people of all races and faiths. and of course, no-faiths. The event was backed by a range of other faith groups.

After two-minute silence, 56 white balloons were released to represent and remember those that died as a result of the London explosions.

A similar rally was held last weekend in Leicester.


more ....
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2005/07/319509.html

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State of Terror

23-07-2005 18:27

View of the vigil and protest
Since thursday (21/7), authorities have been scouring London in the hunt for at least four people involved in an attempted copycat attack just one fortnight after the multiple bombing on the capital's transport system which left at least 56 people dead. All four 'devices' in the latest incident failed to explode and there were no injuries.

[ reports 1 | 2 ] [ photos Oval | Warren Street | Route 26 bus video + stills ]

A statement posted on an Islamic website in the name of, Abu Hafs al Masri Brigade, an al-Qaida-linked group claimed responsibility for both sets of London attacks. The group has threatened "a bloody war" on the capitals of European countries that do not remove their troops from Iraq within a month.

The following day was extremely tense with many people expecting a follow up attack because the bombers had left too much evidence behind for them to believe they would not soon be captured. Security around the capital was increased with so-called 'random' stop and searches introduced on London Transport but many people stayed away from the city.

At around 10am (Friday 22/7), police shot dead an unarmed man on a train in south London. They had trailed him from a block of flats which they had under surveillance, allowing him to board a bus and then enter Stockwell Station, despite apparently believing that he was a sucide bomber. [first reports | more on shooting | train driver threatend ]

Transport remained in chaos all Friday and into the weekend with many security alerts, one of which involved armed police at the East London Mosque. Police has since raided several addresses and made at least three arrests. The dragnet extended to Birmingham where one man was arrested under terror laws but later released uncharged.

News of the 'shoot to kill' policy raised urgent concerned from Muslims and non-Muslims alike, especially since the man (now named as Jean Charles de Menezes) turned out to be completely unconnected with the bombers. After police admitted the man was innocent on Saturday a hastely organised vigil was held at Stockwell Station on Sunday 24 morning. [reports and photos - 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | audio | video ] A second much larger vigil took place on Monday 25 evening. [Pics and report | Impromptu march | Photos vigil and demo] On the following Wednesday 27 another protest took place outside the Metropolitan police headquarters at Scotland Yard. [Photos and Reports 1 | 2] [Audio interviews]

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Faslane Blockaded - All Gates Closed Down

04-07-2005 08:35

Faslane base

Faslane, a Royal Navy submarine base on the Clyde, is the largest and deadliest military base in Scotland and home port for all four British Trident nuclear armed submarines. Nuclear weapons are the ultimate expression of militarism - only about 60 miles (90 km) away from Gleneagles.

Among those blockading Faslane is a broad spectrum of protestors, from Parliamentarians and Church leaders to anti-capitalists involved with the Dissent! network.

Updates :
12.55pm : All gates remain blockaded - people in high spirits. Clowns army has a presence there as well as many other groups. 10.30am : All gates remain blockaded
09.30am : Faslane is fully blocked - all entrance gates are blockaded with people locking-on. Numbers estimated at up to 2000. One person scaled the perimiter fence gaining entry to the base, and has been arrested.
09.00am : See Early report

[ Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 ] [ Video ]

See full time line

[Faslane G8 Blockade | Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament | Trident Ploughshares | Antimilitarism and the G8 Feature</8> | full time line | Maps: area, base]

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(Anti)Militarism And the G8

20-06-2005 18:59

The G8 nations are involved in military activity at every level. They declare war and invade countries; they maintain massive military capability both at home and in bases abroad; they fund the military capability of smaller nations around the world; they provide homes (and export licenses) for major arms companies producing most of the military hardware in the world today.

The military activity of the G8 is closely connected to their other activities – for example their role in maintaining a global economic hegemony, their need to maintain oil supplies and their promotion of corporate interests in all corners of the world. These activities can be studied in the other sections of the IndyMedia G8 2005 section. For now, though, the following quote is apposite:

"For globalisation to work, America can't be afraid to act like the Almighty Superpower that it is. The hidden hand of the market will never work without a hidden fist. McDonalds cannot flourish without McDonnell-Douglas, the designer of the F-15, and the hidden fist that keeps the world safe for Silicon Valley's technology is called the United States Army, Air force, Navy and Marine Corps." - Thomas Friedman, Star Columnist for the New York Times, 1999

[Anti-military main events at G8 2005: Pre-G8 NVDA training, 18 June | Faslane blockade, 4 July | Other events will be called by the Stop the War Coalition]

[Anti-military groups at G8 2005:Trident ploughshares | CND UK | Scottish CND | Voices in the Wilderness UK | Campaign against the Arms Trade | Peace News | Faslane Peace Camp | Friends of the Earth | Justice not Vengeance | People and planet | Stop the War Coalition]

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Smash EDO Take On The Law

15-06-2005 13:17

200 anarchists try to report a crime

Update: A legal observer was arrested on the 16th , and has now been released on bail pending a pre-trial review at Brighton Magistrates court on Thursday 23rd June.

In a spectacular march through Brighton on Saturday June 11th, 150-200 protestors showed that they would not be intimidated by the violence meted out at the May 31 Big Demo at EDO MBM by Sussex police.

After an open mic event on The Level where several protestors spoke out against EDO MBM as well as the draconian Harassment Act interim Injunction brought by the company against peaceful protestors outside their factory, and Sussex Police’s brutality trying to enforce it, the march began.

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Iraq-o-mat: Cleaning Dollars for Corporations

11-05-2005 12:23

Corporations profiting from Iraq
Much of the post-war corporate activity in Iraq has come under heavy criticism from many different fronts. There are accusations of corruption, bribery and nepotism as well as simple incompetence - the jobs just aren't getting done... So what is all the `reconstruction' activity in Iraq really about? Supposedly post-war Iraq is a neo-liberal utopia, an economy freed of the tiresome and inefficient burdens of government regulation. Yet an examination of this same economy may lead one to conclude that the system as it stands is rampant with inefficiency. Indeed Iraq's economy today looks less like an economic utopia than a giant money-laundering operation...

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RAF Brize Norton Antiwar Demo and Peace Camp

29-04-2005 21:25

Brize Norton Peace Camp banner
A strange thing happened in the town of Carterton today (23/4/05)– a peace march, believed to be the very first ever protest march through the town.

Carterton is host to RAF Brize Norton - Britains main airbase for waging the war and occupation in Iraq. Most of the British Troops that fly out to Iraq do so from Brize Norton as does much of the supplies. Carterton community is heavily dependent on the base for work and thus heavily affected by British war casualties.

The demo explicitly aimed to interact with the people of Carterton: its message "The war/occupation is illegal and immoral - support the troops bring them home."

report | report+pics | more pics

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EDO activists in Court again.

28-04-2005 17:16

After their High Court appearance earlier in the month 1, and the adjournment then, 10 EDO activists where again at the High Court on Friday the 22nd of April to have their case heard. Representatives of the Arms Manufacturer EDO/MBM technologies have sought an injunction to effectively prevent protests outside their premises in Brighton. The proposed injunction would prevent any artificial noise or amplification devices from being in the “exclusion zone”. This effectively amounts to a private corporation buying its own private martial laws enforceable by the police.

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Caterkillar Taken by Surprise

20-04-2005 10:49

caterkillar

Irlam, April 8th. Workers arriving at the Caterpillar - Perkins site in Greater Manchester were surprised, first by a 30 foot yellow banner with an acrylic image of a Palestinian, head in hands, whose house is being demolished by a Cat bulldozer while an Israeli soldier stands guard.

The banner flew from a mound of grass along the private road to the security gate, the only entrance this morning. Management had hunkered down on red alert with police and dogs on site since 2 a.m. expecting an invasion under cover of darkness, for some reason.

Full Story | Caterkiller Blockaded in County Durham

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Week of Action Against Iraq Pillage

09-04-2005 13:21

free market map of Iraq

The first days of April were designated as a 'Week of action against the corporate pillage of Iraq' by a group known as the Corporate Pirates.

The week kicked off with an April Fool's Pro-Pillage party outside the offices of Windrush Communications, organiser of the Iraq Procurement Conferences. Around eighty people turned up in pirate costume to protest against the corporate piracy of Windrush. Reports: [1 | 2] Pictures: [1 | 2 | 3].

During the following days, a wide variety of events unfolded. These included: a training for Non-Violent Direct Action, an open meeting that included speakers from Iraq, a candlelit vigil outside the Windrush Offices, an attempt to disrupt the news broadcast announcements of the election with an anti-war message, a creative forum at the Rampart Social Centre, and on Wednesday 6th activists ended the week of action with a protest bading farewell to Windrush Communications.

Full report and Background information here.

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Harassment Law Used Against Anti-War Campaigners

01-04-2005 19:07

On 25th March, Smash Edo, Bombs out of Brighton and 14 individuals were issued with intended injunctions under the 1997 Harassment Act, to be heard in the High Court on April 14th.

The law was first introduced to protect people from stalkers but was then used against anti-vivisection groups.. This is the first time it has been used against an anti-war or anti-arms trade group.

“SmashEdo” aims to shut down EDO MBM using awareness-raising and Non-Violent Direct Action tactics.”

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International Day of Action Against the Arms Trade

24-03-2005 20:07

nearly there

On March 21st, as part of an International Day of Action Against the Arms Trade - called at the 'Destroy the Arms Trade' session at Beyond ESF to coincide with the second anniversary of the start of the second war on Iraq, groups and individuals took part in a number of actions against companies involved in the arms trade.

Netherlands | London | Brighton

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Mass Anti-War Protests Mark 2nd Anniversary of Attack on Iraq

22-03-2005 14:19

Peaceful pink protestor or golden global gangster?

Around the world, anti-war protests have been held on the 2nd anniversary of the attacks on Iraq [see global pictures].

On Saturday 19th March in London, a massive protest took place, passing by the US Embassy where members of the Military Families Against the War laid a coffin to remember the 100,000 plus dead caused by the war. Organisers claimed up to 200,000 people had marched through the streets of London. [see Short report | Statement to Blair + Bush | Policing Pictures | Anti-war Demo Pics | Samba Protest Pics | Creative Protest Images | Stop the War Demo Pics | Troops Out Images | Portrait Pictures | OutRage! Protest | Samba Surveillance | Policing Pictures + Report | US Embassy Pics | Assorted Protest Pictures | Picture Story | Placard-spotting Pics + Report | Summer of Dissent | Video Clips]

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Mass Anti-War Protests Mark 2nd Anniversary of Attack on Iraq

21-03-2005 04:49

Around the world, anti-war protests have been held on the 2nd anniversary of the attacks on Iraq [see global pictures].

On Saturday 19th March in London, a massive protest took place, passing by the US Embassy where members of the Military Families Against the War laid a coffin to remember the 100,000 plus dead caused by the war. Organisers claimed up to 200,000 people had marched through the streets of London. [see Short report | Statement to Blair + Bush | Policing Pictures | Anti-war Demo Pics | Samba Protest Pics | Creative Protest Images | Stop the War Demo Pics | Troops Out Images | Portrait Pictures | OutRage! Protest | Samba Surveillance | Policing Pictures + Report | US Embassy Pics | Assorted Protest Pictures | Picture Story | Placard-spotting Pics + Report | Summer of Dissent | Video Clips]

March 19th also marked the start of 'Counter Terror: Build Justice' - an International Month Of Peace Action.

The "Troops Home" demonstration was organised by the Stop The War Coalition, CND and the Muslim Association of Great Britain, and followed several days of activities at a Peace Camp set up in Trafalgar Square [see pics 1 | 2].

Protests also took place in Glasgow, Scotland with around 2000 people demonstrating [see pics and reports 1 | 2] and Dublin in Ireland [see pics and reports 1 | 2 | 3].

Over 50,000 people marched in Brussels against the new EU Bolkestein Directive, proposed new attacks on public services, and labour reforms in a European Action Day that took place just days before the EU summit. There were also anti-war protests in Athens (2, 3, video) Barcelona, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Italy (2), Melbourne (2), Poland (2, 3, 4, 5), Sydney, Johannesburg and many other cities.

Protests also took place in across across the US. See major feature report for San Francisco where over 10,00 people took to the streets - see also New York ( Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 Video: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 ) , Chicago (Photos: 1 | 2 Video: 1 ), and Fayetteville, North Carolina ( Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 ) .

Thousands also took to the streets in Portland (Photos), smaller towns in Oregon ( Photos: 1 | 2 ), Las Vegas ( Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 ), Baltimore (Photos: 1) , St. Paul ( Photos: 1 ) , Boston (Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 ), Houston ( Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 ), Madison ( Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 Video: 1 ), Nashville ( Photos: 1 ), Miami ( Video: 1 ) Atlanta ( Photos: 1 | 2 | 3   Video: 1 ) , Pittsburgh (Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 ), Champaign Illinois ( Photos: 1 ), Cleveland ( Photos: 1 ) , and Milwaukee. Elsewhere in California, thousands took to the streets of Los Angeles (Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 ) and many people from all over the Central Valley gathered in Fresno for "the Rally in the Valley" (Photos: 1 | 2 Video: 1 | 2 ). There was a protest in San Diego (Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 ) and in Eureka, thousands braved the rain to demand an end to the occupation of Iraq and the immediate withdrawal of US troops (Photos). On Friday, there was a protest in Reedley (Photos)

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Guatemala fights with riots and strikes against the Free Trade Agreement

16-03-2005 20:12

For about one week the economy of Guatemla has practically been shut down by strikes. And there is no end in sight. Primarily the protests are against the ratification of the central american free trade agreement CAFTA with the USA. But many people in Guatemala want to also bring down the neo-conservative government.

More information:
[ Guatemala section on Chiapas Indymedia | report | FTAA protests Imc | Indymedia San Fransisco Bay | pictures | original article on Indy Germany | coverage by Christian Aid | BBC world ]

Background information:



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Irish Embassy Occupied in Anti-War Action

02-03-2005 23:55

British anti-war activists occupied the Irish Embassy in London on Wednesday 2nd March to protest the possible ten year jail sentence facing Ireland's Pitstop Ploughshares defendants when they go on trial in an Irish court on March 7th. See report and pics

The criminal charges facing the Irish peace activists (Deirdre Clancy, Nuin Dunlop, Karen Fallon, Damien Moran & Ciaron O'Reilly) arise out of their disarming of a US Navy Plane at Shannon Airport on Feb 3rd 2003. The Irish Government continues to facilitate the US Military at Shannon Airport with thousands of US troops transiting through Shannon to and from Iraq each month. Just after the embassy opened for business, the protestors peacefully chained themselves together inside of the building in Grosvenor Place, whilst others have hung a banner reading, "PITSTOP PLOUGHSHARES: NOT GUILTY" outside.

See Indymedia Ireland | Trident Ploughshares

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Iraq-pillagers continue to be targetted

25-02-2005 09:23

Windrush Communications are corporate pirates!
Thanks to the Coalition Provisional Authority's Order 39 the occupation of Iraq has coincided with a mass selling-off of Iraq's public assets. Here in the UK there has been an ongoing campaign opposing this process; a process which amounts in international law to the illegal pillage of Iraq.

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Anti-War Action: F15 Rememberance and Protest

18-02-2005 16:16

On the anniversary of the massive international February 15th Anti-War demonstrations in 2003 (largest anti-war demonstrations in living memory), people throughout the land paused to remember the dead and to protest against war. In London a 'die-in' protest outside Parliament briefly blocked traffic [pics | 2]. In Glasgow the Day of Civil Disobedience saw an army recruitment office closed for the day and people blocking roads (as well as a high level of police surveillance and initmidation).

Other events took place in Brighton, Bristol [pic], Cambridge, Oxford, Menwith Hill, as well as Canterbury, Edinburgh, Greenwich, Lewisham, Plymouth, and Leeds. In Swindon a naming the dead event took place, while Nottingham saw an anti-war Critical Mass bicycle protest. In Stirling [2] in Scotland, a protest was also held outside an Army recruitment centre.

Upcoming are the March 19th - International Anti-War + Anti-Neoliberalism Protests, which coincide with the 2nd anniversary of the 'Shock and Awe' attack on Iraq and the Brussels EU Summit, with protests expected across Europe [see call for PGA Blocs]. Here, the Stop The War Coalition, CND and the Muslin Association of Great Britain has called for a massive Troops Home" national demonstration in London, while the Scottish Coalition for Justice Not War and Justice for Gordon Gentle Campaign have called a Troops out of Iraq March and rally in Glasgow. In the US, protests are expected in over 50 cities. March 19th also marks the start of 'Counter Terror: Build Justice' - an International Month Of Peace Action.

See also: Update on Fairford Five Appeal | Stop the Serious Organised Crime and Police Bill - the right to protest in Parliament Square under attack - and reports 2, 3, 4.

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Protests At Bush Inauguration

20-01-2005 16:09

Over 10,000 people took to the streets of Washington DC on January 20th to demonstrate during the inauguration of George Bush. Almost ignored by much of the world's media, thousands of protesters lined the parade route, but many thousands more were prevented from reaching assembly points by a massive security operation. There were several marches, a critical mass bicycle protest, breakaway marches, building occupations and rallies [see timeline | precis 1, 2]. At several points police used batons and large amounts of pepper spray to keep protesters back from the parade route as some fencing was removed and security entrances blocked [pics 1 2]. Protests continued into the evening with the arrest total running into the hundreds. Indymedia along with other grass roots media networks joined forces to create the Inaugural Media Coalition to cover the protests with several radio streams providing extensive audio coverage (see full article).

Reports: [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | International ANSWER]
Pictures: [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12]
Audio: [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15]
Video: J20 March

Demonstrations also took place right across America with protests in over 30 cities, ranging from thousands taking to the streets, to banner drops [pics 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7] and vigils. There were also demonstrations in South Korea, Japan, Puerto Rico, Ireland (Photos), Germany, Sydney, Australia, and at the US Embassy in London.

Anti-war protestors are now gearing up to demonstrate against Bush when he visits Europe, including Brussels and perhaps the UK in February, and also for a Global Day of Coordinated Actions on the 2nd Anniversary of the "Shock and Awe" Invasion of Iraq, on a 19th March 2005 - which is also the day chosen by the Assembly of the Social Movements at the European Social Forum in London for a European wide mobilisation, just prior to the European Council meeting in Brussels.