There's an article about soldiers refusing to fight in Iraq in this week's Big Issue - but it doesn't really tell you a lot. Only that an organisation called At Ease, which supports COs, says there are plenty more than the two holed up in barracks, who face up to two years inside.

Colchester houses the barracks of the 16 air assault where the two soldiers who were sent back for discussing their doubts about killing civilians are based. We think they are still in these barracks.

As soon as we heard about the two, we flyposted the town with further information and held a solidarity march of about 150 people to the barracks.

The MOD initially tried to deny that any such incident has happened. But this turns out to be another porky pie. This is not surprising, as we all know that lies and propaganda is a great and honourable tradition amongst the MOD's top brass. (Hi there Colonel Barton!)

Colchester also houses the infamous "glasshouse", the UK's military prison for dissenting/rebellious/independent minded members from all branches of the HM armed forces. The official name for this is the MCTC - Military Correctional Training Centre! Mmm, nice!

Staff from this place have recently been sent out to supervise the occupation regimes civilian prisons! So as the US/UK occupation forces start to set up a regime which looks set to continue with Saddam's brutality, people from our town will be involved at the foulest level!

At the MCTC they are brutal bastards to our own soldiers - they will not be very nice to impoverished Shi'te teenage 'criminals', banged up for looting or resistance!

There has also been a wave of near mutinous feeling amongst the families of Para’s and other air assault personnel…not to mention amongst the lads and lasses actually out in the Gulf. This was because the top brass were thinking of stopping their return home, and instead sending them to Baghdad to police the rebellious citizenry there!

The military top brass appear to have been forced to back down on this (for a while), ‘cause the squaddies and their families are totally sick of this farce.

So Saddam has gone (hooray!), there were no weapon’s of mass destruction (we all knew this was a lie all along), but the poor squaddie must continue with this luvly holiday in the sun! Why? To occupy a third world country, and police it for multinational oil corporations. Shit job, but after scabbing on the Firefighters, were ready for anything, sir!

Oh, and the latest GWS news. GULF WAR 2 SYNDROME – 1st cases. Returning troops are starting to complain of symptoms like Gulf war Syndrome.

Despite advice to the contrary, squaddies on their way to war were still given multiple jabs for bioweapons etc. This could have contributed to the 6,000 cases of illness/disability from UK veterans of the last Gulf war.

The MOD still deny GWS exists… another cover up.

The tabloid press tried to get the public to support the war by going on about “support our boys”. But they couldn’t give a toss about the real welfare of soldiers and ex-soldiers. UK armed forces, great training for a life career selling the big issue. The truth is, soldiers have to be ‘brave’, to be used as guinea pigs for experiments. You always have more to fear from your “own side”.

So to sum up phase one of the invasion for uk soldiers: American friendly fire, depleted Uranium reisdues, multiple injections and “accidents” were more of a threat to UK forces than Saddams old rag tag army. (Although the coming war of resistance and liberation will be a different thing altogether).

Oh and 10,000 dead Iraqi civilians so far.