Green Councillor to Present Petition Calling for Brighton Council to Discuss EDO
Chloe Marsh | 09.12.2009 10:10 | Smash EDO | Anti-militarism | Iraq | Palestine | South Coast | World
For immediate release: 9/12/2009
Photo opportunity: Infostall outside the council meeting at 4pm, Thursday 10th. For more information contact Andrew Beckett or Chloe Marsh: 07754135290.
View Petition, signatures and comments here -
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A leaked document from the Green Party (see
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On the evening of the council's refusal to table the motion six people broke in to the EDO factory in solidarity with the people of Gaza, who were being bombed with the aid of Brighton manufactured EDO components. In an attempt to ‘decommission’ the weapons they caused up to £300,000 worth of damage to the machinery aiding this atrocity.
Chloe Marsh from the Smash EDO campaign says “We hope that this petition will persuade Brighton and Hove Council to table this motion in January, one year after dialogue about the factory was originally prevented”
Naomi Riches, a local resident, submitted this comment to the petition: "Residents of Brighton are all affected by war crimes in the Middle East - we are shocked and horrified to see the human suffering they cause, and we feel more vulnerable to acts of retaliation in our own country. Brighton is known as a vibrant, forward-thinking place - we should ban this weapons factory from operating here."
Ends
Notes for Editors
EDO MBM, based in Moulsecoomb, is a weapons manufacturer owned by the American multi-national ITT. They make weapon components for the Paveway guided bomb programme, which was the most used aerial weapon in the attack on Iraq. They also own the patents of the Zero Retention Force Arming Unit and the Ejector Release Unit ERU 151, both essential components for the F16 aircraft’s VER-2 bomb rack, used by the Israeli Air Force against civilians in Gaza.
Since 2004 there has been a growing campaign against EDO MBM in Brighton. Campaigners have used diverse tactics to highlight and resist this murderous business in our city. There have been blockades, rooftop occupations, street theatre and hundreds of noise demos outside the factory. Thousands of people have also taken to the streets against them during nationally advertised events.
Contact: Andrew Beckett or Chloe Marsh, Smash EDO campaign
Tel: 07754135290 E-mail:
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www.smashedo.org.uk
Chloe Marsh
e-mail:
smashedopress@riseup.net
Homepage:
http://www.smashedo.org.uk