Women of four antimilitarist networks went on the London streets on Saturday 20 November 2010 to tell the Heads of State assembled at a NATO Summit meeting in Lisbon: Disband this aggressive war-fighting nuclear-armed alliance now. Military security does not mean security for women. Read more below.

If those T-shirts look a bit size XXXL, well, they had to cover up a lot of warm undies. Even then it was chilly. But we think we got the message across. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a Cold War dinosaur. It's an aggressive, ever-expanding, war-fighting and nuclear armed alliance clearly intent on world domination in the economic interests of the USA, the UK and other relatively rich nations. Far from being a source of security it's a menace to peace.

We took to the streets on Saturday 20 November to send a message to the NATO Heads of State assembled in Lisbon, Portugal. As women of four antimilitarist networks, Women in Black, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Aldermaston Women's Peace Camp and Trident Ploughshares, we wanted to tell them: ‘No to your new Strategic Concept. No to revamped Missile Defence. No to upgraded nuclear weapons. It's time to disband NATO and disarm Europe'.

Why women? Acting in partnership with women in Italy, Germany and elsewhere, we were making a feminist case against NATO. Military expenditure steals money from the education, health and housing services badly needed by women, who carry the main burden of domestic life in NATO member states as they do worldwide. In war, women suffer displacement, rape, loss, injury and increased responsibilities. NATO's war in Afghanistan is a case in point. Military installations and factories, like the base planned for Vicenza in Italy, are a source of social stress in neighbourhoods, of toxic pollution, sexual exploitation and violence.

To women ‘security' means something very different from military security. It means livelihood, well-being and freedom from violence both in war and everyday life. Marie Walsh had travelled from Wales to take part in this action. ‘Guns and bombs and wars don't make me feel safer,' she said. ‘They have the opposite effect. It's ironic that NATO troops are called security forces when what they create is just the opposite.'

Marie-Claire of WILPF feels ‘Women's voices aren't heard enough. Things might be different if they were part of decision-making on policies that set agendas globally'. Angie, of Trident Ploughshares, added ‘I want NATO to end now so our society can move beyond violence, war and enemies, and encourage non-violent conflict resolution. I'm here to demand a return to our lost humanity and the rule of international law.'

We would be happy to end our set of T-shirts to any group of feminist antimilitarist women who would like to mount an action with them. Contact us at <wibinfo@gn.apc.org>