Posted on 02/12/2003 7:22:42 PM PST by Pokey78
From Africa to Antarctica, people prepare to march for peace
Up to 10 million people on five continents are expected to demonstrate against the probable war in Iraq on Saturday, in some of the largest peace marches ever known.
Yesterday, up to 400 cities in 60 countries, from Antarctica to Pacific islands, confirmed that peace rallies, vigils and marches would take place. Of all major countries, only China is absent from the growing list which includes more than 300 cities in Europe and north America, 50 in Asia and Latin America, 10 in Africa and 20 in Australia and Oceania.
Many countries will witness the largest demonstrations against war they have ever seen.
The majority will be small but 500,000 people are expected in London and Barcelona, and more than 100,000 in Rome, Paris, Berlin and other European capitals. In the US, organisers were yesterday anticipating 200,000 marching in New York if permission is given. A further 100,000 are expected to march in 140 other American cities.
What is extraordinary, say the organisers, is the depth and breadth of opposition that the US and Britain are meeting across the world before a war has even started.
"This is unprecedented. Demonstrations only got this large against the Vietnam war at the height of the conflict, years after it started," said a spokesman for Answer, a coalition of US peace groups which helped organise a march of 200,000 people last month in Washington.
Many in the global peace movement optimistically hope that public opposition to a war is becoming politically significant and could now affect the timing of an invasion of Iraq and possibly even help avert conflict altogether.
"The internationalism of the opposition is the most powerful weapon people have. It's all we have. We think that Bush and Blair are well aware that global opposition is mounting fast and that they are now desperate to start the war before they are completely isolated by world opinion," said a spokesman for United for Peace and Justice, a US coalition.
New polls in Europe and the US yesterday suggested that opposition is still mounting and is likely to continue even if the US gets a second resolution. Spanish and Dutch polls showed that more than 70% now oppose even UN-mandated action, with slightly fewer in Italy. Yesterday CND reported that it was struggling to cope with the deluge of people wanting to join.
In Germany, more than 300 towns are sending coaches to Berlin, where more than 100,000 people are expected to march.
"Opposition is broader than at any time in the past. This will be the largest peace march in 20 years," said Malte Keutzseldt of Attac, Germany. "The peace movement is getting older now, but a new generation of young people is deeply concerned. The churches and unions have linked to make the coalition far broader than even the anti-nuclear missile marches in the 1980s".
In Paris, a march organiser said that feeling was running high and that he expected the anti-war demonstration to be largest ever. The most unusual rally is expected to be in the international territory of Antarctica, where dozens of scientists and others at the US McMurdo base on the edge of the Ross sea will take to the ice.
The idea of an international day of action against the war was first suggested in London after the last peace march in October. It was discussed by peace and anti-globalisation groups from 11 countries at the European social forum in Florence in November, but only became truly international following meetings in Cairo, Egypt and Porto Alegre, Brazil, last month.
Since then the idea of coordinating international peace protests has spread rapidly across the world and up to 30 new cities a day are believed to be planning demonstrations. Next month activists from all continents will meet in London to propose further global actions.
Coordinated international demonstrations have flourished in the past five years with anti-capitalist marches and campaigns by environmentalists and anti-globalisers against corporations like McDonald's, Shell and Esso, and against global warming or international trade. Mostly organised on the web by activists working below the radar of the mainstream media, they have taken the establishment by surprise in many countries and only been reported by independent media.
"The whole world's marching," said Helmut, a German student in London. "This peace party should be better than the millennium celebrations."
· The Stop The War Coalition (STWC) is planning a display of mass direct action designed to bring Britain to a standstill on the day any war starts with Iraq. The protests would involve demonstrations in the centre of London and other big towns and cities, wildcat strikes by anti-war supporters and mass sit-ins at schools, colleges and universities across the country.
A spokeswoman for the SWTC said: "We do think there will be a whole wave of civil disobedience if war breaks out. People want to be peaceful and are quite slow to anger, but they will be very angry if after Saturday's mass show of opposition Tony Blair refuses to listen."
Which means 5,990,000,000 will not protest.
***"ISLAM ONLINE.net - Arts and Entertainment: "RAPPER, PARIS, UNLEASHES A 'SONIC JIHAD" by Ali Asadullah (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "In 1992 Paris caused quite a stir with his song "Bush Killa", a graphic, self-described "revenge fantasy" in which then president George Bush, Sr. is assassinated. The government was none too pleased and mainstream media criticism was harsh and unrelenting. So Paris is no stranger to controversy. Controversy, however, is something with which Paris willingly flirts; and he can expect more of it when his new album, Sonic Jihad, is released early this year. As if the title was not demonstrative enough in its message, the cover art, which features a jet airliner superimposed to look as if it is headed for a collision with the White House, puts to rest any illusions that this album is filled with trivialities.") (January 8, 2003)
***FBI.gov: "Statement for the Record of Robert S. Mueller, III Director Federal Bureau of Investigation on War on Terrorism Before the Select Committee on Intelligence of the United States Senate Washington, D.C." (STATEMENT SNIPPET: "The al-Qaeda network will remain for the foreseeable future the most immediate and serious threat facing this country. Al-Qaeda is the most lethal of the groups associated with the Sunni jihadist cause, but it does not operate in a vacuum; many of the groups committed to international jihad -- including the Egyptian al-Gama'at al-Islamiyya, Lebanese ‘Asbat al-Ansar, Somali al-Ittihad al-Islami, and Algerian Salafist Group for Call and Combat (GSPC) --- offer al-Qaeda varying degrees of support. * FBI investigations have revealed a widespread militant Islamic presence in the US. * We strongly suspect that several hundred of these extremists are linked to al-Qaeda. * The focus of their activities centers primarily on fundraising, recruitment, and training. Their support structure, however, is sufficiently well-developed that one or more groups could be ramped up by al-Qaeda to carry out operations in the US homeland. Despite the progress the US has made in disrupting the al-Qaeda network overseas and within our own country, the organization maintains the ability and the intent to inflict significant casualties in the US with little warning. * The greatest threat is from al-Qaeda cells in the US that we have not yet identified. The challenge of finding and rooting out al-Qaeda members once they have entered the US and have had time to establish themselves is our most serious intelligence and law enforcement challenge.") (February 11, 2003)
***WASHINGTON TIMES.com: "FBI, CIA BELIEVE MASS CASUALTY AL QAEDA STRIKE MORE LIKELY" by Bill Gertz (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Al Qaeda's latest threat of terrorist attacks is focused on operations in three areas: the continental United States, the Persian Gulf region or Southeast Asia, according to intelligence officials. Intelligence from both the FBI and CIA indicates that al Qaeda is preparing to conduct a major attack that will cause mass casualties, like the September 11 attacks, according to officials. The CIA is worried that the new attack will be al Qaeda's first attempt to carry out a terror strike using deadly chemical, biological or radiological weapons, said officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity.") (February 11, 2003)
***SACBEE.com - SACRAMENTO BEE (AP): "TRUCK WITH BORIC ACID STOLEN FROM RIVERSIDE" (ARTICLE NOTE: 44,000 pounds of "powdered boric acid" was stolen.) (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Stofila said the green, 1996 Freightliner truck with California license plate 9B89830 was likely stolen between 9:30 p.m. Thursday and 6 a.m. Friday. He said it was parked in Corona at the intersection of Bonnie Circle and Pomona Road, off of Route 91, the major highway connecting Riverside and Orange counties. The flatbed trailer carrying the acid had Oregon plates HQ57530.") (February 8, 2003)
YAHOO! News (AP): "'JIHAD' VALENTINE GETS YANKED OFF SHELVES" by Todd Spangler (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Nick Poillucci, 37, said he purchased the set at a Target on Saturday for his 3-year-old daughter to give out in her preschool class. He said he noticed the word "Jihad" upon opening the box at home. "At first, we just thought it was in really bad taste or maybe some radical in the art department of this company or something," Poillucci said. He said he became more concerned because a drawing of a clock in the picture had red lines emanating from it, as if it might suggest an explosion.") (February 11, 2003)
***FBI.gov: MOST WANTED TERRORISTS: "IMAD FAYEZ MUGNIYAH" aka "Hajj" (WANTED POSTER SNIPPETS: "Mugniyah is the alleged head of the security apparatus for the terrorist organization, Lebanese Hizballah."..."The Rewards For Justice Program, United States Department of State, is offering a reward of up to $25 million for information leading directly to the apprehension and/or conviction of Imad Fayez Mugniyah."..."SHOULD BE CONSIDERED ARMED AND DANGEROUS")
stepping back in time...JANES.com: "WHO DID IT? FOREIGN REPORT PRESENTS AN ALTERNATIVE VIEW" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Israel's military intelligence service, Aman, suspects that Iraq is the state that sponsored the suicide attacks on the New York Trade Center and the Pentagon in Washington. Directing the mission, Aman officers believe, were two of the world's foremost terrorist masterminds: the Lebanese Imad Mughniyeh, head of the special overseas operations for Hizbullah, and the Egyptian Dr Ayman Al Zawahiri, senior member of Al-Qaeda and possible successor of the ailing Osama Bin Laden. The two men have not been seen for some time. Mughniyeh is probably the world’s most wanted outlaw. Unconfirmed reports in Beirut say he has undergone plastic surgery and is unrecognisable. Zawahiri is thought to be based in Egypt. He could be Bin Laden’s chief representative outside Afghanistan. The Iraqis, who for several years paid smaller groups to do their dirty work, were quick to discover the advantages of Al-Qaeda. The Israeli sources claim that for the past two years Iraqi intelligence officers were shuttling between Baghdad and Afghanistan, meeting with Ayman Al Zawahiri. According to the sources, one of the Iraqi intelligence officers, Salah Suleiman, was captured last October by the Pakistanis near the border with Afghanistan. The Iraqis are also reported to have established strong ties with Imad Mughniyeh.") (September 19, 2001)
PAK TODAY.com - PAKISTAN TODAY: "THE FRANCHISING OF HEZBOLLAH" by Avi Davis (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Western intelligence has now revealed a high level of cooperation between Bin Laden and Imad Muganiyeh, the Hezbullah terrorist who masterminded some of Hezbollah's most spectacular atrocities and kidnappings in Lebanon. Reports have Muganiyeh first meeting with Bin Laden as early as 1995 and those meetings have continued. More than this, since al-Qaida fled Afghanistan at the end of last year, the Sunday Telegraph reports, between 80 and 100 al- Qaida fighters were provided with false passports by Hezbollah before being relocated to southern Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The same report acknowledges that Hezbollah, working hand in hand with al-Qaida, has set up cells in the Far East - including Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore. It is well known that Hezbollah has operated in Gaza and the West Bank for years, but the recent revelation by the Shin Bet in Israel that al- Qaida has now also joined them there, is chilling evidence of a level of cooperation previously unsuspected. Such news comes as a dire warning to American, Israeli and Jewish communities throughout the world.") (122702) -- Note: This column content has expired. A new column has replaced this url.
ALBAWABA.com: "IS HIZBULLAH INVISIBLE LEADER INVOLVED IN ACTIVITIES IN CANADA?" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "In the United States, authorities believe that perhaps one of the world's most wanted men is behind the Canadian organization, which has raised funds, falsified documents and purchased military equipment for Hizbullah. In Washington, officials currently suspect that the agents sent to Canada to gather support for the Hizbullah work for Mugniyah, a top-level Hizbullah leader and the suspected mastermind of numerous attacks worldwide.") (120102)
TOWNHALL.com - Column by Michelle Malkin: "THE RELIGIOUS WORKER VISA SCAM" (ARTICLE SNIPPETS: "According to a complaint from the U.S. Attorney's Office in New York unsealed last week, Muslim religious leader Muhammed Khalil, his son Asim, and three other individuals submitted false R visa applications on behalf of more than 200 Middle Eastern aliens. Although Khalil and his cronies were nabbed after an 18-month investigation, federal authorities are mum on the whereabouts of the Middle Eastern illegal aliens who purchased fake R visas from Khalil and his colleagues." ... "The mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, Sheik Omar Abdul Rahman, had an R visa. So did four Palestinian men who worked for the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development and the Islamic Association for Palestine -- both Muslim charities that the State Department has linked to the terrorist organization Hamas.") (February 12, 2003)
***FOX NEWS.com: "POWELL: NEW BIN LADEN STATEMENT CONFIRMS IRAQ LINK" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Powell said he read a transcript of "what bin Laden -- or who we believe to be bin Laden" will be saying on the Al-Jazeera Arab satellite station later Tuesday, "where once again he speaks to the people of Iraq and talks about their struggle and how he is in partnership with Iraq."" ... "Al-Jazeera chief editor Ibrahim Hilal told The Associated Press late Tuesday that his office had just received an audiotape with bin Laden's voice. He said he and and the station's board were listening to the tape and would make a decision on when to air it. A headline at the bottom of the screen during regular programming Tuesday night read, "Al Qaeda leader Usama bin Laden calls on all Muslims to unite to defend the Iraqi people, in an audio message Al-Jazeera will broadcast later."") (February 11, 2003)
Other than that it doesn't mean anything. Hitler had a lot of marchers. Dumb people march for dumb causes. Always have. Always will.
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