Shannon Demonstration

by Sinéad Ní Bhroin - IAWM Wed Nov 03, 2004 23:53 info at irishantiwar dot org

The Irish Anti War Movement is calling on the Government to respect our neutrality and to end our complicity in the bloody occupation of Iraq by getting US Military OUT of Shannon. Martin Cullen recently said the increasing number of US troops through Shannon (up to 1,000 a day) is good for business. This business has led to the death of 100,000 Iraqi citizens and the maiming, torture and dehumanising of 1,000s more. Join the protest on Saturday the 13th in Shannon to let Ahern & Cullen know we do not want the US Militarys blood money. They need to know its time to go. US Military out of Iraq & Shannon NOW.

Local Groups will be holding public meetings during the next 2 weeks to build for the Shannon protest. If you/they need IAWM Shannon Campaign posters, fact sheets, pamphlets or a speaker for your meeting contact 087 6329511.

Leaflets & Posters for the Nov 13th Shannon demo can be downloaded from the IAWM website.

Shannon Demonstration
Saturday Nov 13th
assemble at Lidl Car Park in Shannon Town Centre at 1.30pm

The Irish Anti War Movement will be organising buses from Dublin, to your place contact 087 6187680.

by Curious Thu Nov 04, 2004 11:55

Is this a PANA called demo that the IAWM are supporting?
It's not clear from Sinead's statement.

by NUIG Bus Thu Nov 11, 2004 14:52

To book a place on the bus from NUIG to the demo ring Eoin on 086 1042852.

by hey hey IIA how many kids did you kill today? Thu Nov 11, 2004 15:15

good to see some life coming back into the Irish anti-war movement - upper and lower case - too much was waiting for the US elections to be over, hoping for a better result.

Shannon is important to protest at, so are other places.

The IAWM protests at the US embassy are good, but hard for people to get to and not many people pass by there. I don't think the embassy even notices or cares about the protests however. Shannon is a political issue and needs to be taken to the decision makers in the Dail and the Irish Aviation Authority.

The CWs have been doing their weekly vigils at the Irish Aviation Authority for a while now - good location as people walk to and from Tara Station at the end of the day and offers a chance to talk to people.

all are welcome to join in, of course
http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=67401

by Rip Van Winkled Thu Nov 11, 2004 16:08

As far as I know this is a PANA demo that's backed by the IAWM, Anti-War Ireland and the NGO Peace Alliance.

by John X Thu Nov 11, 2004 16:11

Sinead Ni Thingy is now an SWP member, having recently joined, so all together now: IAWM/SWP, IAWM/SWP, IAWM/SWP!!!!....etc., etc. Or, better still, just ignore them.

I'll try to make it to Shannon but to be honest I think the anti-war movement has failed. The best thing we can do now is support the Iraqi resistance.

by Observant Thu Nov 11, 2004 16:42

That the SP have an anti-SWP link.
Now there's sectarianism for you.

by Joe Thu Nov 11, 2004 16:47

Devil Dog shows an interesting attitude from someone who recently served in the US Army* in Iraq toward the population there. But does all this killing really "pacify the savages" as he puts it.

It's not rocket science. What will your average gurella force do when the massive conventional army it faces announces some eight weeks in advance that its going to surround a small area and cruch all the gurella's there?

Wait? Or leave and then pop up elsewhere?

Right now in Falluja the US army is busily killing loads of civilians, a fair few enraged locals who are fighting with whatever weapons are to hand and probably a small band of insurgents who have stayed behind to help organise the locals and maybe get lucky (or should that be unluck?) with martydom operations.

Right now the insurgents are busily going into police stations across Iraq, taking those they consider collaborators outside and shooting them. Not by the one or two but by the dozen. Plus they have grabbed 3 of the presidents relatives.

Back home in the US Falluja probably plays quite well with the unthinking as it looks like a victory. Lots of US troops killing people and taking back a 'no go' area. Like they sort of did in the summer or indeed the previous summer. Falluja has fallen to the occupation forces 3 times so far, it will probably fall again. But its great PR for the mission accomplished crowd even if the cost is hundreds of dead Iraqis and a couple of dozen dead 'coalition' soldiers. After all the dead soldiers are mostly drawn from a very different section of US society than the one Bush, Cheny and co move in.

But if you live in Iraq on the one hand you are seeing US forces terrorising 300,000 civilians, 200,000 of which have fled Falluja and are staying with relatives elsewhere. Thats 200,000 conversations about what is really going on. Plus you see the US army use overwhelming fire power, airstrikes and tanks against a load of people who look just like you armed only with light infantry weapons. And you'll get to hear of the homes, schools and hopitals demolished and the civilians killed in a way we won't because its seen as propaganda rather than news in the west. We just get to see tanks fire round after round into houses on the horizon while some journalist in a tin hat and a uniform talks breathlessly of fire fights.

Also if your in Iraq you'll notice how none of those collaborating with the occupation, even the relatives of the president are safe from the insurgents. And you'll be thinking what would happen if the US actually pulled out rather that as here simply thinned its ranks in most places to concentrate forces in one place.

I'd be very surprized if any Iraqi sees what has happened as a victory for the US forces. Quite the opposite I'd imagine for a variety of reasons there are a lot of young men there tearing up their applications to join the Iraqi police or army.

The Falluja assault makes no sense in military terms, its just a murderous PR operation for the US TV audience. But even here is looks like it will back fire in the same way Saddams capure back fired. Just as back then the resistance was supposadely due to Saddam directing it from that patheic hole in the ground they found him cowering in so today the resitance we have been told is down to evil maserminds hiding out in Falluja. Well Falluja has all but fallen and far from stopping attacks elsewhere in Iraq they have esculated still more.

But here is another cheerful thought. When the coalition general sit down with the politicians next week to ask 'what went wrong' what conclusion do you think they will come to? How about 'the problem was we did not have enough soldiers elsewhere in Iraq'.

On the optomistic side the British state is getting into some real problems. We've had a serving soldier of the Blackwatch who happened to be home on leave at the moment his brother was killed describe this as a war to make George Bush wealthy which his brother wanted no part of. We've had the father of another dead solider say on national TV that he if saw the minister on the stree he would 'cut his throat'. Mutinies end wars real fast and this is mutineous talk both in the legal and literal sense.

by KAREN Fri Nov 12, 2004 14:12

oh my god.. people in fallujah are dying as the US soldiers are flattening the city and all you guys can do is argue about who called the demonstration. oh if pana called it i might go.. if IAWM called it then i'm refusing to take part. i am so sick of this bickering among anti war activists. i mean we're all supposed to be on the one side aren't we? i don't care who calls an anti war protest.. if there is one happening i'll be there and i'll spread the word to other people to come too. these people who say they won't go to a protest because of who organised it are forgetting the real reason we're doing this.
The US are trying to crush the insurgency in Iraq but it will backfire of course, killing so many iraqi people in the process. terrorist groups will develop more hatred for the USA and the violence and chaos in Iraq will continue. The Iraqis want peace, democracy, security.. they will not get this as long as the troops stay there occupying there country. we need to get back on the streets like we did last year and support the ordinary people of iraq who are resisting. people in this country are getting angry again with bush getting 4 more years and the disgusting assault on fallujah thats been shown live on our TV sets.
Don't forget there is now 1000 TROOPS A DAY passing thru shannon now!! and martin cullen says this is good for busness!!!!!!!!! its good for business that US troops are stopping over to re-fuel to go over and bomb maim and torture innocent people. this is BLOOD MONEY!! we have to get back down there and show our government that we don't agree with bertie that -shannon is a dead issue. its time to get out now!!!
if you are a genuine anti war activist and have the time to spare get out and support these protests. Friday 12th US Embassy, Saturday 13th Shannon Airport. and we don't stop there. get your local anti war groups re-established. talk about the protests to your work colleagues, your friends, make leaflets. build for the global day of action on march 19th and lets see another february 15th. we won't go away... we can't go away.. we'll not sit idly by and let this evil happen. it was the ordinary people fighting back in vietnam and the ordinary people on the streets that eventually made the US pull out of vietnam. i'm sick of all the negativity on this board. don't be de-moralised and sit passively by.. we need to grab that fire in our bellies and stay positive because we can win again this time.. we will win!!!!!

by john paul Fri Nov 12, 2004 16:22

i heard not,goddammit i need to get a bus down from limerick after the demo,my question is why arent they supporting it?

by pc Fri Nov 12, 2004 16:42

sure look at this comment re the A&E protest... " This comment was posted on the Irish Left news list: "I think it's worth adding to the notification of this protest that the organisers accused the Labour Party and the SWP of trying to hijack the march by having party banners and placards at the last protest. They've publically stated that while they want people to turn up they are asking people not to bring party banners. Up to yourselves whether you do so or not but people should be aware of the feelings of the organisers." you can't throw your principles in the bin over a guilt trip

by Joe Fri Nov 12, 2004 17:36

"“In military terms, Fallujah is not going to be much of a plus at all,” says Bernard Trainor, a retired three-star Marine Corps general. “The downside is that we’ve knocked the hell out of this city, and the only insurgents we really got were the nut-cases and zealots the smart ones left behind - the guys who really want to die for Allah.”"
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6452966/

by Ciaron Sat Nov 13, 2004 11:29

It's instructive that the most visible opposition in the west to the war in this week has come from dissidents in the military,their families and communities more so than the civilian peace movement and civil society in general.

There is large passive, invisible oppostion to Ireland's co-operation in this illegal US waron Iraq and war crimes over Fallujah.

If we are serious about opposing this war. We should all be standing in the street with a sign for an hour a week (better still next to a Govt. Building, Top Oil petrol station, Shannon Airport).

If you need some company you can join us any Monday 4pm-6pm