|
|
|
|
| Takver's Soapbox | Melbourne, Peace protests in 2002 | www.takver.com | |
The large peace protests of 2003 in Melbourne and globally against the invasion and occupation of Iraq did not happen overnight. The crashing of planes into the World Trade Centre in New York, and the Pentagon in Washington, on September 11, 2001 motivated the re-emergence of an active peace / anti-war movement. (See Melbourne peace protests from September to December 2001)
Initial protests were relatively small: on Sunday 16th September 2001 about 3000 people gathered in the Melbourne city Square as a vigil for peace. There were few banners or placards and the atmosphere was one of mourning. Two weeks later on 30 September three thousand people gathered again in the city square with banners and placards. A new peace movement was emerging in Melbourne.
Over the following weeks and months many protests from a few hundred to a thousand people occurred.
By 2002 tens of thousands of people were participating in peace protests co-ordinated by the Victorian Peace Network. This was a broad based community coalition which included the Victorian Council of Churches, Victorian Trades Hall Council, Victorian Council of Social Services, Australian Arabic Council, Islamic Council of Victoria, Australian Jewish Democratic Society, National Union of Students and the Federation of Community Legal Centres, and many smaller socialist and community groups.
All pledge resistance against Australian involvement
Sunday October 13, 2002: Melbourne witnessed the largest demonstration against the proposed war on Iraq to date on Sunday. Up to 45 000 people marched according to organisers. Coordinated by the Victorian Peace Network, a coalition of religious, union, legal, student and other groups, the demonstration marched from the State Library to Treasury gardens. Protesters chanted "no blood for oil", others had placards reading "regime change begins at home".
Speakers condemned the Israeli occupation of Palestine with Katerina Lecchi of the Victorian Peace Network, stating "if we want to see justice and peace in the Middle East we should start with Israel's continued occupation of the West Bank and Gaza in defiance of UN resolutions." Leigh Hubbard of Victorian Trades Hall Council, said "this attack will be a slaughter and a war crime, regardless of whether or not it has UN backing."
A huge rally filled the streets of Melbourne today protesting Australian involvement in the planned attack on Iraq. An estimated crowd of 45,000 people marched from the State Library to the Treasury gardens chanting "No war for oil" and "Don't attack Iraq."
Speakers expressed their opposition to political violence and sympathy for the victims of the attacks in Bali, which reinforces the need for a different approach to conflict than further violence and war.
The diverse range of Victorians who attended expressed strong opposition to any attack regardless of the decision of the UN Security Council in the coming weeks, calling on the ALP to strongly oppose Australian involvement.
Leigh Hubbard, Secretary, Victorian Trades Hall Council, said "this attack will be a slaughter and a war crime, regardless of whether or not it has UN backing."
Prominent actor Annie Phelan led the gathering in a "pledge of resistance" to Australian involvement. "We believe that as people living in Australia it is our responsibility to resist the injustices done by our government, in our names. Not in our name will you wage unjustified wars there can be no more deaths, no more transfusions of blood for oil? We pledge resistance ? We pledge to make common cause with the people of the world to bring about justice, freedom and peace. (see below for full statement).
Maureen Postma, Victorian Council of Churches, speaking on behalf of all faith communities said, "we want justice and peace for all, this war is immoral and people of faith are opposed.
Katerina Lecchi, Victorian Peace Network, said "if we want to see justice and peace in the Middle East we should start with Israel's continued occupation of the West Bank and Gaza in defiance of UN resolutions."
Damien Lawson, Victorian Peace Network, said today "This is just the beginning, in the coming weeks and months there will be a multitude of actions, meetings and protests against the war. We will be joining with networks in other states to build a broad national movement against an attack on Iraq."
The rally and march was called by a growing coalition of organisations which includes: Victorian Council of Churches, Victorian Trades Hall Council, Victorian Council of Social Services, Australian Arabic Council, Islamic Council of Victoria, Australian Jewish Democratic Society, National Union of Students and the Federation of Community Legal Centres.
--Not in Our Name
We believe that as people living
in Australia it is our
responsibility to resist the injustices
done by our government,
in our names
Not in our name
will you wage unjustified wars
there can be no more deaths
no more transfusions
of blood for oil
Not in our name
will you invade countries
bomb civilians, kill more children
letting history take its course
over the graves of the nameless
Not by our hands
will we supply weapons and funding
for the annihilation of families
in other countries
Not by our mouths
will we let fear silence us
Not by our hearts
will we allow whole peoples
or countries to be deemed evil
Not by our will
and Not in our name
We pledge resistance
We pledge alliance with those
who have come under attack
for voicing opposition to the war
or for their religion or ethnicity
We pledge to make common cause
with the people of the world
to bring about justice,
freedom and peace
Another world is possible
and we pledge to make it happen
This statement is based on a pledge of resistance that thousands of people in protests across the US and around the world have made at protests like today. www.notinourname.net
On December 1, 2002 thousands of people around Australia protested against the proposed war with Iraq. 15,000 rallied in both Melbourne and Sydney, 1,500 in Adelaide and thousands more in Canberra, Darwin, Taree, Brisbane, Launceston, Ipswich, Alice Springs, Perth and Hobart.
The rallies were part of a national weekend of action against war called by peace networks made up of union, student, environment, community and religious groups "concerned that the United States government intends to attack Iraq regardless of the results of UN weapons inspections" and arguing that "an attack on Iraq will mean the death of hundreds of thousands of people and will not contribute to peace or security in the Middle East."
The Australian government said it will commit SAS troops to any war on Iraq, is talking up the prospect of a "war levy" and is also advocating pre-emptive strikes with Prime Minister John Howard arguing that international law should be changed to allow nations to strike pre-emptively against terrorists. His comments sparked immediate outrage from governments across Asia.
Huge Peaceful Peace Rally Attracts Big Publicity
by Steven Stevenson (republished from Melbourne Indymedia report)
Reported fairly accurately by major media, considering. After lengthy self-congratulation for rising early enough on a Sunday to attend the Rally For Peace, I got there a little late, and speeches were already in progress. The crowd was huge, some thousands of people(pic 1)
Channel 7 later dubiously estimated "a crowd of 2,000 doubling in size as it attracted the attention of afternoon shoppers." Two thousand shoppers spontaneously joined a protest march? Nice thought. A few fellow late risers no doubt joined it during. Both Channel 9 and The Age estimated attendance at 10,000. The real figure is probably in the middle. In any case we're talking a lot of concerned voters.
The Snuff Puppets were also in attendance
.The march proceeded down Swanston St, with banners and placards held high (2). The Victorian Peace Network, which organized the rally, includes representatives from over 40 organizations, a diverse mix of religious groups, socialists, unionists, students, anti-war groups, and others, all of whom attended en masse. Of course, many demonstrators were unaffiliated peace fans.
Ralliers included lots of family types, as well as unionists and experienced protesters (3). Channel 9 stated "churches, unions, social groups and *ordinary Australians* [were] joining the call to end plans for war." Note that by their definition churchgoers and unionists are not 'normal' Australians - meaning they're more enlightened than the 'great unwashed'? Not their intention I think.
By 'social groups' I suspect Channel 9 meant socialists; but the latter is a complicated word offensive to the middle classes and better off not spoken during a family news program.
At the corner of Collins St (4), a group humorously posed as a line of Big Brother-type police (with guns). As the real police escort approached, the cutout police jumped forward a step and yelled 'Hut!' in unison.
The march continued, proceeding up Collins St (5,6) without violent incident. Protesters then gathered at Treasury Gardens to listen to some more speeches followed by acoustic music.
Further testimony was related to otherwise relaxed marchers (8) of the reality of the evil, which is war. Very important to hear, I think, for those like myself who have not personally experienced war, so we are inspired to work extra hard to ensure it doesn't happen here. One speaker encouraged everyone to write letters to the likes of Bush and Howard.
We can expect more, similar consciousness-raising protests before long, I guess after the Christmas holidays due to the huge amount of preparation involved. Presumably Channel 9 got this side of it wrong (again) when they stated "Organizers said... they're planning more protests around the country *and the world* over the next few weeks." Maybe the same 'worldwide socialist conspiracy' which organizes and attends all of the world's anti-globalisation protests
Large peaceful protests of this size can only be ignored at government's peril. Monday January 20, 2003. Solidarity actions with global protests against war were held over the weekend in Victoria. A vigil outside the US consulate brought 200 protestors together on Sunday around the demand "no blood for oil". In Melbourne on Monday, 300 women held a vigil on the steps of Parliament House, gathering around a banner stating "not in our name". In Apollo Bay, around 400 people marched along the Great Ocean road and several businesses closed their doors declaring their opposition to war. A peace picnic was also held in Geelong. In the US, hundreds of thousands participated in anti-war demonstrations in Washington DC, San Francisco, Portland, and several other cities. There were also large demonstrations in Tokyo, Canada, and the Netherlands. Closer to home, more than 2000 people gathered in Christchurch demanding that the New Zealand government sever its links with the US war machine. Massive protests are planned for February 14-16 in Melbourne, around Australia and around the world. Source: Melbourne Indymedia anti-war features Contact Takver with information for, questions, or comments about this web site.
Protests In Melbourne and Victoria Against War - January 2003
© Takver. All Rights reserved except for nonprofit, union or educational use, please credit source.
Print Publications seeking to publish any of these photos should contact Takver to obtain a high resolution version and permission to publish.
This Page is: http://www.takver.com/history/melb/peace2003/peace2002.htm
