[antiwar-van] *TOMORROW* MAWO/ICAW Antiwar Rally demands No War on Iran!

[Kira Koshelanyk]

* Please Forward Widely *

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> 
MONTHLY ANTI-WAR, ANTI-OCCUPATION RALLY

NO WAR ON IRAN
NO SANCTIONS ON IRAN
CANADA/NATO OUT OF AFGHANISTAN 
US/UK OUT OF IRAQ
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> 
SATURDAY July 19th, 2008
4:00pm
Vancouver Art Gallery (Robson & Howe)

Co-organized by: 
Mobilization Against War & Occupation (MAWO)
http://www.mawovancouver.org 
& Iranian Community Against War (ICAW)
http://icaw.blogspot.com

<><><><><>
At the same time as MAWO and ICAW are organizing this antiwar rally in Vancouver, the United for Peace and Justice Iran Working Group in the US has initiated mobilizations in cities across the US, which will be going on all this weekend. With mobilizations going on throughout the US and cross-border in Vancouver, this makes a stronger statement against an impending war and sanctions on Iran! 
<><><><><>

Upon returning from his recent trip to Kandahar, Afghanistan, Canada's new chief of defence staff Gen.Walter Natynczyk painted a rosy picture of the brutal occupation that has ravaged Afghanistan for almost 7 years. He claimed that businesses are bustling and ignored the fact that 30% of children aged 5-14 must work just so that their families can survive (United Nations). At the same time as Natynczyk characterized the rise in attacks against the occupation as an ‘insignificant notch,’ the Vigilant Strategic Services Afghanistan security firm reported that this ‘insignificant notch’ is a 77 per cent increase since 2007, proving that Afghan people are not giving up the fight against the occupation of their country.

In contrast to the optimism of the government of Canada, the US government has now admitted that they are suffering – at least for the months of May and June - more troop casualties in Afghanistan than Iraq. Of course this new finding does not mean that the situation in Iraq is improving. On the contrary, all the statistics from different sources indicate that the quagmire in Iraq for the occupation forces is deepening. What all this means for the people of Afghanistan is that the brutality of war and occupation will be continued for a long time. For the imperialist troops this all means more death and killing of innocent people and of the soldiers themselves. Despite their quagmire in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US government is pushing indeed for a new war drive in the Middle East. The US government has recently given the Israeli military the go-ahead to prepare for an imminent attack on Iran. The latest non-binding US House and Senate resolution is to advise that George Bush impose a complete naval, air and land blockade on Iran. This is a move which would completely strangle and weaken the Iranian economy and people in preparation for attack, if the US ruling class decides to pursue this matter further. Already there are 3 sets of UN sanctions, European Union sanctions, a build-up of US military forces in the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea and a propaganda campaign against Iran.

As the government of Canada and the US are turning the gears of their war drive, all peace-loving, poor and working people must also gear up our mobilizations against this new era of war and occupation. This Saturday July 19th, join MAWO and ICAW in taking to the streets to demand:

NO WAR ON IRAN
NO SANCTIONS ON IRAN
CANADA/NATO OUT OF AFGHANISTAN
US/UK OUT OF IRAQ

As the US government is escalating it’s threats against Iran, the antiwar movement must mobilize against this impending attack and defend the self determination of Iranian people. Mobilization Against War & Occupation and the Iranian Community Against War have endorsed the International Emergency Call to Action by the Stop War on Iran Campaign in New York, joining organizations around the world that will be mobilizing together on August 2nd 2008. In Vancouver, join MAWO and ICAW on this important day of protest against war and sanctions on Iran:

SATURDAY August 2nd
Vancouver Art Gallery (Robson & Hornby)
2pm

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For more information please contact:
http://WWW.MAWOVANCOUVER.ORG or
http://ICAW.BLOGSPOT.COM 
mailto: info at mawovancouver.org
P 604.322.1764 | F 604.322.1763

_________________________________________________________________
Find hidden words, unscramble celebrity names, or try the ultimate crossword puzzle with Live Search Games. Play now!
http://g.msn.ca/ca55/212