[Onthebarricades] Peace protests, Dec-Jan 07/08

[Andy]

*  SCOTLAND:  NATO summit "not quite stopped"
*  BAHRAIN:  Hundreds protest Bush visit, military bases
*  CZECH REPUBLIC:  Hundreds protest against US radar base in Prague
*  ITALY:  Vicenza military base protests continue
*  US:  Stanford students protest Rumsfeld appointment
*  US:  Direct action at Olympia port - military shipments blockaded
*  US:  Peace protests on fringes of Rose Parade in Pasadena
*  UK:  Turner Prize goes to reconstruction of Brian Haw's banned Parliament 
Square protest camp
*  US:  Activists protest war through music
*  US:  Church slaughter commemoration used to protest war
*  AUSTRALIA:  Protesters demand withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan, 
protest government foot-dragging
*  US:  Students protest against war in Seattle
*  US:  Activists target Middle East "peace summit" in Annapolis
*  US:  Twenty thousand attend annual School of Americas protest, eleven 
arrested for trespassing
*  LEBANON:  Dozens protest cluster bombs in Beirut sit-in
*  PAKISTAN/KASHMIR:  Kashmiris protest for cross-border truck service
*  SOMALIA/US:  Protest against Ethiopian invasion in Seattle

[OLYMPIA:  Notice how the statists insist on unconditional obedience, which 
is a total negation of rights - this shows how absolutely unreasonable they 
are]
NATO not quite stopped
About fourty activists protested against the NATO summit at the Craigiehall 
Army Barracks near Edinburgh in Scotland. The demonstrators blocked the main 
road to the meeting, which was attended by defence ministers from eight NATO 
countries and other senior political and military officials to discuss the 
current situation in Afghanistan.
Reports of protests on Indymedia Scotland and IMC UK:
[ report of early morning actions | report and pics | leaflets in NATO hotel 
| Indymedia Scotland feature | details of protest | announcing article ]
Background links:
[ The Senlis Council | RAWA on US worsening human rights situation | Taliban 
control more than half of Afghanistan: IMC Germany | Womankind: Taking Stock 
| Canadian Peace Alliance | Imc Germany: There is no end to Afghanistan | Le 
Monde Diplomatique french/german/english | icasualties | Why are we in 
Afghanistan? | Just Foreign Policy ]

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/world/middle-east/article3331863.ece


Hundreds of demonstrators protest at Bush in Bahrain

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Several hundred demonstrators have take to the streets of Bahrain as George 
Bush arrived in the country.

Protestors waved placards calling on the US to withdraw its military bases 
from the state.

The American President's visit is part of a tour of the Middle East.

Earlier he held talks at a base in Kuwait with his commander in Iraq, 
General David Petraeus.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-11/18/content_7097299.htm

Demonstrators protest against U.S. radar base in Prague

    PRAGUE, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Several hundred people rallied Saturday in 
the city center of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, to voice 
disagreement with the planned stationing of a U.S. radar base in the 
country.
    The demonstrators demanded a referendum on the issue and criticized the 
position of the coalition government over the radarbase.
    The protesters unfolded the banners saying "War is the biggest 
business," "No missiles are peaceful" and "Trokavec and 70 percent of Czechs 
want to live without the radar."
    Jan Neoral, mayor of the village of Trokavec, situated near the planned 
site of the radar installations, said: "We will be ruled again by corrupt 
and base people."
    The rally was called by the No to Bases group at Prague's Wenceslas 
Square. It was attended by trade union activists and deputy chairman of the 
Chamber of Deputies Bohuslav Sobotka.
    Washington initiated the plan to deploy an anti-missile radar base in 
the Czech Republic and a missile interceptor base in Poland earlier this 
year.
    A recent opinion poll showed that most of Czechs oppose the 
establishment of the base, which is to be built on the Brdy military grounds 
some 90 kilometers southwest of Prague.

http://roadstorome.blogspot.com/2007/12/no-military-base-in-vicenza.html
No Military Base in Vicenza

There was a multi-day protest in the Northern Italian town of Vicenza 
against the development of a military installation known as 'Dal Molin'. The 
United States Military has been trying to build a new military base there, 
because they definitely need another one.

The efforts have been thwarted by activists. And just a few days ago a 
protest and march expected to attract 40,000 people was attended by double 
that amount. The massive march culminated in a square with speeches by, 
among others, playwright Dario Fo and 80 year old Catholic priest Don Gallo.

Read an excellent report about it on AfterDowningStreet. Of course US 
Citizens for Peace and Justice were among the ordinary people standing up 
for the cause of peace.

Nice to see that protest politics are alive and well, and the people can 
make their voices heard when 80,0000 strong join together to march, sing, 
and gather: that's what the holidays are about.

http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN0828745020071109


Stanford students protest Rumsfeld appointment
Thu Nov 8, 2007 10:47pm EST

STANFORD, California (Reuters) - More than 100 Stanford University students 
demonstrated on Thursday against a decision to make former Defense Secretary 
Donald Rumsfeld a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution amid campus 
discontent over a symbol of U.S. failings in the Iraq war.
To date, nearly 4,000 Stanford faculty, students and alumni have signed a 
petition begun by a faculty member to reject Rumsfeld's appointment 
announced in September, but John Raisian, the institute's director, said 
Rumsfeld deserved the honor of being a "distinguished visiting fellow."
"Donald Rumsfeld has a remarkable record of achievement," Raisian told the 
Stanford Faculty Senate. "Like it or not, he has had a distinguished 
career."
Rumsfeld twice served as defense secretary under President Gerald Ford and 
President George W. Bush. He also served under President Richard Nixon; in 
the House of Representatives; as an ambassador to NATO; and as chief 
executive of two Fortune 500 companies.
"The concern with Secretary Rumsfeld is that he might be distinguished for 
the wrong reasons," said David Spiegel, a professor in the department of 
psychiatry and behavioral sciences. "The fact that he is available for this 
appointment speaks to his difficulties."
The position does not require residency in the San Francisco area, one of 
the hotbeds of anti-Iraq war sentiment since Bush launched the war that 
toppled Saddam Hussein.
"If you consider his entire career, you could make an argument for the title 
distinguished," said Debra Satz, an associate professor in the department of 
philosophy.
"But really, we're talking about the last six or seven years and I think 
across the board, he has been an incompetent secretary of defense."
(Reporting by Clare Baldwin; writing by Adam Tanner; editing by Todd 
Eastham)


http://www.theolympian.com/570/story/268949.html

 Tempers cool at site of Olympia war protest

Turmoil eases at port; protesters at forum criticize police actions
Heather Woodward
The Olympian
OLYMPIA - Iraq War protesers clashed with police early Sunday morning as 
criticism of police crowd control tactics mounted.
Olympia police arrested three people and sprayed at least two others with 
pepper spray Sunday morning. Twelve people were arrested Saturday.
Demonstrators who carried "Support the troops" signs gathered across the 
street from those protesting military-cargo shipments at the Port of 
Olympia, but the rest of Sunday was relatively quiet, police said.
Sunday night, roughly 100 people attended a standing-room-only forum at 
Olympia City Hall organized by City Councilman TJ Johnson to discuss whether 
police have gone too far in their use of batons and pepper spray at the 
recent protests.
Johnson told those who attended to fill out citizen complaint forms, which 
were available at the forum, if they wanted to report something they 
perceived as improper behavior by a city of Olympia employee.
Olympia police Cmdr. Tor Bjornstad said police have not swung their batons 
at anyone but have used them to push back protesters trying to block 
roadways. And he said everyone who was sprayed with pepper spray was warned 
at least four times beforehand. Some who attended Sunday night's forum said 
they were sprayed without warning.
Police response
But Bjornstad said: "No one got sprayed that didn't know it was coming."
Though he stopped short of accusing police officers of misconduct, Johnson 
called the situation a "significant crisis" and said he decided to organize 
the forum because he was concerned by police acts he'd witnessed and heard 
about.
Olympia Mayor Mark Foutch released a written statement Sunday that said any 
reports of excessive police force that are filed with the city will be 
"thoroughly and impartially" investigated. But he said police reported that 
some demonstrators have acted in ways that exceeded their rights to use 
public roads for political expression. And he said demonstrators need to 
"express their opinions in ways that do not block the public rights-of-way 
for unreasonable periods and to respond promptly to lawful requests and 
orders of police officers on the scene."
A week of unrest

Monday

The USNS Brittin lands at the Port of Olympia to unload equipment that was 
used in Iraq by the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division (Stryker Brigade 
Combat Team).

Tuesday

About 150 protesters carry signs and chant as they march from Percival 
Landing through downtown, backing up traffic on Fourth Avenue as they make 
their way to the fenced-off area where the USNS Brittin is docked. There is 
little interaction between protesters and police.

Wednesday

Two people are arrested Wednesday night and early Thursday morning. Protests 
start out calm but escalate as the evening progresses and protesters chase 
or jump in front of combat vehicles leaving the port. Police use batons and 
drag protesters out of the road.

Thursday

Protesters gather at the port entrance, but no convoys leave the port and 
there are no confrontations with police. Police report the extra response to 
the protests cost the city $10,000.

Friday

At 4 p.m., about 40 people block the paths of two trucks carrying a Stryker 
and cargo containers. The Olympia Police Department does not have enough 
officers to remove the protesters. Protesters remain at the port entrance 
all night and build a barricade of garbage cans and a truck axle at the 
Market Street and Marine Drive entrance. Port workers appear to cleared the 
barricade at about 8:15 a.m. Saturday.

Saturday

. 10:20 a.m.: Police force a line of protesters to move away from the Market 
Street port gates. No one is arrested.

. 12:15 p.m.: Police arrest at least three people near Plum Street and 
Fourth Avenue after protesters jump in front of a truck.

. 12:30 p.m.: Police arrest nine more people who had linked arms through PVC 
pipe, partly blockading Plum Street near Union Avenue in an attempt to keep 
a convoy from getting onto Interstate 5.

. 2:30 p.m.: Olympia Port Militarization Resistance members meet to discuss 
upcoming plans and vow to continue to resist any shipments.

http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/thebigblog/archives/126021.asp


Protest du Jour: Anti-war movement turns up the heat
For more than a week now, anti-war protesters have been marching on the Port 
of Olympia, where equipment from the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, the 
Stryker Brigade, is being unloaded for return to Fort Lewis.
Protest organizers initially said they were looking for a peaceful 
demonstration, even asking supporters to bring their families. But Tuesday 
night, 50 protesters were arrested in a clash with police.
This new Thursday morning from The Associated Press:
Military equipment is on the move again at the Port of Olympia and so are 
anti-war protesters.
At least three semi-trucks have left the port carrying Stryker vehicles used 
in Iraq back to Fort Lewis.
Anti-war protest leaders say they're mobilizing again, and a squad of police 
in riot gear is at the scene.
It was relatively quiet overnight, but in the past week 60 anti-war 
demonstrators have been arrested trying to block military equipment that is 
being unloaded.
And in Seattle, two anti-war marches on Friday could delay afternoon traffic 
and part of the evening commute, city officials warned.
A March Against the War will begin at 12:30 p.m. at the south plaza of 
Seattle Central Community College, at Broadway and East Pine Street. The 
march will move west on Pine to Westlake Park on Fourth Avenue and is 
expected to last 30 to 45 minutes. About 250 people are expected to take 
part.
A second protest march, Youth March for Books not Bombs, will begin at 2:15 
p.m. at Westlake Park. It will move west on Pine Street to Second Avenue, 
south on Second to Jackson, east on Jackson to 23rd Avenue South, south on 
23rd to Dearborn Street and then west on Dearborn to Judkins Park.
As many as 3,000 people are expected to participate, according to a city 
announcement, which said anyone traveling into or out of the downtown core 
area "should plan on delays in their commute as the peak afternoon traffic 
will be impacted."
Posted by Candace Heckman Candace Heckmanat November 15, 2007 9:03 a.m.
Categories: News updates, Protest Du Jour
Comments
#67194
Posted by unregistered user at 11/15/07 9:51 a.m.
>From the Associated Press:

On Friday, protesters, including several small children, were able to keep 
two trucks from leaving the port. Olympia police said the department did not 
have enough officers available to remove the protesters Friday, and that 
they were not prepared to physically remove children.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/11/14/america/NA-GEN-US-Anti-War-Protest.php


Dozens arrested in US anti-war protest

The Associated Press
Published: November 14, 2007

OLYMPIA, Washington: More than 40 people were arrested as anti-war 
protesters again tried to block shipments of military gear to a local U.S. 
Army brigade, even pouring cement on railroad tracks in a failed effort to 
stop trains.
Police wearing riot gear fired pepper spray projectiles into a crowd of more 
than 150 protesters Tuesday night at the Port of Olympia, and several 
military convoys eventually moved out.
Olympia police spokesman Dick Machlan said 43 people were arrested and then 
released while prosecutors decide whether to charge them.
Andrew Yankey, a spokesman for the anti-war Olympia Port Militarization 
Resistance, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the demonstrators 
were not protesting the soldiers, who had recently returned from Iraq, but 
the equipment that he said likely will be shipped to war again.
"The soldiers have made it home, and we're really glad about that," he said. 
"This is about the military equipment. As long as the government refuses to 
listen to the will of the vast majority of people who want an end to this 
war, it's not safe to allow the military to have its hands on this equipment 
because it will continue to support the war in Iraq."

The protests, with other arrests, began last week.
Costa said the crowd was warned five times Tuesday that pepper gas would be 
used.
"We're going to keep moving equipment as long as we can," Costa said.
Officials with the port did not immediately return phone calls Wednesday, 
and it was unclear whether more shipments would be unloaded Wednesday night.
Also present Tuesday were 30 to 40 counter-demonstrators who said the 
protesters were a disgrace and that the returning troops should be welcomed 
home without being denied their equipment.
Jill Wolf said she strongly opposes the war in Iraq but took issue with the 
protesters' tactics and described them as criminals.
"I would suggest that today's protesters are making Olympia look ridiculous 
while wasting thousands of dollars in taxpayers' money," Wolf said.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-12/31/content_7342651.htm


U.S. anti-war activists plan protest on sidelines of Rose Parade

    LOS ANGELES, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- U.S. anti-war activists said Sunday 
they plan to protest on the sidelines of the Rose Parade in Pasadena on New 
Year's day, calling for an end to the Iraq war and the impeachment of 
President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.

    A group call itself the White Rose Coalition said its members would 
demonstrate in front of the TV camera platforms from 6 a.m. on New Year's 
Day, two hours before the famous annual holiday event begins.

    Organizers plan to start demonstrating during pre-parade telecasts, 
according to Peter Thottam, the coalition's spokesman.

    "Everything we are doing is strictly within our First Amendment rights, 
and we do not want to interrupt anyone's enjoyment of the parade," he said. 
"We have made it clear to every participant that we want to be respectful."

    "We are a decentralized group simply trying to get our message out 
through the mainstream media blockade, especially about the impeachment of 
the president of the United States," said Thottam, a lawyer and former 
political candidate for the Green Party.

    The White Rose Coalition, which takes its name after a short-lived 
resistance movement to Nazi power in Munich in 1942, said on its website 
that activists will unfurl a banner and demonstrate as the Port of Los 
Angeles float passes by the grandstands on Colorado Boulevard at about 9 
a.m.

    According to Tottham, California peace activist Cindy Sheehan reportedly 
will also attend.

    The spokesman said that protest organizers have been promised by police 
and Tournament of Roses officials that they will not be arrested if they do 
not hold up signs as to block other persons' views.

    About 1 million people from across the United States are expected to 
attend the 119th Annual Tournament of Roses Parade, which will be broadcast 
live by major U.S. television networks and watched by millions of people 
around the world.

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article3220962.ece
Praise for Turner jury as prize goes to war protest
By Arifa Akbar, Arts Reporter
Published: 04 December 2007
It is the country's foremost visual arts prize which never ceases to 
generate outrage for honouring conceptual works that are accused of bearing 
little relevance to real life.
But last night, Mark Wallinger won the Turner Prize by delivering a searing 
attack on the Iraq war with his installation, State Britain. The work, 
composed of 600 anti-war banners, photographs and placards, meticulously 
recreates the "peace camp" set up by Brian Haw in Parliament Square.
Picking up the £25,000 prize presented at Tate Liverpool by the actor and 
art collector Dennis Hopper, Wallinger praised Mr Haw for his campaign and 
called for an end to occupation in Iraq. "Brian Haw is a remarkable man who 
has waged a war against the folly and hubris of our government for 
six-and-a-half years. He is a last dissenting voice. Bring home the troops, 
give us back our rights, trust the people ... It's important that these 
freedoms are fought for and preserved," he said.
Mr Haw, who still camps outside Parliament Square and was present at the 
ceremony, said: "Art can't get more real than State Britain." He said he was 
not initially convinced by the idea when Wallinger approached him. "I 
politely told him to 'piss off'. I get so many people coming up to me. But 
we sat down to chat and I thought that he shared the same heart as I have, 
he cared for people," said Mr Haw.
He said Wallinger took hundreds of photographs of his 40-metre-wide protest 
camp, just days before it was dismantled in May last year, under the Serious 
Organised Crime and Police Act prohibiting unauthorised demonstrations 
within a kilometre radius of Parliament Square.
Faithful in every detail to Mr Haw's peace camp, it reproduces everything 
from the makeshift tarpaulin shelter and tea-making area to hand-painted 
placards and teddy bears wearing T-shirts with peace slogans. In bringing a 
reconstruction of Mr Haw's protest back into the public domain, Wallinger 
was seen to be raising questions around issues of freedom of expression and 
the erosion of civil liberties.
It was described as "visceral and historically important" by Tate jurors and 
commended for putting the "viewer in the emotional field of the loneliness 
of protest". A Tate statement added that it " combined a bold political 
statement with art's ability to articulate fundamental human truths".
It will undoubtedly be welcomed by those who have criticised the prize for 
losing its connection with social reality over the years.
Wallinger, 48, had been the critics' choice on a shortlist that included 
Mike Nelson, who had previously been nominated for the prize in 2001, and 
whose work included the recreation of a photographer's darkroom; Nathan 
Coley, who focused on belief systems, and Zarina Bhimji for her footage 
dealing with themes of colonial history and immigration.


http://media.www.dailytargum.com/media/storage/paper168/news/2007/12/10/University/Activists.Protest.War.Through.Night.Of.Music-3140253.shtml


Activists protest war through night of music
Rutgers Against the War brings political issues to the fore with local 
artists, poets
M. Aasin Pena / Staff Writer
Issue date: 12/10/07 Section: University
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Some activists voice their opinions at protests and marches, but for those 
attending the Drop Beats Not Bombs event on Saturday night, music was the 
preferred medium.

The event, which took place in the Red Lion Café of the Rutgers Student 
Center on the College Avenue campus, was hosted by Rutgers Against the War 
and was designed to show an alternative sound that is not commonly heard in 
the mainstream media.

Students who attended were able to hear local political music artists, hear 
spoken-word from fellow students and learn more about issues that often go 
unaddressed in the media.

Although the show was organized by RAW, board member Tiffany Cheng, a School 
of Arts and Sciences student, said she felt the show was more than just a 
protest against the Iraq war through music.

"Our issues are not just about the Iraq war because we are going to be 
talking about other social issues and just the way in which music and other 
things like spoken-word can be an outlet for . your opinions," Cheng said.

Music is just one of the many ways people can show how they really feel 
about the war, said RAW member Sumia Ibrahim, a Rutgers College senior.

"There are a lot of ways people are expressing how they feel about this war 
alongside the U.S. policy around the world, and music is one of those ways 
that it is being expressed," Ibrahim said. "We wanted to bring out one of 
the more entertaining aspects of the anti-war work that is being done, and 
we also wanted the people to listen to the music and get the message but 
also have a fun time."

School of Arts and Sciences first-year student Sean Battle said shows like 
these make people more aware of the issues affecting the world around them.

"I feel that people sometimes don't read the newspapers or watch the TV news 
because it is too depressing for them," said Battle, a member of Verbal 
Mayhem, which is a student group that performs spoken-word and poetry. "I 
think that through events like these where it is a form of entertainment, it 
will be entertainment to them. But at the same time, it opens their eyes to 
what is going on out there in the world."

Son of Nun, one of the hip-hop artists performing at the event, said he felt 
it was good that students came to show their support for the anti-war 
movement, and he hoped it would help to broaden the scope of their political 
aims.

"When you see blacks protesting, it's about the death penalty or the 
prisons. Yet, when you see white people protesting, it's about the war," Son 
of Nun said. "[Government officials] are not a single issue group in the 
White House, and we can't afford to be either."

RAW is part of a coalition of various student organizations at the 
University that is part of the anti-war movement dedicated to helping end 
the U.S. occupation in Iraq.

http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/thebigblog/archives/128449.asp


Protest du Jour: Feast of the Holy Innocents

Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Bellevue will host a special Greater Church 
Council service Friday evening to remember civilians who have suffered and 
died because of the war in Iraq.

In Catholic, as well as Lutheran, tradition, Dec. 28 marks the Feast of the 
Holy Innocents. It represents a day to commemorate the slaughter of the 
children of Palestine at the hands of King Herod and the Roman Empire when 
rumors spread throughout the Holy Land of the coming Messiah.

The gathering will take place at the church at 4315 129th Place S.E. in 
Bellevue from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

According to event organizer, Bill Grace, "We anticipate leaving this 
gathering touched deeply by the pain of our time and renewed in our 
conviction to engage the powers of this world and call an end to this unjust 
war."

And if the religious context is too heavy for you, but you would still like 
to end 2007 sticking it to The Man over Iraq, here are a couple of other 
protests Friday.

Bremerton, 5:10 - 6:40 p.m., corner of Washington Avenue and First Street, a 
group will be greeting two ferry commuter boats.

Redmond, 6 to 7 p.m., at Anderson Park, Redmond Road at 168th Street. Bring 
signs. This group is affiliated with Evergreen Peace and Justice and SNOW 
Sound Nonviolent Opponents of War.

And, oh yeah, it's also Critical Mass Friday downtown. Enjoy!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/09/2113724.htm


Campaigners protest Iraq, Afghan deployments

Posted Sun Dec 9, 2007 5:06pm AEDT


A spokeswoman for Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon says Labor recognises the 
importance of the work being done in Afghanistan. (File photo) (ADF)
Related Story: 'No decision made' on Afghan deployment

A anti-war group says it will lobby the Federal Government to withdraw 
Australian troops from Afghanistan as well as Iraq.

The Stop The War Coalition held a small demonstration outside Sydney's Town 
Hall this afternoon to protest against Australia's involvement in overseas 
conflicts.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is planning to have all combat troops in Iraq 
withdrawn by the middle of next year.

But the Coalition's Alex Bainbridge says he should go further.

"The Stop The War Coalition is very pleased to see the end of the Howard 
government, but we're continuing our campaign because we want to see an end 
to both the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan," he said.

"So far, Rudd's promises fall a long way short of that."

'No formal decisions'

Fairfax newspapers today quoted officials from the Dutch Government, who say 
they have extended the deployment of their troops until 2010 partly because 
Australia has made the same commitment.

A spokeswoman for Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon says no such decision has 
been made.

She says Labor recognises the importance of the work being done in 
Afghanistan and the Government will consider further reasonable requests for 
more assistance.

The Sunday Age says it does not know whether the reported decision to keep 
troops in Afghanistan was made before or after the federal election.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004018413_webprotest16m.html


Friday, November 16, 2007 - Page updated at 11:01 PM
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Student protesters march through downtown Seattle
By Seattle Times staff
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THOMAS JAMES HURST / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Matthew Rousseau, center, chants anti-war slogans with a couple hundred 
protesters who marched through downtown Seattle.

ALAN BERNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Hundreds of students who walked out of class Friday to protest the war in 
Iraq, including Max Supler from The Center School at The Seattle Center, 
chant at Westlake Park before marching to Judkins Park. Supler left his 
science class and said four to five dozen of his classmates walked out as 
well.

ALAN BERNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Seneca Harper rallies a group at Seattle Central Community College Friday 
afternoon before Iraq war protesters marched to Westlake Park, where a 
larger crowd gathered.
A crowd of roughly 400 anti-war demonstrators - most of them high school and 
college students - marched through downtown Seattle today, carrying signs 
and chanting slogans such as "This is what democracy looks like!"
>From Westlake Center, they made their way to Jackson Street and 23rd Avenue, 
where they staged a brief sit-in in a parking lot outside of 
military-recruiting offices. The offices were closed today, apparently 
because of the protest.
Dozens of Seattle police officers escorted the demonstrators while others, 
armed with long sticks and pepper spray, stood behind fences and police tape 
outside the recruiting offices for the U.S. Army, Navy and Marine Corps.
No one was arrested and the young people continued their march to Judkins 
Park, their numbers shrinking to about 200 by the time the demonstration 
wrapped up about 3:30 p.m.


http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20070034181&ch=11/28/2007%208:40:00%20AM


Activists protest outside peace summit
 Associated Press
Wednesday, November 28, 2007 (Annapolis)
More than 100 activists demonstrated outside the US Naval Academy gates, 
offering their very public take on the Israeli-Palestinian dispute as 
diplomats met inside to chart a course toward peace.

The rallies on Tuesday ran the gamut from a costumed protester mocking 
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to a peace activist who was hopeful the 
talks would foster further peace negotiations such as those outlined by 
President George W Bush, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian 
President Mahmoud Abbas.

''We need to make sure that their voices can be heard thousands of miles 
away,'' said Erin Pineda of One Voice Movement, which supports 
Israeli-Palestinian efforts leading to a Palestinian state.

Officer Kevin Freeman, a spokesperson for the Annapolis Police Department, 
said there were no arrests during demonstrations. ''Everything went very 
smoothly,'' he said. ''There were no conflicts with police.''

Edgar Moreno, assistant director of domestic operations for diplomatic 
security at the US State Department, said there were no problems in 
Annapolis. ''Everything went well,'' he said.

The demonstrations in chilly, blustery downtown Annapolis were lightly 
attended compared with the tens of thousands of Palestinians in the 
Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip who rallied on Tuesday in opposition to the 
conference.

The one-day Annapolis conference was officially announced only a week in 
advance.

The tight schedule and short notice made it difficult for interest groups to 
rally large numbers of people.

Authorities, including officers from the city and the Maryland State Police, 
stood by to make sure the demonstrations were orderly.

When demonstrators marched from St Anne's to the historic City Dock, they 
encountered rival protesters and several shouting matches broke out.

The different groups soon went their separate ways and the formal 
demonstrations were over by mid-afternoon.

After the daylong portion of the conference held at the academy ended on 
Tuesday evening, authorities reopened streets near the campus.


http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/68356/


Twenty Thousand Protest at Fort Benning: Eleven Face Federal Criminal Trials
By Bill Quigley, TruthOut.org. Posted November 19, 2007.



Over 200 people have done time in federal prison time for previous 
protests..
In what has become the nation's largest annual gathering for peace and human 
rights, over twenty thousand people protested outside the gates of Fort 
Benning, GA, on November 18, 2007. Eleven people were arrested on federal 
criminal charges and face up to six months in prison.
Fort Benning is the site of the internationally notorious US Army training 
school for Latin American military and security personnel. For decades it 
was called the School of the Americas (SOA) - it is now called the Western 
Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC). The school has 
graduated hundreds of military officers who have led or participated in 
nearly every human rights atrocity in the hemisphere. Organizations across 
the world, including Amnesty International USA, have called for its closure 
since discovering copies of torture manuals used at the school. In June 
2007, 203 members of the US House of Representatives voted to close the 
scandal-ridden school - six votes shy of the margin of victory.
Thousands listened quietly as Adriana Portillo-Bartow told how her father, 
stepmother, sister, sister-in-law and two daughters, ages nine and 11, were 
"disappeared" in Guatemala in a war directed and carried out by graduates of 
the US Army School of the Americas. Thousands moved towards the gates of the 
Fort and called out "presente!" as the names of hundreds of other victims of 
graduates of the school were sung out.
Veterans of WWII, Korea, Vietnam and the never-ending Gulf Wars marched side 
by side with Catholic sisters and Buddhist monks. Flowers, posters, pictures 
and thousands of small white crosses bearing the names of people executed by 
graduates of the school were put on the closed padlocked gates topped with 
barbed wire. Thousands of college and high school students chanted and 
prayed Grandmothers for Peace as military loudspeakers blared warnings and 
law enforcement helicopters hovered overhead. Huge puppets, singing children 
and drum circles alternated with the spirited calls of priests, rabbis and 
ministers of many faiths and races. Songs in many languages, indigenous 
chants, guitars, horns and mountain flutes filled the air.
The eleven people who crossed onto the grounds were arrested by military 
police. The eleven, ranging in age from 25 to 76, are scheduled for federal 
criminal trial January 28, 2008, for trespass - punishable by up to six 
months in federal prison. Over 200 people have served federal prison time 
for civil disobedience at prior protests - dozens of others arrested have 
served years of supervised federal probation. The movement to close the 
school started in 1990 when about 20 people held the first protest outside 
Fort Benning.
Even if the US government is reluctant to close the school, Latin American 
countries look like they will do it themselves. Argentina, Bolivia, Costa 
Rica, Uruguay and Venezuela have announced they are withdrawing their 
militaries from the school.
Crimes by graduates continue. Colombia recently arrested five high-ranking 
military officers who received training at the US Army School of Americas 
and two additional officers who were instructors at WHINSEC. All are charged 
with providing security and troops for the major drug cartel in Colombia.
Simultaneous protests occurred in Santiago, Chile, Tucson, Arizona - outside 
of Fort Huachuca - where three people were also arrested and face federal 
criminal charges, Toronto, Canada, as well as Berkeley and Monterey 
California.
For more on the movement to close the School of the Americas see SOA Watch.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/11/05/africa/ME-GEN-Lebanon-Mines-Protest.php


Dozens of Lebanese protest cluster bombs with sit-in in Beirut

The Associated Press
Published: November 5, 2007

BEIRUT, Lebanon: Dozens of people held a sit-in protest Monday in downtown 
Beirut against the use of cluster bombs and mines that have killed and 
wounded scores of Lebanese over the past years.
Some 70 protesters lit candles on Parliament Square which was decorated with 
posters of victims of cluster bombs and mines, as well as pictures depicting 
different types of the bombs.
An undetermined number of mines and cluster bombs are still believed to be 
scattered across Lebanon, left behind from the 1975-90 civil war, the 
Israeli occupation and the 34-day conflict in the summer of 2006 between 
Israel and the militant Hezbollah group.
U.N. ordnance-clearing experts say that up to 1 million have failed to 
explode and now endanger civilians in the area.
Members of the nongovernment Norwegian People's Aid organization took part 
in the Beirut sit-in. Earlier Monday, a seminar about the bombs was held at 
the parliament.
Lawmaker Abdul-Latif el-Zein accused Israel of making the work of the 
Lebanese troops and volunteers difficult by not providing maps of mines 
planted during the Jewish state's 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon 
that ended in 2000.
"We are in bad need of the maps but Israel ... makes the mission of people 
who work in this field and the Lebanese army very difficult," el-Zein said.
Legislator Michel Moussa, who heads the parliament's human rights committee, 
said the "use of such deadly weapons should be banned."
Dalya Farran, a spokeswoman for the U.N.'s Mine Action Coordination Center, 
or MACC, has said that since the end of last year's Israel-Hezbollah war, 25 
civilians were killed and 185 wounded by cluster bomb and other ordnance 
explosions. Thirteen mine experts have also died during minesweeping 
operations. The most recent fatality was a British expert who died in an 
Oct. 11 blast.


http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-30774420071130


Pakistani Kashmiris protest for truck service
Fri Nov 30, 2007 9:09pm IST

MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan (Reuters) - Activists from an independence movement 
held a protest in Pakistani Kashmir on Friday calling for a truck service to 
be started between Muzaffarabad and Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian 
Kashmir.
Around 100 people joined the demonstration in Muzaffarabad, before around 
three dozen took the protest to Chakothi, a small town close to the 
ceasefire line, or line of control, dividing the disputed Himalayan region.
They were blocked from going any further by police.
"A truck service between Muzaffarabad and Srinagar must be started soon if 
the two governments are sincere in helping Kashmiris. Otherwise we are right 
in believing that they are paying lip service to us," said Farooq Niazi, one 
of the demonstrators.
The protesters belonged to the All Parties Nationalist Alliance, an umbrella 
organisation for nearly a dozen pro-independence Kashmiri groups.
Residents in Chakothi said the protesters made speeches calling on India and 
Pakistan to let Kashmir become an independent nation.
Indian Kashmir has been beset by separatist violence for years, but some 
Kashmiris in the Pakistani portion have also agitated peacefully for 
independence.
India and Pakistan, which have fought three wars since partition in 1947, 
agreed in May 2006 to start a truck service between Srinagar and 
Muzaffarabad, one of many confidence-building measures undertaken since the 
two sides began a peace process in 2004.
Several rounds of talks were held and the two sides have exchanged lists of 
items to be traded, but traders have been left waiting for the service to 
start.

http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/thebigblog/archives/128158.asp


Protest du Jour: March for Somalia

More than 500 people are expected to gather in Occidental Square, then march 
to the Jackson Federal Building Friday afternoon to bring attention to 
Ethiopia's invasion of Somalia a year ago.

Ethiopian troops, with the United States' backing, marched into Mogadishu 
last December with a peacekeeping mission to support Somalia's fragile new 
government. But fighting between joint Ethiopian and Somalian forces and a 
fierce insurgency has created what the United Nations is calling one of 
Africa's worst humanitarian crises.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi this week defended his army's actions 
(Ethiopian troops have been accused of firing at civilian targets), and told 
the BBC that the UN's recent security assessment was an exaggeration.

In Seattle, "Ethiopia's Illegal Invasion in Somalia Peaceful March" will 
begin at 2 p.m. Here are the details:

At 2:30 p.m., marchers under Seattle police escort, will head east on Main 
Street to Fourth Avenue South, go north toward Madison Street, then west to 
Madison and Second Avenue.

The march is expected to take about 45 minutes, and will block traffic 
downtown. City transportation officials warn motorists to expect delays.
Posted by Candace Heckman at December 21, 2007 9:12 a.m.

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