Anti-war struggle ignites Third World
By John Catalinotto
In the first week of March, demonstrations to stop the
Pentagon assault on Iraq were, for the first time, larger in
countries in the Third World than in Europe or the United
States. The voice of oppressed masses of people is beginning to
be heard.
In the imperialist countries, anti-war activists prepared
for another round of protests on March 15, while workers
prepared job actions for March 14 and 21.
In many of the Third World countries, representatives of
governing parties joined the demonstrations. This was true even
where the governments had repres sed earlier protests. These
officials fear that if the U.S. unleashes aggression against
Iraq, Baghdad won't be the only capital where "regime change"
takes place.
In Indonesia's second-largest city, Surabaya
in East Java, as many as 800,000 people gathered on March 9
against the war on Iraq. Indonesia has the largest Muslim
population in the world.
Present at the Surabaya event were the foreign minister,
religious affairs minister, defense minister, head of the army,
and former president Abdurrahman Wahid, as well as several
ambassadors.
An estimated 160,000 Moroccans marched in the streets
of Casablanca the same day to protest "the imperialist
aggression of the United States." It was one of the largest
actions in the region. However, a day later, anti-war groups
reported over the internet that an unauthorized demonstration
had been attacked by police. Many were reportedly injured, 60
arrested and nine of the organizers held in detention.
In Rawalpindi, Pakistan, near Islamabad, some 200,000
people came out March 9--about four times as many as the week
before in Karachi.
With protests against U.S. policy growing in Pakistan, the
government announ ced March 10 that it would abstain from
supporting the U.S.-backed resolution against Iraq in the
Security Council.
In New Delhi, India, 50,000 people demonstrated.
In Egypt, the government has repres sed protests
against the U.S. war drive. Thirteen organizers of protests
initiated by the Dec. 18-19 Cairo Conference were arrested in
mid February and reportedly tortured.
Yet on March 2, a rally organized by opposition parties drew
more than 100,000 people to a rally in a stadium to oppose the
war. So on March 5, President Hosni Mubarak's National
Democratic Party called a protest. A half-million people came
out and chanted anti-war slogans--but, according to reports,
refrained from direct criticism of Bush or the U.S.
Ashraf Al Bayoumi, a founding member of the Popular
Committee to Oppose U.S. Aggression in Iraq, predicted that the
Egyptian government could channel public anger into carefully
controlled forums "for a little while." But the strategy could
spin out of control at any moment. "The conditions are
definitely there," he concluded, "but the velocity of things is
hard to predict--one scene on television could spark it
all."
Turkey has become a key area of confrontation between
a strongly anti-war population and the state--which is really a
military dictatorship with an electoral façade. The
Pentagon has continued to deploy troops there, in spite of a
parliamentary vote March 1 that refused to authorize it. That
vote was taken as 100,000 people demonstrated outside the
parliament building in Ankara. New confrontations are
possible as the movement prepares actions for March 15.
Italy, Spain, Britain
Anti-war movements have been most dynamic in the imperialist
NATO countries whose governments have lined up behind U.S.
imperialism.
In Italy, 1.5 million rainbow peace flags fly from
home windows and balconies.
John Gilbert from Florence reports, "On March 8,
International Women's Day, an estimated 60,000 marchers
demonstrated at the U.S. military base of Camp Darby, in
the Tuscan countryside between the Italian cities of Pisa and
Livorno, protesting the planned Iraq war and calling for the
closure of Camp Darby and its conversion to civilian use. Camp
Darby is reported to be the largest U.S. military arsenal
outside the U.S.
"The demonstrators included Catholic and other religious
groups, with large numbers of unionists, some carrying the red
flags of the CGIL union, representing over 5 million Italian
workers, and of the Cobas and other smaller union
confederations on the left.
"On three occasions demonstrators cut through and tore down
sections of the fence and dozens of activists entered the base
and planted peace flags on the military soil before being
pushed back and sometimes clubbed by the Italian police.
"Over the past few weeks anti-war demonstrators in Italy
have undertaken numerous acts of civil disobedience, blocking
dozens of 'death trains' transporting U.S. military equipment
to Camp Darby. The military equipment, reportedly including
depleted-uranium armaments, is probably headed for Turkey.
Union train workers have provided inside information to the
anti-war protesters as to the location and intended routes of
the 'death trains,' forcing authorities to re-route."
Any search of web sites from anti-war groups in Spain
shows a state of constant mobilization. March 15 is a target
date for demonstrations, which--as on Feb. 15--will be taking
place in every sizeable Spanish town, including Tenerife and
Gran Canarias in the Canary Islands, Palma de Mallorca, Madrid,
Bilbao and Barcelona.
Some 10,000 people braved heavy rains to demonstrate against
the war and Tony Blair's policies in Manchester,
England, on March 8.
British newspapers report that up to 200 Labor members of
parliament might vote against their own prime minister.
High-level cabinet staff, including Secre tary of State for
International Develo pment Clare Short, threatened to resign
their positions rather than go along with a war unauthorized by
the United Nations.
In Scotland, as many as 2,500 people came out in
Aberdeen to hear labor unionists and poli ti cians speak
against the war. Some 500 protesters turned up at RAF Leuchars
in Fife, the military air base for Tornado
fighter-bombers that would be used in attacks on Iraq.
Organizers report that 8,000 people participated in anti-war
demonstrations across Germany on March 8, including in
the eastern city of Dresden. In Stutt gart, some
300 people held an anti-war sit-in outside the U.S. Army's
European Command. German and French anti-war demonstrators
gathered along the bridge linking Neuenburg in
southwestern Germany with the eastern French town of
Chalampe.
Demonstrations, job actions
From March 14-16, demonstrations are planned across
Canada, Greece, Spain, Austria, France, Italy, Belgium,
Brazil, Cyprus, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Jordan, Mexico and
undoubtedly more countries.
Many of these are called in solidarity with the March 15
convergence on the White House and sister rallies the same day
in San Francisco and Los Angeles. The March 15 protest was
endorsed at a March 1 London meeting of the European
Coordination umbrella group.
In some countries, like the Nether lands, national
demonstrations are set for March 22.
Greece has been a center of anti-war activity since
NATO's assault on Yugo slavia four years ago. Meeting in
Greece, the European Trade Union Confed eration has already
called for a 15-minute work stoppage across Europe at noon on
March 14.
Unions across Europe are also preparing strikes of
four hours or more for March 21.
Reprinted from the March 20, 2003, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyrighted
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