Anti-militarism

13 August 2011Feature

Once again this year Aberystwyth Town Council will lay a white poppy wreath at the war memorial. The ceremony takes place on Saturday 8 November at 11am. In taking this action Aberystwyth Town Council is unique in Britain. But the decision to maintain the tradition was not made easily. It took the casting vote of the Mayor, Sue Jones-Davies.
The white poppy not only commemorates all those who suffer in wars; it also sends out the message that “there are better ways to resolve conflicts…

13 August 2011Feature

On 8 September, the Fellowship of Reconciliation commemorated “the burning of the bombing school” with a protest against the proposed St Athan military training academy.

The burning of the bombing school took place at Penyberth near Pwllheli in 1936. Ignoring the objections of the people of Wales, the British government developed an RAF bombing school on a site of particular importance in Welsh literary culture.

When the bombing school was set on fire, Plaid Cymru members…

13 August 2011Feature

Where’s the nearest army recruitment centre to you in Wales? Is there a company in your town selling combat raiding craft or “rugged use” military laptops? Is your local university teaming up with Rolls Royce to research the latest military technology? The Khaki Dragon project aims to bring together information on how the land, people, skills and knowledge within Wales contributes to war. The initial Khaki Dragon report Mapping Military Wales is soon to be available bilingually. It shows…

13 August 2011Feature

On 25 April, campaigners from all over Wales took part in a demonstration against plans to build a military academy at St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan. Courses at the proposed academy will train any military or security personnel who can pay. St Athan will be an institution whose purpose is to profit from violence and war.

CND Cymru is particularly concerned that those training for nuclear warfare will do so in our nuclear-free nation.
Chair of CND Cymru, Jill Evans, said…

13 August 2011Feature

The dominant image of the US response to the events of 11 September 2001 has been one of a people wanting vengeance, of an inevitable cycle of "justified" violence - manifesting as the "war on terror". Being visible against war and violence is not a popular position and may get you labelled as "unpatriotic" or as a "traitor". But what about when the people calling for a halt to the violence are those who lost the most - the families of the 11 September victims? Peace News talks with Ryan Amundson from the Peaceful Tomorrows group about turning grief into action.

On 11 September Ryans brother was killed in the attack on the Pentagon - where he was an enlisted specialist in the US army working as a multimedia illustrator. On 14 February 2002 - along with representatives of several other victims families - Ryan launched the Peaceful Tomorrows organisation.

PN: How and why did you start Peaceful Tomorrows?
Ryan: The horror of violence was never real to me before by brother was killed on 11 September, leaving behind a wife…

13 August 2011Feature

In recent years militaries have tried to carve out a new role for themselves by engaging in "peacekeeping" duties in conflict areas around the world. This is the acceptable face of militarism. PN spoke with Bobi from the Group for Anti-Militarist Action in Macedonia about life with NATO.

PN: For some years now Macedonia has been on the receiving end of “humanitarian” military interventions [see box below for a list of international missions to Macedonia]. NATO peacekeeping forces have been deployed in Macedonia for several years already, and will probably remain there for years to come. Can you briefly explain the different “peacekeeping” missions that have taken place in your country and what their aims were?

Bobi: The first NATO troops arrived in…

1 June 2011News

On “Armed Forces Day” we will remember the civilians killed by unmanned aerial vehicles (“drones”).

Peace News readers are invited to join Cymdeithas y Cymod (the Fellowship of Reconciliation in Wales) on their pilgrimage to the military training ground on Epynt in mid-Wales on 25 June.

The area between Epynt and Aberporth on Cardigan Bay is one of the two places in Europe where testing drones is permitted. These unmanned aeroplanes are part of the recent development in robots used as arms. Those used in Afghanistan and Libya are controlled thousands of miles away in a centre…

1 May 2011Feature

The report that led to its author, a young Egyptian peace activist, being imprisoned on 12 April for three years. Its title refers to the demonstrators’chant in Tahrir Square: “the army and the people are one hand!”

On 11 February, after president Hosni Mubarak’s stepping-down speech, many Egyptians rushed to declaring victory and the completion of the revolution. I regret having to say the following, mostly because many of those who spoke out are my friends, but people have the right to know the truth. In fact, the revolution has so far managed to get rid of the dictator but not of the dictatorship.

As I participated in the revolution since day one, I’ve witnessed the majority of the events. I…

1 May 2011Feature

“We got rid of the dictator, but not of the dictatorship”. Maikel Nabil Sanad wrote this in a post on his blog, in which he analysed the role of the Egyptian military during and after the revolution that toppled dictator Hosni Mubarak. Three weeks later, on 28 March, he was arrested by military police. A judge then ordered his imprisonment for 15 days, pending the investigation on charges of “insulting the military” and “obstructing public security”.

The trial itself was adjourned…

1 May 2011News

This year’s Unarmed Forces Day on Saturday 25 June has a North African theme to it

For the last two years, Peace News has sponsored Unarmed Forces Day as a modest initiative to counter the ministry of defence’s celebration of militarism, “Armed Forces Day”.

Unarmed Forces Day, held on the same day, is a chance for groups around the country to celebrate the power of nonviolent action.

Recruitment day

Officially, Armed Forces Day (AFD) is “an annual opportunity for the nation to Show Your Support for the men and women who make up the Armed Forces…

2 March 2011Blog

<p>Should ex-soldiers be enlisted as teachers?</p>

I have just read that Lordswood School in Birmingham employs ex-soldiers as teachers and runs a cadet-force to which a fifth of the pupils belong. They wear uniforms and they are taught to shoot.

Michael Gove believes this is the right way to tackle disorder in the classroom. He says, ‘The presence of role models who have the sort of experience in taking young people and forging them into a cohesive team and instilling discipline; I think that will be immensely valuable.’ (Quoted in…

1 March 2011Comment

Why does CND advocate military spending?

Last year, the Conservative chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne announced that any replacement of the Trident nuclear missile system would have to come out of a reduced MOD budget. CND responded with the report Trident, Jobs and the UK Economy which argued that Trident replacement would therefore lead to the loss of other defence sector jobs. Peace News praised the report (PN 2526) because it recommended the conversion of Aldermaston and Barrow to work on disarmament and production of…

1 February 2011Short Review

MAW, 2010; 104pp; £10; includes CD

Providing material not only for Remembrance Sunday but for other occasions which call for reflection on the reality of war and its cost, and the desire to work for peace and its cost too. The introduction on Henry Allingham and Harry Patch sets the tone which, in a variety of ways, honours the words of Harry Patch: “War isn’t worth one life”.

1 December 2010News

On 6 November, a small but dedicated group of peace campaigners braved the rain in Glasgow’s Victoria Park for a rededication of the Peace Tree. This cherry tree was presented to Glasgow by Christian CND 21 years ago, to mark their 1989 annual conference.

Speakers Pauline McNeill MSP and Martin Bartos of the Green Party reaffirmed their own personal commitments to the anti-nuclear cause and reminded the gathering of their membership of the burgeoning worldwide movement for a…

1 December 2010News in Brief

On 30 October, Alternativa Antimilitarista-MOC activists breached security at the Bétera NATO base in Valencia. Wearing white coats and umbrellas with anti-war symbols, 15 activists took scooters and bicycles under the security fencing and rode around inside while others played football and other games.

The activists were detained for an hour and then released. The organisers said that this was the first of a series of international anti-militarist actions against the Afghanistan…