Demonstrations on September 27

[roodzwijntje]

Comrades,

I hope all of you will leave the revolutionary internet chair (just kidding) to have some real action tomorrow, because as you'll know, there's an international protest being called against the occupation in Iraq. I don't know about other countries, so I'll speak for where I live, Belgium: tomorrow, saturday, there'll be a demo in Brussels.  Expectations are that the turn-out will be quite low, especially compared to the mass demonstrations of some months ago. Objective factors could explain this (still a feeling of despair and powerlessness among a lot of people after the end of the war; universities haven't started yet), but also, and mainly, a serious lack of publicity is likely to be the cause. Of course we still need to see how things will turn out, but in any case, there are some die-hard activists I know and even they, who are on all sorts of email lists, didn't know about the demo. Previously, all kinds of peace organisations and NGO's mobilised here, but it seems that they are not interested anymore...
Anyway, in my town, along with some comrades we have put up some posters and distributed leaflets advertising the demo. We'll see what will come. In any case, let this be an opportunity to post some reports on this board about the demos around the whole world and let's compare them!

[T.K.A.-Denmark]

I wasn't at the demo in Copenhagen but I can tell what the comrades told me.
The media claimed that there was 600 and they always tend to put the number low, but actually the comrade I talked to said that he didn't think that there was more than 300!
The comrades of Socialistisk Standpunkt was of course there and sold papers (don't know the number).
This demonstration I was told only consisted of the ussual leftwingers so this is of course a bit sad.
The problem in Denmark as I see it is that the demonstration comitees has been taken over by the International Socialists (danish SWP) and I think most of us here knows about their methods of work.:mad:
The demonstration was poorly advertised and the slogans was things like: "the government has lied Denmark into war" and some other slogans I don't remember.
As it is know this movement seems to be going down, how is it in your countries?
Comradely

[roodzwijntje]

Short report on the Brussels demo:
As expected the turn-out was quite low. The media reported about a thousand protesters, organisers claim two thousand. I think there were about 1,200. As in Copenhagen, it was "the usual suspects" you saw, it certainly was not a mass movement. You know, the usual people on the left. Despite this we managed to sell quite some "no blood for oil" stickers and our September paper (October issue will be out soon). By "we" I mean our Marxist tendency "Vonk" ("spark" in Dutch). We were present with about 20 comrades and sympathisers and we formed a contingent in the demonstration with a big (and really nice!) "no blood for oil" banner. Comrades interested in what sort of posters we put up to advertise the demo may want to take a look at the homepage of our website www.vonk.org , which displays the banner, though without the details of the demo.
As for the rest, despite the small size, it was a good demo with a good atmosphere. It was great to walk again in an anti-war demonstration, as it was already some months ago :)

I wonder how the demo was in London. I heard about 100,000 demonstrators, is this correct? What about the USA and Canada?

[TavareeshKamo]

yeah, was good.
100,000 to 150,000 people

some good speeches from the trade unionists.

Shame they gave so much time to the muslim groups, and talkedd about all religions blah blah

soft hippie bullshit

but was intersting none the less

[des-esseintes]

Will there be a major international demonstration on October 25th? I have heard this from some SWPers I know, is it true?

[petrel]

Yes, there will be demonstrations on October 25th. See http://www.internationalanswer.org/campaigns/o25/index.html

[kinetikos]

soft hippie bullshit

Right. Millions have risen. Nothing has been averted.

Nothing.

[TavareeshKamo]

is that sarcasm?

[kinetikos]

No.

?

[mir]

Kinetikos, what do you mean "millions have risen.  Nothing has been averted?"

[djn]

I think there was a few small ones in Canada...

...very small...

[kinetikos]

Kinetikos, what do you mean "millions have risen. Nothing has been averted?"

It is estimated that around 10 million people rose in protest of the invasion of Iraq. In Spain 1 out of 10 of the populace actively rose up and marched.

And the invaders didn't do so much as bat an eye.

Why? Because the invaders have nothing to fear from a disoriented mass. What is/has been going on in Colombia, Palestine, Indonesia etcetc. is just as heinous, but not as trendy. And most of the opposition to the War in Iraq is hypocritical politics as usual, it amounts to bourgeois in-fighting.

A clear a decisive break with all things bourgeois is needed. An honest and correctly oriented movement, if even 1/10000 the size of the mixed-up mass, would be infinitely more effective -- here and now and for the future.

That's what I think.

[TavareeshKamo]

youa are very correct kinetikos, and this is what i was discussing with a comrade while we were at the demo

[kinetikos]

you are very correct kinetikos, and this is what i was discussing with a comrade while we were at the demo

Thanks, Tava. Sounds to me like you were making the best use of the situation. Did you convince the person or anyone else?

[petrel]

Worldwide anti war demonstrations 27 September; see http://wsws.org/articles/2003/sep2003/awar-s29.shtml