Stop the privatisation of war

Private Military and Security Companies (PMSCa's) are profiting from war and insecurity.
Unnacountable and unregulated these companies are complicit in human rights abuses across the world, putting profit before people and fanning the flames of war. The British government believes PMSCa's are best left to police themselves through national standards and an International Code of Conduct.

This voluntary International Code of Conduct was launched on 19 September 2013.

For more information visit
http://www.waronwant.org/campaigns/corporations-and-conflict/private-armies/watch/17980-new-video-stop-the-privatisation-of-war

Filmaker: Adib Nessim

Composer: Eric Samothrakis

Woody Allen (b.1/12/35) - A Brief, Yet Helpful, Guide to Civil Disobedience

Some much needed irony and humour.

'In perpetrating a revolution, there are two requirements:
someone or something to revolt against and someone to actually show up and do the revolting. Dress is usually casual and both parties may be flexible about time and place but if either faction fails to attend, the whole enterprise is likely to come off badly. In the Chinese Revolution of 1650 neither party showed up and the deposit on the hall was forfeited.
  The people or parties revolted against are called the "oppressors" and are easily recognised as they seem to be the ones having all the fun. The "oppressors" generally get to wear suits, own land, and play their radios late at night without being yelled at. Their job is to maintain the "status quo," a condition where everything remains the same although they may be willing to paint every two years.
 When the "oppressors" become too strict, we have what is known as a police state, wherein all dissent is forbidden, as is chuckling, showing up in a bow tie, or referring to the mayor as "Fats." Civil liberties are greatly curtailed in a police state, and freedom of speech is unheard of, although one is allowed to mime to a record. Opinions critical of the government are not tolerated, particularly about their dancing. Freedom of the press is also curtailed and the ruling party "manages" the news, permitting the citizens to bear only acceptable political ideas and ball scores that will not cause unrest.
  The groups who revolt are called the "oppressed" and can generally be seen milling about and grumbling or claiming to have headaches. (It should be noted that the oppressors never revolt and attempt to become the oppressed as that would entail a change of underwear.)
  Some famous examples of revolutions are:

The French Revolution,

in which the peasants seized power by force and quickly changed all locks on the palace doors so the nobles could not get back in. They had a large party and gorged themselves. When the nobles finally recaptured the palace they were forced to clean up and found many stains and cigarette burns.

The Russian Revolution,

which simmered for years, and suddenly erupted when the serfs finally realised that the Czar and the Tsar were the same person.
  It should be noted that after the revolution is over, the "oppressed" frequently take over and begin acting like the "oppressors." Of course by then it is very hard to get them on the phone and money lent for cigarettes and gum during the fighting may as well be forgotten about.

Methods of Civil Disobedience:

Hunger Strike.

Here the oppressed goes without food until his demands are met. Insiduous politicians will often leave biscuits within easy reach or perhaps some cheddar cheese, but they must be resisted. If the party in power can get the striker to eat, they usually have little trouble putting down the insurrection. If they can get him to eat and also lift the check, they have won for sure. In Pakistan, a hunger strike was broken when the government produced an exceptionally fine veal cordon bleu which the masses found was too appealing to turn down, but such gourmet dishes are rare.
The problem with the hunger strike is that after several days one can get quite hungry, particularly since sound trucks are paid to go through the street saying, "Um . . . what nice chicken - umm . . . some peas . . . umm. . . "
A modified form of the Hunger Strike for those whose political convictions are not quite so radical is giving up on chives. This small gesture, when used properly, can greatly influence a government, and it is well known that Mahatma Gandhi's insistence on eating his salads untossed shamed the British government into many concessions.
Other things  besides food one can give up are: whist, smiling, and standing on one foot and imitating a crane.

Sit-Down Strike.

Proceed to a designated spot and then sit down, but sit all the way down. Otherwise you are squatting, a position that makes no political point unless the government is also squatting. (This is rare, although a government will occasiobally crouch in cold weather.) The trick is to remain seated until concessions are made, but as in the Hunger Strike, the government will try subtle means of making the striker rise. They may say, "Okay, everybody up, we're closing." Or, "Can you get up for a minute, we'd just like to see how tall you are?"

Demonstrations and Marches.

The key point about a demonstration is that it must be seen. Hence the term "demonstration." If a person demonstrates privately in his own home, this is not technically a demonstration but merely "acting silly" or "behaving like an ass."
A fine example of a demonstration was the Boston Tea Party, where outraged Americans disguised as Indians dumped British tea into the harbour. Later, Indians disguised as outraged Americans dumped actual British into the harbor. Following that, the British disguised as tea, dumped each other into the harbor. Finally, German mercenaries clad only in costumes from The Trojan Woman leapt into the harbor for no apparent reason.
When demonstrating, it is good to carry a placard stating one's position. Some suggested positions are:
(1) Lower taxes
(2) Raise taxes
(3) Stop grinning at Persians.

Miscellaneous methods of Civil Disobedience:

Standing in front of City Hall and chanting the word "pudding" until one's demands are met.
Tying up traffic by leading a flock of sheep into the shopping area.
Phoning members of "the establishment" and singing "Bless, You Is My Woman Now" into the phone.
Dressing as a policeman and then skipping.
Pretending to be an artichoke but punching people as they pass.

Reprinted From:
Without Feathers - Woody Allen
Sphere Books, 1975

But in all seriousness,
resistance is not futile.

It takes courage to change the world

This message is addressed to the leaders who will participate in the High-level meeting on nuclear disarmement that will take place on September 28 2013 in New York.
To those leaders we say, be brave and ban nuclear weapons. It takes courage to change the world.

There is a petition one could sign here:-
http://www.goodbyenuk.es/petitions/new.

Remembering Sabra and Shatila Massacre

Journalist Robert Fisk returns to the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon. Fisk recounts how Lebanese Christian militias who were under the control of the Israeli military murdered over 2000 Palestinians in the camps. Fisk also points to a building in the distance from where he insists the Israeli forces could witness the massacre. The Israeli government's own Kahan Commision found that future Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was personally responsible for the massacre. This is from a documentary Fisk made about ' why so many Muslims have come to hate the West.' But we know the real reason is because they hate our freedom right?

Last years post

http://teifidancer-teifidancer.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/remembering-30th-anniversary-of-sabra.html

This was one  of the most hideous massacres perpetrated on thousands of defenceless, children, women and men . This massacre lasted for 3 days. Around 20,000 refugees , lived in the refugee camp that was supposed, like any other camp, to recieve international protection. The residents were absolutlety defenceless, with Palestinian fighters having withdrawn from Lebanon, just 3 weeks prior, so the Israeli army in effect had control of the area around the camp.
Following the massacre, the Israeli Supreme Court ordered the foundation of a committe to investigate the circumstances of this horrific crime, against innocent, helpless refugees.
The Cahan Commission of 1983, decided that Ariel Sharon was 'indirectly responsible.'
But we should also remember that not one single Israeli officer, commander or soldier was ever held accountable for this ugly crime against  the Palestinian people and still the suffering of the Palestinian people continues, and the scars and memories remain.

50th Anniversary of Birmingham Church Bombing

On  Sunday  morning September 15, 1963, a dynamite bomb exploded at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four African-American young girls.
This cowardly, cold, calculating event should not be forgotten that saw Addie Mae Collins (14) Denise McNair (11), Carole Robertson (14), and Cynthia Wesley (14) killed in an act of racially motivated terrorism. Showing clearly to the World the heart of racial injustice and hatred that today shockingly has not dissapeared. This is  just one part of the landcape of America  that should not be forgotten.
Civil Rights activists blamed George Wallace, the Governor of Alabama, for the killings. Birmingham, a violent city, was nicknamed 'Bombingham,. because it had experienced more than 50 bombings in black institutions and homes since World War 1 probably by Ku Klux Klan members. Only a week before the bombing Wallace had told the New York Times that to stop the civil rights movement and the march towards integration Alabama needed a 'few first-class funerals.

Services for Victim of Birmingham Church Bombing

4 little girls :Birmingham Church Bombing

 

 

40th Anniversary of Chilean Coup: Justice Must be served

 

September 11, 2013, marks the 40th anniversary of the Chilean coup d'etat,  that ousted the democratically elected President of Chile, Salvador Allende, which led to a 17 year old repressive dictatorship and the torture and murder of thousands of innocents, under the auspices of General Augusto Pinochet from 1973 to 1990. On this day air force planes  bombed the presidential palace, and in the aftermath Allende lay dead, having committed suicide rather than be captured.
More  than 3,000 people were killed by state agents or dissapeared during this era, and more than 27,000 were tortured, with many thousands more being forced into exile. All told, the  present Chilean government now recognises that more than 40,000 people were killed, imprisoned and tortured for political reasons.

Sadly  many years after this brutal dictatorships demise, for many victims of the dictatorship has proven elusive. Many people  are still demanding truth and justice, and will not rest until they have found out was has happened to their loved ones, who were arrested, and went missing, never to return.
Barak Obama declared on Margaret Thatcher's death that she was "one of greatest champions of freedom and liberty." This is the same bit of poison that told her friend Pinochet that, she was " very much aware that it was you that brought  democracy to Chile, you set up a constitution  suitable for democracy."
Throughout Pinochets regime of terror he was supplied by UK Defence Manufacturers, the military junta that took power  bombed the presidential palace  using British Hawker Hunter aircraft. She personally after coming into power lifted the arms embargo on his regime. Whilst Thatcher fawned over him, Pinochet carried on killing, critics, and any form of opposition, among them the revered Chilean singer Victor Jara, who was arrested by the military and tortured at Estadio Chile, in front of thousands of onlookers, who was subsequently shot as he defied the taunting soldiers by singing, his body left bloodied, his bones and his hands broken and battered full of bullet holes.

Victor Jara

 Pinochet would always be thankful to Thatcher, visiting her on an annual pigrimage to London.
Pinochet eventually died in 2006, under house arrest, with many millions of pounds laundered in banks, but had  managed to avoid going on trial and thus avoiding justice.

Thatcher and Pinochet

 

 

Pinochet the murderous fascist dictator

 

For  many his legacy is one of state terrorism, and rampant disregard for human rights, he caused a whole society to become fearful, their daily lives one of terror. We must not forget, the dead and the missing, nor the human rights activists who shone a light on this dark regime. For many victims of the dictatorship justice has proven elusive, people still waiting to hear the outcome  of eight retired army officers who have been indicted in Chile in connection with the murder and torture of Jara.
According to Amnesty Internationals Deputy Director at the Americas Programme, Guadalupa Marenga " It is not acceptable that 40 years after the military coup the search for justic, truth and repatriation in Chile continues to be hampered. An amnesty law continues to shield human rights violators from prosecution, there are still long delays in judicial proceedings and sentences fail to reflect the severity of the crimes committed."
There is a petition by Amnsty International signed by thousands that you can sign here, calling on the Chilean authorities to put an end to all obstacles protecting the perpetrators of human rights violations in the country. The fight for justice continues.

http://www.amnistia.cl/web/formulario/40anosGolpeEstado/

Victor Jara of Chile - Adrian Mitchell

Victor Jara of Chile
Lived like a shooting star
He fought for the people of Chile
With his songs and his guitar

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

Victor Jara was a peasant
Worked from a few years old
He set upon his father's plough
And watched the earth unfold

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

When the neighbours had a wedding
Or one of their children died
His mother sang all night for them
With Victor by her side

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

He grew to be fighter
Against the people's wrongs
He listened to their grief and joy
And turned them into songs

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

He sang about the copper miners
And those who work the land
He sang about the factory workers
And they knew he was their man

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

He campaigned for Allende
working night and day
He sang take hold of your brother's hand
The future begins today

And his hands were gentle
is hands were strong

The bloody generals seized  Chile
hey arrested Victor  then
They caged him in a stadium
With five thousand frightened men

 And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

Victor stood in the stadium
His voice was brave and strong
He sang for his fellow prisoners
Til the guards cut short his song

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

They broke the bones in both his hands
They beat his lovely head
They tore him with electric shocks
After two days of torture they shot him dead

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

And now the Generals rule Chile
And the British have their thanks
For they rule with Hawkers Hunters
And they rule with Chieftain tanks

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

Victor Jara of Chile
Loved like a shooting star
He fought for thee people of Chile
With his songs and his guitar

And his hands were gentle
His hands were strong

Reprinted from:-
The Apeman Cometh - Adrian Mitchell
Jonathan Cape, 1975

This ballad was later set to music  by Arlo Guthrie, which you can hear here :-

 Earlier post  on Victor Jara's and his Last Song
:-http://teifidancer-teifidancer.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/victor-lidio-jara-280932-150932-chile.html

Venceremos- A Chilean Popular Song

 

March organised by National Association

of Human Rights in Santiago, to mark

40th anniversary

 

 

The War machine - Stop the DSEI Arms Fair

Occupy force of citizens against 'DSEI Arms Fair' in London
Media:http://www.demotix.com/news/2625053/occupy-force-citizens-against-dsei-arms-fair-london#media=2624895
Citizens from all nations protested against the DSEI Arms fair held in the Excel Centre in London. The demonstrators held a die-in and pitched roughly 30 tents in the area.
A massive week of action is currently underway running from 7-14 September to take action against this Arms Fair which is bringing together 28,000 international buyers and sellers. These deals fuel the Arms Trade the world over, fuelling repression, conflict amd military with the complicity of our government. The Stop the Arms Fair coalition has also been attempting to highlight the 'deep hypocricy' of inviting manufgactures of Syrian weapons to showcase their wares in the Uk, while also condemning Syrian President Bashar al Assad in using them.
I have just returned from a succesful demonstration against the use of Drones at Parc Aberporth, Blaennananerch, West Wales, where I joined over a hundred strong crowd to protest against the militarisation of Welsh airspace. Joining my local Amnesty Group, C.N.D Cymru and other groups to call for the end of military drone testing.
We were aghast at the thought of our own Welsh Assembly Economy Minister Edwina Hart being in attendence at the Arms Fair, it was of the opinion that she did not represent athe voices of the people of Wales and  dissaproved of her comments after visiting the Arms Fair where she is reported to have  said : "This event provides an important an mportant platform to showcase the innovation advanced technology coming out of Wales and offers an excellent business opportunity for these clever companies to promote their capability." What an idiot I thought there is nothing clever about companies that profit from war.
We were roused by stirring speeches  from many different activists from different parts of Wales, local poets, and inspiring music from Cor Cochion Cymru, and left detemined to continue to spread our  messages, loudly in the name of peace and justice,  against the  the use of drones and other weapons that are used frequently to kill ordinary people who are going about their everyday lives across the globe. We will continue to say no to their use, when far from being used innocently, are used as indiscriminate weapons indiscriminately against civilians.

 

 

 

 

 

Map for Drone Demo: Parc Aberporth 9/9/13

The above map shows where we are meeting for demo tomorrow http://teifidancer-teifidancer.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/military-drones-out-of-wales-end-drone.html , and this is an address for all coming from far away. I hope to see a few people here.

West Wales Airport,
Blaennanerch,
Aberporth,
Ceredigion,
SA432BN

Stop the Use of Child Soldiers

What is more abominable than recruiting kids to bear arms and kill? In so many countries, children have been recruited and used by armed forces, government-backed militias, and a complex range of armed groups with varying levels of comad structure and military, political or criminal objectives. Help Stop the Use of Child Soldiers!!!

http://www.culturesofresistance.org/groups-we-support-coalition-to-stop-the-use-of-child-soldiers

The Daily Mail Tube Map

Page 15 of today's Daily Mail carries am op-ed taking Hugo Boss to task over their historic link to the Nazis,  this is the same newspaper who ran the following headlines in the 1930's.

'Hurrah for the Blackshirts'

'Give the Blackshirts a helping hand'

http://politicalscrapbook.net

Meanwhile, for legal reasoms he can only be named as journalist 'F', but today this young member of the Daily Mail's editorial staff is in hiding as threats and invective continue to spew from Paul Dacre's office after their top secret editorial formula was leaked to the press.

http://www.thepoke.co.uk/2010/07/15/daily-mails-secret-editorial-formula-revealed/