07) PEACE MOVEMENTS CALL FOR ANTI-WAR PROTESTS

 

            On the heels of a Parliamentary vote approving Canada's participation in the US-led bombing of Iraq and Syria, anti-war groups are calling for protest actions.

 

            As this issue of PV went to press, affiliates of the Canadian Peace Alliance and the Quebec-based Collectif Echec a la guerre were mobilizing for rallies on the October 25-26 weekend, in Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, Edmonton, Vancouver and other cities.

 

            These protests coincide with the 12th anniversary of the October 2002 mobilizations in Canada and the US to oppose the preparation of the US invasion and the war of occupation in Iraq that would last from 2003 to 2011. Those early protests drew thousands, building towards much larger demonstrations leading up to the March 2003 invasion of Iraq. Huge protests of over 100,000 in Quebec were credited with forcing the Chretien Liberal government of the day to decline a formal military role in the invasion, although some Canadian Armed Forces personnel were involved as part of U.S. forces in the region.

 

            In early October, the opposition parties in Parliament voted against Canadian participation in the bombing campaign against Islamic State forces. Opinion polling and street actions by anti-war groups give diverging interpretations of public views on the war, but millions of Canadians are deeply ambivalent. Memories are still fresh about the U.S. lies to justify the 2003 war, and the humanitarian disaster which continues in Iraq to this day. Most Canadians are still not convinced that this country's role in the occupation of Afghanistan, which killed many thousands of Afghans and 158 Canadians, was worth the cost in blood and money.

 

            The lack of public enthusiasm for yet another war in the region is clearly a factor in the decision by the NDP and Liberal caucuses to vote against Harper's six-month military action. Anti-war groups hope that this situation may give time to begin building larger protests.

 

            The call-out from the Canadian Peace Alliance and Echec a la guerre states:

 

            "We invite the people of Quebec and Canada to protest:

 

            "Against a new illegal war that contributes to dismantling the existing world order and that threatens world peace and security while pretending to defend them;

 

            "Against the security and humanitarian pretexts invoked by the new coalition: the protection of Iraq's population has nothing to do with the real motives of this war, which will cause them more suffering and further deteriorate their living conditions;

 

            "Against a Canadian foreign policy centred on intensifying conflicts and war;

 

            "Against the hijacking of huge amounts of public resources to make war, promote the military industry, glorify the army and Canada's military past, while for many years austerity measures have cut education, healthcare, public services, the promotion of women's rights, the protection of the environment, international cooperation, etc.

 

            "Together, let's take to the streets to demand:

 

            "The immediate end of Canadian participation in this new aggression coalition which has been set up for the strategic interests of the US empire and its allies;

 

            "A freeze on all major procurement projects of the Canadian military;

 

            "The organization of a broad public debate on Canadian foreign policy, the role of the army, the military industry and the arms trade;

 

            "That the Canadian government immediately cease deportation proceedings against U.S. Iraq war resisters and create, once and for all, a provision that would allow them to remain in Canada."

 

            Information about local anti-war actions can be found at these websites: http://www.canadianpeace.org, http://www.echecalaguerre.org.

 

(The above article is from the November 1-15, 2014, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading socialist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)