A day of workshops and speeches to strengthen the arguments against continued occupation of Iraq. more at the IOF web site
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INTRODUCTION Liz Davies Liz Davies from Iraq Occupation Focus and author of Through The
Looking Glass. |
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| 2 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 |  |
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WINNER OF THE RED PEPPER POETRY COMPETITION River Wolton 'Recites her poem 'Everything I know about war' |
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| 3 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAQ Christian Parenti Christian is a correspondent for The Nation and the author of The Freedom: Shadows and Hallucinations in Occupied Iraq, which is a chronicle of Iraq's descent into chaos during the first year and a half of US occupation. |
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| 2 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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LEGAL CHALLENGES IN BRITAIN Adam Price They govern because we entrust them with Power. 'Power doesn’t belong to them, it belongs to us and if we lose that fundamental principal of accountability there is no future for genuine Parliamentary democracy in this country'. |
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| 8 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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RESISTANCE IN THE MILITARY Lou Plummer & Michael Hoffmann From Military Families Speak Out and Iraq Veterans Against the War, Lou and Michael believe that the soldiers on the frontline have a vital role to play in the anti-war movement. Lou is the 4th generation of his family to join the military, and Michael was a Lance Corporal during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. |
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| 3 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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PRACTICAL SOLIDARITY & DIRECT ACTION Ewa Jasiewicz Ewa is an independent journalist and human rights activist. She spent eight months living in occupied Baghdad and Basra, supporting human rights groups, women's organisations, families, workers, trade unionists and Palestinian refugees. |
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| 8 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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FEEDBACK Various voices of feedback on the Teach In from attendees on the day talking about how useful it has been to them, and what they will take away from the day's talks and workshops. |
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| 4 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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PRACTICAL SOLIDARITY & DIRECT ACTION Jo Wilding Jo is an activist, writer and clown who has visited Iraq three times, including before and during the 2003 invasion and most recently for 6 months until May 2004, attempting to set up practical solidarity projects between the UK and Iraq. |
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| 3 mins .wmv |
Posted 18/03/05 | |
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RESISTANCE IN THE MILITARY Eddie Cherry Eddie served in the British Army in Northern Ireland for two years. He is the co-founder of Veterans and Military Families for Peace in the UK. Here he talks about a huge dissafection that is present in the military. |
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| 2 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAQ Paola Gasparoli Paola is from Un Ponte per Baghdad (A Bridge to Baghdad), an Italian voluntary association founded in 1991 immediately after the bombing of Iraq in the first Gulf War. The group has promoted initiatives of solidarity with the Iraqi people affected by the war and in opposition to the sanctions. |
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| 2 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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REVIEW Munir Chalabi Munir is an activist with Iraq Occupation Focus, Arab Media Watch, Jubilee Iraq, Occupation Watch, and a former political prisoner of Saddam's regime. Here he gives a review of the Teach In and how even with so many different views, everyone agreed that the occupation had to end for a true democratic Iraq to be allowed to be born. |
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| 3 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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REVIEW Ewa Jasiewicz Ewa from Iraq Occupation Focus reviews the days events, and talks about how important it has been. |
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| 2 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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LEGAL CHALLENGES IN BRITAIN Adam Price Adam is the Plaid Cymru MP for Carmarthen East & Dinefwr. In August 2004 he launched a Parliamentary campaign to impeach the prime minister for "high crimes and misdemeanours" in misleading Parliament and the country over the invasion of Iraq. info: http://www.impeachblair.org/
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2 mins .wmv |
Posted 18/03/05 | |
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WOMEN IN IRAQ Dr Nadje Al-Ali & Haifa Zangana "The way to help Iraqi women, and most urgently, is to end the occupation - women are unable even to leave their houses because of the violence". |
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| 3˝ mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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SOLIDARITY, RESISTANCE & THE ANTI-WAR MOVEMENT Sami Ramdani London Metropolitan University; Guardian writer “I think those people who think that the United States wants to establish democracy in Iraq, frankly speaking, are living in cloud cuckoo land! Democratic elections in Iraq are not possible under this ruthless occupation.” |
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| 5˝ mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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LEGAL CHALLENGES IN BRITAIN Phil Shiner Public Interest Lawyer; Solicitor for Iraqi families “There is no question in my mind that as a society we do not think that Iraqi human rights count for the same as the human rights of British people. The press coverage reflects that, the ministry of defence’s approach reflects that and the way in which this case has been presented in open court..” info: http://www.peacerights.org/ http://www.adamprice.org.uk/ |
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| 5 mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAQ Christian Parenti (The US) absolutely has to leave! “I don’t need the resistance to be good guys to oppose the occupation and to oppose the invasion. My responsibility is to stop my country from going around and wreaking havoc all over the planet!”. |
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| 5˝ mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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RESISTANCE IN THE MILITARY Michael Hoffmann They’re not doing a bit of good in Iraq! One of the biggest lies I’ve heard is: “Well we screwed up, we never should have gone in but the military has to stay to fix things.” That is not true, the military needs to leave and they need to leave NOW. info: http://www.ivaw.net/ |
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| 2mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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RESISTANCE IN THE MILITARY Lou Plummer Bring them home! it’s not “bring em on” it’s “bring them home and bring them home now!”. info: http://www.mfso.org/ |
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| 5˝ mins .wmv | Posted 18/03/05 | |
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IOF TEACH-IN.
The day was to inform ourselves about the situation in Iraq (and the USA), to strengthen our arguments against occupation and examine the challenges facing the anti-war movement. There are a wide variety of views to be found here, so please take the time to explore them, thankyou.
STATEMENT FROM ISMAEL DAWOOD, HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST, BAGHDAD
I would like to carry the greetings of the Iraqi people who have suffered more than 35 years from one of the most arrogant fascist regimes, which violated the simplest human rights, oppresses, tortured, and forced emigration. It killed thousands directly by weapons, even mass destruction weapons, as in the al Anfal operation (Kurdistan) and in the suppression of the public up rising (intifada) in 1991, and indirectly by involving Iraq in many ways and unprecedented sanctions that had killed thousands and destroyed the infrastructure.
During this time all Western countries were watching, and some of them tried to get benefits from this regime even if the Iraqi people suffered from that, and, while US officials were talking about stopping this regime, they were providing it with more reasons for existence but only for a specific time.
So the expiration date has come, the US has decided, under the pretext of destroying weapons of mass destruction, to have another war using the most modern and fierce weapons, making Iraq in the end a country occupied by the US and their confederates.
A lot of civilians have been killed and their houses destroyed, thousands had been arrested - most of them didn't know why!
And what increased the gap was that the US did nothing to stop looting, stealing and burning. These were crimes that finished what had remained of infrastructure and destroyed everything - even museums, libraries and hospitals. Then they left the Iraqi borders open making Iraq a low pressure area to draw in terrorists and now at last Iraq is a battlefield for fighting terrorists.
Many American authorities have said that America succeeded in transfering their war on terror to the enemy land, and since then Iraqis are suffering from occupation and terror.
The occupation is responsible for the violence.
Innocent people are killed every day, by the bombing and the random shooting. The atmosphere of impunity for American troops has increased. Arrogant and violent behavior goes on unpunished.
And terrorist actions and crime are increasing. The women of Hay al Amil are lighting candles every day to express their feelings. Kidnapping and killing civilians are increasing. Extremism is increasing. The violence cannot bring peace. Iraq is not a land of terrorists. Iraqis refuse terrorism. Iraqis refuse kidnapping and killing civilians. Iraqis refuse occupation.
3rd December 2004