From the office

Many of us have seen or heard about the events on 30 September in Ecuador, a day where, quite simply, the world was turned on its head. Police officers burning tyres and throwing stones, taking over the hospital where the President had been allegedly “sequestered”.

What happened that day?

Press Release - 20 November 2010

NATO GAME OVER! With this message peace activists from all over Europe are today blocking the NATO summit in Lisbon.

About 50 activists from Portugal, Spain, Finland, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland blocked one of the access roads for participating delegates and government officials to the summit. With chains and locks attached to their bodies they try to delay the summit from taking place in order to disturb NATO' s future planning.

The coalition of nonviolent activist based in Lisbon denounce the blocking of their European comrades at the border of the Portugese territory during these last days.

Press release 18.11.2010 at 09.15

Portuguese border guard denied entry of 35 Finnish antimilitarists to Portugal early on Thursday morning. The group was on it's way to NATO summit's non-violent counter event in Lisbon, Portugal. The bus trip is organized Aseistakieltäytyjäliitto (Union of COs, Finland).

Aseistakieltäytyjäliitto believes that the right to demonstrate should be part of every democracy in any situation. "Is NATO so much afraid of non-violent demonstrators, that they can't even be allowed in the same country?" Aseistakieltäytyjäliitto wonders.

Press Release/Invitation 17 November 2010

Nonviolent Civil Disobedience Training in Lisbon

Place and hour: Praça do Rossio: Thursday 18 November : 16:00

Between 19 and 21 of November, NATO will meet to discuss it's future by approval of it's new strategic concept in Lisbon. Portuguese and European activists are preparing for non-violent actions against this summit.

From 19 to 21 November the NATO summit will take place in Lisbon, with Obama, the best known of the leaders, present.

The stated objective of the summit is the adoption of a new Strategic Concept – the seventh this the foundation of NATO – and with it, the ratification of the actions of NATO in the last years, especially in Afghanistan and Somalia; the more precise definition of NATO's actions in the coming years, especially in relation to Iran; and to guarantee the cohesion of its member states under the strict obedience to the decisions of the Pentagon.

NATO was founded ostensibly to defend the “free” West against Soviet expansion. Why then did not NATO dissolve when the Soviet Union disintegrated and Warsaw Pact dissolved? The reason is quite simple: because it had become the main vehicle for the coordination of Western military strategy. What follows is a call for peace activists to commit ourselves to raise the demand for the dissolution of NATO.

Action

On 1 December,
put aside at least one hour and write at least four cards to
prisoners;

Get your peace
group or class or meeting place to organise a card-writing
session;

Set up a stall in your town centre, perform
a bit of street theatre, or do whatever else it takes to attract
attention and interest.

War Resisters' International sends greetings of solidarity to the conference Action to Close the Diego Garcia Military Base, to end the Illegal Occupation of the Chagos Islands, and for the right to Return & Full Reparations for Chagossians. As we oppose all war, and also the preparations for war, we clearly oppose military bases. Diego Garcia itself is the supreme example of a military alliance sweeping aside all considerations of international law and natural justice in the spurious name of "strategic necessity".

Author: Tanjug

Belgrade - The peace group Women in Black announced today that last night around 1:30 am, two young men invaded the organization's headquarters and with a hammer attacked men and women activists in the kitchen.

This incident took place just before the holding of the Pride Parade in Belgrade, which indicates that homophobia is the motive of the attackers, a statement declared.

2 October 2010, 19.00pm

Housmans Bookshop

5 Caledonian Road

London N1 9DX

The Inland Revenue is threatening War Resisters' International, an international network of pacifist and antimilitarist organisations with more than 80 affiliates in more than 40 countries, with the seizure of assets because the pacifist organisation is withholding a proportion of income tax due to its conscientious objection to paying for war.

War Resisters' International has been withholding tax - usually about 7% of income tax, roughly the proportion of the military budget - since the tax year 2002/03 [1]. In its regular letters to the Inland Revenue, the organisation states: