Stopping the War Business: WRI and World Without War seminar in Seoul, South Korea

In October, War Resisters' International and our South Korean affiliate World Without War will host an international seminar with a specific focus on skill sharing for taking action against war profiteering. “Stopping the War Business” will take place on 16th and 17th October, in Seoul, South Korea. The seminar will be followed by nonviolence training, and then an action to oppose the ADEX arms fair, which will be taking place the following week.

For antimilitarists, disrupting war profiteering means knocking out the economic pillars that make war inevitable. It goes far beyond the arms trade (although that is an important part of it), and includes all those who fund and profit from war and militarisation. The seminar will explore the ways companies involved in extractive industries profit from war and violence, how arms companies are profiting from the militarisation of civilian police forces, the ways profiteering can occur from occupation, and many other forms of war profiteering.

The primary focus of the seminar though, will be on the ways and means of disrupting such profiteering. Disrupting war profiteering takes a whole range of activities, from research, lobbying and legal challenges to mobilisation, direct action and creative campaigning techniques. This seminar will provide a space for activists using a whole range of different methods to gather together, learn how the spectrum of tactics interlink, and help each other to be more effective. We will be discussing questions like;

• How can we make our direct action more strategic using research?

• How could a public campaign support our lobbying work?

• What tools or methods can help my campaign be more effective?

This international seminar Stopping the War Business will be held in Seoul, Republic of Korea, 16-17th October. The seminar is jointly coordinated by World Without War in Korea and international antimilitarist network War Resisters' International. The deadline for registrations is 22nd July.

There will also be workshops on different methods, to explore their relevance in more depth, as well as 'campaigns clinics', where you can share your campaign and hear constructive feedback.

The seminar will follow a War Resisters' International Council meeting, which is open to observers. Directly after the seminar, there will be an opportunity to take part in a nonviolent direct action to disrupt the ADEX arms fair, with training available. Have a look at what happened at the 2013 arms fair for inspiration! http://www.wri-irg.org/ADEX-2013

Dates

• 13 (afternoon) - 15 October: War Resisters' International Council meeting

• 16 - 17 October: Stopping the War Business - International Seminar

• 18 October: Training for action

• 19 October: Nonviolent direct action at the ADEX arms fair

Prices

Registration fees, including food, accommodation, and contribution to translation:

WRI Council Meeting, International Seminar, Training and Action (13-20 Oct) - £250.00

WRI International Seminar, Training and Action (15-20 Oct) - £200.00

If you require accommodation on the night of the 12th, this will cost an additional £20.