Saturday, April 16, 2011

Harper rally in Burnaby to be met by anti-war protesters

Conservative leader Stephen Harper is campaigning in the Lower Mainland today, and local anti-war activists say they will be there to greet him.

What: Anti-war protest outside Stephen Harper campaign rally
When: Saturday, April 16 · 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Where: 3030 Gilmore Diversion, off Canada Way just south of Hwy 1

With just over two weeks to go in the election campaign, Harper's visit is targeting key swing ridings like the one in Burnaby-Douglas.

"Burnaby has long been home to Members of Parliament who have had a strong tendency to oppose aggressive and expensive wars abroad -- it's the perfect place to greet Harper with an anti-war rally," said Derrick O'Keefe, StopWar Coalition and Canadian Peace Alliance co-chair, in reference to outgoing Burnaby-Douglas NDP MP Bill Siksay and his predecessor Svend Robinson.

StopWar activists plan to carry placards and distribute flyers opposing the purchase of F-35 fighter jets, Canada's role in the NATO intervention in Libya, and the Harper government's extension of the war in Afghanistan. The protest follows an anti-war Day of Action coordinated by the Canadian Peace Alliance last Saturday, April 9, which saw protests held in ten Canadian cities and towns.

The protesters have received a helping hand from the 'Shit Harper Did' campaign, whose website has received over 3 million hits in just three days, and has become a social media sensation which could have a serious impact on the election campaign. The ShitHarperDid.ca Facebook page posted a link to the StopWar rally, and this is generating extra interest in the last-minute rally.

"It's a hastily thrown together protest but we expect a sizable and spirited crowd," said O'Keefe. "Harper's people have been accused of keeping regular people out of his rallies, so we're inviting everyone to join our gathering instead," O'Keefe.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Rally Against Harper: Say No to Billion$ on War and Fighter Jets

Harper's holding a "Rally for Canada" in Burnaby Sat... Let's show him we oppose his spending on war and occupation instead of on human needs.


Saturday, April 16 · 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Location: 3030 Gilmore Diversion, off Canada Way
Burnaby, British Columbia

Please spread the word and make plans to join us Saturday.


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Links for further info

-Canadian Peace Alliance page:

http://www.acp-cpa.ca/en/April9.html

-$30 Billion on fighter jets = election issue:

http://stopwarblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/monday-for-people-not-for-fighter-jets.html

-"Kill Teams in Afghanistan: The Truth, by Malalai Joya:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/mar/30/kill-team-photos-afghanistan-us


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Background on the war: Harper lied, Canadians and Afghans died

Time and time again, Stephen Harper assured the public that Canadian troops would withdraw from Afghanistan in 2011. Up to 1000 Canadian military staff will be staying until at least 2014...

The war in Afghanistan has reached new levels of brutality. Civilian casualties spiked in 2010 and the rate of killing is increasing each month. It's time for it to end. After almost ten years of occupation and a half a trillion dollars spent by NATO, Afghanistan still suffers from a lack of basic services and a corrupt NATO backed government.

The statistics are shocking. According to the Afghan Rights Monitor: “Almost everything related to the war surged in 2010: the combined numbers of Afghan and foreign forces surpassed 350,000; security incidents mounted to over 100 per week; more fighters from all warring side were killed; and the number of civilian people killed, wounded and displaced hit record levels.”

The NATO forces continue with air strikes that kill civilians such as during the 4 days of attacks on Ghazi Abad which started on February 16 and killed more than 60 civilians - 30 of which were children. In a single two week period between the 12th and 26th of February, 200 civilians were killed.

The Canadian deployment of another 1000 soldiers to act as trainers will only compound the problems faced by the Afghan people. Any support for the corrupt regime of Hamid Karzai works against the aspirations of the Afghan people to live in a free and democratic society.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

An Evening with Tom Hayden and Rodney Watson Jr.


An event taking place next week in Vancouver that StopWar is helping publicize, looking at anti-war movements from Vietnam to Iraq.

Big Dreams of Peace: An evening with special guest Tom Hayden

Wednesday, April 20, 7:30pm
First United Church, 320 East Hastings (at Gore)

Hosted and organized by Rodney Watson Jr., Iraq War veteran now war resister living in sanctuary at The First United Church

You are invited to hear Tom Hayden speak on peace building today and how he began his quest in the 60's. Hayden was a leader of Students of the Democratic Society (SDS) in the 1960s, and remains a peace and justice activist and writer today.

Tickets $20 or $30 (includes V.I.P meet and greet with Tom Hayden)

Tickets available for sale at People's Coop Bookstore, 1391 Commercial Dr, Ph: 604.253.6442

More Information:

-Check out this recent feature article in Vancouver Magazine on Rodney Watson Jr:

-Tom Hayden's Peace and Justice Resource Centre

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Monday for people, not for fighter jets



It's a simple sentiment that needs repeating during this ongoing federal election campaign. This article by StopWar recording secretary Kimball Cariou was published in rabble.ca.

Last June, I wrote an article for the Georgia Straight in B.C. about the skyrocketing costs of purchasing new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets from U.S. munitions giant Lockheed Martin.

At the time, the news had just broken that the price tag had jumped from $3.8 billion for 80 F-35s when the deal was first proposed back in 2008, up to $9 billion for just 65 jets, plus another $7 billion on "ancillary costs" such as future parts and maintenance. The total price tag had more than quadrupled within just two years! Now we understand from Pentagon figures that the total cost of this purchase over a 30-year period is expected to hit $29 billion, a staggering sum for a country with serious social and economic problems.

Just three years ago, the individual jets were priced at $47.4 million each. Now the price for each jet, plus parts and maintenance, has jumped over $400 million, at a time when the Harper Conservatives are slashing social program spending.

And it gets worse. The original plan by the Conservatives was to replace the Canadian Forces' current fleet of CF-18 fighter jets. Since then, $2.6 billion has been spent to upgrade the CF-18s.

A Commons committee has investigated the purchase of the new fighters, including the price tag and whether Canada actually needs these weapons. Eyebrows were quickly raised over the news that there would be no other bids for the contract. Another controversy has focused on the fact that the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is a single-engine aircraft, unsuitable to patrol the Canadian Arctic. (The CF-18s have two engines, which many pilots consider an important safety feature.)

But the NATO war against Libya has raised even more serious issues over this massive boondoggle. With its payload of heavy armament, the F-35s are useful for only one purpose: to engage in modern warfare, bombing "enemy" nations.

A year ago, a survey conducted by Leger Marketing asked "With Canada's military role ending in Afghanistan next year, what should the focus be on the government's military spending?" Almost 60 per cent agreed with this answer: "Canada should take a peace dividend and cut back on military spending to focus on other more pressing social issues at home." Only 28 per cent of respondents wanted to "sustain or increase spending on the military because security in a post-9/11 world is of the highest priority".

Yet according to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, "the Canada First Defence Strategy, unveiled by the Harper government in 2008, promises that Canada's military spending will continue to grow by an average of 0.6% in real terms (adjusted for inflation) and an average of 2.7% in nominal terms (not adjusted for inflation) per year from FY 2007-08 to 2027-28."

Total spending over the 20-year life of this plan would likely be in the $415-440 billion range (2009 dollars), or about $13,000 per Canadian, surely enough to cause us to rethink the quaint notion that this country's military spending is negligible.

Imagine what could be done with the $29 billion in savings by scrapping the F-35 deal! To give just a few examples, the public transportation systems of Canadian cities could be provided with 10,000 fuel-efficient new buses for just $5 billion.

We could restore the start-up cost of the cancelled national child-care program, for another $5 billion. To build 30,000 social housing units, at a cost of $200,000 each, would take another $6 billion -- an investment which would immediately save millions spent by provinces and municipalities on emergency services for homeless people.

The federal government could provide free post-secondary tuition for 50,000 students annually, for a total of about $8 billion over three decades. That would still leave another $5 billion for urgent needs such as providing clean drinking water to indigenous communities, or emergency aid to countries hit by natural disasters. These initiatives would create jobs, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce provincial government spending.

But Canada is governed today by a party which opposes these urgent priorities. The Harper Conservatives deny the environmental crisis, reject the concept of public childcare, and refuse to fund social housing.

In effect, Canada is ruled by a minority regime which places top priority on war making at the expense of the people. When we go to the polls on May 2, Canadians should send the message to all parties in Parliament that the shocking fighter jet purchase plan is a scandal and must be scrapped immediately.

Vancouver Rally: People Power, Not War!


On Saturday, April 9, StopWar Vancouver took part in a pan-Canadian Day of Action against the war in Afghanistan. At least ten Canadian cities and towns held events. In the United States this weekend featured anti-war rallies in New York City and San Francisco.

Here is the statement that StopWar distributed at the Vancouver rally.

People Power, Not War!


StopWar, Vancouver's broad-based anti-war coalition, is taking part in the cross-Canada day of action against the war in Afghanistan on April 9 with a rally and march starting from Library Square at 1 pm. We are demanding an end to the brutal and callous war in Afghanistan, cancellation of the proposed $29 billion purchase of F-35 fighter jets, and for solidarity with the peoples of the Arab world struggling for peace, democracy and social justice in their homelands.

The Canadian Peace Alliance and the Collectif Échec à la guerre (antiwar coalition in Montreal) issued the call for the April 9 day of action, to demand an end to the Afghanistan war and to bring Canadian troops home now. The majority of Canadians support this demand. They want governments to invest in health care, education and social housing, not more weapons of war. During the current federal election, these critical issues must be a key topic of debate and action.

The war in Afghanistan has reached new levels of brutality. Civilian casualties spiked in 2010 and the rate of killing is increasing. After almost ten years of occupation and a half a trillion dollars spent by NATO, Afghanistan still suffers from a lack of basic services and a corrupt NATO-backed government.

According to the Afghan Rights Monitor, "Almost everything related to the war surged in 2010: the combined numbers of Afghan and foreign forces surpassed 350,000; security incidents mounted to over 100 per week; more fighters from all warring side were killed; and the number of civilian people killed, wounded and displaced hit record levels."

The continued deployment of 1,000 Canadian soldiers in the guise of 'trainers' of the fledgling Afghan army and police will only compound the problems faced by the Afghan people. Canada's support for the corrupt regime of Hamid Karzai works against the aspirations of the Afghan people to live in a free and democratic society. Self-determination for the Afghan people is the only solution to the current crisis.

In the words of former Afghan MP, Malalai Joya - "No nation can donate liberation to another nation. These values must be fought for and won by the people themselves. They can only grow and flourish when they are planted by the people in their own soil and watered by their own blood and tears. "

Events in the Middle East and North Africa provide an inspiring example of people struggling to create a new society without intervention and against regimes supported by the big imperial powers. StopWar is absolutely opposed to the NATO bombing of Libya, which is a shocking violation of the UN Charter and an act of war against a sovereign country, under cover of a so-called "no fly zone". We condemn Canadian military involvement in Libya's internal civil conflict, which is the latest example of intervention to bolster imperialist control of energy resources in the region.