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Gaza protests in Wales

Who was that weird guy with the long hair and the beard? :)

Was there any TV media in attendance? I saw a couple of proper photographers but didn't spot any TV crews?

Would have been a good idea to have had the protest here, today.
 
Wage Slavery stopped me coming today sadly. Glad there was a decent turn out, anyone take any photos? there's always a lack of indymedia reporting of demos in Cardiff.
 
I was there, couldn't stay beyond 3 though as I had to get back to work. Good turnout.

The bbc was there they've just given it about 4 seconds on bbc wales news - think i saw my colleague for a nano second.

It probably wont make any difference at all but since I've sat here feeling completely powerless i had to do *something* even if it's just shout a bit on queen st :(
 
also if anyone has a link to any footage please share. I took a couple of crappy phone camera pics and a video but that's it.
 
EMERGENCY MEETING:
STOP THE MASSACRE IN GAZA
FREEDOM FOR PALESTINE

Wednesday 14 January at 7.30 pm
Main Building, Cardiff University, Park Place

Speakers include -

EHAB BESSAISO, Palestinian Journalist from Gaza
JONNY JONES, Cardiff Stop the War Coalition
Chair - Cllr MOHAMMED SARUL ISLAM

Ehab Bessaiso is a Palestinian writer and poet born in Gaza. Involved in media studies in the Arab world, he has contributed widely to literary events and publications in the UK and Palestine. A collection of his poetry 'The Albatross of the Blurred Skyline' was published in Beirut in 2004. He will be joined by anti-war activists to discuss what's going on in Palestine, the background to the conflict, and what we can do to stop it

There will be plenty of time for debate and discussion from the floor.

Admission Free. All welcome.
Hosted by Cardiff Stop the War Coalition
More details to be announced shortly.
 
Brockway said:
Bit disappointed there was no flag burning.
Click to expand...

Well, bring an Israeli flag and a box of matches the next time innit! ;)

I had to leave before the march set off, didn't have enough left of my "lunch" break to make it all the way through town. I'd agree, there was a good 300 people there. And more evidence of organising from the Muslim community than at the New Year's Eve rally at Nye Bevin. I'm assuming the day & time was picked to coincide with the end of Friday prayers?

Udo Erasmus said:
It was amusing to hear Julie Morgan MP heckled by an ex-Labour Party member who shouted several times "Condemn Israel" (she didn't of course)
Click to expand...

Whassa crack with Julie Morgan & Israel, then?
 
A report of yesterday's march on the Israeli embassy from CND, as people may be aware, Cllr Ray Davies was hit over the head with truncheons by police and then kicked while on the ground. I also spoke to the Vice-Chair of PCS Wales who said that her section of the march was penned into Kensington High Street for 3 hours then teargassed and charged by riot police.

100,000 people from all over Britain joined today's march in London, to protest at the Israeli Embassy against the continuing relentless attacks on Gaza's civilian population. Ray Davies, 79 year old Vice Chair of CND Cymru, sustained head injuries, concussion and cuts when he was trapped with hundreds of others against the Embassy gates by Metropolitan Police.

The march had gone peacefully until it reached the Embassy. Many shoes were thrown over the fence in a symbolic gesture of defiance, but the police claimed that the shoes were aimed at them , and began to lash out at the crowd. Three rows of police, in full riot gear and with heavy shields penned a section of the protesters in an alleyway beside the Israeli Embassy. Ray tried to negotiate between the protesters and the police; he explained that the police had not been the target of the shoes, and asked to be allowed to pass through in order to deliver a letter to the ambassador calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

In response, the special riot police shouted obscenities at Ray, and told him to "get back with the rest of the scum".

Scuffles broke out, and the heavy steel barriers around the Embassy were pushed over. Ray, at the front of the march, was unable to escape, and two policemen hit him on the head with truncheons, cut him on the face with the sharp edge of the heavy riot shields, and proceeded to kick him to the ground, bleeding with cuts on his nose and hands. He suffered concussion for a while, and medics pleaded to take him to hospital ; but when he regained consciousness he wanted to get home on the bus rather than spend the night in a London casualty unit.

He was treated at the University Hospital of Wales, and discharged.
Ray said,

"I have experienced the war zones in the Occupied Territories; I have been shot at ,teargassed and beaten by the Israeli Defence Force; but I never expected such abuse and brutal treatment in Britain from our own police force."

The violent reaction to today's march was in complete contrast to the peaceful protests held throughout the past weeks in Wales. There have been two vigils in memory of the victims of Israel's bombing of Gaza; a fundraising concert with Frankie Armstrong, which raised £1200 for Middle East Childrens Alliance, and the enormously successful fundraising dinner at City Hall for the Islamic Relief Fund; and a march and rally on Friday, one of the biggest Cardiff has seen in many years, calling for a ceasefire in Gaza
Click to expand...

There will be another protest in Cardiff on Saturday at the Nye Bevan Statue, Queen St at 1 pm
 
Col_Buendia said:
Whassa crack with Julie Morgan & Israel, then?
Click to expand...

I have no inside information, I'd assume that she is broadly critical of many of Israel's actions as I saw her on a march against the Lebanon war also. The ex-Labour member (who some may know from the St Athan campaign) who heckled her periodically shouted "Condemn Israel" throughout her speech, which did draw my attention to the fact that she didn't seem to forcefully condemn Israel as the main agressor anywhere in her speech. She seemed to be talking mainly about the need for the 'international community' to get a ceasefire asap to allieviate the humanitarian situation

Re. a ceasefire, I think people should be wary. While most people demand a ceasefire because they want the slaughter to end, the 'international community' want to use a ceasefire to continue the war by other means.

For example, one of the conditions the US and UK want is to 'stop the flow of weapons into Gaza' while they continue to relentlessly arm Israel: They want the resistance disarmed while the invader gets the best weapons money can buy. They want a deal for Egypt to continue to stop Palestinians getting food and medicine from over the border etc.

It was the same story during the 2006 Lebanon War, having been defeated by Hezbollah, the West attempted to regain lost ground through a ceasefire to disarm the guerillas. Whatever ones opinion on Hezbollah, it is clear that they were the only force that prevented South Lebanon being re-occupied. If they were disarmed nothing would have stood between Israel and the civilian population of the country.

UK arms sales to Israel whole of 2007: £7.5 million
UK arms sales to Israel first three months of 2008: £18,847,795 million

These include components for combat aircraft, military aero engines,
helmet-mounted display equipment for pilots.

& Gordon Brown says we must 'stop the supply of arms to Hamas'.

source: Private Eye 9 Jan 2009
Click to expand...
 
I was on the London demo yesterday. At about 4.30 pm ish, riot police started to line up at various points behind the demonstrators, in rows of two. People were beginning to melt away from the vigil, though there was still several hundred protesters going strong. It seemed clear to me that the riot police were preparing for action, even though everything had seemed very peaceful. I asked one officer what the plan was: he said that they were there to help people move on, to which I asked, so you're not planning to corrale people in as they try to leave and he said, no, not for the moment! We didn't need persuading at that point to leave, what with the cold, the prospect of being caught up in a crush and the sense that we had done what we'd set out to do.
 
It looks like there were huge and militant demonstrations around the world - 150,000 in London at a demo called at a weeks notice, 10,000 in Edinburgh and elsewhere from Paris to Hong Kong to Karachi: http://news.google.co.uk/news?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&tab=wn&ncl=1292233625

There's another protest in Central Cardiff at the Nye Bevan Statue, Queen Street at 1 pm on Saturday 17th (and stuff going on across Wales). If people have ideas for possible actions it might be good to discuss it here & at the meetings coming up:

In Cardiff: Wednesday 14 January (7.30 pm), Public Meeting with Ehab Bessaiso (Palestinian journalist and poet from Gaza) - Wallace Lecture Theatre, Main Building, Cardiff University, Park Place (opp. Student Union Building)

In Swansea: Thursday 15th January (7 pm). Public meeting in Swansea with SPEAKERS: John Rose (Jewish socialist &author ‘Myths of Zionism’); Bethan Jenkins AM & Mohammad al Matari (Palestinian Soc.)
Unitarian Hall, High Street, Swansea (next |Argos)

VIDEO REPORT OF MARCH ON ISRAELI EMBASSY:
http://uk.youtube.com/user/adycousins
 
In response to militant demonstrations from Israel's indigenous people (whom the State of Israel calls Israeli Arabs, as recognition that they are Palestinian draw attention to the circumstances of Israel's foundation), the State of Israel has now banned Arab political parties from standing in the upcoming elections: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1054867.html

As people may be aware, Arab 'citizens' of Israel (almost one-fifth of the population) only won the right to form political parties after militant demonstrations on Land Day in the late 70s. Even today it is illegal for a political party to advocate equality for ALL of Israel's citizens, as this would undermine Israel's as a Jewish state. Political parties can and have been prosecuted for advocating equal rights for all who live in Israel. As people may be aware, Arab 'citizens' of Israel are denied the right to live on over 90% of Israel this being - apartheid style - for Jews only. Imagine if Britain defined itself as a "White State" and said that black and asian citizens were denied the right to live on the majority of British soil and you get an idea of why Zionism is an ideology that has at its core racism.

The next stage of solidarity must be to support the movement of Palestinians within Israel's borders who are waging a struggle similar to the civil rights struggle of Catholics in the North of Ireland in the 60s for equal rights against a state that is institutionally based on principles of racial supremacy and discrimination against the indigenous population. They experienced their own bloody Sunday when at the start of the current intifada in 2000, the IDF shot dead 13 unarmed demonstrators who were demonstrating in solidarity with Palestinians on the other side of the border.
 
Apparently there is gonna be a protest in Newport at 2 pm on Saturday, still trying to find out exact location and who the organisers are. Cardiff protest will be at 1 pm at Nye Bevan Statue, Queen Street, Cardiff. There's also a protest planned in Swansea same day, don't have details. The public meetings info is above.

Could anybody email any events relating to Gaza etc happening in Wales that they know of to [email protected]

UPDATE: The march in Newport will probably be from Commercial Street to John Frost Square, more details to be announced shortly. Initiated by YMO, a Muslim Youth Organisation but they want support from broader public and anti-war people
 
On Thursday of last week, all trains across Norway and all trams and subways in the capital Oslo stood still for two minutes in protest at Israel’s invasion.

A statement was read out announcing the reasons for the action to passengers. “The locomotive drivers’ union in Norway has decided to demonstrate our solidarity with the Palestinian people,” it said.

“We demand the immediate withdrawal of all Israeli troops from the Palestinian territory. Thank you for your understanding.”
 
Udo Erasmus said:
A report of yesterday's march on the Israeli embassy from CND, as people may be aware, Cllr Ray Davies was hit over the head with truncheons by police and then kicked while on the ground. I also spoke to the Vice-Chair of PCS Wales who said that her section of the march was penned into Kensington High Street for 3 hours then teargassed and charged by riot police.



There will be another protest in Cardiff on Saturday at the Nye Bevan Statue, Queen St at 1 pm
Click to expand...

I've always thought that we need Ray Davies in the Cardiff Black Block!

(Not that there is one, of course ;))
 
Udo Erasmus said:
The next stage of solidarity must be to support the movement of Palestinians within Israel's borders who are waging a struggle similar to the civil rights struggle of Catholics in the North of Ireland in the 60s for equal rights against a state that is institutionally based on principles of racial supremacy and discrimination against the indigenous population. They experienced their own bloody Sunday when at the start of the current intifada in 2000, the IDF shot dead 13 unarmed demonstrators who were demonstrating in solidarity with Palestinians on the other side of the border.
Click to expand...

The "Israeli Arabs" are an interesting anomaly... despised and mistrusted by their Jewish neighbours, not seen as suffering as much by the West Bankd and Gazan Palestinians.
DAM are a cracking militant Palestinian rap band from Lydda in Israel who have a good take on being an "Israeli Arab" - this vid was shot there - no actors, these are real cops...
 
We almost got the DAM down to Cardiff a few years back when they were on a European tour.

SOAS students are now occupying in solidarity with Gaza:
http://soassolidarity4gaza.blogspot.com/
Send messages of solidarity to: [email protected]

What we plan to do.
As of tuesday 13th January, the Brunei gallery suite is under occupation. Our aims are to raise awareness of and uphold motions passed by the SOAS Student's Union on:


1) The illegal occupation of Palestinian land by Israel
2) The racist exhibition currently in the Brunei gallery hosted by the Ministry of Defence.
3) The privatisation of university space.

This occupied space will be open to the public.

We aim to complete our aims by:

1) organising a series of lectures, speakers , workshops and events on all of the three issues
2) Re-arranging the exhibition to include the history that the MoD has deliberately manipulated and hidden
3) Communicating with the media and other interested parties about our intentions.


No damage will be done to any of the space.

A full press release will be issued soon.

For further infomation, suggestions and contributions please contact [email protected]

In solidarity with the Gazans we thank you for your understanding.

Long live Palestine


Our aims and objectives

We, a coalition of SOAS students from many different backgrounds, have resolved to occupy the Brunei Gallery Suite. In line with Student Union motions, our aims are the following:

To ensure that the SOAS director, in line with motion ‘A’ of the most recent UGM, issues a statement of condemnation regarding the recent atrocities in Gaza, as a result of the illegal 60-year occupation by the state of Israel.

To end the racist exhibition currently on display in the Brunei Gallery Suite. This exhibition ignores the reality of the ethnic minority experience within the British army, which was tainted by racism, forced conscription and colonialism.

This is inappropriate, especially given the current colonial occupation of Palestine.
To draw attention to the lack of student control over student facilities.

Many SOAS-owned spaces, including the Brunei Gallery are currently subcontracted to Sodexo, which provides catering for Abu Ghraib, immigration detention centres in the UK, private prisons, military mess halls and other global facilities.

We intend to achieve our aims by raising awareness through the organisation of an alternative series of events including public talks, teach-ins and exhibits.

No damage will be inflicted upon the property – this is a peaceful occupation. The occupation is run democratically with regular meetings.

Solidarity with the people of Palestine.

School of Oriental and African Studies student occupiers.

First post in support of Gaza

SOAS students are currently occupying a Ministry of Defence exhibition on campus - following a Union General Meeting at which a motion was passed condemning the college for allowing the MOD to use space which should be for students to portray the armed forces as a liberal, anti-racist organisation - in the week that Prince Harry's racist remarks came to light! We also demand that the college produce a statement condemning the attacks on Gaza - so as to represent the majority view of the student body.

We will spend the night adding to the exhibition and invite "guided tours" during the day tomorrow examining the reality of war both for the victims and ethnic minorities in the armed forces.

They are occupying the Brunei Gallery Suite on the ground floor of the Brunei building (opposite the main building) - please come down to visit or send messages of support to [email protected]
Posted by SOAS students in solidarity with Gaza at 17:30 0 comments
Click to expand...
 
Bethan Jenkins AM has written a cross-party statement and is urging people to lobby their AMs to sign (see below), there is going to be discussion of Gaza at the Senedd on Wednesday, there will probably be a protest/lobby at lunchtime (activists are currently in the process of arranging this, an alternative proposal is for a public meeting at the Assembly).


Statement of Opinion-
' The National Assembly for Wales calls on the Welsh Assembly Government to make an urgent public statement condemning the Israeli government's attacks on Gaza, and calls on the Welsh Assembly Government to echo demands made by the International community for an immediate ceasefire.'

Datganiad Barn-
' Mae Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru yn galw ar Lywodraeth Cynulliad Cymru i wneud datganiad brys i'r wasg yn condemio ymosodiadau llywodraeth Israel ar Gaza, ac yn galw ar Lywodraeth Cynulliad Cymru i efelychu gofynion y gymuned rhyngwladol am gadoediad yn syth.'
 
The protest in Newport on Saturday will gather at the old Kwik Save Car Park in Pill at 1.30pm before marching into town and having a rally in John Frost Square.
 
Okay so Saturday 17 January looks like this so far:

SWANSEA - Protest 1 pm, Castle Square
CARDIFF - Protest 1 pm, Nye Bevan Statue, Queen Street
WREXHAM - Protest, 12 noon, Queen Square
NEWPORT - Protest, Assemble 1.30 pm, Old Kwiksave Carpark in Pill to march on John Frost Square
 
Student occupations in solidarity with Gaza seem to be spreading - SOAS, London School of Economics and now Essex University! Let's hope some workers in Britain will follow the example of Norwegian train drivers who stopped all the trains in Norway for 2 minutes to read out a statement in solidarity with gaza

Another national mobilisation this time assembling at the HQ of the BBC in London to protest their shameful media coverage on Saturday 24 January (for transport from Cardiff/Newport - [email protected] ). Details - www.stopwar.org.uk
 
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