arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)

From January 13 to 15, 800 US troops and ten trains full of heavy military material are passing through Belgium. In the port of Antwerp, the troops and some 500 military trucks will be loaded on a US warship heading for the Gulf. According to the radical anti-war coalition StopUSA (STOP United States of Aggression), the US military "are concocting plans to invade and occupy a sovereign state in the Middle East. Apparently, they have links with the international terrorist organization NATO, and are sent by the oil and weapons lobby Bush-Pentagon." StopUSA referred to the US military transport as one of "weapons of mass destruction".
On Monday, January 13, StopUSA – consisting of the Workers Party of Belgium, the Arab European League and scores of other organizations and individuals - organized a protest action in front of the Hotel Beveren, near Antwerp, where an advance detachment of 40 US soldiers had already arrived. On very short notice, more than 60 people joined the action. Among them Dr. Kris Merckx, Dr. Geert Van Moorter and journalist Michel Collon, who had taken part as "peace inspectors" in the International Peace Mission S.O.S. Iraq last April. They demanded to continue to play their role as "peace inspector" and to inspect the hotel on the presence and activities of uninvited foreign troops. The police, however, didn't allow them.
An 83 year old man, Piet Ceulemans, also addressed the protesters: "Fifty-three years ago, in 1950, I worked in the docks of the port of Antwerp. I refused to load warships leaving for Korea. For that action of protest, I spent ten days in jail." Other speakers called on railway and dock workers to follow the example of the railway workers in England who blocked a military transport.
Chanting "yankees, go home!", "1, 2, 3, 4, we don't want your bloody war!" and "US imperialist, number 1 terrorist!", the protesters walked around the hotel, where they found three vans carrying "US army" plates. These were thoroughly inspected and decorated with posters saying "Bush & US Army: Go home!".
The successful protest action got wide media coverage, and was a good warm-up for the anti-war rally StopUSA organizes on Sunday, January 19. For contact: http://www.stopusa.be, info@stopusa.be