arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)

Brussels / Anti-War-Wave continues to grow
by indymedia.be Saturday February 15, 2003 at 11:09 PM
info@indymedia.be

Brussels - The Belgian population does not want war for oil against Irak. Tens of thousands of people (100.000 according to our estimations) have shown this, this Saturday in Brussels, to the world. In a march almost without end, they crossed the city-center. At the front the organisers : representatives of the Arab communities, the platforms No War and StopUSA, and NGO's. The American president Bush was the outspoken aim of the demonstrators. Some people praised the Belgian minister of Foreign Affairs Louis "the lips" Michel. Egs were thrown at the group of the Socialist Party (member of the Belgian government).

The spontaneous invention of this Saturday : the Bush-Scream ! Halfway the march, at the Brussels Stock-Exchange (BSE), one could hear immense waves of protestvoices, supported by the drummers on the marches of the BSE, growing louder at every time they rolled along.

Likewise, the movement against the US war against Irak keeps swellin g. On November 10, some 5000 people answered the call of the StopUSA -platform, to demonstrate solidarity with the people of Irak and Palestine and firmly demand the end of the embargo imposed on Irak. One week later NGO's and union-groups (forming the No War-platform ) mobilised some 10.000 people (in favor a.o. of weapon-inspections in Irak). On January 19, some 10.000 people participated in a commemoration-march, eleven years after the beginning of the first Gulf-War.

Bush-Sharon Murderers !

Today - according to most estimations - we were around 100.000. StopUSA and No War had launched a call together to take part in the worldwide protests against the US War. Once again they mobilised very militant groups of the Arab migrant communities, unionists (Caterpillar, FGTB-Liege...), NGO's like 11.11.11, Oxfam, Worldsolidarity and Peace-Islands, and political formations like the Workers Party of Belgium and the Arab European League. Still, the crowd mainly consisted of individual protesters, who made a calm walk through the Belgian capital. But their cartons  left no doubt about their common opinion : the war for oil of the US president Bush has to be stopped.

No money for war, money to fight misery !

The most active protesters shouted slogans against Bush and his allies (the Israeli, British and Spanish prime-ministers Sharon, Blair and Aznar) and want billions of war-money to be used to get misery out of the world. They also attacked the transports of US military material via the Belgian port of Antwerp, which are going on with the approval of the Belgian government.

And then loads of invention : "Bush toi de la" (Bush get the hell out of there), the head of the Liberty Statue "Temporarily Out of Business", Aznar likking Bush's arse, "No to Recolonisation of Irak", a walking Peace-Giant, a lame Peace-Dove, "George Bush, we know you, your father was a killer too", "Monsters kill, People talk" and "Proud to be an Old European" (irony about Rumsfeld's saying that those European politicians who pretend to oppose the US war, belong to the Old Europe) and many, many other.

In Palestine and in Gaza,
Cisjordania, and in Irak,
in Belgium too and in Brussels :
the one who sows the misery,
will be harvesting anger !

Two government-parties (Parti Socialiste and Greens) had their own groups in today's demo. The PS was bombed with egs. Many protesters dont accept the Belgian government's hypocrisy. For the moment, it pretends to be against the US war, but it gives logistic support to the US military buildup in Kuwait and Qatar, and it pleads for a UN-protectorate in Irak instead of a US-occupation. The Italian social-democrat party L'Olivo showed its support for the European Union (of multinationals). Unlike the first Belgian Irak-demos, a number of European political and union-groups showed up, e.g. the German and Greek unions Verdi and Pame.