Now that the war in Iraq is 'finished', are you looking for something new to protest about?

Friday April 25, 2003 00:41

by Indymedia Kevin - IMC Eire

Just some random musings on the whole anti war movement in Ireland - and if its actually going to exist in about a weeks time.

Hey kid, yes you!

Are you a recently semi-radicalised citizen, angry at the war on Iraq? Have you been discussing the US aggression around the normally otherwise banal water cooler in your office? Were you one of many people who took to the streets in a February 15th protest, one of the biggest ever in Irish history? Did you join the local branch of the mushrooming "Irish Anti-War Movement" and get involved in discussions about building a mass movement against the war?

No doubt there are many of you out there. But now, what to do? The war on Iraq is "over", or so the media would have you think. It may go on for another 12 years or so before its actually officially declared "war" again of course. But for the moment, the spotlight is off. The media glare has moved on to whatever panic is next in an attempt to keep you glued to the screen. This week its the turn of SARS - up to 250 deaths already! Never mind that 250 people probably died from cholera in Africa since you started reading this article, but hey, its the new epidemic on the block.

So maybe you felt a little radicalised by this whole circus. The war on Iraq is "over", but you still want to get active. What do you do? Are you going to start a campaign against the War on Syria? After all, they're next, aren't they?

It will be interesting to see over the coming weeks what direction the likes of the IAWM and the new recruits take. I'd really like to believe that people would be blanket anti-war, and start protesting against the wars happening in other parts of the world. But I dont think I can.

You want some examples of other conflicts? OK. Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are currently involved in a war against each other. Very nasty, lots of deaths. In Burundi there is still fighting going on in a civil war (despite a ceasefire) that has killed over a quarter of a million innocent people since it started about ten years ago. You could picket Irish companies involved in weapons manufacturing, which inevitably find their way to Africa. (http://www.afri.buz.org/ireland-arms-trade.htm)

You could protest against the Columbian Government fighting with FARC - pick your side of the fence. You could protest at the Mexican embassy against their continuing low intensity war in Chiapas. (http://www2.tagish.co.uk/Links/embassy1b.nsf/Embassies+of+Mexico/999ED3BDDF4120198025689100323977)

In fact there's quite a lot of wars happening all over the world at the moment. But you dont hear much about them. And chances are you wont hear much about them either. (http://www.ppu.org.uk/war/)

Are you letting yourself be guided by the mainstream media? Hell, are you letting yourself being guided by the alternative media too? Perhaps at all Indymedias we have been guilty of promoting a huge anti war movement - but only concerning ourselves with a war that America was involved in.

If you're serious about protesting against innocent people being killed by weapons (of mass destruction or otherwise), against war crimes, against injustices - then are you going to keep up your actions and campaigns when the media spotlight gets switched off?

Are we in the alternative media going to follow the main media around, continually giving a different slant on what they have to say and claiming we have the truth - or are we actually going to construct a different window on global politics? One that allows people to see what is really happening but never viewed?

I'm guilty of it as well, hypocrite I know. How easy it is to get caught up in writing about demos against the War on Iraq, about the cops, liberal protesters, the SWP/GR/IAWM muppets not doing direct actions, etc etc... and yet when all the hype dies down and CNN and Sky News arent giving you 24/7 coverage of "the" war, there are still people being butchered in their beds tonight. Men, women, children. Young & old, black and white (but most black), some rich but most poor, people similar to you and me... and will you be out on the streets in front of the Dail? Will you campaign just as strongly for these wars to end as well?

Or when the light goes off and you cant see, does that mean nothing is happening in the darkness?