Global Protests mark Iraq War Anniversary by Reuters / ABC News / Agence France Presse 12:32pm 21st Mar, 2004   21st March,2004. (Reuters)    Hundreds of thousands have taken to streets across the world to demand the withdrawal of US-led occupying forces from Iraq on the first anniversary of the start of the war.    Journalists estimated at least a million people streamed through Rome in probably the biggest single protest, and in London two anti-war protesters evaded tight security around parliament to climb the landmark Big Ben clock tower.    From Tokyo to San Francisco, demonstrators accused US President George W Bush of having made the world an unsafer place by going to war in Iraq and triggering a violent backlash from Al Qaeda and other Muslim militant groups.    There were fewer demonstrators than in the mass marches staged around the world in the run-up to the war.    US protests    In New York, scene of the September 11, 2001, hijacked plane strikes by Islamic militants, tens of thousands created a sea of signs in midtown Manhattan, many of them criticizing President George W Bush, who is running for re-election in November.    New York's crowd was the largest in the United States on the day, with organizers estimating up to 100,000 protesters. Police did not give an official estimate. "Hey Hey, Ho Ho, George Bush has got to go," marchers chanted at the rally organized by the United For Peace and Justice coalition of left-leaning groups. "The thing they all object to is Bush," said demonstrator, Reeves Hamilton, 30. "It doesn't make sense to bomb countries that have nothing to do with September 11."    At a campaign rally in Florida, Mr Bush touted Iraq as an "essential victory" in Washington's war on terror and hit back at criticism of his decision to invade without more international support.    "I'm all for united action, and so are our 34 coalition partners in Iraq right now," he said. "Yet America must never outsource America's national security decisions to the leaders of other countries."    Anti-war activists also gathered at a park in the small central Texas town of Crawford but out of sight of Mr Bush's ranch there.    No Iraqi reaction    A year after the start of the Iraq war, Saddam Hussein has been overthrown and captured, but no weapons stockpiles have been found. In Iraq itself, people said their lives had improved since Saddam Hussein was toppled, but others said a year of guerrilla attacks and widespread lawlessness had left them fearful. No major attacks or protests were reported.    Some 3,000 people turned out in Sydney in Australia, chanting "End the occupation, troops out" and carrying an effigy of Prime Minister John Howard, a staunch supporter of the war. Last year some 200,000 protested against the war.    "Your war, our dead" one Rome protest banner said in Italy, directed at Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, US President George W Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.    "This is a gigantic demonstration," Nobel prize-winning playwright Dario Fo said as a sea of rainbow-coloured peace flags bobbed above protesters marching to a rally at the Circus Maximus, site of an ancient Roman stadium. Supporters of Mr Berlusconi, another staunch backer of the US-led invasion who has also sent troops to Iraq, issued a statement criticising the protesters and accusing them of having "paralysed" the capital. "These aren't pacifist demonstrations; they are demonstrations against the United States, against the Italian Government and, in many ways, against the West," Deputy Prime Minister Gianfranco Fini told the AGI news agency.    European protests    The protests began in Asia where rallies took place in Australia, Japan, South Korea, India, Bangladesh and Thailand. They then moved to Europe through the day and more were expected in the Americas later.    In Spain, many protesters blamed the previous conservative government's decision to go to war in Iraq for the March 11 Madrid train bombings that killed more than 200 people. "The government took the country to war, but it was ordinary people who got hurt and killed by the terrorists," film producer Lila Pla Alemany said on her way to a protest in Barcelona. Incoming Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, elected last weekend, has pledged to pull Spanish troops out of Iraq, calling the war a disaster and fiasco.    In London, thousands streamed through central London carrying "Wanted" posters bearing the faces of Mr Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair, Washington's main ally on Iraq. "We want to send a clear message to ... Blair that we and the British people are fed up with the half-truths and evasions on Iraq," a protest organiser, Stephen Tindale, said.    He and many other protesters accuse Mr Bush, Mr Blair and other leaders who backed the war of lying when they said it was necessary because Saddam possessed weapons of mass destruction.    No such arms have been found.    In Greece, around 10,000 protesters marched toward the US embassy in Athens which was protected by hundreds of riot police. The numbers were down on the some 100,000 who marched against the war last year.    In Germany, several thousand people took part in demonstrations in about 70 cities and towns across the country. About 1,000 protested outside a US air base at Ramstein. "Happy Birthday Mass Murder", one banner said.    An estimated 120,000 protested across Japan, including two rallies in Tokyo that each drew about 30,000 people, the Kyodo news agency said.    Yasuko Nagasawa, 41, said she feared the presence of Japan's Self-Defence Forces (SDF) in Iraq could make her country a target. "If the SDF stays in Iraq, something like 9/11 will happen in Japan - the troops must come home," she said.    -- Reuters    March 21, 2004    "Hundreds of Thousands march against war" (ABC News Online)    HUNDREDS of thousands of anti-war protesters have massed in capital cities to mark the first anniversary of the Iraq war, with Spain and Italy seeing the biggest turn-outs and demonstrators in London climbing Big Ben. In many cases, the protests failed to attract the huge crowds see at pre-war rallies last year, but streets were still filled with banner-waving campainers.    In Spain, hundreds of thousands of people joined anti-war marches, with this month's attacks by suspected Islamic extremists on trains in Madrid that killed 202 people still fresh in people's minds. "Solidarity with the victims of Madrid, Iraq and Palestine," read one banner. Some 200,000 people marched in the eastern port city of Barcelona, and while a similar demonstration in Madrid was barely half that size it was no less vociferous.    However, the numbers were nowhere near the 11.6 million who thronged cities across Spain in an unprecedented show of solidarity the day after the March 11 attacks, the worst in Spain's history.    It was in Italy that anti-war support was most successfully galvanised, with organisers claiming that up to a million people had crammed into the streets of Rome. Italian police put the figure at about 250,000.    A sea of people of all ages waving red balloons and rainbow flags with the message "peace" written on them stretched from Republic square to the ancient Coliseum. Banners calling for peace in the world and a host of city coats of arms floated above the crowd as it moved to the beat of rap protest songs."No to war, no to terrorism, no to bombs" read one banner carried by representatives of Italy's Green party.    In central London, police said 25,000 anti-war activists marched from Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square.They directed their anger at British Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President George W. Bush, shouting slogans such as "Anti-Bush, Anti Blair, Anti-war everywhere". "Bliar" - a play on Blair's name - and "No more lies" read some of the banners, while demonstrators improvised slogans to rap music through loudspeakers. Police arrested two Greenpeace activists who scaled the landmark Big Ben clock tower at the Houses of Parliament and unfurled a banner proclaiming "Time for the Truth".    Earlier, tens of thousands of anti-war demonstrators marched through the streets of New York, as part of nationwide protests. As many as 50,000 demonstrators, closely monitored by a large and visible police presence, rallied in midtown Manhattan then set off on a two-hour circular march through the centre of the city.    "We are calling for the US occupation of Iraq to be ended immediately according to the wishes of the Iraqi people and the right of self-determination," said Sarah Sloan of ANSWER, one of the many peace groups helping co-ordinate the US protests.    Sue Niederer, from New Jersey, carried a sign with photos of her son, Seth, in military uniform and the words "Bush, You Killed My Son"."We have to get the goddamn troops out of there. They should never have gone to Iraq in the first place," said Niederer, who son was killed while trying to defuse a bomb in Iraq."I support the troops, I just don't support the war. They are sitting ducks."    Back in Europe, the Irish capital Dublin saw a protest by 2000 people, police said. They marched behind a large black banner calling for "the end to the occupation of Iraq and Palestine"."Bertie Bertie Bush, blood blood on your hands," shouted the demonstrators, aiming their wrath at Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern and Bush.    Several thousand people turned out in cities across France, with a group of about 2500 gathering outside the central police headquarters in Paris.    In the capital of the Czech Republic, Prague, several hundred people protested in Wenceslas Square in the centre of the city. Martin Hobl, of the International Peace Movement, said in a speech to the crowd: "Mr Bush, what are you going to do with the remaining dozens of dictators in the world lucky enough to be in charge of countries where the US has no strategic interests?"    There were also small protests in Portugal and Switzerland. A demonstration attracted about 2500 people in the Belgian capital Brussels, while in Greece up to 15,000 people, mostly young people waving banners and railing against the occupation of Iraq, rallied in Athens, according to organisers. Police put the figure at 6000. A year ago, anti-war protests drew around 200,000 people.    Thousands of protestors also took to the streets across Turkey to denounce the occupation and a planned visit by US President George W. Bush to the country for June's NATO summit. In Germany, thousands of anti-war protesters marched in several cities, but the turnout was markedly lower than last year. In Berlin, where more than 70,000 had denounced the war a year ago, only 500 protesters turned out, according to police. Smaller demonstrations were held in Frankfurt, Munich and Hamburg and Heidelberg.    In Poland, a staunch US ally which has deployed 2500 troops in Iraq, about 500 peace activists marked the anniversary with a march to the US embassy. Marchers waved banners proclaiming "No to war", "Pull troops out of Iraq" and "No blood for oil".    Some 1000 Hungarians holding torches gathered in the shape of a peace sign in Heroes' Square in Budapest to show their opposition to the US-led presence in Iraq. During the day there were also protests in Cuba, Egypt and Syria.    Around 100 Syrians marched in central Damascus to denounce the conflict and the continued US-led occupation of Iraq. Carrying Iraqi, Syrian and Palestinian flags, the demonstrators chanted nationalist and anti-US slogans and burned US and Israeli flags. "Down With the United States", and "No to Capitalist Globalisation", they chanted. About 2000 protestors in Egypt meanwhile carried banners mocking the failure of the US-led coalition to find weapons of mass destruction (WMD).    The alleged existence in WMDs in the hands of the Iraqi president was given by both Washington and London as the prime reason for the war. "No WMD, but 20,000 Iraqi civilians killed .. this is Bush's democracy," read a banner in English.    In Cuba, about 10,000 people took part in a protest east of the capital Havana organised by groups associated with the ruling Communist party.    20th March, 2004.    "Australian Govt discredited by Iraq claims: Dr Carmen Lawrence".    Australian Federal Labor Party president Dr Carmen Lawrence says yesterday's peace rallies around the country have shown people are becoming increasingly suspicious of the decision to invade Iraq. Dr Lawrence attended the Brisbane rally at the Roma Street Forum and addressed the 500-strong crowd.    She says the arguments put forward by Prime Minister John Howard and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer for invading Iraq have continually shifted and been proven wrong. "They've escaped some censure about this compared with Tony Blair and George Bush, but nonetheless Australians are now saying, 'hang on, you told us this was about weapons of mass destruction - there aren't any; you told us this was about reducing terrorism - if anything it is escalating'," she said.    She says the Federal Government's credibility is "shot to pieces".    "If they were to claim for instance that there were terrorists on our doorstep or nuclear bombs in North Korea or that we're at risk from some source people, would ask whether they could be trusted," she said.    "It's a very serious erosion of public trust in Australia and in many ways it's the worst outcome for Australia."    March 21, 2004.    "Tens of thousands oppose Iraq war in US".    Tens of thousands of anti-war protesters halted traffic as they marched through the US cities to mark the first anniversary of the US-led war in Iraq.    Crowd estimates from San Francisco ranged from around 20,000 to a claim by organisers that 50,000 people took part in the protest, that was also attend by Hollywood star Woody Harrelson.    The demonstration, while spirited and outspoken, appeared much smaller than those held here in the run-up to the war when more than 50,000 attended one of the protests.    A long and brightly-coloured column of demonstrators snaked through the streets of the arch-liberal West Coast city as they wound their way to the city's Civic Centre to stage a noisy but peaceful rally. "How dare you [President] George W Bush," San Francisco City supervisor Tom Ammiano said to the cheering crowd in a park before the march through the city centre. "How dare you shed Iraqi blood, American blood and the blood of others for your Republican ... agenda. "You cannot occupy our minds, we are out of our minds; bring the troops home and not in body bags," he said.    Meanwhile, around 2,500 placard-waving and chanting demonstrators joined a rowdy protest in Hollywood to oppose the US presence in Iraq.    Organisers of the march and rally through the world-famous streets of Tinseltown had said they were expecting up to 10,000 anti-war protesters to take part, but police estimated the crowd at about 2,500.    "I'm here to oppose the outrageousness of the occupation of Iraq and the lies surrounding it," artist Michael Murino said, who has taken part in anti-war rallies in Hollywood and Philadelphia over the past year.    "It's got more to do with the US cornering markets, including oil, than with freedom and democracy," he said brandishing a banner showing a car petrol gauge with the worlds "War" and "Peace" at either end of the dial.    "Bush does not want democracy if it disagrees with America ... he trying to create vassal state that do as we say," Mr Murino said.    Apart from a strong anti-war and anti-Bush theme to the crowd that filled Hollywood Boulevard near Hollywood's famed 1920s "picture palace" cinemas, opposition to Israeli treatment of the Palestinians also featured strongly.    The march, one of scores organised across the United States and among hundreds across the world to mark the first anniversary of the US attack on Iraq, was organised by the ANSWER (Act now to Stop War and End Racism) Coalition.    -- AFP    Mexico City. March 20, 2004 (Agence France Presse)    "Gorbachev Calls US-led War in Iraq a 'Great Mistake' .    Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has described the US-led war in Iraq as a "great mistake" that increased the risk of terrorist attacks.    Invading Iraq was a "great mistake that led to more terrorism and not the prevention of this scourge," Gorbachev said at a conference on threats to peace hosted by Anahuac University on the outskirts of Mexico City.    The United States on Friday marked the first anniversary of the war, which it launched arguing it was part of its "war on terror. "But the war has brought "severe consequences," said Gorbachev, who led the Soviet Union from March 1985 to December 1991, when the 15-republic Communist superpower was dissolved.    "Every day we witness the consequences of the erroneous invasion of Iraq," he said to the applause of 5,000 people at the university. Democracy cannot be achieved by military force, he added. "Democracy is not imposed with tanks and missiles, but with respect of other peoples and international law," Gorbachev said.    The war has also wounded US relations with traditional allies, the former Soviet leader said. "Nobody doubts the economic, military and democratic power of the United States," he said. "We recognize this and that (Washington) can be a world leader. But we do not believe in leadership through domination."    "There is no other path than through the respect of international law and cooperation," he continued. "Anything else would be a great danger to the rest of the world."    © 2004 AFP
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