early news blog & archive of international global events

2000     2001     2002    

Protest  December  On December 19th and 20th massive mobilizations took place in Buenos Aires, throughout Argentina, and around the world, to mark the 1 year anniversary of the popular rebellion in Argentina ousting former President Fernando de la Rua. In the past weeks, mass media created a climate of tension and fear in preparation for the protests. In the face of this atmosphere, piqueteros, popular assemblies, cacerolazos, alternative media, and human rights activists reclaimed the streets for two days of non-violent actions. Piqueteros, popular assemblies, reoccupied factories, and cacerolazos are convoking actions to celebrate a year of grassroots organizing, alternatives to capitalism, and to continue demands for an end to a system generating a deepening economic crisis.
Global  October 18,   International Media Democracy Day, with events in cities across the world. Creative actions, protests, film screenings, discussions, lobbying, print publications, subvertising and spoofs are all playing their part in the beginnings of a new global movement around media issues. Failings of an exclusive corporate media system bonded to advertising and profit. Held for the first time last year in Canada and involving groups like Adbusters & FAIR, this year the day has gone global, supported by high profile groups like The Media Channel, alternative news networks like Indymedia, and smaller grass roots community media groups.
Protest October 11 SKYpost -100,000 pounds worth of damage was caused by Activists taking direct action to protect peat moors. They also raised the issue of peat and climate change. Peat Bogs store CO2, as such, they are our rainforests. 

Environmental September 26 THE IRISH SEA  Last week, joined the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior to confront two "lightly armed" British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) ships. The two ships were completing an 18,000 mile voyage transporting mixed oxide (MOX) enriched with Plutonium, enough to make 50 nuclear bombs. While the flotilla was preparing to deliver a message to the MOX ships, activists staged a land-based protest by chaining themselves to the roof of the Sellafield visitors center. Protestors contended that the ships were vulnerable to catastrophic accident or terrorist attack, which could lead to large-scale contamination of the marine environment and coastal communities around the planet. The Irish government condemned the shipment. Recent weeks have seen huge difficulties for BNFL and the British nuclear industry. British Energy, Britain's main operator of nuclear power stations is effectively bankrupt, while BNFL's biggest customer for MOX, Tokyo Electric, was found to be falsifying safety data and has suspended its MOX program indefinitely. The success of the flotilla action and the corporate media attention it generated has highlighted the problems that BNFL is facing and has boosted the spirits of anti-Sellafield activists

Vigil September 11  People around the world are marking the one year anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks with events in New York City, Washington D.C., and western Pennsylvania. Many have come together to plan commemorations that do not fall victim to the pro-war rhetoric that predominates most officially sanctioned anniversary events. These activities mourn both the suffering caused by the attacks, and the violent and undemocratic policies that have been implemented throughout the world since. Though not so visible in the mainstream media, those seeking this sort of remembrance have been gathering in the U.S. this past week. Peace events have been held across the country, with a focus on New York City. Places organizing against war in Iraq include, a human chain for peace linked in Ann Arbor, a candlelight vigil was held at Kirtland Air Force base in New Mexico, another in Oakland, hundreds rallied in Raleigh, and over 15,000 in San Francisco. More events are planned, in Atlanta, Buffalo, Madison, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Philadelphia, San Diego, and across Oregon.

Protest September 7 IMC/post  10 years after the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, the Johannesburg Earth Summit (The World Summit on Sustainable Development) is in full swing accompanied by an impressive mobilization of alternative, independent, and radical information sources providing daily coverage. The failure of the World Summit on Sustainable Development to implement any of the proposed environmental programs conceived at the Rio Earth Summit ten years ago suggests that the World Scientists' Warning to Humanity has fallen on deaf ears in corporate and government circles. Many even fear that the movement for global justice is not paying enough attention to the looming ecological crisis on planet Earth. The World Scientists' Warning states: "We are fast approaching many of the Earth's limits...no more than one or a few decades remain before the chance to avert the threats we now confront will be lost and the prospects for humanity are immeasurably diminished." How will we deal with the critical problems of climate change, massive air and water pollution, deforestation and desertification, habitat destruction and loss of biodiversity and population growth. Corporations and their friends in government obviously are not doing much. As the Warning notes, the people "must motivate a great movement, convincing reluctant leaders and reluctant governments and reluctant peoples themselves to effect the needed changes."   Indymedia-SA notes with concern the brute force that the South African state is using to silence legitimate and peaceful protests and dissenting and critical voices. When students from Wits University and the Palestine Solidarity Group learnt that Simon Peres would be addressing a meeting at the Johannesburg College of Education a small and peaceful protest was organized. Salim Vally, activist with the Palestinian Solidarity Group, the Social Movements Indaba and board member of the Freedom of Expression Institute was arrested for trying to gain access to the Johannesburg College of Education campus, where he is employed. The protesters were surrounded by the police for three hours, during which they were pepper-gassed while Simon Peres was escorted out of the venue after his speech. When the group decided to march on Hillbrow Police Station to request Vally's release, they were accompanied by the police only to be received by water canons, stun grenades and rubber bullets in front of the station. No amount of force can stop the power of collective action, as protesters demonstated by disrupting official proceedings at the Waterdome in Randburg to highlight the inability of privatization to deliver free water and other basic services to all people. 

Global 7- 30 IMC/post  Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) is an international humanitarian organization that works in over 85 countries, tending to the poorest of the poor in places that have been ravaged by war, disease, and environmental disaster. Each year, more than 2,500 medical professionals and support staff join more than 15,000 locally hired staff in delivering emergency medical care. MSF received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999. Malaria, tuberculosis,  and sleeping sickness, are some of the treatable diseases that kill millions each year in the developing world. The death toll would be lower if Western pharmaceutical companies invested more research and development funds into drugs and treatments but the profit margin is considered too low. In other cases, the Trade-Related Intellectual Property agreement (TRIPs) in the WTO restricts countries from manufacturing the drugs for themselves. 

Protest 7- 24 IMC/post While the Canadian government claims that the deportees will be safe in Algeria, it advises Canadian citizens against traveling there, warning of "continuous terrorist activity." Human rights organizations widely regard the situation in Algeria to be dangerous, leading many to question the real motives behind the deportations: a visit to Algeria by Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien in the name of NEPAD has $1 billion in trade implications, and a $141 million deal between Canadian company SNC Lavalin and the Government of Algeria to build water-supply infrastructure was officially announced shortly afterward. A demonstration against the deportations will take place on July 26 in Montreal, with the participation of local groups working to reinstate the moratorium.

Protest 7- 4  IMC/post    Fi- Cuco Rojo by Sebastian Hacher July 03, 2002  08:07 PM : 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 

Protest  7-1 IMC/post  Singing radical folk ballads for over six decades, he played with Woody Guthrie in the ‘40s, was blacklisted during the Red Scare of the ‘50s, helped spark the folk revival of the ‘60s. and has crusaded in recent decades for the cleanup of his beloved Hudson River. On Sunday he joined Supporters of the Joseph Daniel Wilson Memorial Garden on 219 W. 122nd St. in Harlem for an impromptu gathering to help organize against the city, which may bulldoze the garden in the next few.  More Gardens! Coalition | Pete Seeger ]

Protest  6-6 IMC/post weeks.Thousands took the streets of Paraguay this week protesting the process of privatization of state companies. The Central Command of Workers (Central Nacional de Trabajadores CNT) met on June 5 and summoned the workers from all over the country to go on a general strike without an expected end date in response to the privatization process and the police brutality. The mobilization was a result of the law number 1.615 that allowed and regulated the auction of the telephone state company (Antelco). The strike was to have started today, June 6, at midnight. The government, afraid that the situation could escalate, revoked the law and suspended the auction of the telephone state company. The currency of Paraguay immediately went up and the Minister of Economy said the agreement with the IMF has been compromised. Para mas information Indymedia Argentina &  Indymedia Brazil

Protest  5-16 B By the light of the moon in the early hours of day, protesters moved into a pink castle on one of the two GM sites that besiege Littlemoor near Weymouth. With the pink fortification standing guard over the entrance to the field in which the mutant remains of last years GM maize crop can still be found, the castles residents hoped to prevent further GM being planted this year. Sadly, on the 16th May, three weeks into the occupation, farmer Charles Foot with seven tractors and a massive police presence, entered the field and succeeded in planting the Aventis GM maize. The protesters will now be deciding what to do next. This is not over. What ever those at the pink castle decide to do, it is clear that the GM maize planted on this site has no future. Last year, all five Dorset GM trials were destroyed or damaged and Littlemoor residents decontaminated a massive 70% of the maize planted in the field on which the castle now stands. Within hours of the seeds being sown, at least twenty local families were seen digging the freshly sown seeds from the ground. This action started last month.  www.sayhi.to/thecastle

Celebrate  5-1  IMC/post  May Day, that time of year when we celebrate the workers who built and sustain this world, and those Anarchists, Communists and Socialists who fought to make their lives better. Begun in the United States in 1886 as part of the struggle for an eight-hour work day, now celebrated around the globe.  IMC/UKpost  Taking the atmosphere of a traditional 'Mayfayre' celebration, thousands of people celebrated a sunny Mayday 2002 all over downtown London. From Mayfair's exclusive avenues to Soho's red-hot backstreets, crowds thronged the streets and enjoyed themselves in what was described by most as a successful and beautiful day. Carnival, movement and music were the themes of the day.

Celebrate Earth Day!  Remember To Recycle!

Protest  4-22  This Saturday around 60,000 [our estimate] people from all over this country supporting many issues & causes marched in DC to confront the administration. The march assembled at the Great Mall adjacent to the US Congress, for an afternoon rally that lasted until dusk.  IMC/post  Thousands of people are expected in Washington, DC, April 19-22 for four days of demonstrations and events. United We March, the Mobilization for Global Justice, the Colombia Mobilization, Committee in Solidarity with the People of Palestine, the Black Panther Party Reunion, and International ANSWER, have all been mobilizing around a variety of issues, including the endless, ever-expanding war & the International Monetary Fund, which will be meeting in DC this weekend.  

Resolve  4-14  IMC/post   El domingo 14 de abril Chavez fue liberado por un grupo de militares aliados y Carmona fue detenido. Ahora Chavez es nuevamente el presidente de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela.  After a one-day-coup in Venezuela, Pedro Carmona renounced his interim presidency under military pressure. During the entire day there were intense demonstrations in front of the Palacio Miraflores where thousands of people demanded the liberation of ex-President Hugo Chávez. At the beginning of the night Congress was brought back and the now ex-President Pedro Carmona was signing his resignation.

Crisis  4-11   Crisis in Venezuela as protests go to the streets. Reports of scores of deaths are being verified as we report this story. Opposition to Presidente Chávez took to the streets to demand .... police responded, trying to control the crowd resulting in deaths. The Army may have seized control of the country in response, as night falls on Caracas. The light of day will tell which way this situation will go, this crisis is ongoing with incomplete reporting from mainstream media. Stay tuned to independent media sources, for news you can count on. 

IMC/Argentina  En el día de hoy, en el marco de un paro nacional convocado por la federaciones empresarias y los sindicatos opositores, se desarrolló una movilización de 150.000 personas pidiendo la renuncia de Chavez. IMC/Uruguay  Ayer fue una jornada sangrienta en Venezuela. Después de una marcha de 50.000 personas que derivó en 10 a 30 muertos y 95 heridos, los comandantes militares pidieron la renuncia del presidente Hugo Chávez, marcando el fin de la "Revolución Bolivariana".

Conflict  4-01  Senseless violence erupts over both sides of the middle-eastern fence, where & when this will end is not even being discussed. The current outcome of violence perpetuated by both sides of this conflict is clear. No timetable for a pullout of Israeli Defense Forces [IDF] or any suspension of the suicide bombers leads us to believe that reckless leaders are now responsible for hundreds of deaths in the region. Trying to put greater blame on either side is sadly missing the point. Looking at this conflict should bear a sober & singular conclusion, that all parties involved are to blame for this violence, counting the casualties and pointing of fingers will not reduce the tension at all. As for US involvement, this reporter has said before that General Zinni is not the person to bring a peaceful resolve to the conflict. Men of war cannot just put down their guns and pick up olive branches from bloody ground, leaving the mindset of war behind. To repair the fabric of life that has been torn for so long is a difficult path citizens must be willing to take, let us hope the future vision of the leaders will see this pathway before all the reasons for peace disappear with the lives taken by this conflict. marcmaster   IMC  War E IDF troop movements increase in and around Bethlehem, a protest of 150 internationals was attacked with live gunfire. Eight people are injured, one seriously, including several Indymedia workers. The historical turning point in the Palestinian intifada and global state of war continues to escalate. Israel has now entered Ramallah and Bethlehem in the Palestinian territories. Palestinian armed & civil resistance is intensifying, international activists in Palestine are taking unprecedented actions to prevent Israeli violence and worldwide solidarity protests are occurring.

Protest 3-16   Over 400,000 protesters take to the streets of Barcelona to express their objections to the EU meetings taking place this weekend. The protest began peacefully but ended in violence as the police attacked protesters with rubber bullets and tear gas. Groups of protesters escaped onto side streets, and many protesters were beaten by the police while trying to seek refuge. It is unknown at this time how many were seriously injured. No report of this politcal action can be found on Network TV here in the US. "Soon after the demonstration began, there was some small-scale property destruction and some scuffles broke out as the "peace police" (march stewards) fought off other demonstrators. Despite the enjoyment they got protecting inanimate objects, they seemed more reluctant, however, to defend human beings after the police began brutally attacking people about half an hour ago. When the demo reached the port at the end of Colon, police were fought back as they amassed in side streets. However the crowd was moved by teargas and rubber bullets. We headed up parallel and attempted to slow the police advance by constructing barricades. The street was just too wide to block, and the cops fired rubber bullets constantly, hitting many people in the back, legs and head. At 2045 the riot police began to outflank us, and some people escaped down side streets. They surrounded a group of about 70 of us outside a deserted bar and started savagely beating people about the head and face. We managed to break into the bar and into relative safety, but some people were injured in the crush to get in; desperately try to shield themselves from the batons raining down. When large numbers of press arrived, the police retreated and we were able to leave at 2110. I have no information as to where the main body of the demonstration went."    3-15 [Friday] Over 25,000 people have taken to the streets of Barcelona. "Lobby Busters" & "Circus against the Global Empire" are parts of the street theater, who stand with the CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE EUROPE OF CAPITAL who are staging various events throughout the weekend. Part of their statement follows - " ... we want to express our rejection to the actions of the police, creating situations of violence and tension against people who participate in the actions and practice their right to free speech. Some information workers have also been attacked. Everybody saw the gratuitous police charges against the Lobby Busters, early in the morning. In the face of this situation, we ask ourselves: why are journalists being attacked? why are there indiscriminate charges? why are buses being stopped at the border? why those in charge of enforcing the law are the first ones to break it? ... on a day like today, where actions have been shown to enjoy wide support from the citizens, the repressive actions of the police have been absolutely unjustified and ridiculous. We hope that on Saturday the day can develop normally, and we know the participants will work to make it so."  p

Conflict  3/06-02 The incidents of Godra have shaken our conscience to no end. What can be more condemnable than the violence, violence against innocent Human beings, violence in the name of religion, violence perpetrated apparently in and around the issues related to temple and mosque?  india.indymedia.org/  This past week claimed 91 deaths and scores more injured by the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis, while the international community watched from the shores of the Dead Sea. In a circle of violence spun out of control, militants had declared they would avenge Israeli raids into Palestinian refugee camps, which  killed scores of people. A suicide bomber struck an Orthodox Jerusalem neighborhood, as Israeli's gathered for prayers at the end of the Sabbath. West Jerusalem was shook by the blast, which was one of the deadliest bombings the city had seen for some time, raising the level of conflict to heights not seen for many years. Following two Palestinian attacks on Israeli checkpoints in the West Bank and Gaza, Israel's military struck several Palestinian targets in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Fighting around the Balata refugee camp still goes on, resulting in suffering on both sides. Israeli helicopters attacked compounds in Hebron, in response to attacks by Palestinians. Peace plans brought to the table have yielding no promise for the people of the region, who continue to pay the price for this conflict.  indymedia.org.il/imc/israel 

Environment  2/25-02  Brritish environmental charities are rushing to buy land in Patagonia, one of the world's great natural wildernesses, to keep it out of the hands of property developers and seclusion-seeking international  celebrities. Nearly a sixth of Patagonia belongs to just 350 foreign owners. The Benetton brothers, Luciano and Carlo, have invested £62m in a ranch with 60,000 square miles of sheep farms. George Soros, the Hungarian-born billionaire investor, has bought 964,000 acres just south of the province of Buenos Aires, where he breeds cattle. Ted Turner, the American CNN media baron, has built a mansion in the Andean foothills, and Sylvester Stallone has bought 30,000 acres in San Martin de los Andes. Sparsely populated Argentinian Patagonia, which stretches for 1,200 miles from the Rio Colorado to Cape Horn, is home to an astonishing array of wildlife, from guanacos and pumas to Magellanic penguins, fur seals, elephant seals and whales. Famous footage of killer whales flinging themselves on to a beach to snap up seal pups was filmed at Peninsula Valdez. Despite this, there is little protection for wildlife outside the immediate vicinity of Peninsula Valdez. In the 1980s, public outrage only just stopped plans by a Japanese company to harvest 40,000 penguins for food and their skins for gloves. Pressure on wildlife in Patagonia, has been heightened by economic problems and the easing of restrictions on foreign land ownership. "We wanted to get there first to make sure the land was kept in sympathy with the wildlife," said the World Land Trust's John Burton. "Before we got involved there wasn't a single nature reserve anywhere the length of the Patagonian steppe." In Argentina and every bit of land and sea is open to unsustainable development," said Sarah Jones, marine policy officer for WWF-UK. "The only way at the moment to preserve a site in Patagonia and keep it from developers is to buy it for conservation purposes."   By Mark Rowe in Puerto Madryn, Argentina - edit by webpost  news.independent.co.uk/world/environment/

Protest/Media  2/12-02  Over 15,000 people gathered in NYC to protest global corporations that harm our environment & effect social fabrics that stretch worldwide. NYC was host to the World Economic Forum, a Swiss based association, for what were closed door meetings where industrialists met to discuss who knows what, as thousands of students & activists from all over this world took their voice to the streets. The cover photo on Sunday's [February 3rd 2002] issue depicted a protester being arrested by the NYC Police Department, this image in no way reflected the overall actions that took place on that day. The New York Times which was heretofore one of the best sources of information & new gathering in the world, has now fallen into either misinformation or just inept reporting. This reported covered the march & related protests which included several groups including Another Word Is Possible, Art in Action, Reclaim the Streets, Students for Global Justice, ANSWER & others where the spirit of this protest produced a positive peaceful pronouncement of renouncement of the global ..... being discussed in the WEF meetings. Freedom of speech issues arose as the NYC police reduced assembly to pens of people barricaded & surrounded. Any continuity of the march was further reduced by other tactics by the authorities which in the end led to a "no resolve" for many of the protesters. As the day wore on & the sun had finally set, it was left to several hundred protesters who were the last to leave the pens to somehow conclude this action. What had been an obstacle throughout the day was abandoned, as this group was ready to take to the streets in an illegal march to Grand Central, for the resolve that could not be found inside the police perimeter. Finally, gathered in Grand Central, surrounded by police, led by the spirit Starhawk, who had blessed this event on the eve of the day itself in Washington Square, a spiral dance & chant with song so sweet was once again initiated. So it ends as it began, with a circle of people held together with love & the belief that Another Word is Possible.  marcmaster 

Conference  1/22-02   WSF sets stage for counteroffensive against globalization  "Another world is possible"   The anti-establishment forces gather in Brasil after a tumultuous year.  Porto Alegre is not exactly a Third World city. Located in one of Brazil's more prosperous states, Rio Grande do Sul, this city of 1.2 million people is First World when it comes to infrastructure and social services. In fact, it ranks near the very top in terms of the country's "quality of life" index. Yet Porto Alegre, site of the World Social Forum (WSF) last year and again this year, has become the byword for the spirit of the burgeoning movement. Galvanized by the slogan "Another world is possible," some 70,000 people are expected to flock to this coastal city from January 30 to February 4. Fisherfolk from India, farmers from East Africa, trade unionists from Thailand, indigenous people from Central America will be among those making their way to Porto Alegre. The event will also be graced by personalities who have come to exemplify the diversity of the movement against corporate driven globalization including activist-thinker Noam Chomsky, Indian physicist-feminist Vandana Shiva, Canadian people's advocate Maude Barlow, and Egyptian intellectual Samir Amin.  Walden Bello, Focus on the Global South

Protest  1/12-02 IMC/post  To help educate people about the World Economic Forum (WEF), New York City is hosting protests & demonstrations. The WEF claims to be "an independent organization committed to improving the state of the world" yet it is composed and funded by corporations such as  Enron, whose profits take precedence over environmental and social concerns. According to organizers of the conference, the corporations of the WEF have amassed more wealth than most countries by pushing social and economic policies that have curtailed democracy, harmed workers, and destroyed the environment. Over 1,000 of the world's corporate leaders, along with top political and media representatives, will meet behind closed doors in New York City from January 31 to February 4 at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting. The Forum Council, an elite inner circle within the WEC, will direct policy issues while creating pathways for other corporations to follow. Meanwhile thousands of students, union members and activists plan to protest in what is expected to be one of the largest anti-corporate globalization demonstrations ever held in NYC. Viewed by critics as the architect of corporate globalization, the Davos based WEF, formed in 1971, was the catalyst for the formation of the World Trade Organization.

Protest  12/21-01 IMC/post  UN DIA QUE QUEDARA EN LA HISTORIA  El dМa que tiramos un  presidente, 20 de Diciembre: Informe desde las calles de Buenos Aires. La noche ya se apropiС de todo, y los gritos y tiros que de vez en cuando trae el viento se apagan con cada gota de lluvia. El dМa de hoy pasarА la historia como la primera vez que las masas argentinas tiraron a un presidente que llegС al gobierno por medio de las urnas. Lo que comenzС como una oleada de saqueos de hambre y derivС, luego de la declaraciСn del estado de sitio, en un levantamiento espontaneo de las clases medias y amplios sectores de trabajadores, dio por tierra el gobierno.  The president of  Argentina has left office, due to anti-government demonstrations that escalated in response to an economic crisis that has crippled the nation. On Wednesday, a nationwide strike led to the resignation of the Finance Minister who oversaw the liberalization of the national economy. Facing a $155 billion debt & soaring unemployment Argentina is now in crisis. Critics suggest these events may be due to its implementation of International Monetary Fund policies.  Lea mas aqui     argentina.indymedia.org - photo credit 

Media  12/11-01  In a case involving the Mexican-based muckraking news website NarcoNews, the New York State Supreme Court has ruled that Internet news sites are entitled to all the First Amendment protections accorded a newspaper or magazine journalist in defamation suits. Wired News reporter Mark K. Anderson " The court ruled that online journalists reporting on matters of public importance, like their colleagues in other media, can only be found guilty of libel if their actions are deemed malicious. " The ruling marks a landmark decision for press freedom for independent online journalists especially international reporters.

Conflict  11/16-01  GREEN PARTY WASHINGTON, D.C.  The Green Party of the United States has renewed its call for the U.S. to halt the military assaults on Afghanistan, as the war threatens to spread and Afghans face starvation in the coming months. "Continuing the strikes through Ramadan will further alienate Muslims and jeopardize fragile alliances with Pakistan and other Muslim nations," said Tom Sevigny, Connecticut Green activist of the national party's steering committee. Pakistan's President, General Pervez Musharraf, warns that the U.S. assaults are "perceived in the whole world as a war against the poor, miserable and innocent people of Afghanistan" and that continuing attacks during Ramadan would have "negative fall-out in the entire Muslim world." The war on Afghanistan puts the military junta in Pakistan in an explosive dilemma. Already on shaky ground, the undemocratic Pakistani government faces destabilization, with dire consequences if Pakistan's small nuclear arsenal falls into the wrong hands.

The military strikes have already proved devastating for the people of Afghanistan, especially the use of cluster bombs, fuel air bombs, and carpet bombing by the U.S. as the Taliban dispersed into civilian areas. "The only hope for Afghanistan is massive intervention from the U.N.," said Holly Hart,
secretary of the Iowa Green Party and co-chair of the national platform committee. "Such an effort must provide emergency food and medical supplies, attempt to prevent further bloodshed in the civil war between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance, and address the brutal treatment of Afghan people -- especially women -- by both the Taliban and the Northern Alliance ........."  http://gpus.org

Protest  11/11-01 IMC/UK post  New Delhi, India: 50,000 people participated in a massive rally in India's capital city to t the World Trade Organization on November 6th. The rally titled, "Indian People’s Campaign Against the WTO" called for a sustained movement to stop the government from surrendering India’s economic sovereignty and destroying the Indian economy and people’s livelihoods. All over the world, protest demonstrations are taking place against the World Trade Organization meeting in Doha, Qatar in order to use grassroots, external pressure to support dissent by Southern nations within the WTO. Protests have either taken place or are planned in Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Philippines, South Korea, Portugal, Qatar, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, UK and the United States. The right-wing led Italian government has made a desperate attempt to undermine 70,000 protestors made up of a coalition of united anti-WTO and war groups by providing transport for 50,000 people to march in favour of the US led war against Afghanistan in Rome today. International reports: Doha | Argentina | Barcelona | Frankfurt | Bolivia | India | Slovenia | Netherlands | Melbourne | South Africa ¦ Sao Paulo ¦ Palo Alto (California) | Bankok | Washington DC | Iran | Indonesia | Christchurch NZ | Turkey/Thailand | Ontario CA | Montreal ¦ New York | Italy | Berlin | Geneva

Protest  11/07-01 IMC/NYC post  
The WTO is gearing up for its first ministerial conference since Seattle. Meanwhile, protesters in 36 countries around the world will be gathering for a global day of resistance on November 9, in NYC, activists will also be holding strategy sessions November 8-10, to discuss challenging corporate power on multiple fronts, from revoking corporate charters to reparations to creating sustainable agriculture. No New Round Radio will make sure all these voices are carried on the web. While transnational corporations and leading governments pursue an ambitious new round of trade liberalization, some say that it is more urgent than ever for the anti-globalization movement to raise its voice in the streets.

Protest  11/05-01 IMC/NYC post  The leaders of two local firefighter's unions have been arrested in the aftermath of Friday's Ground Zero clash between NYC police and firefighters. A thousand off-duty firefighters were protesting Mayor Rudy Giuliani's decision to scale back search and recovery efforts even though thousands of bodies, including those of more than 200 firefighters, are still missing. Like many protesters before them, the firefighters claim that they were provoked and attacked by the NYPD. Captain Peter L. Gorman, head of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, denounced Giuliani as a "fascist" after surrendering himself at a Manhattan police station.

Conflict  10/20-01  US commandos strike southern Afghanistan in an overnight raid providing the first confirmation that the war against Osama bin Laden is entering a new phase. In the raid, US special forces, attacked Taliban targets near Kandahar. Pentagon said casualties included a US helicopter that crashed, near the Afghan Pakistan border, killing two US servicemen. The Independent has also learnt that American troops have teamed up with a leading anti-Taliban warlord in the West as part of the effort to drive the Taliban out of the northern strategic city of Mazar-i-Sharif. Speaking from his field headquarters, 60 miles from Mazar-i-Sharif, Abdul Rashid Dostum, a senior commander, said he was in discussion with US military personnel at Dara-i-Suf, 60 miles south of Mazar. "They are talking to me about what assistance they can provide us." General Dostum said a fierce battle was under way for Mazar, a fortress city on the strategic route between the Northern Alliance's supply bases in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan and the Afghan capital, Kabul.  Sources - Pentagon Briefing & Independent Digital www.independent.co.uk/

Protest  10/15-01 IMC/UK post  Tens of thousands of people, from all corners of Britain, gathered in London on Sat 13 October to protest the war on 'terrorism' and Afghanistan. Demonstrators marched from Hyde Park to a rally in Trafalgar Square, organized by CND. The diversity of individuals and groups involved - peace groups, women's rights campaigners, Palestinian groups, pensioners, kids, Wombles, Muslims, Quakers and many more - was best described by one demonstrator: "We're not part of any group, we're just...people."

Conflict  10/7-01 IMC post    On Sunday, October 7, the U.S. and Britain began bombing Afghanistan. Official military claims are that only " strategic targets" such as "command and control facilities" were targeted. In addition to Kabul and Kandahar, a total of 31 sites including Afghan cities such as Jalalabad, Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif were also attacked. U.S. President Bush says that in addition to the bombs, the U.S. will be dropping food and supplies. "The United States of America," says Bush, "is a friend to the Afghan people." According to Amnesty International, several hundred thousand of those people have already fled their homes to avoid the impending bombing. Desperate refugees are expected to try crossing the Iranian and Pakistani borders, which were apparently closed in response to U.S. & British diplomatic pressure.

Media  9/29-01 IMC/DC post  Good News for the Disenfranchised. Direct Satellite TV from antiwar protesters in DC Saturday/Sunday S29/30 can be seen from 12PM to 6PM EST. Media Whiteout of anti-war sentiment about to be broken. This free satellite hookup is being provided by Access Productions of Ann Arbor Michigan, www.AccessUS.com who has agreed to allow the international Action Center, the group with the permit, to control the broadcast. Downloads will be free and non-copyrighted. Saturday the transponder will be SBS6 #7, frequency 11872 - Sunday the transponder will be SBS6 #5, frequency 11823. Please inform your public access cable provider to download it!

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Protest  9/27-01 Washington, DC  People are coming to town! Some have begun showing up to take part in the marches and teach-ins planned for this week. Activists in Washington DC have vowed to continue with their planned forums and marches -- adjusted to the new situation with new determination to proceed. Marches for peace and/or against capitalism are Sept. 29 and Sept. 30, called by a variety of groups. In the coming week, there is a great deal of activity planned. Join Us!  

Peace Events in DC on the 29-30     September 29th Anti-Capitalist Convergence Anti-War March      September 29th  International Days of Action Against War and Racism      September 30th  Washington Peace Center and AFSC Peace March 

Protest 9/17-01 Washington, DC  Mobilization for Global Justice  Participants of the Mobilization for Global Justice (MGJ) are shocked and deeply saddened by last week's terrorist attacks. We express our deepest sympathies for the victims of this tragedy, their families, friends and communities. We unequivocally condemn these horrific attacks, and we call for an immediate end to the cycle of violence. We urge all leaders to seek justice in this situation rather than revenge. In this time of grief, the MGJ is postponing the nonviolent demonstrations against the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) our coalition was planning to host later this month. We choose this course of action regardless of the plans of the World Bank and IMF, and we respect other organizations that choose a different path.

Disaster  9/11-01/IMC   All U.S. flights have been grounded and New York City has been sealed off because both World Trade Center towers have been destroyed by airplane attacks. The U.S. Pentagon is on fire and the White House/Capital buildings are being evacuated. NYC reports are sketchy because TV transmitters were atop the twin towers that are no longer there. Christopher Mitchell from twincitiesindependentmedia  reports: This morning, two planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York, the planes have done considerable damage to the upper floors of each tower. The weather in NYC this morning was quite clear and both planes apparently approached the towers slowly, it is highly unlikely that this was an accident or coincidence.  Visiting Sarasota, Florida President Bush called the World Trade Center attack ``a national tragedy and an apparent act of terrorism against our country".  Casualties have not been calculated but this disaster seems to have gone beyond anything that America could have imagined.