PRESS STATEMENT – 16 MAY 2011
On the occasion of the Queen’s visit to Ireland the Irish Anti-war Movement holds Black Balloon Protest.
· BRITISH GRANDMOTHER OF A SOLDIER KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN AND AN ex-SAS SOLDIER AND IRAQ WAR VETERAN TO SPEAK AT BLACK BALLOON PROTEST AGAINST WAR, TUESDAY, 6.30PM AT THE GPO, O’ CONNELL STREET.
· REMEMBER THE MULTITUDE OF DEAD VICTIMS AT THE HANDS OF THE QUEEN’S FORCES IN THE WARS IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN.
· SPEAKERS INCLUDE JOAN HUMPHREYS, BEN GRIFFIN, RICHARD BOYD BARRETT TD (CHAIR IAWM), ROGEL COLE (CHAIR PANA), CLLR. BRID SMITH, PBP AND OTHERS.
The Irish Anti-war Movement in a statement released today noted that to coincide with the Queen's visit to Ireland, it will be holding a black balloon protest at the GPO tomorrow evening (Tuesday) at 6.30pm, as a reminder of the thousands killed in Afghanistan and Iraq at the hands of western troops. This includes the deaths of young British troops, many of who joined the army purely to improve their economic circumstances - only to be killed or maimed in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The statement noted that her Majesty's Armed Forces, as one of the major contingents of foreign troops, has been directly responsible for appalling human suffering in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Afghan occupation is now entering its tenth year, and in recent weeks has seen a further escalation of violence. Many officials in Britain and America, such as former Democratic leader Howard Dean for example, have openly admitted that the war in Afghanistan is unwinnable and that Karsai’s government is corrupt. Various polls in Britain have shown an overwhelming desire among the British people for the troops to come home. Yet the Queen’s forces still occupy that country and continue to play a significant role in the subjugation, harassment and murder of its people.
Joan Humphreys, a British woman who lost her soldier grandson in Afghanistan and who will speak at the protest said:
“The Black Balloon protest on the 17th May organised by the Irish Anti-war Movement is a unique way of showing the British Government and the Queen the strength of opposition to the unacceptable wars in which the UK are involved. The Queen has equal responsibility, along with the British Government, for the thousands of deaths, for the killing and maiming of tens of thousands of civilians and also for the deaths of British service personnel. Her own grandson was removed from active service in Afghanistan as soon as there was any chance of him being maimed or killed. This is not an option for the other British soldiers who are serving there or for the Afghan combatants and civilians who are suffering in their own country. All foreign troops should be removed from Afghanistan and Iraq now to allow the people of these countries to decide their own destiny.”
Ben Griffin, an ex SAS soldier and Iraq war veteran, who will also speak at the protest, said: “I will be in Dublin during the visit of Elizabeth Windsor to stand in solidarity with people who actively believe in Peace and Independence, as opposed to the Wars and Empire represented by Her.”
Richard Boyd Barrett TD, Chair of the IAWM said:
"There is a deliberate attempt by the government and some sections of the media to paint all those who might protest against the Queens visit as bitter and sectarian. However, there are very legitimate and current reasons motivating our protest. It is precisely because the Irish Anti-War Movement is thoroughly internationalist that it feels obliged to protest against British warmongering and imperialism in Afghanistan and the Middle East.
We are standing in solidarity with the beleaguered people of Afghanistan who have had to suffer ten years of murderous occupation and war at the hands of Britain and other allied military powers - resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of Afghanis, Pakistanis and hundreds of young British soldiers.
Britain, along with the US and other western countries, also continues to support and arm brutal dictatorships, particularly in the Gulf States where those regimes are, as we speak, attempting to crush popular movements for democracy, particularly in Bahrain.
As the head of the British armed forces, the Queen is a key part and symbol of that machine of war and empire. We would be abdicating our responsibility as peace activists and internationalists if we failed to register protest at the time of her visit.”
The statement also condemned the restrictions on postering during the Queen’s visit, the sinister and systematic removal of posters and the harassment of anti war activists by members of the Garda.
Jim Roche, PRO of the Steering Committee, concluded the statement by noting:
“It is amazing that the Irish people have been burdened with the massive cost of this extravagant visit – now estimated at €30 million - and that ordinary people have been restricted from protesting peacefully, organisations have had posters removed and anti war activists have been harassed by the Garda.”
“The Queen, as the head of the British armed forces, must be held to account for the wanton waste of human life and resources in Iraq and Afghanistan. That is why the Irish Anti-war Movement is holding this black balloon protest during her visit to Ireland - to remember the dead victims of her futile wars.”
END
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