The Hamilton Coalition To Stop The War (HCSW) announces that it will hold an informational picket at the Federal Building, 55 Bay Street North, from 10:30 to noon on Labour Day, Monday, September 2, 2013, to send a message to the Harper government of Canada that it should not participate in any US-led military attack on Syria. Rather, it should insist on a thorough investigation by UN weapons inspectors of the alleged use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government. Our main slogan will be “Harper: Hands Off Syria!”
We note that demonstrations in the UK persuaded the British Parliament to outvote, by a two-to-one margin, a Conservative motion to support US military action vs. Syria, without waiting for the results of the UN investigation.
The HCSW also wishes to hold Foreign Minister John Baird to his official position that a political – not military – solution is preferable to end the Syrian crisis.
In addition, the HCSW will call for the Harper government of Canada to withdraw from the so-called "Friends of Syria" organization, which organization funds, arms, and organizes foreign mercenaries to fight for the overthrow of the Syrian government and has also coordinated punishing sanctions against the Syria people, outside the framework of the UN Security Council. In fact, the Harper government recently hosted in Ottawa a meeting of the “Friends of Syria” sanctions sub-cttee.
Finally, in recognition of the right of Syrians to self-determination, we will ask the government of Canada to recognize and support the Musalaha (national reconciliation) movement in Syria and seek to bring together the government of Syria and the Syrian domestic opposition in an effort to help achieve peace.
The HCSW will support a demonstration at the US Consulate by our sister group, the Toronto Coalition To Stop The War, on Saturday, August 31, 2013 at 2 pm across from the US Consulate in Toronto. We are trying to organize carpooling from Hamilton for that event.
The HCSW is a member organization of the Canadian Peace Alliance. The CPA statement, “Don't Attack Syria”, may be found at: http://www.acp-cpa.ca/en/No-NATO-Intervention-in-Syria.html. Our website may be found at: hamiltoncoalitiontostopthewar.ca .
For more info, please call Ken at 905-383-7693 or e-mail hcsw@cogeco.ca .
Please find below the statement by Nobel Laureate Mairead Maguire regarding the US plan to attack Syria. Ms. Maguire led the Musalaha Mission to Syria in May 2013.
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The Peace People, 224 Lisburn Road, Belfast BT9 6GE, Northern Ireland
Phone: 0044 (0) 28 9066 346 Email: info@peacepeople.com www.peacepeople.com
Press release 26th August 2013
Mairead Maguire, Nobel peace laureate, today appealed to the Rt. Hon. William Hague, British Foreign Minister, and M. Laurent Fabius, French Foreign Minister, to stop calling for military action against Syria which, she said, will only lead the Middle East into even more violence and bloodshed for its people.
Maguire said:
Arming rebels and authorizing military action by USA/NATO forces will not solve the problem facing Syria, but indeed could lead to the death of thousands of Syrians, the breaking-up of Syria, and it falling under the control of violent fundamentalist jihadist forces. It will mean the further fleeing of Syrians into surrounding countries which will themselves become destabilised. The entire Middle East will become unstable and violence will spiral out of control.
Contrary to some foreign governments current policies of arming the rebels and pushing for military intervention, the people of Syria are calling out for peace and reconciliation and a political solution to the crisis, which continues to be enflamed by outside forces with thousands of foreign fighters funded and supported by outside countries for their own political ends.
Having visited Syria in May, 2013, after leading a 16 person delegation I returned convinced that the civil community, with groups such as Mussalaha, who are working on the ground building peace and reconciliation, can solve their own problems if their plea for outsiders to remain out of the conflict is honoured by the international community.
During our visit we met with all sections of the community, most of whom are sick of violence and death and want peace and reconciliation and a political solution. We met with the Syrian Prime Minister and 7 other government ministers, and we were assured that the Government did not use sarin gas on its own people, and they invited the UN to send in inspectors to see what was happening.
Currently there is an International Commission of Inquiry on Chemical Weapons in Damascus staying at Four Seasons Hotel, which is less than ten minutes from the areas where the chemical weapons were allegedly used. The western media, particularly vocal being the British and French Foreign Ministers, are accusing President Assad of using chemical weapons on his own people but have no proof of this accusation, rather some things point to rebels as the ones who used such weapons.
The question must be asked, what would it benefit Assad to use sarin gas in the vicinity of visiting international UN inspectors and in his own environment and neighbourhood where it would affect his soldiers, etc., personally, I do not believe the latest accusations against the Assad government using sarin gas, and in order that the world can hear the truth, I would appeal to the International Commission of Inquiry to go into the areas in question immediately and report as quickly as possible. In the meantime I appeal to the Foreign Ministers of Britain and France to encourage, as the Syrian people wish, dialogue and negotiation as a way forward. We all remember the fear, panic and lies spun by the British and American governments, and others that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, and it was not true. Let us learn the lesson of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya where so many millions have been killed in invasions and war, and many continue to die in violence. Violence is not the answer, let’s end this ‘war on terror’ and give nonviolence and peace a chance.
Mairead Maguire
Nobel peace laureate
www.peacepeople.com
info@peacepeople.com
peace people, 224 Lisburn road, Belfast. Bt307NW. N. Ireland
For more info, hcsw@cogeco.ca
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