Thousands in Madrid Protest Bush Visit Updated: Sun, Jun 10 3:15 PM EDT By KERNAN TURNER, Associated Press Writer MADRID, Spain (AP) - Thousands of Spaniards marched peacefully through downtown Madrid on Sunday to protest the upcoming visit of President Bush. Demonstrators carried signs saying "Bush Go Home" and criticized the president's stance on the death penalty, the environment and trade, as they marched from Madrid's Plaza de Espana to the Puerta del Sol square. Bush arrives Tuesday in the Spanish capital for talks with conservative Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar on the initial stop of his first major overseas trip. The six-day, five-nation tour will put Bush face to face with European leaders critical of his policies on missile defense, trade and the environment. In Spain, unions, anti-globalization and anti-death penalty groups have planned several days of protests. Spanish foreign minister Josep Pique said Sunday he understood the desire to protest against capital punishment during Bush's visit because "unfortunately in American society a majority is still in favor of the death penalty." Police estimated more than 2,500 people attended the rally, filling the four-lane Gran Via boulevard for about an hour. A helicopter hovered overhead. At the Puerta del Sol, a banner stretched across the speaker's platform said: "No to interventionism. No to neoliberal globalization. No to the destruction of the climate." "The visit of Bush represents the evil image of the Empire," union leader Adolfo Jimenez told the crowd. "We cannot but condemn the cooperation of the Spanish government with the United States" by allowing American troops on Spanish bases, he added. Some 3,500 Americans are stationed on military bases in Spain. The death penalty is a key theme of anti-American sentiment in Spain, following Sunday's return of a Spanish citizen who spent more than three years on death row in the United States. "Thank you, Spain!" Joaquin Jose Martinez said as he arrived at Barajas airport. "There are no words that can describe what I feel. All I can say is I'm very proud to be Spanish right now." Last week, a Florida jury in a retrial acquitted Martinez in a double slaying after pleas from Spanish King Juan Carlos and the Madrid government. Thousands of Spaniards contributed to the defendant's legal fees. At the rally, demonstrators condemned Monday's scheduled execution of Timothy McVeigh, convicted in the Oklahoma City bombing, and demanded a new trial for Mumia Abu Jamal, the black U.S. journalist sentenced to death for murder. Miroslav Antic, http://www.antic.org/ STOP NOVOM SVETSKOM PORETKU ==^================================================================ EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?bUrBE8.bVKZIq Or send an email To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] This email was sent to: archive@jab.org T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
