Note that Benn did not say "if" British bombs are dropped on Iraq.
but "when"..
mart
----- Original Message -----
From: "Irene MacInnes" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, March 12, 2002 3:53 PM
Subject: CANESI: Speech by Tony Benn March 10, 2002 Zmag
http://www.zmag.org/content/VisionStrategy/Bennstrike.cfmSpeech
by Tony Benn
Trafalgar Square 2nd March 2002
Comrades!
Comrades our slogan today is "not in our name" but
unfortunately, it is in our name. The bombs that are dropped
on Iraqi will be British bombs funded by British taxpayers
like ourselves. The depleted Uranium that was used before was
paid for by us. All the crimes that have been described today
are crimes that will be committed by a government that we have
elected and which is accountable to us and the question for us
now is what do we do now to stop them doing what they are
planning to do now. That is to say, the responsibility belongs
to all of us who are here in Trafalgar Square and everyone
else in Britain who opposes the war.
Now, Jim Mortimer said quite rightly the trade union movement
should take action to bring pressure to bear, I agree with
that. Tarqi Ali said that when the bombing begins we should go
into the streets and I agree with that but I want to go
further than that. When I look back on my life, and I am and
old man now. I look back and I think we never did enough to
stop the things that were done in our name and we must now see
if this war begins that we do more than we did in the past
until the people that we elect hear what we say and take
notice of what we do. On Armistice Day ever year we stop for
two minutes to remember the people who died. I have come with
a proposal that when the war begins we stop for one hour every
day to prevent the deaths of people who are now alive. We
should now seriously think of something I have never suggested
in my life before, in this way, that we should have
non-violent resistance to the government which is doing these
things in our name. Instead of two minutes silence at the end
of every year remember the women in Baghdad today who will be
widows in two months time, the children who will be orphans,
the towns that will be destroyed, the people who will die and
resolve now that the moment that bombing begins we go to where
we are and we stop for one hour.
Stop the buses. Stop the trains. Stop the [unclear]. It's all
very well going to Downing Street, I've spent half my life at
Downing Street, in, outside Downing Street. It has to be more
than that, its got to be something we take up in every town
and village.
I put it to you, go home to day, talk at your school about
what you will do in your school when the bombing begins. Raise
it in the churches, in the mosques in the synagogues, raise it
at your place of work because we could well be headed for a
third world war triggered off by stupid men who are now in
charge and are governing in our name.
I think we have to take some lessons from some of the greatest
leaders in the world, I think of Mahatma Gandhi who was in and
out of prison half his life, never did any harm to anybody,
but by God he made it clear he would not except British
imperialism in India and we should not accept American
imperialism in the world in which we live.
That is my proposal I dare say it won't be widely taken up but
everyone who stops for an hour will be asked "why have you
stopped" and we can get the debate going. Take the debate out
of the television studios and the Mill Bank tower and the
House of Commons and bring it back to us because we are
responsible for the future of the planet and the future of the
human race and comrades we cannot let our children down.
Good luck. Thank you very much indeed.
===================================================
subscribe, send a blank message to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED] >
From: "Irene MacInnes" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, March 12, 2002 3:53 PM
Subject: CANESI: Speech by Tony Benn March 10, 2002 Zmag
http://www.zmag.org/content/VisionStrategy/Bennstrike.cfmSpeech
by Tony Benn
Trafalgar Square 2nd March 2002
Comrades!
Comrades our slogan today is "not in our name" but
unfortunately, it is in our name. The bombs that are dropped
on Iraqi will be British bombs funded by British taxpayers
like ourselves. The depleted Uranium that was used before was
paid for by us. All the crimes that have been described today
are crimes that will be committed by a government that we have
elected and which is accountable to us and the question for us
now is what do we do now to stop them doing what they are
planning to do now. That is to say, the responsibility belongs
to all of us who are here in Trafalgar Square and everyone
else in Britain who opposes the war.
Now, Jim Mortimer said quite rightly the trade union movement
should take action to bring pressure to bear, I agree with
that. Tarqi Ali said that when the bombing begins we should go
into the streets and I agree with that but I want to go
further than that. When I look back on my life, and I am and
old man now. I look back and I think we never did enough to
stop the things that were done in our name and we must now see
if this war begins that we do more than we did in the past
until the people that we elect hear what we say and take
notice of what we do. On Armistice Day ever year we stop for
two minutes to remember the people who died. I have come with
a proposal that when the war begins we stop for one hour every
day to prevent the deaths of people who are now alive. We
should now seriously think of something I have never suggested
in my life before, in this way, that we should have
non-violent resistance to the government which is doing these
things in our name. Instead of two minutes silence at the end
of every year remember the women in Baghdad today who will be
widows in two months time, the children who will be orphans,
the towns that will be destroyed, the people who will die and
resolve now that the moment that bombing begins we go to where
we are and we stop for one hour.
Stop the buses. Stop the trains. Stop the [unclear]. It's all
very well going to Downing Street, I've spent half my life at
Downing Street, in, outside Downing Street. It has to be more
than that, its got to be something we take up in every town
and village.
I put it to you, go home to day, talk at your school about
what you will do in your school when the bombing begins. Raise
it in the churches, in the mosques in the synagogues, raise it
at your place of work because we could well be headed for a
third world war triggered off by stupid men who are now in
charge and are governing in our name.
I think we have to take some lessons from some of the greatest
leaders in the world, I think of Mahatma Gandhi who was in and
out of prison half his life, never did any harm to anybody,
but by God he made it clear he would not except British
imperialism in India and we should not accept American
imperialism in the world in which we live.
That is my proposal I dare say it won't be widely taken up but
everyone who stops for an hour will be asked "why have you
stopped" and we can get the debate going. Take the debate out
of the television studios and the Mill Bank tower and the
House of Commons and bring it back to us because we are
responsible for the future of the planet and the future of the
human race and comrades we cannot let our children down.
Good luck. Thank you very much indeed.
===================================================
subscribe, send a blank message to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED] >
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