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AP. 2 March 2003. Thousands hold 'million man march' in Pakistani port city against war on Iraq. KARACHI -- Tens of thousands of people, some chanting "America is the terrorist," marched in the southern Pakistan city of Karachi on Sunday to protest a possible U.S.-led war on Iraq as a heavy police contingent kept security tight. The demonstration, the first of two planned "Million Man Marches" in Pakistan against a potential war, was the largest so far in this predominantly Muslim nation, although it did not come anywhere near the seven-figure turnout predicted by organizers. Women, some riding in horse-drawn carriages, and men paraded in separate lines as the protest began peacefully in Karachi's city center. "It's a mammoth crowd, this is impressive," said deputy police chief Tariq Jamil. Police weren't taking any chances with safety. An estimated 3,000 officers were deployed, and routine traffic was diverted by roadblocks -- some with coils of barbed wire -- in the sprawling industrial port city of 14 million people. Earlier Sunday, about 6,000 people marched in a separate protest against an Iraq war in the northern Khyber region, on the Afghan border. A Muslim religious sect led the rally and issued a statement vowing jihad against the United States if Americans strike Baghdad. Some marchers burned an American flag, while others shouted "This is the time for the destruction of America." Organizers stretched banners along the road with slogans such as "Protest strongly to deter America from war." Protesters shouted "The international terrorist is America -- not the Muslim world," some using loudspeakers mounted on pickup trucks. "Like people around the world, masses of Karachi citizens will fill the streets today to express their opposition to the war and to American designs," said Maulana Shah Ahmed Noorani, head of the religious coalition Mutahida Majlis-e-Amal, or MMA. A second march is scheduled March 9 in Rawalpindi, a city adjacent to the capital, Islamabad. President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's support of the U.S.-led war on terrorism, particularly at home and in neighboring Afghanistan, has angered many Pakistanis. The MMA coalition surged to third place in October elections and won control of two provincial legislatures on the strength of a virulently anti-American platform. Sayed Munawwar Hassan, a senior MMA official in Karachi, said the protest should be seen as a message to Musharraf's government, as well as to Washington. "America's chief ally in the region should also see today's march with open eyes and an open mind so he may correct his position and bring it in line with the people's desires," Hassan said. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ProletarianNews http://www.utopia2000.org with photo --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bdn7KI.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] TOPICA - Start your own email discussion group. FREE! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/create/index2.html ==^================================================================
