Please distribute widely - sorry for any cross postings:
Next Women Against War and Racism/Sydney IWD collective meeting will be
on Monday, January 13 @ 7pm at the Labour Council, 377 Sussex St, Sydney
City.
see contact details( at end of call to action) for any further info etc.
in solidarity,
Kim B
****************************
WOMEN AGAINST WAR AND RACISM
Sydney International Women's Day, 2003 - Call to Action
US President George W Bush has used the September 11 terrorist attacks
to launch an imperialist war drive. After devastating Afghanistan and
he now has his sights firmly on Iraq, all with the support of the
Australian Government.
When we think about war, images of planes dropping bombs and troops
running with guns in hand come to mind. War, however, resulting in
hundreds of thousands of innocent men, women and children being killed,
injured and maimed. War also creates famine, poverty and destruction.
For the rest of the world, the original Gulf War ended in 1991, but for
the people of Iraq, the war has continued for the last 12 years in the
form of bombing raids which have destroyed food and water instillations.
It has continued in the form of UN sanctions and a blockade which has
seen medical supplies and food imports curtailed. Since 1991, half a
million Iraqi children have died as a result of the blockade.
There is also another silent killer in war which receives little, if any
attention at all. That is the rape, forced prostitution, sexual
exploitation and trafficking of women and children. While rape has been
and still is used as a weapon of war and a weapon of genocide, it is
rarely classified as such. Rape can be used in order to destroy women's
confidence and terrorise a whole people. Poverty and famine caused by
war, also results in women and children being forced in protitution to
survive. This is the fate of the Iraqi women if John Howard and George
Bush have their way and the "war on terrorism" continues.
While Howard and Bush continue to push for a war in Iraq, another war in
the Middle East has continued for over 50 years. It is a war which has
been largely condoned by the governments of the United States, Britain
and Australia - The Israeli imposed war on the Palestinian people. Women
and children who make up the majority of the Palestinian population are
being terrorised and oppressed by the Israeli occupation. Women are
denied basic human rights, such as the right to access hospitals to give
birth. As a result there have been several reported cases of women
giving birth at checkpoints. The standard of living for all Palestinians
in the occupied territories is deteriorating rapidly due to the Israeli
imposed war that the American and Australian Government supports and
justifies as "Israeli's right to defend itself" or as part of "the war
on terror".
Since September 11, the Australian government and mainstream media have
used the "fear of terrorism" to create a frenzied environment of fear
based on racism, targeting refugees and people from the Muslim and
Arabic communities. Muslim and Arabic women all over Australia,
including Sydney, have been physically and verbally attacked. The
latest attack coming in the form of bigot Fred Nile, a member of the NSW
parliament, demanding that Muslim women be banned from wearing the
chador as they may be able to conceal terrorist weapons behind it!
The recent ASIO raids of Indonesian-Australian Muslim homes is an
extension of such racism. There was no evidence resulting from any of
the raids that linked any of the inhabitants to the Bali bombings. The
only result was furthered hysteria and racism. The NSW state
government has used the media induced hysteria about possible terrorist
attacks to justify the passing of legislation which gives unprecedented
powers to the police, powers which will only result in further
harassment of innocent men, women and children.
Howard's push for war in the Middle East is happening at the same time
as the Australian Government continues to lock up the very people
fleeing the repressive rule of Saddam Hussein in refugee detention
centers around the country. Women and children make up the majority of
refugees world-wide and Bush's war on terror and his proposed war on
Iraq will only result in hundreds of thousands of more people being
displace and forced into refugee camps.
International Women's Day 2003 provides a necessary opportunity to
highlight the effects of war and racism on society as a whole, but also
women in particular. IWD 03 will be an important day to take to the
streets to declare our opposition to the US Government's planned war on
Iraq.
Women Against War and Racism in Sydney will be organising to highlight
the effects of war and racism on women by protesting on International
Women's Day, Saturday, March 8, 2003. Please add your name to endorse
this statement.
The next meeting of the Women Against War and Racism/IWD Collective is
on Monday, January 13 @ 7pm @ the Labour Council, 377 Sussex St, Sydney
city. Please join us.
Contact details:
Kim Bullimore - 0439 454375 or [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Rihab Charida - 0405 760 929 or [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Melissa Gowen - 0409 655 922
Karen Isles - 0412 462 646
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