Commemorating 68th anniversary of Hiroshima

Rochdale and Littleborough Peace Group members met at Hollingworth Lake this evening (6 August 2013) to remember all those who have suffered in war and especially the victims of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.

They were marking the 68^th anniversary of the first atomic bomb which was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima by the United States of America on 6 August 1945. They shared readings and floated lanterns on the lake in memory of victims of war.

Pat Sanchez, on behalf of the Peace Group said

“Over 340,000 people have died as a result of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but those who want to continue to squander scarce resources on ever more dangerous nuclear weapons of mass destruction seem to have learned nothing from these tragic events

“Today, Britain has 225 warheads, each with the power to inflict 8 times the damage of the bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima. As well as commemorating those who have died and those who are still suffering from those horrific attacks, we reaffirm our determination that this should never happen again. We call on the British Government to play its part in creating a safer and more peaceful world by scrapping the whole Trident nuclear weapons system, immediately.”

Peace Group at Littleborough Rushbearing

'Stop spying on me from Yorkshire'

Rochdale and Littleborough Peace Group joined the Campaign for Accountability of American Bases and many other organisations at the Menwith Hill  in Yorkshire on Thursday (4 July 2013). They called for the closure of the communications base in the Pennines which provides intelligence support to the United States military and which  whistle-blower, Edward Snowden revealed last week as a major link in the the 'Prism' project which spies on British people's use of e-mail and the internet.

 

The RAF describes the Menwith Hill base as being “made available to the US Department of Defense (DoD)” (see http://www.raf.mod.uk/organisation/rafmenwithhill.cfm ) and admits that “the administration of the base is the responsibility of the US authorities”, while in July 2007, the then Defence Minister admitted that  Britain had agreed to Menwith Hill being used by US forces as part of its controversial missile defence (‘Star Wars’) system. 

Philip Gilligan, on behalf of the peace group said:

“It is outrageous that the US military are allowed to spy on ordinary people in Rochdale from an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the Pennines and frightening that they have been allowed to absorb Menwith Hill into their dangerous plans for sending missiles into space. We don't want our countryside used for the Pentagon’s Star Wars fantasies. We don't want our world to be intimidated by US missiles and we don't want people in the Pennines to become a target during a future military conflict.”  

"Such decisions have been made without any debate in Parliament or even the pretence of consultation with the public. There was no chance for MPs, let alone the public to discuss the decision to tie Menwith Hill into the so-called missile defence system and without the bravery of whistle-blowers like Edward Snowden we wouldn't know that they are spying on us every time we send an e-mail."

‘Lego brick poll’ shows that Rochdale wants decent social care services, not nuclear weapons

Rochdale and Littleborough Peace Group leafleted in Rochdale town centre on Saturday, 29 June 2013. They called for an end to all spending on the Trident nuclear weapons system and for all monies allocated to upgrading nuclear weapons to be transferred immediately to funding social care services. As striking Future Directions workers marched past their stall at the bottom of Yorkshire Street, the peace campaigners said that ‘Rochdale needs decent social care services, not nuclear weapons’. 

In what they dubbed a ‘Lego brick poll’, they asked Rochdale’s Saturday shoppers to choose whether they want their taxes spent on building ‘Decent Adult Care Services’ or on the ‘Trident nuclear weapons system’? An overwhelming majority chose ‘Decent Adult Care Services’. Many also signed postcards and petitions from the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament urging MPs to demand an end to Trident and its replacement.   

On behalf of the Peace Group, Philip Gilligan said,

“During recent years, people in Rochdale have been very much on the sharp end of cuts in essential local services. We have lost acute inpatient services across the board at Rochdale Infirmary, while our Council has been forced to slash tens of £millions from planned spending on essential services. Yet, the Government with support from the Labour Party’s national leadership continues to squander £2.2 billion every year on the Trident nuclear weapons system and refuses to abandon plans to develop even deadlier nuclear weapons of mass destruction which will cost an estimated £100billion.

Based on population, Rochdale’s share of the current costs of Britain’s nuclear arsenal already amounts to £7million per year, but the staggering cost to Rochdale of so-called ’Trident Replacement’ totals well over £300million. This is more money than the Council would need to restore and maintain all local services at uncut levels and to ensure that proper salaries are restored to those who provide them. Rochdale’s £300million could and should be spent, on the essential services people need. It is time to tell the government and all those who support retention of nuclear weapons that we want our taxes spent on decent local services not nuclear weapons.

“A nuclear- free Britain would be £billions better off. Trident is a dangerous waste of public money”, he added.

Ground the Drones - Channel 4 News - 27 April 2013

GROUND THE DRONES - Waddington - 27 April 2013

Rochdale and Littleborough Peace Group travelled to Lincolnshire on Saturday (27 April 2013) to join the national demonstration against the growing use of military drones which are causing civilian casualties in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Gaza and elsewhere. The demonstration at RAF Waddington, near Lincoln was called by War on Want, the Stop the War Coalition and the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

 The Ministry of Defence had earlier admitted for the first time that armed drones have been operated remotely from RAF Waddington and used in attacks in Afghanistan (see http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/25/uk-controlling-drones-afghanistan-britain ).

On 6 April 2013, in a single incident, a drone attack ended up in killing 18 people including at least 10 children in the Shigal district of Afghanistan (http://www.asiantribune.com/node/62242 ).

On behalf of Rochdale and Littleborough Peace Group, Philip Gilligan said,

“It was very important for Rochdale to be represented at this demonstration. We were pleased to join fellow campaigners from throughout Greater Manchester and other parts of the country. We all travelled to Lincoln to make our voices heard against these unacceptable weapons. The killing of civilians by weapons controlled from an air-conditioned bunker in the East of England is not ‘collateral damage’ in a ‘game’ played on a computer screen. Each death and injury is a murderous war crime.

Over the past four years, the USA has launched hundreds of drone strikes in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia and Libya. Drones have killed thousands of people, including hundreds of children. They are indiscriminate killers. Drones make the world a much more dangerous place.

In our own country, the government’s willingness to use drones has grown rapidly in recent years without any public consultation or debate. This spring they will double the number of Reaper drones in Afghanistan and begin operating them from Waddington where we have been protesting today.

Drones are killing civilians who play no part in war. They are violating human rights and increasing the risk of conflict. We need to bring their use under control.”

See also http://www.channel4.com/news/drones-protest-at-raf-base-over-behind-our-backs-war

WE ARE ALL DOWNWIND OF A NUCLEAR POWER STATION

Rochdale and Littleborough Peace Group marked the 27th anniversary of the nuclear catastrophe at Chernobyl on Friday (26 April 2013) by calling on local MPs to support the decommissioning of all existing nuclear power stations and an end to plans to build new nuclear plants. They displayed poster and distributed leaflets reminding shoppers that "WE ARE ALL DOWNWIND OF A NUCLEAR POWER STATION".

On behalf of the peace group, Pat Sanchez said,

“The explosion and fire at Chernobyl released vast quantities of radioactive particles which spread all over Europe including the United Kingdom and Rochdale, but Chernobyl is only one of many disasters which have threatened all our futures. Like Chernobyl, the nuclear disaster at Fukushima Daiichi in March 2011 was also classified by the International Nuclear Event Scale as a highly dangerous level 7 event.

In Rochdale, we are very vulnerable to the existing nuclear power stations at Heysham and at Sellafield where there have been successions of accidents, fires and closures which threaten our safety.

Nuclear power is dangerous, expensive, unnecessary, damaging to health and closely linked to nuclear weapons proliferation. An accident or terrorist attack at a nuclear power station could leave large parts of Britain uninhabitable for hundreds of years, but even without an accident, routine releases from nuclear plants lead to rises in childhood leukaemia. New nuclear plants would create vast amounts of nuclear waste for which there is no agreed safe storage solution.”