Thousands marched in Caracas on Tuesday chanting against U.S. imperialism and the war in Iraq at start of the World Social Forum, where activists campaign for causes from fair trade to indigenous rights. U.S. peace activist Cindy Sheehan, who held a vigil outside U.S. President George W. Bush's Texas ranch after her soldier son was killed in Iraq, led the flag-waving crowds shouting "No to the war" in Spanish to end of the rally.
"We need to stop the war in Iraq, we need to bring our troops home immediately," Sheehan said from a stage. "We need to see George Bush and the rest of them tried for crimes against humanity. We need justice for our children."
Many at the rally hailed Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, a self-styled socialist revolutionary and critic of Washington, who has become a regional standard-bearer for left-wing and anti-U.S. movements since allying himself with Cuba. Colombian drummers, whistles and stilt-walkers brought a festive atmosphere to an event that has become a central forum for international debate on subjects as diverse as gay rights, anti-globalisation and global arms control.
"This is against conflict, against wars all over the world," said Marie Eve Rheault, from Quebec, Canada, who was helping hoist a peace dove fashioned from white sheets. The sixth forum registered more than 67,000 participants at the start of the six-day event, which began in 2001 in Brazil as an alternative to the gathering of world leaders in Davos, Switzerland, but has since become part of a broader movement. Newly arrived Ecuadorean Indians in traditional shawls sat among piles of their luggage at the start of the Caracas event while Brazilian students surveyed stalls offering Che Guevara T-shirts and watches and posters printed with Chavez's image.
'BUSH TERRORIST'
"This is a process that can bring change for everyone," said Colombian Lucy Martinez, who belongs to a solidarity group with Cuba. "It's great that it is here in Venezuela because Chavez, like Fidel Castro, is an example
for everyone." Many travelled by road from neighbouring Brazil and Colombia. At least four Brazilian students were killed and 11 injured when their bus crashed in Peru in route to Caracas. At the start of the Caracas forum, Cuban National Assembly speaker Ricardo Alarcon held an "open court" to accuse Bush of protecting a Cuban-born former CIA operative wanted by Havana and Caracas for the bombing of a Cuban airliner in 1976. "We all know Mr. Bush is a terrorist, " Alarcon said. "But I want to indulge him. Up to a certain point, he is not guilty. He learnt to be a terrorist from the crib, he carries it in his blood."
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=6410178&cKey=1138152028000
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
