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14 December 2002 |
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For Additional Coverage Visit The Indymedia Sites: http://bristol.indymedia.org & http://uk.indymedia.org |
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On Sat 14th Dec a 500 strong demonstration marched on RAF Fairford, & demanded entry to the Base for the purpose of conducting an inspection for weapons of mass destruction. The Gloucestershire Weapons Inspectors http://www.gwi.org.uk led the march through the Village of Fairford. On their previous visit to the base, on Halloween, their final words were 'we'll be back'. Return they did on the 14th, with 500 citizen weapons inspectors to back them up. Anti-War protesters from as far as Manchester & Brighton joined this high-spirited demo. As they marched through the Village, villagers came out of their houses to offer support. Once at the Base the Gloucestershire Weapons Inspectors demanded entry to Base while Protesters sang 'let us in, let us in' to the tune of frere jaque. Security guards looked on while a small U.S flag flapped in the winter breeze behind the Main Gates. Speakers from participating groups then spoke, courtesy of a bicycle powered P.A from Stroud. The Mayor of Stroud, John Marjoram, gave a passionate address. A model Stealth Bomber, carried by 3 people, then swooped over the protesters who screamed & 'died' in its path. During this time 20 protesters managed to cut the fence & 'invade' the base. The vulnerability of the base was demonstrated. No arrests were made. This demonstration was called by Bristol-Stop-The-War in response to the arrival of U.S Stealth Bombers at RAF Fairford in Nov. Although the Bombers have returned to the U.S, it is believed they will soon return for the purpose of conducting carpet-bombing of Iraqi cities. This will place towns & cities such as Bristol, Swindon, Oxford, Gloucester & Stroud in the frontline of the U.S War for Oil. So, in the words of George Orwell, are we now just 'Airstrip 1'? (See call for action )
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