CRD/Gaza Tomorrow 1pm Central Methodist Hall Fwd: [ftp] Gaza Flotilla Solidarity Demonstration on Saturday, Downing Street

[Mark Barrett]

 Dear Everyone

*Campaign for Real Democracy - **Call Out*

In the context of the wonderful revolutionary village currently camped in
the Square, people from A World to Win plus also Matt Scott and myself from
the Campaign for Real Democracy (CRD) have been discussing doing a new
constitution workshop at Democracy Village.

This follows up work done by AWTW, myself and others in 2006 on the
Constitution (which you can read about here:
http://www.aworldtowin.net/frontline/C421interimstatement.html )

"The constitution" meaning, in our view the superstructure and system of
laws and law making by which ordinary people are presently excluded from
power, while local community and environmental relationships get denigrated
worldwide. The present constitution is imperial, both internally (through
state centralisation and the power of the global corporate hegemon) and
externally (via ongoing war state imperialism and economic policy)
and therefore (among many other unfortunate things) illegal foreign wars of
occupation flow from this *undemocratic state of affairs*.

Our work in 2006 (the Campaign for a 21st Century Constitution or 'C421')
was an early attempt to point out the real and democratic antidote, and to
encourage a strategic mobilisation towards the end of a new constitution to
be written by the very acts and imaginative ideas of the people,
via Peoples' Assemblies. And with your help we would very much like to
resurrect the campaign idea in Democracy Village.

We are hoping to hold our workshop one evening next week so if you'd like to
be involved in planning or participating in the workshop and you're coming
to the Gaza march tomorrow (see below) then *please come and meet with me
and AWTW at 1pm at the Methodist Central Hall* and we can talk through it
and make a plan over the course of the afternoon. Our group will be holding
banners with "A World to Win" and "One State Solution" or something similar.


*Location Map for MC Hall*
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x=529902&y=179581&z=0&sv=SW1H+9NH&st=2&pc=SW1H+9NH&mapp=newmap.srf&searchp=newsearch.srf


Because the Holy Land is Everywhere (and it Takes A Village to Bring up a
Child)
Mark
For Democracy Village

PS in case you missed, see Picnicker Alison Banville's great article on the
Village, here:
http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/the-staggers/2010/06/democracy-protest-freedom


*GAZA FLOTILLA NATIONAL DEMONSTRATION*
*SATURDAY 5th JUNE  *
*ASSEMBLE 1.30pm DOWNING STREET, LONDON*

More details: http://bit.ly/aEMHws


The aid ship MV Rachel Corrie, carrying medical equipment,
wheelchairs, school supplies and cement, is due to reach Gaza
within days. Another Free aid flotilla is being prepared for
sailing to Gaza next month.

Will Israel perpetrate more acts of murderous piracy to stop
these humanitarian missions?

Governments across the world are virtually unanimous: Israel's
illegal and inhumane siege of Gaza must be lifted now. They are
doing no more than express the UN Security Council resolution
passed in January 2009, which unequivocally "calls for the
unimpeded provision and distribution throughout Gaza of
humanitarian assistance, including food, fuel and medical
treatment."

But words come easy to politicians who have habitually ignored
Israel's countless violations of international law. It is action
that is needed now, with the threat of sanctions and the breaking
of diplomatic links, if Israel does not abide with the demand to
lift the siege.

For that to happen, we need to build on last Monday's spontaneous
wave of outrage, expressed in large protests in dozens of
countries, which forced governments to demand publicly that
Israel ends its blockade, and not least in Egypt, where a regime
which has slavishly followed US dictates, felt compelled to open
its border with Gaza.

As we witness the obscene spectacle of Benjamin Netanyahu
claiming that Israel -- the world's fourth most powerful military
-- is the victim when it slaughters nine peace activists on a
humanitarian mission, Saturday's national demonstration will add
our voice to that of the peace campaigners on the MV Rachel
Corrie, who say that only by breaking the siege of Gaza will we
show that those killed by Israel on Monday did not die in vain.

David Cameron and Nick Clegg need to get the message: Israel's
crimes against humanity must stop now. Please join Saturday's
demonstration if you can and encourage everyone you know to be
there too.

If you would like to distribute leaflets in your area to help
publicise the demonstration, you can download the pdf for
printing here: http://stopwar.org.uk/images/flotilla.pdf

The demonstration is called by Stop the War Coalition, Palestine
Solidarity Campaign, British Muslim Initiative, CND and Viva
Palestina.

************************************

MUST SEE VIDEOS, MUST READ ARTICLES

These are some of the videos and articles in the last week
following the attack on the Gaza flotilla which we think are not
to be missed.

* Video of the day thousands occupied Downing Street and marched
to the Israeli embassy: http://bit.ly/9A4u4b

* Democracy Now video which is the best account we have seen of
the Israeli attack and its aftermath; it includes coverage of the
world wide demonstrations and an excellent discussion with
leading commentators: http://bit.ly/c4ZWIV

* Seumas Milne's Guardian article, "If Gaza's relief is a step
closer they won't have died in vain": http://bit.ly/bI60XA

* Mark Steel's article, "They were asking for it", is a scathing
demolition of the lies which Israeli spokespeople, such as the
abominable lie-master in chief Mark Regev, have been given free
rein to peddle in much of the media: http://bit.ly/97BtiI

* We are also remembering Rachel Corrie this week, who along with
other humanitarian peace activists such as, Thomas Hurndall, and
James Miller, gave her life in solidarity with Palestinians, when
she was crushed to death by an Israeli army bulldozer, as she
tried to protect a Palestinian doctor's home facing demolition:
http://bit.ly/cg5HK4
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