WE joined the Earthlife Africa/Anti-War Coalition Protest outside Ysterplaat Airforce Base yesterday. Approximately forty people, mostly representatives of other organisations handed out pamphlets criticising South Africa’s arms deals with Israel and other countries. Nobody chained themselves to the front gate, because it was a weekend.
Workers International Vanguard were there as usual, advancing the cause of socialism or the internationale, one can’t be sure. Great banner against Imperialism but aside from the flyers, the placards could have done with a little more care. The ELA t-shirts abounded amidst a rather scraggly lot who seemed a bit confused as to what they were doing there except to demonstrate the result of living in a warzone caused by poverty.
I chanted some Food Not Bombs slogans, like Change your Diet, Stop the War, and This is Not Entertainment. Some interesting interections with the public ensued, including a bizarre spat with one gentlemen who appeared a little shocked after I told him his children might die from stray bullets in a warzone and an irate Muslim woman who couldn’t seem to make up her mind about whether she wanted to be there or not, or who exactly she was suppposed to be pissed off with.
After about three or four hours of campaigning, Etv arrived, recorded some footage and soundbytes, and we dispursed to roars of jets overhead. Yes, I was the GREEN MAN with garbled audio and a sign on the news last night, what I was actually saying, despite my weird gettup was this — We need to change our diet of war and bombs to a diet of food, housing, education and literacy.
PS Food Not Bombs, is an anti-war anarchist movement which does not have any leaders. We are all cheerleaders and free to exercise our individual rights to protest against war.
NOTE: Caterers against Conflict is not an exclusive vegan or vegitarian movement, we also cater for flesh-eaters as well as condescending sushi types who drive Citroen’s.