WRITERS’ BLOCK AT FASLANE

WRITERS’ BLOCK AT FASLANE

- WRITERS AND SINGERS VOICE THEIR OPPOSITION TO TRIDENT

Writers from around the UK converged today on the Faslane naval base to protest against the presence of nuclear weapons in Scotland and to promote nonviolent alternatives to war. Poets, authors, journalists and publishers led a ‘Power of the Word Blockade’ at the military base as part of the Faslane 365 protest in which dozens of individual peace and citizens groups are protesting against the replacement of Trident nuclear submarines and calling for disarmament.

For more than three hours, writers and singers performed an uplifting medley of songs, poems, readings and speeches, featuring Billy Bragg, Roy Bailey, AL Kennedy, Adrian Mitchell, Jay Griffiths, Nicolas Hildyard, Gerry Loose, Walter Schwarz, Hilary Wainwright and many others, introduced and compered by folksinger David Ferrard. At 2pm, a demonstration of writers’ block successfully obstructed the gate of the base. Nine people were arrested, including Angie Zelter, Adrian Mitchell, Rebecca Johnson, Hilary Wainwright, Ian Davidson, Alison Parfitt, Brian Quaill and Lance Goodie.

Writer and peace activist, Angie Zelter, said ‘Our demand is that Trident must be taken out of deployment and the government should make a timetable for dismantling the weapons, together with a commitment not to develop any new nuclear weapons. We have to end the UK’s preparations for mass murder at Faslane and start upholding international law’

Billy Bragg, who sang at the event, questioned the government’s commitment to spend billions on replacing Trident, saying, ‘At a time when our troops in Afganistan and Iraq are underprotected because we have not spent enough on body armour, spending billions of pounds on nuclear weapons does not seem justifiable. I can imagine the use of the Black Watch in the future but I can’t imagine the use of killing 200 million innocent people.’

Alison Parfitt said, ‘Trident is just daft. Where is the sense in spending all this money on nuclear weapons? If we want things to worry about, let’s focus on climate change, social distresss, unhappy souls: nuclear weapons won’t help any of this.’

Adrian Mitchell, poet and grandfather of 9 children, said: ‘I am looking forward to explaining to my grandchildren why I am here and why I am against nuclear bombs. The children are the reason I am here.’

Ian Davidson, retired principal teacher of Knightswood Secondary school, Glasgow, said: ‘The idea of Trident as a deterrent is dubious, it seems to me to be illegal in international law, and that is only two of a dozen reasons to protest against it.’

World-renowned author A L Kennedy was one of many speakers to question the police’s role in protecting the base, despite Trident being illegal under international law. She said ‘You can’t smoke in a pub but you can threaten to kill everyone on earth. What’s that about?’

Brian Quail, local peace activist, said: ‘I am upholding the law and the state is breaking the law by deploying weapons of mass destruction.’

Rebecca Johnson, former special advisor to the International Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission, chaired by Hans Blix, said: ‘Tony Blair’s judgement has proved disastrously wrong on our security and foreign policy so far, so why would anyone trust that his prematurely-decided White Paper on getting a new generation of nuclear weapons would be the right choice? It’s the wrong decision, for the wrong reasons, at the wrong time, and it’s up to us people to uphold international law’.

Hilary Wainright, editor of Red Pepper magazine and member of the international thinktank, the Transnational Institute, said: ‘The true illegality here is over the wall inside the base. My message to the Scottish people is that it is they who can stop this madness.I look forward to the time when Scottish policemen are asked to uphold international law, and then I will come back as a tourist.’

For more information see www.faslane365.org.uk/

or contact:

Mandy Haggith on 01571 8440200, mobile 07734 235704 or Angie Zelter 07835354652 or David Mackenzie 07876593016.